Pet Insurance is, for some, a moot point. Often it is seen as just another way for insurance companies to relieve us of a little bit more of our money. Certainly when I was a child my parents would never have considered such a course of action. In fact to insure an animal would have been viewed almost as sacrilegious. To them a dog or cat was simply that, they were not on a par with the humans in the family. But things change, attitudes alter and so too do our values. A neighbour of mine demonstrated this to me very clearly some weeks ago when her dog became suddenly ill.Not in any obvious discomfort the dog stopped eating, refusing first breakfast and then lunch. Then the dog grew listless. My neighbour, who loves her dog dearly, became increasingly concerned and upset. This was so unlike him, she said and decided therefore to ring a local vet to ask advice.The advice was to bring the dog in for an examination and possible overnight observation. To cut a long story short it turned out that the dog had developed a severe urinary infection – something that his breed was apparently prone to. Anyway, thankfully it was treatable and because she hadn’t delayed bringing him in, was quickly cleared up. Great... and all’s well that ends well you might think...Except for the bill which came to a little over £200...Because you see my neighbour had no form of pet insurance and so this amount had to be found out of her weekly purse. She didn’t hesitate. All the same it was no laughing matter.How likely is this kind of thing to happen though? I mean, could it happen to you or was she just unlucky? Let’s look at some of the facts:
Because it is always tempting to try and cut costs isn’t it? More particularly in today’s market where spare cash is at a premium and household budgets demand that we make choices about numerous things that we have previously not given much thought to. Add this to the further temptation of thinking that it really won’t come to it that you will be the unlucky one who’s pet needs treatment and it fairly stitches up the case against.So that’s it then, all settled.... well maybe not... because before you sign it off completely try asking yourself these questions:
It’s an interesting thought that out of a thousand people when asked where their pet ranked in the family affections, over 90% answered that they were held in equal consideration and affection. What about you?In the cold light of day, how does your answer affect the way in which you choose to protect them from harm?In my view the best thing we can do for our pets is to be honest about our feelings towards them, because without such honesty there is no integrity and that is not something that bodes well for either you or your pet... That is why you should always consider pet insurance as it offers financial protection against the unexpected.