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- Thread starter Kreeeee
- Start date
God forbid you ever get a pet.
Soldato
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I do hope you're just trolling, because you sound like exactly the wrong type of person to have a pet.
they don't '?
This is what Comes up when I search my facebook messaging with my mum for the word "vet"
take note the few times she says how much it cost
btw if any of it doesnt seem to be in the correct time line or make sense it's because sometime she was messaging me stuff after I had been on the phone to her etc
since 2011 she must have spent thousands on bloody vet bills :O and don't forget she said
he only lasted a month or so though as you can see from the messages and
button is still alive so she's spent another bloody fortune on prescriptions for cats!
she has only ever had 2-3 cats max a time and just regular cars not special breeds .
it's not like shes some crazy cat woman with 20 cats and thats why her cats seem to need the vets so much and as you can tell with the amount of vet visits and guessing the total cost she loves her cats and treats them better than most people do other humans she doesn't buy cheap own brand cat food or any other crap that is making them ill it can just happen no matter how well looked after they are.
if you have a cat surely my mums experiences will convince you 100% it's worthwhile if you love that animal and don't want to put it down because you can't afford the vet bills
If my mum had more sense than money she would probably have got cat insurance after the first vet visit that stung her for £625
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is it trolling to admit that there are financial limits to what I would pay to keep a pet alive?Have had cats all my life, all very well cared for but they are simply pets I am not going to lose my family home to save one. You may want to pay for insurance but I would much rather put that money in a savings account and make the decision myself.
Get a grip people. Both my cats are adored, both happy healthy nine year olds who get their shots without an insurance company needing to remind me..
Man of Honour
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A little lesson for those with a dog without insurance.
Last night we were about 15 minutes from going on stage when my lead guitarist got a phone call saying that his 10 stone dog had ran at something on the lawn but the patio doors were in the way.
He hit them hard breaking a door off, smashed the glass and the door had ended up on top of him and he was crying his eyes out.
My mates girlfriend then drove the 30 miles back home with Mrs Dimple and the vet had been called where they took him to a special vets in Nantwich (about 20 miles away).
Overnight he has lost the use of his back legs which could be a spinal injury and so far the bill is around £1600
The bill is now at £2500
and there's going to be a lot more going on top.It was a similar injury like when someone dives into a swimming pool and bangs their head so the whole of the spine compresses splintering some of the disks
This raises the question 'How much is too much for a loved one?'.
The dog is 3 years old and if it survives it will probably have problems all it's life and I would think the chances of them getting insurance would be nil.
I would never not have pet cover - the bills just sky rocket so easily!
About 3 years ago, one of my labs started vomiting every day but was otherwise absolutely fine. Local vet couldn't find anything wrong and referred us to a specialist vet down in Kent. Two 3-hour visits ensued, the first was an ultrasound and some medication; 2 weeks later, no change, so sedation, endoscopy and samples, which found helicobacter and was treated with 3 weeks of strong antibiotics.
Total bill was over 4.5 grand!
I'm with Axa and the above was my first claim and, given the grief I had getting it out of them, I can't honestly recommend them.
Don't forget, if you move insurance companies you'll never be covered for a pre-existing issue, even if you didn't claim for it in the past, they will want your pet's full medical records. Hence, I am stuck with Axa now, as any stomach related issue would not be covered if I moved insurers and it's just not worth the risk.
Just had renewals through for my two labradors (9 and 10) - £1,250 for the year.
Given how quickly your vet bill can escalate, it's a no brainer.
Plus, you also have public liability cover in there in case your pet brushes up against some claim happy muppet on a walk in the woods!
About 3 years ago, one of my labs started vomiting every day but was otherwise absolutely fine. Local vet couldn't find anything wrong and referred us to a specialist vet down in Kent. Two 3-hour visits ensued, the first was an ultrasound and some medication; 2 weeks later, no change, so sedation, endoscopy and samples, which found helicobacter and was treated with 3 weeks of strong antibiotics.
Total bill was over 4.5 grand!
