Owning a dog, especially a smaller dog, can be fairly affordable in theory. For example, if you have a dog that’s around 20 pounds they require about 3/4 to 1 cup of food per day. I buy a mid-range dog food that is around $50 per 30 pound bag, and that bag lasts me 2.5 to 3 months with two dogs. That works out to roughly $10 worth of food per dog per month. Not bad at all! Even once adding on flea and heartworm medication (around $20 a month), and regular nail trimmings ($8 each at my local dog spa) the total expense per dog is still under $50 a month.
That budget can quickly go sky-high if your dog gets sick or injured. My local emergency vet costs $100 just to walk through the door. It’s tough to get your pet looked at and treated for under $300 there, but when your dog gets sick or hurt suddenly and it’s the only place open that’s just what we have to do. I’ve heard stories from others who wanted to get a surgery, or a test for their pet but they couldn’t justify the cost. It’s a really terrible situation to have to choose one health path for your pet over another based on expense.
Having pet health insurance can make illness and injury much more affordable. Healthy Paws Pet Insurance is the #1 customer-rated pet insurance. They pay up to 90% of vet bills. They also aim to provide you with information that can help your pets live their healthiest life possible. Their coverage doesn’t have an annual (or per incident) cap. I had a neighbor who’s puppy broke it’s jaw when it fell off of her bed. Then about six months later it’s owner was mowing with a riding lawn mower and didn’t know the dog had gotten outside and backed over it’s leg. This was all within it’s first year of life, so naturally the puppy had already required several vaccinations and health care visits due to being a new puppy. With some plans that have annual caps, they probably would have been over their limit and forced to pay more out of pocket. That doesn’t happen with Healthy Paws Pet Insurance because they have no cap.
Healthy Paws Pet Insurance has a referral program for pet owners. If your friend or family member signs their pet up for insurance under you, you get a $35 Amazon gift card!
Win it: An IllumaCollar light-up leash (giveaway sponsored by Healthy Paws Pet Insurance). Giveaway is open to the US and will end 11/18/2016.
Hi there! I am Emily Evert, the owner of Emily Reviews. I am 28 and live in a small town in Michigan with my boyfriend Ryan and our two pugs. I have a large family and I adore my nieces and nephews. I love reading memoirs, and learning about child development and psychology. I love watching The Game of Thrones, Teen Mom, Sister Wives and Veep. I like listening to Jason Isbell, John Prine, and other alt-country or Americana music. I created Emily Reviews as a creative outlet to share my life and the products that I love with others.
This post currently has 4 responses.
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Patricia Barraclough
I obviously misread the title. We have a shortage of leashes at the house too since we don’t often take the dogs out where they need them. I hunted for a leash last time we took them to the vet. This would be a big help.
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Deb E
I just had one small Yorkie and did my own grooming to save money. I can’t imagine how people pay for their pets when they have several. Pet insurance is something to look into in that case. I’ve not seen a pretty lighted leash like this and love it for safety reasons too.
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Wendy Browne
Thanks for this article. I have been putting off pet insurance on our Boston Terrier and got a good quote from this company that I can work into my tight budget.
We have three dogs and have been a bit lax about having them wear collars. We have a fenced in yard, so don’t worry about it much. Our son may be taking one of the digs with him on a trip later this year, so it would be a good idea to make sure we have a collar for her.