Insure your Dog? Huh!
Anyone who has looked after Dogs for any length of time knows that on occasion they can be very expensive. I dread to think how much our previous Dog Sam cost. And I wish I could write about him without starting to well up. Good boy.
Anyway. Dogs are expensive at times and this is why I have been thinking about Dog insurance or Dogs Vet insurance of late. Many companies now offer you the ability to pay a monthly fee and then most of your Dogs vet bills are covered for most problems. Don’t get me wrong, I am sure this is far from perfect and just like with human health-care I am sure that there will always be cases where they are loathe to pay.
It may be a very good idea though if you have had the experience already of having to spend a fortune on your Dogs vet visit. I have been looking at it here in Spain and unfortunately have had little luck yet but I know that in the US where most of the readers are and in the UK, it is now quite a common thing. I wish they had a Doggie NHS, that would certainly make things much easier.
On a mostly unrelated note I am sure that I read about Obama wanting to bring in a free National Health-care system like there is in the UK. There, any hospital treatment is totally free and I for one thought it was fantastic, especially for free. In the US as far as I know you have to all pay Insurance, is that right? What happens if you don’t have health insurance and get treated in hospital and cannot pay? I am genuinely curious.
And back to the topic we come.
If you do a little enquiring I am sure that you will find a number of big vet companies offer insurance and also many private Insurance companies as well. It may well be worth inquiring about prices and what the cover is as you may find it works out much better than being saddled with a large bill for treatment at the vets.
Here are a few simple steps to take to ensure that you lower the risk of a visit to the vets as much as possible:
Lower The Chance Of Needing Dog Health Insurance
Firstly, keep your Dog’s teeth clean. Dental problems are so common in Dogs it is crazy. We were guilty of allowing Sam to get very bad teeth. His breath stank and he ended up having expensive dental work and going through the pain that went with bad teeth.
The solution is simply a few raw meaty bones a week. They are cheap and they will completely eliminate bad breath because the grinding action clears all plaque and tartar and keeps their teeth totally clean. This will save you a fortune in later years, as all Dogs need some form of teeth cleaning and if you don’t do it the vet will have to.
I know that sometimes this seems like the raw meaty bones dog blog but I really cannot emphasize enough just how important they are.
Does your Dog have smelly and runny poo? I bet most of yours do. If you feed them more raw meaty bones it will change withing days. The poo will be really compact and there will be much less of it as the Dogs body will absorb so much more goodness from the food it eats. Give it a try and let me know how it went.
Recently we had cut down on the number of bones due to real financial problems. We didn’t have a good cheap source then. Bad breath and runny poo were the result within days (the Dogs not us). Back on the bones it was. The Good Mrs. Three Dog Blogger embarked on a mission that should have been undertaken ages ago. A quest to get some seriously cheap bones on a regular basis.
The result?
Every week she now goes to a nice friendly local butchers and the lady gives here a big bag full of bones or whatever other meat products are slightly too “over” to be sold to humans. It costs €3.50 which is about what? A few dollars?
Take a visit to the butchers in your area and ask about bones for Dogs and what they will cost. Most butchers can never sell everything and are glad to get a little extra for stuff they would otherwise throw away. You will be doing yourself and the little soon to be bone muncher a big favor.
Wow, long first tip. Let’s keep the rest real short.
Exercise. A healthy well walked Dog is going to live longer and need less vet visits.
Weight control. If you have a Dog prone to being rather heavy set as Faye is then keep a strict control over what they eat. A fat Dog will die young and need lots of visits to the vets along the way. Don’t let it get that far.
Flea control and parasites. See the post on fleas and use something to control these pests if they are a problem. They can cause massive reactions in some Dogs and result in vet visits. Don’t go overboard but so something to ensure you do not have a Dog that itches all the time.
Cheap heartworm medicine may also be considered if you know that they are a problem in your area.
