2010-02-08
If you have pets, you know that animals come with unavoidable
expenses. But the day-to-day expenses to own a healthy pet are a drop in
the food dish compared with what you'll spend if you decide your pets
deserve the latest and greatest medical treatments when they get injured
or become seriously ill.
Even if your pet is perfectly healthy, you can expect annual wellness
checkups, pushing the average tab to $140 for kittens and puppies and as
much as $340 for geriatric cats and dogs. You may have asked yourself
whether you should have health insurance for your pets.
There was a time when I would have advised pet owners against pet
health insurance. David T. Roen — board-certified veterinarian and owner
of the Clarkston Veterinary Clinic, in Clarkston, Wash. — told me
several years ago, "Pet insurance is a gamble, and the odds are really
stacked against you."
However, in the years since, I've changed my mind, not because Dr.
Roen was wrong, but because of my personal experiences since then and
the emergence of Embrace Pet Insurance, which offers a new way to insure
the health of dogs and cats.
My first granddog, Sir Boddington, an English bulldog, died at a
young age, but only after my son spent a lot of money on vet and
hospital bills. Jeremy spent so much, in fact, that he took the time to
figure out how things may have been different had "Boddie" been insured.
When he got a new puppy, Newcastle, he decided to take out a policy
with Embrace. During "Newkie's" first two years, he had two health
issues, one requiring surgery. Most recently, he acquired a common but
life-threatening illness, which required hospitalization. Jeremy was
able to realistically compare the cost of insurance with the cost of
paying in full for pet health care. He has concluded that for him,
paying for pet health insurance is the most cost-effective way to own
and care for his dog.
There is no way to say for certain that all pet owners should carry
health insurance for their pets. It depends on each pet owner's
financial situation. What can be said, however, is that if you choose to
own a pet, you make a contract with that animal to give it the best life
possible. For many, the best way to make sure that happens is to protect
against the high costs of pet illnesses and injuries.
Here's some great news: Embrace is sponsoring a giveaway at
http://www.DebtProofLiving.com. One lucky winner will get $400 toward
the purchase of a one-year policy to cover a dog or cat. Learn more and
sign up to win at http://www.DebtProofLiving.com/Giveaway.
Mary Hunt is the founder of www.DebtProofLiving.com and author of 18
books, including her latest, "Can I Pay My Credit Card Bill With a
Credit Card?" You can e-mail her at mary@everydaycheapskate.com, or
write to Everyday Cheapskate, P.O. Box 2135, Paramount, CA 90723. To
find out more about Mary Hunt and read her past columns, please visit
the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.
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