Providing you live on a park home or holiday caravan site that accepts pets, they can provide great company, especially if you live on your own. However, the costs of ownership can be high, so here are some tips to help

If you are a pet owner and are now thinking of moving into your first park home, be sure to check the rules for the site first, since pets are not always allowed, or may be limited. There’s no hard and fast rule here and each site has its own rules, perhaps allowing cats but not dogs, or vice versa. Caring for a pet can be expensive, with a typical dog owner spending over £20,000 on their pet during its life! Hopefully our tips will give you some ideas for reducing the costs a little.

1Do your research
if you’re open minded about which type of pet to have, it would pay to do your research first. Website www.petwebsite.co.uk has charts showing how much it typically costs to keep a cat or dog, including the one-off costs like puppy or kitten injections, as well as the ongoing annual costs such as food. For a dog it says that one-off costs can range from £375 to £520, while annual costs can range from £626 to £1,136.

2 Help with medication
Keeping your pet in top health can be very expensive, particularly as it gets older. There are some charities that may be able to help with looking after your pet, if you are on a low income. For instance, Cats Protection offers financial help for owners on means-tested benefits who can’t afford to neuter their cat. Also, Blue Cross offers subsidised treatments for owners of pets who are on a low income.

3 Fostering
If you don’t yet have your own pet, it may be worth considering adopting one instead of buying your own. Local animal charities are often looking for ‘foster’ parents to look after cats or dogs while they are waiting for a new owner. If you foster a pet the charity will often cover costs such as food and vet bills and, in some cases, this can be a long-term adoption. Of course, the down side is that the day may come when a new owner is found for your foster pet. However, the charity may then give you first refusal if you have become attached and want to keep the pet.

4 Get the best pet insurance
Insuring your pet from a young age is one way to spread the cost of the vet bills that could occur when your pet becomes older. There are quite a lot of different policies out there, so it can be hard to find the best for your needs. One good source of help is the website www.moneysavingexpert.com which has a very good guide to getting the best pet insurance.

5 Buy pet products online
If your pet needs regular medical treatment, perhaps with an expensive pill, ointment or flee protection, don’t rely on your local vet or pet shop as the only source of buying these products. Once you know what product you need, it can be much cheaper to buy it online. One website that can help is www.medicanimal.com which sells products cheaper than other outlets, including medical products and food. You may also find that it’s cheaper to buy in bulk when using online retailers, so why not club together with other pet owners on your park home site and save money by buying in bulk?