Package Deals

So, I wanted to write a quick blog post about package deals, mainly... why we're not able to do them.  I had someone call today, saying they added up the costs of everything, and they have to save up some more, and we got to the discussion of the fact that the chins may not be on sale, when they are ready.

So they asked if we could do some sort of a package deal for a chin, cage, supplies, for a discount. I told her, unfortunately, we are unable to do that.  It sounded like she was starting to cry as we hung up the phone.

Not that I don't want to be nice, but, I wanted to explain why this is incredibly difficult (and, moreso, not really possible, on a cost perspective) for me to do.

Let's ignore the cost of the chins for a moment, cause those go on sale from time to time, and let's focus on the supplies.

Food:
Here -- Tradition $0.75 per pound
Oxbow -- 3 lbs -- $8.92 (not including shipping) -- here at Petsmart -- comes out to $2.97 / pound

Dust:
Here -- $1.25 per pound
Blue Cloud dust -- 13 oz. for $6.29, or 3 lbs for $10.49, here at Petsmart -- that 13 oz. is 3 oz SHORT of 1 lb... for $6.29!  The 3 lbs for $10.49 is still $3.49 per pound

Hay:
Here -- $1.00 per pound
Oxbow hay -- 15 oz. (1 ounce short of a pound) for $4.39, here at Petsmart.  Other sizes include 40 oz. for $9.77, or 90 oz. for $18.69.  Those work out to over $4.39 per pound, $3.90 per pound, and $3.32 per pound.

So, for a direct comparison, let's say you get 3 lbs pellets, 3 lbs dust, and 40 oz (2.5 lb) hay.  From the pet store, this would cost you $28.46 (plus tax and shipping).  From here, that would cost you $8.50.

How much more of a discount would you really like?  That's 70% discount from retail price, and, it's literally the same stuff that you are getting, just not always in such fancy packaging.

I used to tell people, I wish I could do more and help them out more... but what it honestly comes down to is this -- if you can't afford the $8.50 for basically 1-2 months worth of pellets, dust, and hay... a chinchilla may be too expensive of a pet for you.