Archie the cat came to visit for a week.

On the positive side, a pet adds personality to a home, provides companionship, and may provide entertainment. We don’t have children yet, so a pet could give us an opportunity to lavish our love and care on something smaller than ourselves, but not quite as involved as a child.

However, a pet costs money and requires upkeep. Archie is a short-haired cat, but he still sheds.  One of my chairs has become temporary off-limits to people due to the fact that Archie has claimed it and left his hairy mark upon it. Fortunately he prefers that one chair, so my couch and other chairs are still available for us less-hairy types. He seems to be a clean cat, but despite our best efforts, his food bowl and litter box still smell like cat food and litter box, respectively.

So right now I’m inclined to think that, for us, the negatives of a pet outweigh the positives.

However, if my husband ever has to start traveling for his work, I think I’ll get a dog. Right now I’m torn between a miniature dachshund or a retired greyhound. Dachshunds are cute, but one of my friends almost has me wondering if greyhounds are the perfect dog.

You can read more about greyhounds at Adopt a Greyhound and Houndsavers. Retired Racing Greyhounds has reasons to and not to adopt a greyhound here.

If you’re interested in pet costs in general, check out ASCPA’s pet cost calculator. There are lots of other articles about pet costs, but many seem to refer back to ASCPA. Of course, in the final analysis, many people decide that a pet offers priceless intangible benefits.