KaiserJeep wrote:I know people who are obsessed with dogs and cats.
I have friends who basically call their cats their children. These are the best taken care of pair of cats imaginable, re their health, welfare, comfort, entertainment, etc. Even when they travel, it's not enough if I come by twice a day, feed them, spend time playing with them, etc. (I work for free, as I'm their friend. Plus the wife feeds me home cooked meals which are healthy and awesome).
But I didn't want to live there as I have my own neurotic cat which doesn't do well (digestion) if I'm away for more than a few hours. They hire a school teacher friend who does a home pet sitting service to come LIVE in their house while they travel. The implication is she's pretty expensive.
Looking at vet bills and various internet estimates that to PROPERLY care for a cat would cost about $30,000 (dogs $40,000) over the lifetime of the animal. This would obviously include good medical care. I looked this up when I started getting bills like $800 for an annual cleaning and extraction of a couple teeth with big cavities. I have to wonder what proportion of first world people give their cats and dogs FAR less medical care than they should -- if they care about their pet not suffering.
Given the track record of the perma-doomer blogs, I wouldn't bet a fast crash doomer's money on their predictions.