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Have you realised how important pet insurance is yet? If not, read on to find out how to be money wise and find out how quality pet insurance will change the game for you, your furry friend, and your wallet!
Whether you’re already a pet owner or you’re looking for the next four-legged addition to your family, you need to think about pet insurance. And thinking about it is just the start: you actually need to do something about it!
If you’re a first-time pet owner, you may not have anticipated all the costs that come with having a pet in the home. It isn’t just treats, toys, and cute winter jerseys. It’s also looking after their teeth, their paws, their fur, and most importantly: their health.
What goes into pet health care?
Getting a pet means that you need to be money wise and make a budget! Have you considered how you’ll be able to pay for the following?
- Visits to the vet
- Vaccinations
- Blood tests
- X-rays
- Neutering
- Emergencies and hospital admission
- Accidents, illnesses, and disease
If you haven’t thought of these yet, it’s a good idea to get going. And hey, you’ve come to the right place!
Check out this pawesome read on the basics of pet insurance to dig a little deeper!
The scary costs of pet care
Tons of claims go through to pet insurance providers every day for bills both high and low.
Visiting the vet can be expensive – even if you aren’t going in for an emergency. You see, vets spend years and years studying towards their qualification. In fact, vets study almost as long as your doctor does! So, if you’re happy to pay for your doctor’s expertise, you should have the same mindset surrounding your vet.
As technology becomes more advanced and the options for pet health care expand, pet procedures naturally become more expensive. Let’s take a look at some of the most common claims and what they could cost you if you don’t have pet insurance:
Pet parents need to get used to cleaning up the occasional mess, and there’s no mess quite like an upset stomach! Let’s start off by looking at gastroenteritis (commonly known as gastro). Now if your doggo has gastroenteritis, you can’t just wait it out. You NEED to take them to the vet for immediate treatment. That means your vet will need to conduct the following:
- Blood cell count test (R300 – R600)
- X-ray (R2000)
- Ultrasound (R300)
- Urinalysis (R500)
Now, these are all approximate costs and they could go higher (ugh, inflation). Altogether, your little one’s upset stomach could set you back anywhere from R3 500 to R7000. By deciding not to be money wise and not get pet insurance, this will have to be paid out your wallet.
Let’s look at another one: your dog has been bitten by another dog. Now we’ve chatted to a few of our local vets and they let us know that, depending on the severity of the attack, fixing up your pet could cost up to R10 000. Especially if they need surgeries and overnight hospital stays.
What’s The Solution to be Money Wise? Pet insurance!
What are your options if you cannot pay for these types of surgeries? Unfortunately, many pet parents are backed into a corner when it comes to veterinary bills. They cannot afford them, their pet is in pain, and it seems that euthanasia is the only solution.
Here’s the thing: even euthanasia is expensive. Putting your pet down can cost you upwards of R1 500. Which is a huge chunk of change for something so terrible. However, some situations call for euthanasia even if you can afford the surgery.
Read more: Vet’s Advice on Pet Euthanasia: 4 Tips to Make It Easier on Your Pet
When you’re faced with the tough decision between paying for your pet’s recovery and putting them down, many pet parents will choose to bite the bullet and put themselves in debt to protect their pet. This is the last thing we want, which is why we will always educate people about pet insurance as often as we can!
Oneplan Pet Insurance has a policy for everybody, no matter your lifestyle or budget.
Their policies range from hospital plans all the way to fully comprehensive plans that include day-to-day care (Pet Med Savings) and other routine care benefits.
Pet insurance meets you halfway. In fact, One Plan Pet Insurance meets you more than halfway: they try to meet you at the finish line. Their primary goal is to get your pet back to good health whilst protecting your bank account and helping you to be money wise.
Yours In Not-So-Average Pet Advice,
The Petinsurance.co.za Team
#NotYourAveragePetAdvice
