Pet Insurance

Many families today see health insurance as a necessary part of life. I know first hand that I would be in severe debt without it, as I am a tad bit clumsy and frequent the Urgent Care on a biannual basis. Luckily my dog, Kylie, is more graceful than I am… at least for now. Every time I visit her Vet, the insurance flyers bombard the bulletin board in the reception area, but are they really worth it?

Amanda Ricker’s article in the Bozeman Daily Chronicle finds many of the benefits to insuring your pet. One interviewee claimed that for as little as $16 a month, she gets “gets free visits to the veterinarian, free vaccines and discounts on prescriptions.” Not bad if you ask me! For older dogs, the plans do increase, but thats to be expected. Some plans will cover dental costs, surgeries, cancer treatments, and even alternative medicine, all for a price of course. The downside to this, as I have found in the hunt for Kylie’s insurance, is that many policies have you front the money and the carrier will reimburse you after some lovely paperwork, but definitely still worth it.

*Some interesting facts:

• 3% of dog owners and 1% of cat owners in the US carry health insurance for their pets, while 25% of dog owners in Great Britain and nearly 50% of pet owners in Sweden have pet insurance
• Half of pet owners said their dogs sleep in the same bed as them
• 63% of US households own a pet
• $38.4 was spent on pets in 2006 in the US, and $9.4 billion was on veterinary care

Bekko here, an Honest Kitchen dog, just got insurance!