Show the love. Of course a happy Dog is much more prone to be healthy, just as we are. By having a happy Dog we are also making our own lives healthier and happier.
Female Dog Spaying. Think about this properly. I know I wish Daisy had been spayed before she did a runner and give us the gift of five puppies. It also means that she has developed a slight incontinence problem that does seem to be controlled by Apple Cider Vinegar. If your Dog does have a UTI then try adding this to her food twice a day, I am amazed how effective this really is.
Just a few tips to maybe help lower the chances of an expensive visit to the vets. Try to implement them if you can and consider getting Dog Insurance if you can find a low price that gives quite comprehensive cover.
I’m considering insurance for my greyhound. He’s been a very expensive dog lately. He’s had severe chronic diarrhea for awhile now (no parasites, healthy otherwise) so I’ve been treating that.
As far as the US insurance question you go bankrupt. It happens often unfortunately.
dog surgeries can be VERY expensive … when my cici was hit by a car she had to have THREE surgeries on her leg and I had to come up with $1,000 the very next day before they would do the first surgery… her leg cost more than my car, all told… should have gotten health insurance for her… there are some good ones and some not so good ones…
and oh by the way, if you have no health insurance and get sick or injured, they have to treat you anyway, or so I am told, but they will bill you apparently… (and may do invasive unneeded treatments)… so beware… I MUCH prefer REAL holistic treatments for me and my dog cici…
funny, in 1996, when I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia, the drug co’s said the condition was all in my head and it was only hysterical women who needed attention, and my chiro who diagnosed me said the condition was incurable… hah, I have relieved 98% of my symptoms, it was a process, and a multitude of things that I had to do, change my diet, take certain supplements, do various therapies, etc. now 13 years later, the drug co’s, since they were losing out on business, have come up with Lyrica, with scary sounding side effects that almost sound worse than fibro … am sure some people buy into it, but it just goes to show the drug companies true colors, first they dismiss, deny and say derogatory things, then when they realize the PROFIT/MONEY they are missing out on, come up with some terrible drug to get in on the action… sad state of death care in America. we need reform yesterday…
Our 3 dogs are “house pets” – we have a fenced in back yard and a dog door for them to come and go as they please. We like the idea of “meaty bones” for them to chew on, but are concerned with the “bones” becoming and making a mess on our light colored carpet.
Is there any solution to this “mess on the carpet” issue??
my dog fell off a desk while sleeping and dislocated his leg (at the time we did not and feared a broken leg). x-ray and treatment cost over 800 pounds. Luckily he was insured. Its well worth to have one.
Sand,
That’s it, one problem and the Dog insurance can easily cover years of payments. At least I assume it would. It is a shame it is not more common here in Spain.
Glenn,
If the yard is fenced then just give them the bones outside and lock the Dog door or barricade it for a while. Trust me they will not mind if they are outside with a nice meaty bone for a while. They will love it.
Guaranteed.
Just ensure (as I always say) that you never give cooked bones to Dogs.
Hi CeliaSue
I got your email (thanks) but it looks like your comment did go through. It really does seem like Dog health insurance is worth having if you can get a good price. This is always my concern, that a single problem can leave you having to find a lot of cash that you don’t have.
As to drug companies, well, its not an altruistic thing is it. They are after the cash. In the UK at the moment, and the rest of Europe there is a bit of an uproar about the whole new flu vaccines and the fact no one will say how much the drug companies have been paid and the profits they are making. I would not even know where to begin to try to find a solution but it sounds like you have done very well with what people always unfortunately call “alternative treatments”.
KIANAB,
Where you been? Long time no hear. Hope you are well.
Sounds like the Dog Insurance is a good idea the more people comment.
They would really bankrupt you if you did not have health insurance? So why were so many people opposed to the idea of a national health system in the US or was that just hype that we got over here? The NHS in the UK may not be perfect but you get free treatment for whatever medical problem you have. You never have to pay anything.