To ask what you would do for your pets?

I actually feel a bit better now after reading this. We’re feeling horribly guilty struggling with a rescue dog when we were unaware of her multiple anxiety and other issues. Feel the rescue charity has guilted is even taking about rehoming her in a worst case scenario (we are exploring all other options first.) Having to prioritise her needs over my own health needs. But it seems a lot of other people wouldn’t do this

Before we decided to get a pet, we made a decision on the maximum amount we would pay for its future health costs.

We'll stick with it. No we won't go into debt or make sacrifices to our own health/wellbeing/financial security

I wouldn't dream of owning a pet without medical insurance unless I was very wealthy. Obviously private medicine is expensive, well all medical care is expensive, it's just British people have no clue whatsoever about medical costs so they think vet fees are expensive.
Most people would be shocked if they knew the costs of all the medical care they have received in their lives.

Saving the same amount as you would pay into pet insurance is the best way imo. I paid insurance for my dog for years, but just paid the small bills for the twice he needed treatment outside of vaccinations, as the excess made it not worthwhile. But once my dog was older the insurers loaded the policy to around £75 a month. So even then if I did make a claim, what I was paying out in insurance and excess didn't make sense.

I like that Noel guy and he does seem to love animals, Not always convinced some of these major surgeries he does are in the best interest of the animal. To put them through major surgery and recovery at eg age 10, means they will often see their lives out in pain.

Would you get into debt to pay their treatment? Yes
Would you sacrifice your own health needs to pay for theirs? No
Would you use up your savings? Yes
If insurance couldn't cover, or couldn't cover much, would you happily pay the rest?
Hundreds, thousands? Yes

I studied a 2nd degree with the Open University paying out of pocket, no student loans etc, and postponed a year because I spent all of the money I had saved for tuition on vets fees for my dog. He was insured but they refused to pay. I paid about £5000 for it, which was 2 university courses and some on my credit card. I haven’t regretted it for a moment.

I've paid hundreds out for my Rats but I've also PTS over operations, it's all quality of life versus quantity. Rats don't do well under general anesthetic so putting them under is always a risk and an elderly rat with cancer will be PTS when they can no longer rat.

I wouldn’t get into debt. Couldn’t risk my child’s home. I would use up my savings but they are a few thousand at best so could be built up again. That said, I pay for very comprehensive insurance for that very reason.

Our cats have costs us thousands and thousands , not because they've been sickly really, but to be able to move them with us when we got new postings,.
Between cat boarding, vet checks, flight costs, extra pet deposits, new licenses, new vet fees, it all adds up.
Wouldn't have taken them on without a plan to be there until the end. I wouldn't bankrupt my family, but I make sure to budget for the crazy costs

We spent thousands having cataracts removed so my dog could see again, injected insulin twice a day which meant we had to plan our days out. Evenings out etc to fit with his schedule, it wasn't cheap and we didn't have much freedom but we chose to get him and he was our responsibility to care for as best we could. He was deeply loved and I don't regret doing that for him.

I would do whatever I could (and have done so), other than negatively affecting my own health needs or negatively affecting my children. If you choose to have a pet then you are responsible for them. You should do whatever is in your pets best interest. If you aren't able or prepared to do so then you shouldn't get a pet. We had our dog insured but his health issues meant the monthly insurance fees was more expensive than his ongoing treatment so we now pay everything ourselves. He is on 4 different medications daily, has had 5 joint operations, has monthly injections and hydrotherapy weekly and has also had acupuncture and has been for years now. We have missed family holidays and home improvements to pay for his care and used savings, but we didn't take on having a dog lightly - we made sure we were financially able to care for a dog before we got one.

Not trying to be a twat but we waited over 10yrs to get out family pets, we researched for a long time to decide which type would suit out family and what we could afford and what we could afford if things went south, made sure we were in our forever home and looked at the cost of the best insurance packages, that the children were of an age to be responsible with them.

We essentially did a really detailed risk assessment because we take the responsibility of looking after them extremely seriously.

To me having animals or pets is an absolute privilege.

p.s. no insurance so I had to pay that 3K

Yes to all your questions. They are totally helpless and it is our responsibility to look after them properly.

