I ate $400. Do I look sorry?
How much do your pets cost? After reading these stories (from Dave Ramsey’s Newsletter) you might appreciate yours a bit more. Enjoy.
Dog Eats $400
Yesterday, our dog Bauer ate $400. Actually, it was $378.18. And it was in check form. But still.
I was in the other room for two minutes (120 seconds!), and somehow he managed to find three checks lying on my dining room table, grab them, eat them, and hop back up on the couch looking all sweet and innocent.He would have gotten away with it, but I found part of a check on the floor when I walked into the room. My guess is that he was in mid-snack when he heard me approaching. So he quickly abandoned ship and headed for the safest, most guiltless looking place he could find—the sofa.
Of course, I couldn’t stay mad at him for long. In fact, I’ve gotten quite a few laughs from the matter. The insurance claims department had some laughs, too, when I called to explain the situation. Thankfully, they switched my account to automatic deposit and reimbursed me for the checks. And I learned my lesson about leaving money on the dining room table!
$200 for a Bird X-ray
We bought a pet bird, and about a month later, he got spooked and attempted to leap off my shoulder. He was just learning to fly and was not good at it, especially since his wings were trimmed. It was 8 p.m. on a Saturday night, but he was bleeding, so we ended up at an emergency vet where they did an x-ray. Two hundred dollars later, we left with the funniest x-ray I’ve ever seen. He was fine, but it was an expensive foray into the world of pet ownership. —Better than I deserve
Cat Caught in Box Spring
This happened to a family member of mine. Their cat found a small hole in their box spring and got up in there. Somehow, he got caught up in the springs (he was a long-haired cat), and they had to cut apart and destroy the box spring to get the cat out. The cat was fine, but they had to buy a new box spring. —I’m not normal
Three Weiner Dogs and A Squirrel = $3,000 Damage
Three dachshunds chased a squirrel into the engine of a friend’s car. They did $3,000 of damage to the car getting to the squirrel. My friend knew it was the dogs that did it, because the three of them were covered in grease, and a dog collar was under the hood.
$500 for a Lost Cat Fight
My cat got out one Saturday evening and rolled in the next day with the biggest swollen eyeball I have ever seen. Clearly, he was in a fight and lost. He weighs 29 pounds and doesn’t move fast at all. So off to the vet we went, and it was a long weekend. We spent two hours driving to the vet, paid an on-call fee and a long-weekend fee, and had some fancy test that told us yes, he had a scratched eyeball. Then there was salve that he hated, a long drive home, and he used my bed for a litter box in protest of his treatment, I guess. Total bill? Over $500.
Posts I have enjoyed this week:
- Top priority: giving help to the Haitian earthquake victims. Patrick at Cash Money Life writes a very timely post explaining which organizations are credible and how to avoid the scams in “How You Can Help the Relief Efforts in Haiti“.
- Fiscal Geek challenges our thinking about “Should you Invest or Save for Retirement While in Debt” Make sure you read all the comments. And while you are there, make sure you read the next post, “We’re debt free!” I won’t say how much debt Paul and Ang paid off in one year. You need to read it for yourself.
- Yes, the 401(k) is a great way to invest for retirement, but, as Jason at Redeeming Riches asks a great question, ”Are You Holding a Retirement Time Bomb?”
- Is There a “Good Reason” to Get Into Debt? is the question Craig asks in his post on Bible Money Matters. I was sure I knew the answer until I read the post. Now, I am not so sure.
- How does one get started getting out of debt? Budget…right? Not necessarily. How about declaring war. Read all about it in “How to Get Out of Debt: Step 1 – Declare War on Your Debt” posted at Provident Planning.
- How many New Year’s resolutions did you make? According to Len Penzo, you only need to make one. Read what it is in “The Only New Year’s Resolution That Really Matters“. Take time to read Len’s “Drive By Movie Review: The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3“. Does it have anything to do with personal finance? Does it need to? Is Len a dork? Is John Travolta a “sexy bad ass”? Did this review make me laugh out loud? Check it out.
I participated in the following carnivals this week:
- Carnival of Money Stories hosted by The Dough Roller.
- Festival of Frugality hosted by Yes I am Cheap
- Boomers and Seniors: News You Can Use hosted by Seniors for Living
- Carnival of Money Stories hosted by Credit Guy
- Baby Boomers Blog Carnival hosted by Baby Boomer US
