Weekly question: Is pet insurance necessary?

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I certainly do not have pet insurance for my mutt and cat. But I’m not totally against it, either. I have young and healthy pets, and so far I’ve been able to afford all of their vet bills with no problems. I would also be willing to spend a few thousand dollars out of pocket if one of them ever needed it. Maybe when I have more income and more pets it will make sense to buy pet insurance. For now, I’m managing without it.

The vet expenses add up, of course. Right now, I am paying at least $500 per year at the vet between my dog and cat for mostly routine vaccinations, flea prevention, heartworm prevention, occasional ear infections, etc. Pet insurance companies such as PetFirst Healthcare offer basic premiums starting at around $30 per month. Is it worth it?

I never rule out anything when it comes to my pets. A year ago, I never though I would be buying natural dog food. Tomorrow I’m planning on buying natural food for Ace for the first time. I’m not interested in pet insurance now, but maybe I will be down the road.

What do you think? Is pet insurance necessary? Do you have pet insurance? Are you considering it?

(Every week, I am going to ask a dog-related question. I don’t care if you’re an “expert” or not. I want to hear what you think. If anyone has a dog-related question, just email it to me at Lindsay@thatmutt.com, and I’ll post it for others to answer. Otherwise, I’ll keep supplying my own questions, because I’ve got plenty of them.)

(Image is of my parents’ dogs, Sophie and Elsie.)

155 Total TweetBacks: (Tweet this post)

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en: Is it just me, or was Sarah Palin's resignation speech bizarre? She rambled on and talked about basketball and refrigerator magnets 07/04/09 03:27am
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en: Bed. Hopefully I will get to work tomorrow (and it will be slow and boring) or I won't and I can go to A2 to cash my checks (and stuff). 07/02/09 05:03am
en: Getting off work in a few hours. Don't know if I'm gonna sleep when I get home, or just wait until tonight. Wanna go Geocaching! :D 07/02/09 05:03am
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en: so im watching this marathon of Billy Mays show in honor of him and I wonder which is more scary him alive or as a zombie ? 07/02/09 03:23am
en: @rbuerckner but in tweets? Or am I just slow on the uptake? Or did I miss something over the last few days while I had no internet access? 07/02/09 03:23am
en: (the bad news was that either my scholarship isn't valid anymore or student admin are crap.) 07/02/09 03:23am
en: Just finished watching every second counts. If you're a Crossfitter or anyone intrigued by human performance it's a must see. 07/02/09 03:23am
en: @Leavchip @hermorrine @axm9237 : Yeah, tone changed, but we'll see if the actual plan did or not. Might just be the execution, who knows... 07/02/09 03:23am
en: @GeorgeJa I have ADD who would put me in charge of anything dealing with numbers or equations ooo Shawne Merriman... 07/02/09 03:23am
en: if, u won NBA Championship should u stay 4 less or take the money n run. Some say its about the rings while others say its about the money 07/02/09 03:23am
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en: do you still want me to come out there or did you hadle the situation already --Boston PD[[one hour laterr]] 07/02/09 03:23am
en: watching the Lord Of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. I haven't watched any of these in a year or so. 07/02/09 03:23am
en: For the Kakashi Fan Art Contest, do you have to draw a picture of Kakashi, or just something from Naruto? #Naruto #Funimation @Funimation 07/02/09 03:23am
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pt: maninha (de 11 anos, tá, meobein) ouvindo black or white no meu celular é mara! *0* 07/02/09 03:23am
en: Photo: You must stand for something or you’ll fall for anything. http://tumblr.com/xiq27py5h 07/02/09 03:23am
en: @mileycyrus I rock out to black or white... Aaaand dream by you haha. Love that song! 07/02/09 03:23am
en: Make *$200 or More EVERYDAY ! Fun and Easy! ==> http://tinyurl.com/nxtnqt 07/02/09 03:23am
en: Why r soo many people dumb when it comes to dick or pussy 07/02/09 03:23am
en: If I was a watermelon, would you spit or swallow my seed? 07/02/09 03:23am
en: Ima drink till my lifestyle improves, or I pass out, whateva comes first 07/02/09 03:23am
en: Is it me or there seems to be lots of entertainers dying these few days? M.J, Karl Malden, Mollie Sugden... anymore? = 07/02/09 03:23am
en: @JuliaGoolia Wow that's incredibly brave! Is this a 'congrats' sitch or a 'good luck' sitch? 07/02/09 03:23am
en: Ego is neither good or bad, just unconscious. Seeing ego as a personal problem is just more ego- Ekhert Tolle, New Earth. 07/02/09 03:22am
en: What can i do tomorrow? go to birthdays or just stay home watching movies and eating some popcorn, I like it! So nicely these days for us!!! 07/02/09 03:22am
en: Heading to Kapaa to get a bid of a roof repair or replace. 07/02/09 03:22am
en: @_masquerade_ I know! I was like, umm actually she is epic! She is the next Madonna OR even better than Madonna! She is revolutionary. 07/02/09 03:22am
en: The way one parent treats her or they won't let her go out, she switches houses. Like she just told my mom she was packing her "shit" 07/02/09 03:22am
en: @rsmallbone try slapping it on her ass. I hear that helps. Or something. 07/02/09 03:22am
en: Hot property - China Daily: China DailyHot propertyChina DailyThe influx is because of the Buddha sarira (or she.. http://tinyurl.com/nagba8 07/02/09 03:22am
en: @WoahOhJessica @taylorswift13 I knoo!!!!!! Wait isn't he like 19 or 20 kidding like23 rightt 07/02/09 03:22am
en: Is buying a tweed, hmm blue or gray hhmmm.. 07/02/09 03:22am

