For most of us, a pet is almost like a member of the family. Nowhere is this bond stronger than with a family dog or cat, and when the family pet gets ill, or approaches the end of its life and suffers various ailments, we stop at nothing to try and ease the pain or find a cure.
If you’ve ever been in this situation, you’ll also know that by the time you get the bill from the vet, you wonder where on Erath she / he got the costs from. The average cost of a vet’s bill for a dog is around the £350 mark.
But it can get a lot higher, and vets’ bills are rising much faster than inflation. You may face a bill in excess of £4,000, for example, for some bone fractures in dogs – and over £10,000 over a number of years if your pet has a more complicated condition like a tumour or spinal disorder.
It’s little wonder, then, that a recent Sainsbury’s Bank survey found that 1.6 million UK pet owners had their dogs and/or cats put down during the preceding five years as they weren’t able to afford the vets’ fees or continuing treatment costs. Meanwhile, around 2.5 million people said they’d declined the recommended treatment for pets as they couldn’t afford it.
These may be challenging financial times, but it is an offence to deny a pet (or any other animal) veterinary treatment, or to cause it needless suffering.
To help combat these problems and to avoid animal suffering and the proliferation of species without adequate care, various charitable organisations give help and advice, such as the RSPCA whose local branches can sometimes help people on low incomes / state benefit with veterinary treatment costs. Cats Protection may also be able to help some low-income cat owners with the costs of neutering – whilst the same is true of the Dogs Trust for pet dogs.
But on the whole, if you’re a responsible owner, it’s a good idea to take out a good pet insurance policy for just a few pounds each month.
Mutual providers such as Unison Pet insurance, don’t just cover veterinary costs, they also offer helplines covering issues such as finding a vet if you’re away from home and your pet needs emergency treatment, counselling following the death of a beloved pet, legal advice regarding pets and pet care etc., and finding registered pet minders when you need one.
