JACALYN HO - [X]PRESS 2.0 For every one dog, three cats are adopted at the San Francisco SPCA, which has experienced an influx of animals this summer.

Recently, people have been feeling the effects of the cost of pet care due to the recession. But a strong bond between owner and pet has many saying that they'll do whatever it takes to cover the expense.

"It's really costly, but there is no way around it," said Joy McMacklin, a 26-year-old dog owner.

McMacklin has to take her dog, Doobie, repeatedly to the veterinarian because he gets "yeast in his ears."

The average annual pet care costs range from $70 for a guinea pig to $260 for a big dog, according to the American Society for the Prevention Of Cruelty to Animals website. Pet health insurance averages $175 for cats and $225 for dogs per year, and the average cost of having a person's pet spayed or neutered can cost from $145 to $220.

When Pairach Pilaikiat, 34, took his cat to the veterinarian, he described the visit as "too expensive." In one visit, he had to pay $500.

"My friend had to take his dog to the doctor because his dog couldn't urinate. It cost $7000," he said.

According to Kiska Icard, communications director of the San Francisco SPCA, there is about a 50-percent increase every month in terms of people who cannot afford pet care and ask for help from assistance programs.

For those who can't afford treatment, the SPCA offers the Pet-A-Care Senior Discount Program, the Emergency Veterinary Care Fund, and Care Credit.

The Pet-A-Care Senior Discount program provides 50 percent off all veterinary services to those owners over the age of 65. The Emergency Veterinary Care Fund provides urgent care to ill or seriously injured animals and can help repay the debt for emergency services provided to pets of San Francisco residents. All clients that seek financial assistance are required to apply for Care Credit, a credit card that a person can use to pay for their pet's treatment according to sfspca.org.

Last year, 40 percent of the SPCA's Veterinary Hospital clients received charitable assistance, including one-time grants and direct financing for emergency services and discounts to qualifying clients for hospital services.

Although there are financial programs to try to help people with pricey medical bills, each year it is estimated that six to eight million pets enter a shelter. Out of those pets, three to four million cats and dogs are euthanized according to the Humane Society's website.

"Working at a shelter, it is the saddest thing when an animal dies here," Icard said.
In the direst circumstances, the cost of emergency pet care can be astronomical, Icard said.

Icard's own dog required emergency surgery when it's stomach "literally flipped over," she said. The dog had to have its stomach taken out and insides rearranged. Without the surgery, her dog would have died.

"It was $3,200. You know, it was steep. It was a hit to my credit card," said Icard. "But I think to myself, 'Wow, [what] if that had been me, or one of my family'."

Muriel Meunier-FiebelKorn, 55, took her dog to the San Francisco Veterinary Specialists because her dog had a sprained leg.

"If you have a dog, it is like having a commitment. I would stop drinking my cups of coffee to take care of my pet's pet care," she said.

As McDonald says, "People always put their dog and their children first. Whether they have two legs or four, children are your children."