Down, Fido! Taking care of your favorite four-legged friend isn't always a walk in the park. Get expert pet-training tips, advice for mixing pets and guests, plus tips for helping your pet adjust to a new baby.

Are you and your plus-one having sweet visions of furbabies romping through your home...but unsure how a new housemate might affect your bottom line? We’ve got the skinny on the costs of adding a third (or fourth, or fifth!) member to your family.

In some ways, purchasing a pet is the similar to buying a first home: The first 12 months will always set you back more than the following years because of the costs required to set up and settle in. Besides spaying or neutering your pup (which ultimately saves money by preventing unexpected fur-bundles of joy), you’ll need to pay for toys, beds, and vaccines. The ASPCA estimates that the first-year "startup" expenses alone will set you back $565 for a medium-size dog and $365 for a cat.

Outside of these initial expenses, the ASPCA asserts that the average pet parent doles out $695 annually ($470 if you don’t have pet insurance) for a medium-sized dog, while a cat costs about $670 per year ($495 without pet insurance). These costs, of course, increase if you pamper your pet with specialty food and designer toys.

So what’s the down-low on pet insurance? Policies start at around $100 a year, and premiums depend on the same factors as your own health insurance (age, preexisting conditions). Search online and then talk to your vet for recommendations. If you decide to forgo pet insurance, Gail Buchwald, senior vice president of the ASPCA’s Adoption Center in New York, suggests putting aside about $200 per year for unexpected medical expenses.

The first year bottom line? Expect to pay $1,580 for a medium-sized dog and $1,035 for a cat.

See the first year startup costs of owning a pet here.

See the average annual costs of owning a pet here.

Tired of hiding your shoes from a pup in permanent search-and-destroy mode? Kitty popping a squat everywhere but her litter box? TheNest.com can help! We’ve enlisted veterinarian Dr. Catherine Peace of Blue Pearl Veterinary Partners, a network of nationwide specialty and emergency pet hospitals, to solve your toughest behavioral and health problems -- from fussy felines to destructive doggies (and everything in between!).

If you could use a bit of expert intervention, send your questions with your Nestie username and furball's photo to pets@thenest.com. Need a Nestie username? Get one today!

Want to meet friends with furbabies? Chat with other pet lovers on our board!

Photo by Chronicle Books, "ASPCA Complete Guide to Dogs"

So, you’re ready to fill your home with the pitter-patter of little paws? Read on to figure out which breed is the best match for your lifestyle. Click here to start slideshow.

Photo Credit: Chronicle Books, ASPCA Complete Guide to Dogs.

Is your cat feverishly scratching your couch/chair/linens into scraps that don't even resemble your favorite furniture? Surprise: She’s in destruct mode for similar reasons that dogs pee on fire hydrants.

Although it’s commonly believed that cats scratch simply to sharpen their claws, according to Drs. Daniel Estep and Suzanne Hetts, certified animal behaviorists, a more likely motive is to stake out their territory and let other felines or people know where they are and what they’re up to. Males and females also scratch inside and out to play, stretch, and greet each other.

Clawing leaves behind a visible mark along with your cat’s scent, so it’s a surefire way for other animals to know kitty’s been there. Cats like to return to the same spot repeatedly – hence the shredded couch corner. And many will continue to scratch even after they’ve been declawed simply out of habit, so declawing is not a humane or practical solution to stop the behavior. Read on for a few key tips stop your cat’s clawing in its tracks.

For kittens and adult cats new to your home

1. Place 2 to 3 scratching posts in your cat’s favorite playing and sleeping spots. Buy a stylish post or make one – as long as it’s made of a material kitty can shred.

2. Cats are independent, so don’t even try hand-forcing her paw to scratch your post.

3. Encourage scratching in the right place by hanging toys on or near the post and scenting it with catnip. Be the example by scratching the post yourself when kitty’s nearby, and reward your cat with treats when she does what you want.

For older cats with a scratching problem

1. Cover the area she’s been scratching with thick plastic so it feels less tempting.

2. Put the scratching post next to her old scratching territory, and use a similar fabric on the post as her old scratching ground.

3. Leave the posts in prominent areas of your home. Kitty’s unlikely to scratch a post buried in the back of your basement!

Most people who’ve added a furry friend as their plus-one can vouch that they love sharing a pet together and their pet adds happiness to their relationship. Don’t believe them? A study of 240 couples by the University at Buffalo found that those who take care of cats or dogs “have closer relationships, are more satisfied in marriage, and respond better to stress than couples who do not.â€�

Pet-owning couples had overall lower baseline blood pressure and were able to more quickly lower their blood pressure in stressful situations than petless couples. The study also found that couples with pets socialized more in general -- including with each other (which other research has shown aids heart health). "We don't know specifically why this is so,� said research scientist Karen Allen, the author of the study. “Pet owners may be the kind of people who inherently seek out more social contact. On the other hand, there may be something in the relationship between people and pets that enhances social interaction.�

Nesties, what do you think? Has your furbaby improved your family’s nest?