I'm with Axa and the above was my first claim and, given the grief I had getting it out of them, I can't honestly recommend them.
Don't forget, if you move insurance companies you'll never be covered for a pre-existing issue, even if you didn't claim for it in the past, they will want your pet's full medical records. Hence, I am stuck with Axa now, as any stomach related issue would not be covered if I moved insurers and it's just not worth the risk.
Just had renewals through for my two labradors (9 and 10) - £1,250 for the year.
Given how quickly your vet bill can escalate, it's a no brainer.
Plus, you also have public liability cover in there in case your pet brushes up against some claim happy muppet on a walk in the woods!
Soldato
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Do you think the fact that most people have pet insurance now is one of the reasons why vet treatment is so expensive?
I know vet treatment costs more because there are so many more procedures, techniques and technology that can now be used compared to before, but because lots of people don't pay out for treatment, they just let their insurance take care of it, basically vets charge what they like?
Kind of like the ridiculous prices that hotels in cities charge on weekdays, because most people who stay there are on business expenses and doesn't pay for it themselves, so they don't care how much it costs, and the hotels charge what they want?
Just a thought.
I know vet treatment costs more because there are so many more procedures, techniques and technology that can now be used compared to before, but because lots of people don't pay out for treatment, they just let their insurance take care of it, basically vets charge what they like?
Kind of like the ridiculous prices that hotels in cities charge on weekdays, because most people who stay there are on business expenses and doesn't pay for it themselves, so they don't care how much it costs, and the hotels charge what they want?
Just a thought.
It could be to be honest, one of the first things i was asked was "do you have insurance", as soon as the answer was given "yes" i was then told that i will be billed for £1600 (per leg), you could have picked my jaw up off the floor, when i came home later that day, i did think to myself, what if i had said "no" would the cost have been any different, did they balloon the cost knowing that whatever price they say, the insurance will pay out.
In my case, i have spoken to someone else on the forum that had the same injury fixed on their pet, yet paid half the price i paid (could be area dependant, but why so?), so it does make you think does the "insurance = yes" gives a green flag to charge what they like.
Before i took my pet insurance out, i thought to myself that i pay for Washing Machine insurance, House Contents insurance, Mobile Phone, etc (the list goes on), the only insurance that is mandatory is Car Insurance as you cannot drive the car without it, everything else is through choice, so if i choose to insure other things, why is a pet any difference.
My Mobile phone insurance (for example) is roughly £7 per month, to pay out it will cover the cost of a Samsung GS3, which to replace is £350/£400, but i pay just £3pm more to insure my pet, which so far has saved me spending £1600 currently, plus a further £1600 in 3 months time when my pet has the 2nd leg fixed, so when i think of it in them terms, the pet insurance is well worth it, as i dot have that kind of cash just floating around.
Its a funny old world though, some peoples priorities for pets is vastly different from the next persons, if we all agreed and all did the same thing, it would be a boring world
Wow, I've never been asked that at any of the 4 different vets I've used over the last 10y, nor the specialist I was referred to. What business is it of theirs until you present them with a claim form to fill their part in (and my current vet introduced a £10 charge for that!).
It very much sounds like your "yes" green-flagged higher fees, why else would they ask when you walk through the door?!?
Who am i to argue against it though, in this case it was an orthopaedic specialist who i was referred to, 1st pet i have ever taken insurance out on, so i know no different, they asked i had insurance, i sad yes and then they said the cost, not really the place to argue and haggle though is it, a specialist vet is hardly the local market where i can suggest i meet him half way and we settle on £800 as im feeling generous
Soldato
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Well, often they may have different options you can go for, I know that our vet knows our insurance situation (being the idiots that we are, we didn't go for the whole-life cover, we took the cover that was a step down from that, £5k/12 months per condition. We now have a cat with a life-long condition which is no longer covered by our insurance and is a pre-existing condition should we go anywhere else
)Therefore, he will say to us, well we could do this, which will cost about £100, and see where that gets us, or we could do this which would be around £250 or we could go straight to the specialist but that would be £800 (for example). If they know whether money is going to be an issue, they can determine what the best course of action will be.
