Inflation Will Hit Dogs Owners Harda
Nov 23, 2022
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When the prices of day-to-day goods go up it makes life hard for everyone. But many people neglect the impact this has on dog owners. There are some unique market forces at play that make inflation even more painful for dog owners, especially the owners of multiple dogs.
In this article, we outline the main areas a dog owner needs to be expecting an increase in cost.
Being a dog owner is expensive enough without the added pressure of inflation on prices for many dog-related costs. Though there may not be much you can do about some of these costs, there are ways you can find savings in some areas.
Dog Food
The first item many people would think of when considering the impact of inflation on dog owners would be the price of dog food and dog snacks.
Dog food is prone to price increases as many different market forces converge and have an impact on the current dog food price.
Given there are multiple different ingredients in dog food and many of those ingredients come from different countries which are then exported somewhere else where the food is created after which it is packaged and then sent to the place you live and the shops near you.
When we see widespread inflation, inflation is not simply being applied at the supermarket or dog food store where you are buying your food but is being applied at every stage of that supply chain.
Even a 1% increase in the cost of one of the ingredients in your dog food can have a significant impact on the end price. So when you consider the fact that most of the ingredients that go into your dog’s food will be subject to price pressure, as will be the factories that make the food, and the costs to transport that food from the factory to you - there is significant scope for dog food to increase in price.
Cascading Demand
Something else you may notice in times of inflation is that some people tend to change the dog food they buy when prices go up. This is an understandable decision but it often has an impact on the supply of all of the cheaper brands of dog food.
When a large portion of the market decides to buy cheaper dog food all of a sudden, all the cheap dog food brands sell out. Once the cheap brand sells out then everyone goes for the next price tier and buys up all the medium price brands of dog food.
This then leads you to a place where the only dog food left on the shelf is expensive dog food.
How To Save Money On Dog Food
To try and save money in this area you might want to consider the potential for homemade snacks, and supplementing your normal dog food with other homemade meals that are appropriate for your dog and its digestive system.
Keep in mind that you need to be very slow with the way you introduced new food into your dog's diet otherwise you are lucky to cause them some upset which may become apparent in diarrhea or vomiting.
Check out The Factual Doggo for other great dog food tips.
Vets & Services
As a business owner, one of the main ways that you can combat the impact of inflation on yourself is to raise the prices that you charge to your customers. If all of the inputs for your business and the costs to run your business go up you have to find a way to pass that increased cost onto your customers otherwise you will go out of business yourself.
What this means for dog owners is that the vets that they regularly visit and dog walkers and dog trainers and any other services involved with their dogs are likely to increase the prices they charge for their own sake, so they can afford to stay in business.
Though this is understandable and fair, it still is another increased cost to dog owners as a result of inflation.
Registration Fees & Licensing
If it wasn't enough that dog food prices go up as well as the veterinary and other dog service costs, it can be one more shock when you get your next dog registration bill to find that that has also gone up.
The councils and administrative bodies that oversee pet registration are often required to increase the costs that they charge at times of high inflation making yet another cost, relating to your dogs, that goes up.
Final Thoughts
Though there is not much that you can do about inflation, it is important to be aware of how it is going to impact you as a dog owner. When you know this you can make plans to try and minimize your reliance on those fees and services that continue to go up, to make sure that the price increase of the non-negotiable food and vet visits will not hit you quite as hard financially.