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Although many students choose to adopt pets, deposits at apartments, vet bills and supplies such as food and bowls are important costs to consider.

Pets can strain tight budgets

By: COURTNEY SMITH

Posted: 11/6/08

Pets may be intoxicatingly cute to students who miss cats and dogs from home or want a new furry and loyal roommate, but his first piddle-puddle accident on the carpet could end up costing owners up to $800.

Many apartment complexes do not allow pets at all, and the ones that do have strict policies that could end up being very expensive before a resident even introduces the little furball to his new home.

Pet deposits for Athens apartment complexes that allow animals range from $150 to $400 and are refundable if the animal does not cause any damage or harm to the apartment. But if a student has a long day of classes or work and Mr. Barky does not get let outside to go to the bathroom, that pet deposit may not be enough to cover all of the damages.

APARTMENT PET FEES

Spring Lake Apartments: $300 pet deposit/ $10 pet rent per pet
Laurel Oaks Apartments: $150 pet deposit/ $20 pet rent per pet
Club Apartments: $250 pet deposit
Riverbend Club Apartments: No Pets Allowed
River Club Apartments: No Pets Allowed
River Mill Apartments: $250 pet deposit
Cambridge Apartments: $150 pet deposit/ $25 pet rent
Abbey West Apartments: $250 pet deposit
The Reserve at Athens: No Pets Allowed

"If a pet were to urinate on the floor and it soaked through the carpet and into the padding that could cost up $600 to replace in a one bedroom apartment," said Debora Poole, the manager at River Mill Apartments. "We would have to then deduct the $250 pet deposit from how much it cost to put in all new carpet and pads and then bill the resident for whatever was not covered."

However, many apartments choose to have, on top of a pet deposit, a pet rent fee that averages about $20 per pet every month. This fee is non-refundable and does not depend on whether or not the pet causes any damage.

"A lot of the time when residents who have pets move out there is a lot of scratch marks and flea or urine damage that our $150 pet deposit would not cover," said Kimberly McKenzie, property manager of Cambridge Apartments. "So we charge a non-refundable monthly pet rent fee to cover for these damages that the refundable deposit wouldn't."

In addition to deposits and extra rent, some pets can be an extra financial burden to students during the initial setup of necessary items and visits to the vet that can lead to costly medication prices.

Megan Lowry, a junior from Atlanta, has a rag doll kitten whose care takes up about one-eighth of her monthly budget.

"Especially with Princess Miko being a kitten, there are all the initial purchases such as bowls and things that don't often need to be replaced but are a hassle and big expense," the 20-year-old agriculture and applied economics major said. "She also needed three sets of one shot to be tested for feline leukemia, and she gets sick and I have to buy all of her medication."

But the heavy financial burden some pets place on students who are often on a tight budget is deemed a low price to pay for the companionship of an animal that will always love them and be affectionate. Steven Boos, a senior business major from Miami, said he thinks it is this kind of unconditional love that makes having an animal such an amazing experience.

"When I come home he is always happy to see me, and when I just want to chill he is the perfect company," he said. "My roommate Melvin even wrote a jazz song about him which I think is quite an honor for a dog to have a tune named after him."