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This entry was posted on Monday, June 9th, 2008 at 10:32 pm and is filed under pet insurance. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

6 Responses to “Weekly question: Is pet insurance necessary?”

K9 Amiga Says:
June 10th, 2008 at 2:54 am
i think the older they get, the better an owner feels knowing that safety net is there. vet bills can get incredibly expensive. i don’t have insurance, but i like to think that if anything ever happen, id get creative and do some fund raising from friends family and acquaintances.

K9 Amiga’s last blog post..Computer Speaks Dog?
Apryl DeLancey Says:
June 10th, 2008 at 8:12 am
I’ve been milling this over myself and haven’t really decided yet. It seems like it would be good for an older animal but I’m not sure they will always cover them.

Apryl DeLancey’s last blog post..5 Questions With A Running Back
Mayra Calvani Says:
June 10th, 2008 at 12:42 pm
I don’t think there’s pet insurance here in Europe yet, except perhaps for England. But vet bills are considerablly lower here as well. It’s just like with medical care. It’s so much expensive in the US, compared to here, where it’s mainly socialized. I know my friend in Fl has paid thousands for her sick pets, and she doesn’t have insurance. It would be terrible to have to put a loving pet to sleep because of lack of money.

Mayra Calvani’s last blog post..My virtual book tour continues…
vee Says:
June 10th, 2008 at 1:35 pm
I’ve been thinking about this question for a while as well. So far walter has had two er trips that we’ve been able to afford just fine. I’m worried about accidental injuries - such as hit by a car, or eating something they shouldn’t. Those DR bills can be mighty

vee’s last blog post..EGAD!
castocreations Says:
June 11th, 2008 at 2:22 pm
I think I wrote about this … my mind is like swiss cheese right now.

I’ve decided that it probably is NOT worth it. We’re paying $12.95 a month per dog = $38.85 a month. And it doesn’t even cover things like Quinn’s latest dental adventures. *sigh*

So I *think* we’re going to cancel all three and start putting that $40 away in an ING account. That way we earn some interest and can have fairly quick access if we need the money.

Plus we can use the Care Credit option - getting 12 months no interest if needed.

castocreations’s last blog post..Quinn is Doing Better - and Trooper Rocks!
Lora Says:
June 11th, 2008 at 4:31 pm
I cant afford pet insurance with 6 dogs. I called a couple of companies one time. The quotes they gave me for 6 were akin to human health insurance for a family… I have just put money away when I can and have to hope for the best. I figure i would pay in premiums in about 3 months the total amount they would cover for any one claim for my dogs.

Lora’s last blog post..Wordless Wednesday

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Weekly question: Is pet insurance necessary?

6 Responses to “Weekly question: Is pet insurance necessary?”

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