pet insurance not helping

[sixsigma]

I think pet insurance is starting to price Veterinary services out of the reach of low income family households, making pet ownership an elite pastime and lifestyle.
If you can't afford pet insurance, the vets don't really care about you and you are counted as a second class pet owner.
When I called up my vet clinic, the nurse spent a lot of time asking about pet insurance- why should I be made to feel that I must have pet insurance?
Its only quite a recent thing, last 10 years or so, I dont want insurance for everything. But I think vets bills have rised because of insurance, and people who cant afford insurance will soon not be able to afford medical care for their pets.
Its going to become a situation where vets will soon ask for insurance ID at the door, and if you dont have it, send you away.

[Licokitty]

I personally don't have Pet Insurance, but im trying to price some out. I work as a Tech in Vet Clinics and i never see Veterinarians hassle our clients if they do not have insurance. I have only seen something close to this situation in emergency care and it wasn't for Insurance it was for Care Credit, a type of Insurance/Credit Card to cover an expensive treatment or surgery. It saves the client, the pet, and the Veternarian. Pet Insurance is mostly great for the client not so much for the Veterinairan clinic. Either way in the usual case, The Veterinarian is still getting paid. It is up to your Insurance on how much you are getting rebated in your Pets Health Plan. VPI, ASPCA, PETCO, are some examples of current Pet Insurances. Then again there is Care Credit that is like a Credit Card and you can use to pay for huge Vet bills and make payments.

I hope this helped you a little.

[sixsigma]

thanks Licokitty i will try and read and find out about Care Credit that you talked about.

But all these sort of things are just covering up the fact that insurance is allowing vets to put their bills up near me, and then the vets can say "well, if you cant afford it you should have got insurance!".
This is what happened to my cousin when her dog broke its leg.

I just feel that insurance and such like, is making pet care into a 2 stream society, those with it that can afford vet bills, and go as often as they like about anything, and those who can't afford insurance suffer as they dont have insurance but the vets fees keep being put up and put up.

[Administrator]

this certainly is an interesting subject to debate, but don't forget, UK vets take an oath before they start working as a Veterinarian (and its a similar responsibility for vets in other countries) to

"I PROMISE above all that I will pursue the work of my profession with uprightness of conduct and that my constant endeavour will be to ensure the welfare of the animals committed to my care."

The situation you suggest is unlikely...

Its going to become a situation where vets will soon ask for insurance ID at the door, and if you dont have it, send you away.

..its unlikely because Veterinarians are honour bound in their code of conduct to give urgent immediate medical care to any animal which needs it: so if your pet is very ill, they won't turn you away.

In fact, pet insurance has helped many pet owners to provide good medical care to their pets, and helped many vets to do their work to the best of their ability without worying about finances so much- so some would argue that pet insurance is a very good thing.

But I do understand and sympathise with many of the points you are making; what do others think?

[naturallypethealthy.com]

I currently do not have pet insurance but I am researching the different plans available. I have a 4 year old Parson Russell Terrier, A new "mut" puppy, A hairless Sphynx Cat and and American Curl Cat. I was a breeder for many years with the Parsons. Now I am working on a new Cat breed called the Elf Cat. It is a hybrid between the Sphynx and American Curl. Any how. About two years ago we had a Brittany Spaniel Puppy named Charlie. He was the love of our life. At about 8 months old we had a BBQ and one of our guest brought chicken. Very sadly our dog charlie had to be put to sleep because there was no way I could afford the surgery to repair his bowels. It was a sad day for us and we still regret not paying for the surgery to this day. Now we just bought a new puppy from a farm over the weekend. His name is Spike. Yesterday morning he got very sick, vomitting and diarrea. I was so upset because of what happened to my Charlie that I was shaking and it really brought all the memories back for me like it was just yesterday. Our puppy is Ok I had him at the vet asap yesterday and honestly I just can't bare the thought of losing another one. Pet insurance is definitly on my mind now for sure. It turns out that Spike probably just has worms but I will not take that chance again. It's not worth losing a part of my family. I think it does boil down to love. If you really love your pet you'll do it, sad thing is most people don't realise how important it is until the worst happens and it is too late. I lost one of my sold on the insurance but I am trying to find out which one is the best. I would love to hear some input from others that do have insurance.

Janelle Nystrom
Pet Owner & Herbal Pet Remedy Retailer
http://www.naturallypethealthy.com

[wobble]

I do have pet insurance for my cat, I really like having it because it means that i never need to think about the vet bills and can go even if its just for something small, like a spot on the skin, as you never really know if its important or not- so it gives me lots of peace of mind.

But I do understand what the original poster says about

pet insurance is starting to price Veterinary services out of the reach of low income family households, making pet ownership an elite pastime and lifestyle.

I think that if you had a big dog, instead of just a small cat, pet insurance must be pretty expensive. I don't know whether vet bills have gone up from insurance- but I do know there have been lots of medical advances in the last 10-20+ yrs in pet health, so I think its understandable that if we can use new drugs to treat new diseases, prices will rise?

Nice to meet you Janelle, I totally understand how sad it is to lose a pet, in any circumstances, what a tough decision you had to make before. Good luck with Spike your new dog, lets hope he stays healthy! x

[bigdog]

I currently do not have pet insurance but I am researching the different plans available

good idea, its important to research these things to get the best plan for your pet and your budget.
The staff at your local vet may be able to help you learn which insurance plans are good, and which are not so good (but its probably best to check that they are "independent" and not selling their own scheme, before you ask them?).

[oldiesclub]

We recommend our adopters at least have liability cover, so that if the dog causes an accident or bites someone, they are covered for that.
But with older animals, many adopters choose to save up to cover medical bills rather than pay high premiums.

In the UK, Axa currently has a good reputation for affordable insurance for older pets.

I'm not sure bills have risen because of insurance. Medical care for people has become more costly too, just because research has moved on and there are more options to treat animals that in the past would have been put to sleep.

My childhood dog was put to sleep in the 1980s because of a non-malignant but inoperable tumour which grew too large for her to carry. Oldies Club currently has a dog in foster with a very similar tumour, but having it removed surgically is now possible. It'll cost more, but the dog will live longer and have a better life.