For many of us, our animals are a huge part of our family. Caring for our animals can incur a pretty hefty cost, but there are ways that you can save money on your pet.

Coupons:
Clipping coupons and combining them with store sales is a great way to save on pet food and gear. We got a cat last summer (well, she found US!), and I can honestly say that I have paid about $5 total to feed her since we got her, because I have scored so much free cat food from sales and coupons (and it's GOOD cat food- not the yucky generic stuff). I have a whole section of cat food coupons in my notebook, and I watch for sales. Here are some of the pet food coupons that are available now:

Hill's Science Diet! 
$2/1 Purina Puppy Chow!
$1.50/1 Nutramax Dermaquin!
$1.50/1 Nutramax Cosaquin!
$1/1 Pedigree Goodbites treats!
Cesar Gourmet Dog Food!
The Goodlife pet food coupons!
BOGO Greenies!
Hartz Cat Treats coupon!
Hartz Dog Treat coupon!
Farnam Horse Care coupons!
Pedigree coupons!
Rachael Ray Nutrish dog food sample or coupon!
ZuPreem® Feathered Friends Club!
ZuPreem® Furry Friends Club (rabbit, guinea pig or chinchilla)
ZuPreem® Fuzzy Friends Club (ferrets)


*Be sure to check our database to see what other coupons are available. Type in your brand and it will show you all coupons available and where to find them!
Remember- you can also get coupons by signing up for manufacturer newsletters, especially if you are very particular about what brand you use. Find more ways to find coupons here.

Rebates:
Here are some current rebate offers going on for pet care:
Feline Fresh Scoopable Cat Litter: FREE after rebate (up to $5.99!)
Arm & Hammer Money-Back Guarantee Rebate!
By Nature Cat or Dog Food rebate!
Precious Cat Free Bag rebate!
Iams Cat food- free bag WYB a bag!
Iams Dog Food!
Feline Pine cat litter!

Health:
There are a couple of different ways to save on medical costs for your animals.
Frontline RX- save up to 50% on your pet's flea and tick medication! (click the pic above)

Spay/Neuter:
There are different organizations that offer low-cost spay and neuter programs. You can go here to see what is available near you.

Be sure to check out our other articles in Saving with Purpose!
Making Money Online
Saving on Healthcare

One of the hardest areas to save money in is health care- prescriptions cost money, period. Many people lost jobs when the economy started going downhill, and this resulted in not only a loss of income, but a loss of insurance for many. Other people, faced with soaring premiums, just can't afford healthcare and insurance plans. There are some ways to save on these items and expenses. While I am not a doctor, I do have a husband who is self-employed, so I know what it is like to struggle to afford health care without a company paying your premiums!

Drug Stores:
-Many drug stores offer great deals when you transfer prescriptions to their pharmacy- like $25 giftcards to their store. If you have a lot of prescriptions you should definitely start watching for these promotions, and then switch your prescriptions around. That's $25 in FREE money. Also, be sure to check if there are generic brands available for medicines you need. While there are some medicines whose name-brand versions are better, many are the same and much cheaper.
-Couponing can help with OTC medications as well. Watch for coupons, email manufacturers, and match sales to get these items for super cheap or free. Check out my Drugstores info!
-Some stores, like Walmart and Publix, offer free antibiotics- and Walmart and Target offer many generic prescription medications for only $4. Check out the lists here (Walmart, Target, Publix) for the medicines you can get for cheap.

Prescription Savings Plans:
There are a lot of different programs that offer FREE prescription savings cards- you just sign up for them, and then show them at the pharmacy. It is a great way to save on costly medications, especially if your insurance doesn't cover it.

Free Discount Drug Card: Save up to 75% on prescription drugs!
Free PharmaCard: Get a free pharmacy discount card and save on prescription drugs!

Newsletters:
Just like any other money-saving endeavour, you can sign up for newsletters (always use a free email address for any online deal, coupon, or newsletter that you sign up for that is separate from your usual email). They often come with tips, recipes, and money-saving coupons and offers, and are free to request.
YourRxCoupons.com: Money-saving printable coupons for medications!
RemedyLife Magazine (Diabetes): Expert tips, advice, samples and coupons for those living with diabetes!
RemedyLife Magazine (Osteoporosis): Tips, advice, samples, and coupons for those living with osteoporosis!

