Worried For Future

[Tylerman]

Okay guys - I own two bearded dragons one is roughly 7 and the other roughly 4. My worry is that when/if one of them get a disease or something and I don't have money, what do I do???? I have to save up for car repairs, insurance, gas, etc..., I have to buy the food for the pets, everyday stuff also, etc... Im only 17 and I cant get a job because of college financial aid, health insurance and all those goodies. What should I do when/if this situation arises??? If it happens, would go fund me work? I've never used that and hate asking people for money. I only get like $15 a week for allowance after buying pet food and also saving a couple dollars.

 

[AHBD]

Some people do set up a Gofundme for a serious problem....then it's up to people to help if they want. In the mean time, just save what little money you have and maybe pick up an extra lawn job or two. Look for odd jobs like weeding around someone's house, planting their flowers or other odd jobs. It's good that you're thinking about the future though ! But try not to worry about what MIGHT happen, that can cause unnecessary anxiety. For minor problems with your dragons you can always post here.

 

[Goonie]

You raised a valid concern, one that everyone worries about regardless of their age and/or financial status.

We can only save as much as our daily lives allow, and hope that nothing bad could happen to our pets. However, emergencies does occur and health issues will surface; there's no way to predict what could/would happen in the future.

One thing you can do to plan for monetary emergencies is to find a good vet now and ask for some type of payment plan if/when a large vet bill is incurred. Another alternative is to try GoFundMe, but keep in mind that that site will take a percentage of what's raised as a service fee (https://www.gofundme.com/pricing/) and you would still need to cover for the remainder.

 

[Tylerman]

I truly thank you guys for responding. Great advice I got here. I know that they are in real good health at this moment. And looking like they'll stay that way for now! Thanks again!!!

~~Tyler

 

[SDragons]

One thing that you can do is put a bit of your change in a jar every week. You would be surprised how quickly your extra nickels and dimes add up. Keep it as savings, and if you start saving now you will have some extra money that can be put toward your BD's care.

And if you do have money put aside it will impress your parents that you are being so responsible. If my son had saved money for Heath Care for his BD, it would make me open want to help his pets since I can see how responsibility he is being.

 

[CooperDragon]

That's good advice. Whenever I use cash (often) I round up to the nearest dollar when I record it in my budget and then put the change in a big bowl. Every few months when the bowl is full I bring the change to the bank and find I've got about $80 of money that doesn't hit the budget. I use it as fun money but it's a very good way of saving money without having a huge effect on daily budget.

 

[Rankins]

Some vets may allow payment plans. Mine mentioned he would "work with me" when my cat needed a $500 surgery. Thankfully he didn't need to, I cashed out a retirement plan and was able to pay the full amount.
Credit cards work also, but interest rates are horrible.
Its good your planning for "what if's" even if they never happen. Responsability is a good trait to have, and it sounds like your invested in providing the best care you can for your dragon.

 

[SLDragon]

I wouldn't rely on gofundme. It's optimistic to think there will be enough people willing to help.

As others mention, try putting a little bit aside as and when you can. Obviously making sure your lizards care is spot on helps.

Credit cards can do the job in a pinch, but ensure you can afford the repayments. If you can build ok credit there are often introductory schemes that give you a period without interest. It's a last resort.

If you have a choice of reptile vets then in advance of needing assistance you could find if any offer payment plans and bear that in mind.

 

[Tylerman]

Thanks for all the replys! I am giving them proper temps, substrate (tiles), daily cleaning, fresh water, outside time, inside time, salads (when we have the stuff to make one), UVB, etc... So they are very active and happy!

 

[Rankins]

Cooper somehow I missed your change saving post. I did pretty much the same thing. Any change that I had in my pocket at the end of the day got tossed into a Rubbermaid bin. When I cashed in my pennies, nickles and dimes I had $800 in change. I could barely lift the bin....and the bank hated me for making them use the change counting machine for nearly an hour

 

[CooperDragon]

Cooper somehow I missed your change saving post. I did pretty much the same thing. Any change that I had in my pocket at the end of the day got tossed into a Rubbermaid bin. When I cashed in my pennies, nickles and dimes I had $800 in change. I could barely lift the bin....and the bank hated me for making them use the change counting machine for nearly an hour

Break their machine. Not your problem. Turn that change into money for dragons =). I hope you never need to dip into reserves for dragon care but it's good to know it's there.

 

[Goonie]

Cooper somehow I missed your change saving post. I did pretty much the same thing. Any change that I had in my pocket at the end of the day got tossed into a Rubbermaid bin. When I cashed in my pennies, nickles and dimes I had $800 in change. I could barely lift the bin....and the bank hated me for making them use the change counting machine for nearly an hour

That's the best and easiest way to save money without even trying. It's like finding money that you're allowed to keep!

 

[mikedurant]

Bearded dragon food items are varied, but knowing which food is nutritionally best is the key for having healthy Bearded. I remember a few days ago, my house roof was full with rats, small populations become full infestations in very little time and was shearing my bearded badly. I was very worried about how to get deal with this problem as my bearded was getting poisonous disease because of rodent bite. Then one of my friend suggested me to hop over to this useful link to get rid of this rodent problem and to keep my Bearded healthy and safe.