So my dog an older lad has been to see a specialist vet this year (cost 3K) as he had very low albumin levels and stomach imflamation. I got told it might be lymphoma. It turned out he didn't have this and had PLE (protein losing ent) and is now hopefully on the mend. If he had lymphoma I would have had to weigh up treatment v how long it would give him. My understanding was it would only prolong his life for a max of a year (and probably less) and so I would not want him to have to go through chemo as he would hate it for just a little bit more time. That would be my head speaking though (my heart might want to go through it but that would be for me).

Anything that can be fixed or cured - yes get it done

Anything that is a maybe - yes get it investigated

Anything which requires chemo/surgery for only a little bit more time with them (less than a year) then probably not (but really because not fair to put animal through it for so little time back). I'd have a head v heart battle though

So do I.

Please don't feel bad OP, you can only do what you can do.

We had £8k on a credit card. Total bill was around £12k insurance paid £4k. We have £2k left to pay. He was young when we found out what the problem was (rare condition) and 3 years later he's still going strong with regular checks and extra medication when he has a flare up. If he had been old, i probably would have just medicated for as long as we could and not operated

Yes, I would get into debt, and I would go without if it meant my dog could get treatment.
She is no longer insured (stopped it at 9 when it was getting to over £110 per month. I am on UC and that is a huge chunk).
She is a large breed that is 14.5 years old so I would not put her through anything extensive and expensive anyway.
As dogs get older, it seems to be lot of less expensive things that need treatment that insurance excess would be more than anyway. Those things add up.
I do have £650 specifically set aside for when it is her time to cross the bridge. That is what it will cost for her to pass at home, and to be cremated individually.

It would depend on the medical condition, the cost, risks/benefits and age.

I had an elderly cat with thyroid problem, he could take daily medication for the rest of his life, an operation that may have cured it permanently but not guaranteed, or they're was treatment guaranteed to cure it but he'd have to be away from us for two weeks. After discussing options with the vet we went for the daily medication, we didn't have insurance for that car, but having it wouldn't have changed our decision. For a younger, less clingy cat we may have chosen differently.

We have insurance for our current cat. He needed surgery for a urinary blockage a few years ago, I'd have done everything I could to get the money if insurance hadn't covered most of the £1,600. But he was 7, and the surgery had a good chance of success.

It depends what the treatment is for. For cancer treatment to prolong life but it's already terminal, no. For life saving treatment e.g after an accident, with a good quality of life following that, I would do anything I could to pay for that. Although right now if my cat rubs her bum in my face one more time I'm going to turn her into gloves.

If the treatment was going to save them and give them a good quality of life afterwards, then yes, I'd pay.

But then I'd probably run into a burning building to rescue them if I could.

Yes to all. Likely to be unexpectedly taking friend’s dog too as she has been diagnosed with terminal cancer. Her dog is her life, I can hardly say no, but not too convenient for a few reasons. But i’ll have to make it work.

It would depend, a younger pet who was injured or had a condition that could be cured, I'd find the money or set up a payment plan. An older pet or a condition that would require multiple long-term treatments to manage not cure, would take a lot more though.

I really hope not. I think if they are that’s really off

OP you’ve not answered any of the questions from PPs about the medical situation of your pet

I wonder if the op is a journalist...?

The important thing with pets is to make sure that they don't suffer. I wouldn't get a large breed pedigree dog if I was on a small budget but a cat or a small crossbreed dog is a sensible choice as most of these will live many years in good health (as long as they get vaccinated and wormed etc).

If they get ill, go to the vet but if it turns out to be something expensive then euthanasia is a valid option. Animals don't have any fear of dying and can't comprehend the future.

I don't believe the joys of pet ownership should be reserved for the rich, vet prices have rocketed beyond all proportion, pet insurance is hugely problematic too though, I suggest saving a couple of hundred pounds in a separate account before getting a pet then add the cost of a decent pet insurance policy to the account each month. Don't touch this money except for an emergency and you should be able to cover basic things and ensure your pet doesn't suffer.

Medically I'd do whatever is in their interests . I don't have insurance as it was silly money particularly if I never needed it so I looked on Noel Fitzpatricks website and saw that the most expensive treatment was neurological treatment at £30,000. So each dog has a savings account with this sum in it if needs be . Chances are it won't be needed but you never know .