Ask for a discount:
Many hospitals offer discounts, sometimes huge discounts, when asked. In fact, many offer help to people whose incomes are up to 4 times the poverty level (over $80,000 for a family of 4). So, ask! You can pay in cash or ask for a discount and most billing departments are willing to work with you to help make it more manageable.

I also found this article, which is full of tips on saving on healthcare costs- from hospital trips, eye exams, pharmacy costs, and more.

Do you have a great tip for saving money on prescriptions or healthcare expenses? Leave it in the comments, and I will add it to this post!

Check out other posts in our Saving with Purpose series, including making money from home!

I have been thinking a lot about how saving money doesn't always FEEL like saved money, and I figured that my readers probably have the same problem. I have been examining this in my own life, and thought that I would start a new series to help me- and you!- to find ways to turn our savings into Savings with Purpose. What does that mean? It means finding ways to save mony, stretch our budgets, and make extra money, all for a specific purpose- like a family trip, a membership somewhere, a new car, or even a new house. To begin my series, I thought I would deal more with the MAKING money aspect of this. I know that a lot of my readers are stay-at-home moms, and that ALL of my readers are looking for ways to save money. Well, there are easy ways out there to actually MAKE money from home- no, I am not talking kits you have to put together or any of that mail-order stuff. There are legitimate ways to maximize the time you spend on the computer and turn it into money- while it won't get you thousands of dollars a year, it can turn into more money in your budget. I put all of the money I make online into a special account and use it to pay for things like birthday parties, kids' clothes, and other things so that those items don't come out of our budget. That way I can splurge on things that I want to splurge on and not worry about it affecting our budget in a negative way. You can also use this money when you are Saving with Purpose.
Part 1 of this series is going to deal with survey companies. There are many companies out there who want your opinions on products, movies, music, food, restaurants- you name it, they want your opinion! Why is that? Well, companies and manufacturers spend a lot of time and money creating new products and promoting them. If they spend this time and this money, and consumers hate the product, everyone loses. So, companies want the opinions of their consumers- and they are willing to pay for honest feedback. Some companies want to know your recent experiences. Some companies want to send you new or updated versions of products to try before they hit store shelves- that way they know what needs to be tweaked before they release them. In just the last couple of months I have received diapers and cereal to try!
Since manufacturers are willing to pay for the opinions of their consumers, there is money to be made. While it is not a huge income, it does add money into your budget- and, if you are Saving with Purpose, it can definitely boost your savings! Another great thing about surveys is that it is no pressure- you do the ones you can and get rewarded for those. Miss a survey? No problem- there will be LOTS of others!

Some tips before you get started:
-Get an email address specifically for surveys. You don't want valuable survey opportunities getting lost in your junk mail, AND you don't want your regular inbox inundated! You can get free emails at Gmail, Yahoo, or Hotmail, to name a few.
-Remember: This is not income to be depended on for the livelihood of your family. This is money that will ease the financial burden, or give a boost to your budget and savings. There really is not a better way to utilize your computer to make money! Like I said, all of my income from online goes into an account specifically for "extras".
-You will not qualify for every survey you are sent. No one is. That's okay. Manufacturers are looking for a specific demographic or consumer in many cases- sometimes you will fit, other times you will not. Signing up with as many survey companies as possible will be a great way to ensure that you are maximizing your opportunities.
-Doing surveys as soon after you receive them as possible is the best way to ensure that you get the opportunity to complete them. Many times surveys fill up- so don't miss out!
-Honesty is very important. If they are paying you for your time to improve their product, you need to be honest with them.

Ready for the survey companies? Get that free email address, and then start signing up (remember, the more companies you sign up for, the better your likelihood of getting surveys regularly that you will fit into)! These survey companies are all free to join, and offer great rewards, payments, and often free products- it is worth your time to pursue! I get lots of survey opportunities each day.
Valued Opinions!
NPD Online Research!
Survey Panel Group!
Toluna!
Inbox Dollars!

You can also still sign up for the National Consumer Panel, which rewards your for surveys and other fun stuff- I have been a member for a little while, and I just received my scanner a couple of months ago. It is easy to do, and they have lots of valuable opportunities. Sign up here (if you have a landline for your scanner/internet connection- this is the easiest) or here (if you only use a cell phone rather than a house phone).