To ask what you would do for your pets?

[Whenwillthesnowendzzz]

Would you get into debt to pay their treatment?
Would you sacrifice your own health needs to pay for theirs?
Would you use up your savings?
If insurance couldn't cover, or couldn't cover much, would you happily pay the rest?
Hundreds, thousands?
Just curious to know as it's so different for everyone.

I'm with PetPlan. They're expensive but they've never refused to pay out. They've actually paid out more than I've paid them over the years. I have hit the yearly limit a couple of times and had to cover the rest myself. Growing up we did get into debt having uninsured pets treated. That's why I've always invested in a good lifetime policy with my own pets as an adult. I would do anything for them.

I’m very sorry you are in this situation OP. I think we need more context to decide whether you are being “reasonable” or “selfish”. You had pet insurance so I see you were trying to be responsible but they won’t pay out. If you are living a good standard of living e.g. nice cars, holidays, expensive hobbies etc. so have spent all your money on this then it’s potentially selfish to let your animal suffer. Totally different if you are struggling to make ends meet though.

What is your plan and what’s the condition, broadly? If it’s something relatively minor but causing a lot of suffering I would be doing all I could to put it right, especially if the alternative is PTS. Could you come up with a payment plan with the vets? Would an animal charity help? Loan from friends/family? If it’s something that can be left without your pet suffering or something very serious anyway where PTS might be kinder, I think that’s different.

To answer your questions, I wouldn’t drain my savings and go into debt. Currently we’re in a situation with a rescue dog where we weren’t made aware/warned about their potential needs beforehand. Although this isn’t impacting too badly financially atm, we’re putting the dogs needs above our own heath and other needs. Not sure this will be sustainable for us long-term, so we’re doing all we can to address their behaviours.

I see your opinions and raise you donkies. Far superior in pet top trumps. Although not when they get out and scratch themselves on your wing mirrors and break them so they hang down like spaniels ears.

Would you get into debt to pay their treatment?
No.
Would you sacrifice your own health needs to pay for theirs?
No
Would you use up your savings?
No
If insurance couldn't cover, or couldn't cover much, would you happily pay the rest?
It depends how much. I've paid for dental work not covered by insurance.
Hundreds, thousands?
Again depends, hundreds yes, thousands probably not.

I don't get the argument that they are like children because I would say yes to all of those for my DC but not for my dog. I love her, look after her well but there are limits, especially as they have a more limited lifespan than humans.

The answer to your questions is no.

I would not let my pets suffer, but at the same time I would not put my own health (financial and otherwise) at risk either.

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

Sorry but it's a cat who I have looked after for 15 years. He's had a good life but I wouldn't be spending a lot of money to prolong it.

Pretty much anything if it was in their interest and fair on them. They’re family to us.

Years ago the insurance only covered about £7k of costs and we paid thousands on top. We had to put it on a credit card at the time.

We’re financially comfortable now and have paid thousands for them in recent years. One of our pets would have died very young without an operation and treatment. She’s now 5 and has a normal life expectancy.

I have put pet treatment on a credit card to split it over a few months, but I would only do this for a few hundred pounds at most. I would not sacrifice my own health. But I also have a middle-aged, arthritic rescue dog who is terrified of being at the vets or anywhere without me, so I am extremely unlikely to ever to put him through surgery. We are discussing the possibility of Librela at some point, and I’m not sure insurance will cover that, so we’ll see.

Sorry if it's a personal question but are people honestly a few thousand in debt (or have been) as a result?

No to everything. It's why I don't own a pet. I'm not prepared to spend ridiculous amounts of money on them.

Yes my friend. She spent £7k on a credit card for spinal surgery for her dog. I wouldn't have, but it was her choice.

What's the treatment your animal needs and why? I think it matters hugely as to what it is, the effect on the animal and the consequences of not undertaking the treatment.

We turned down hugely expensive diagnostic work on our dog when she was dying of sudden liver failure. It wouldn't have changed the outcome. So we put her to sleep.

