Coworker's golden retriever - reminder to get insurance!

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

This topic comes up frequently on DK, but I notice we have a lot of new members waiting on puppies (it's that season I guess) and I had to tell a story that will stress the importance of insurance.  It's a tear jerker, so be prepared.

 

My coworker has no human kids. Two goldens and two horses are her babies. Two weeks ago one of her goldens, Foster (8 yo), stopped eating and began throwing up.  He had a bandage on him for some allergy problems on his foot.  They suspected he ate it.  Xrays showed he did.  I am giving you the short version here, but they spent $9,000 on TWO surgeries and 10 days in emergency care.  And sadly, I found out upon returning from vacation, they lost him. He was leaking fluids and they were forced to make the decision to put him down to avoid him suffering any longer. 

 

They did not have insurance, but fortunately, they have plenty of money to pay for the surgery and all of the surrounding care.  When I told her she should get pet insurance for the other golden, she didn't even know it existed!  I explained we really get it for catastrophic care - what if Peri gets hit by a car? What if she eats something bad?  What if she needs joint surgery? 

 

If you get insurance when your dog is young and has no problems (aka pre-existing conditions), they are insurable and insurance would cover things like hip dyplasia, emergency care, etc...  GET INSURANCE NOW so you don't have to be forced to make a potentially terrible decision in the future.

 

Sad story for the week but this happened and it prompted me to remind all DKers to get pet insurance if you have not already.

 

Recent discussions about types of health insurance (you can also do a search for more):

 

http://www.doodlekisses.com/forum/topics/pet-health-insurance-1

 

http://www.doodlekisses.com/forum/topics/help-me-decide-on-these-tw...

 

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

Had to add - I pay about $240/year for Peri.  For 10 years, that is $2,400.  I hope I never use it.  But to put it in perspective, I have paid over $5,000 for Taquito when he was in emergency care 6 summers ago.  He almost died, I had no insurance, I was single and charged every bit to a credit card to keep him alive.  Wow insurance would have paid for itself in dividends.  He is now uninsurable!

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

Check out some of the links above Ava. We have Petplan and although we have not had to use it, members on here seem to have good experiences.  There is also VIP, as well as a few others.  The links above have more than I know off the top of my head! 

[Lonnie & Libby Lu]

Very important and glad you posted this Allyson!  Thanks!

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Thanks for the reminder, Allyson

[F, Calla & Luca]

I'm sorry to hear this sad story.

[Anne & Mr. Haley]

This is such a sad story.

After my neighbor accidentally ran over her beagle, Sundrop, I made the decision to get insurance for Haley.  I had put it off for a long time due to the fact that I couldn't make a decision as to which insurance company to choose.  It's a good feeling to know that if anything catastrophic happened to Haley I will have financial assistance.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I cannot tell you the number of calls the DRC gets about doodles whose owners are looking to give them up because of health issues which are treatable but they owner cannot afford the treatment. In the past month, I have heard about 6 of them. Currently, there are some listed. In other cases, the dogs are unadoptable, just like JD would be, if I could not afford to pay for ongoing care. These dogs can live a normal life span with good quality of life, but they may require medications or other treatments for life that the owners cannot afford. So these sick dogs lose their homes and in some cases are even put to sleep simply because the owner did not insurance. 

PLEASE, IF YOU DON'T HAVE HEALTH INSURANCE FOR YOU DOODLE, GET IT TODAY! HIS LIFE MAY DEPEND ON IT!

[Camilla and Darwin]

Very good reminder Allyson

[Mandy & Benny]

Thanks for posting.  I was just thinking about this for my next doodle.  I got a bill last week from the emergency vet from when Riley passed.  It was about 2k and all I have to show for it is an urn on a table.  Definitely worth the cost if it is needed.  

[Lucy & AnnaBelle's Mom]

Mandy -- I look at Pet Insurance just like my homeowners or car insurance.  I pay that bill every single month and hope to heck I never have to use it!

[Sally S Miles]

Someone asked me recently about pet insurance and frankly I thought the woman had a good point - yes she has coverage for her family, but a trip to the doctor is covered by insurance and they have a window of time for processing the bill and reminding them of their portion.  With pet insurance the bill must be paid and is then reimbursed - her issue was that if she had the cash she would not need the coverage - if  she had to pay up front she would be up a creek with no paddle.  This made me think of just how many times this happens?????   Most vets have no billing procedure other than pay up. Pet insurance does not work like people insurance and the reason the topic came up was her son had been in hospital suddenly, life changes without warning.    It was a brief conversation, but nonetheless interesting and I did tell her we had coverage and that intrigued her.

While I do appreciate most rescue agencies - you know it bugs me when the entire 'story' is told up front and often situations seem to form a frame for shame.   Elder couples, people with small children, moving, or no insurance, etc - - whatever reasons are really not needed for placement and it causes a blind spot for others in that all references seem to point a finger.  Dogs are different, people are different -

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Trust me, the "entire story" is not told up front. And the first question that pops into the mind of any potential adopter is "why did the family give him up? What's wrong with him?" So those questions are partly answered in the listings. 

Not sure what that has to do with a discussion about pet insurance, either.