Our vets I trust completely. He always gives us the options, and when we ask what he would do (having 2 cats and 3 dogs himself), he tells us. And it is never the most expensive option. They really try help us out with costs eg. when we go for an appt, they charge us for a repeat appt rather than a new one, which makes it a bit cheaper. We have seen them so often over the last few years that they know that we know when our cat needs antibiotics, so they are happy for us to just ring up and ask for them rather than having to see her and us pay for an appointment, etc. They really are great. As long as I live where I do, I would always take my animals to them.
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I'm not sure what your vets are like but the ones round here have a donation based scheme that pays a little towards vet bills for people who cannot afford them, obviously this doesn't apply to bills being paid for by insurance.
Soldato
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Tesco Pet insurance here. Had it since Louis (My Yellow working lab) trial with pet plan from the breeder ran out. Only had to claim on one occasion and that was when he cut one of his pads on some glass. Tesco paid out and even the vets let me not pay the other part until I got paid, only £60 but I didn't have the money at that time.
I pay £14.38 per month for him.
louis had to go in to have his testicles removed a year or so a go and I was told by Tesco I could claim for the operation but they had to decline due to me knowing about one of them not dropping a long time before the claim/operation. If I said I didn't know one wasn't dropped I could have claimed. £260 for the bill, not too bad. After all it was a 6 hour op compared to the standard removal of 40 mins to 1 hours 30mins due to the non dropped testicle being the size of a pea, the vets said it HAD to be taken out at all costs due to it could cause problems later in life if not taken out. He has now got a 6 inch scare on his belly as they had to go in deep lol.. bless him.
So Tesco for me are great, only one claim and that went well.
Edit: Got me thinking, with his insurance and food he costs me £33 per month. That's not too bad really. £14 insurance and £19 food per month. little over a quid a day.
I pay £14.38 per month for him.
louis had to go in to have his testicles removed a year or so a go and I was told by Tesco I could claim for the operation but they had to decline due to me knowing about one of them not dropping a long time before the claim/operation. If I said I didn't know one wasn't dropped I could have claimed. £260 for the bill, not too bad. After all it was a 6 hour op compared to the standard removal of 40 mins to 1 hours 30mins due to the non dropped testicle being the size of a pea, the vets said it HAD to be taken out at all costs due to it could cause problems later in life if not taken out. He has now got a 6 inch scare on his belly as they had to go in deep lol.. bless him.
So Tesco for me are great, only one claim and that went well.
Edit: Got me thinking, with his insurance and food he costs me £33 per month. That's not too bad really. £14 insurance and £19 food per month. little over a quid a day.
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Soldato
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Cats are more likely to get ill than a dog
Man of Honour
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A little lesson for those with a dog without insurance.
Last night we were about 15 minutes from going on stage when my lead guitarist got a phone call saying that his 10 stone dog had ran at something on the lawn but the patio doors were in the way.
He hit them hard breaking a door off, smashed the glass and the door had ended up on top of him and he was crying his eyes out.
My mates girlfriend then drove the 30 miles back home with Mrs Dimple and the vet had been called where they took him to a special vets in Nantwich (about 20 miles away).
Overnight he has lost the use of his back legs which could be a spinal injury and so far the bill is around £1600
Update on this:
The total bill was £3,100 and it was actually his girlfriends dog and nothing to do with him. She has now got a 3 year old dog that will never be able to get insurance and is going to have loads of problems all it's life. The other sad part is that they have broke up because the dog has to be dogsat all the time which has ended their relationship.
Soldato
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That is sad.
We use Tesco, clubcard points and all that. When our cat died they were nothing short of brilliant actually, which I never thought I'd say about insurers. The final bill was something in the region of £4,000, which we had to pay but they refunded us (minus a £50 excess) within a week, so we went with them again for our new cat. £7/month I think it is.
As long as you're happy paying all the vets bills when it does get ill, rather than just dumping it somewhere.
As long as you're happy paying all the vets bills when it does get ill, rather than just dumping it somewhere.