Would you get into debt to pay their treatment?
yes and I have
Would you sacrifice your own health needs to pay for theirs?
of course, stayed in an abusive relationship for the dog before.
Would you use up your savings?
yes
If insurance couldn't cover, or couldn't cover much, would you happily pay the rest?
of course and I have
Hundreds, thousands?
no, only because he’s old so I wouldn’t put them through that level of treatment. I have paid thousands for a run over young cat though. .

Yes to all your questions. They are my dogs and my responsibility. I would do anything at all, providing it was in their best interests. I wouldn’t prolong their life if they were suffering but I would spend whatever it took to give them a good quality of life. If I couldn’t afford adequate insurance (I used to have £12k per annum cover) or to pay for treatment myself, I wouldn’t have them.

I’m so sorry you had to make that decision.

i agree. Just because we can, doesn’t mean we should. Quality of life during treatment, and age of the animal should always be part of your consideration. Keeping them at all cost is not always in their best interest

Yes I've got into debt and used savings to pay for vet treatment and other care.

My quality of life and mental health has definitely been impacted by this.

I've also made decisions about their treatment due to cost which I've later regretted.

I'd be comfortable paying up to 4k, i'd put it on a credit card if i didnt have it and would be ok to pay that in a reasonable timeframe. Any more than that its a no. I wpuld not go into impossible debt or leave myself without savings.

Would you get into debt to pay their treatment? no
Would you sacrifice your own health needs to pay for theirs? absolutely not
Would you use up your savings? id used some savings but not deplete them
If insurance couldn't cover, or couldn't cover much, would you happily pay the rest?
Hundreds, thousands? hundreds

Would try and rescue them from a fire, eg if I was in LA, but if for whatever reason I couldn’t just chuck them in the car, I wouldn’t spend time searching for them etc at the risk of my own life/delaying my kids getting to safety etc.

Saw video of some horses trying to escape the LA fires - super super sad but not surprised they’d been left tbh.

Can you tell I don’t have any animals 😆

My cat got run over twenty years ago and it cost me £2500-£3000. Because of the way the bills were structured only part of it was covered by insurance, and excess.
she was young with a good expected outcome.

I’ve also spent hundreds if not thousands on a guinea pig with a recurring issue.

I wouldn’t let my child suffer and it’s the same for anything I’m responsible for

Yes, I would do all of those
My Westie is as important to me as DC.. but I treat him like a dog
I would do anything to sustain his quality of life, but not quantity
For example if he developed cancer, I would not put him through Chemotherapy.

My credit card interest rates are high. I currently owe 1k of debt with a limit of 2,300. If I maxed out the card to pay for treatment I would be paying back ridiculous interest rates each month.
Say I pay some back and then they need further treatment? Or i need dental work etc?

I believe having a pet is a huge responsibility and I take the health of my pet seriously.

i have a cat who is insured and on the vet plan for vaccinations, annual check ups etc.

i wouldn’t destroy myself financially or get into considerable debt, however i would be willing to pay a few thousand above the insurance covered expenses.

pets are expensive - good quality food and healthcare add up. That’s why I only have one.

We took two of our dogs to the vet the other day. One had a sore eye, the other a urine infection.

They went in together, we spoke to the vet, who briefly examined them (less than 5 minutes for both). The consultation fee was just under £100.

With meds, it came to £211.

I understand that vets are highly trained, but that’s fucking extortionate.

But I would try my very best to cover any medical costs they incurred, if I thought it would save them, or improve their quality of life. My animals have saved me in my darkest moments.

Fortunately this isn't an issue for me because I quality for free insurance. But no, I don't think I would pay endless amounts of money to keep a pet alive. I love and have loved all my pets, but if their health was so poor that they needed lots and lots of expensive treatment, I'd rather let them go.

I'm not sure I'd want my owner spending all their savings on me if I was a cat either.

We truly adore our 14 year old rescue cat, he is.our baby. He has cost us at least 15k in vet bills over the last 3 years (and that was above what the insurance paid.out) We have just had to find a way.

I believe I would put my own safety at risk to save my pets in an emergency situation, but with serious, expensive health problems, how much I would spend would depend on several things, including the age and general health of the pet, the chances of full recovery, and the pain and difficulty associated with the treatment. In some cases, the kindest thing is to make the difficult decision to say goodbye. I wouldn't go into debt to pay for a pet's medical or surgical care, no.