Americans love their pets. As of July 2011, 39% of all American households owned at least one dog and 33% owned at least one cat. That’s a lot of cats and dogs and we’re not even going to look at the birds, snakes, lizards, rabbits, ferrets and fish. Those cats and dogs aren’t cheap to keep healthy: the Humane Society of the US estimates that annual vet visits for dogs average $248 per dog per year and cats are hardly cheaper, coming in at $219 a year. Those costs are for healthy pets and if a pet gets sick or injured, they can more than double quickly. With the costs of vet care skyrocketing, many people in the US are looking at pet health insurance. You may even find that your employer will chip in! 1600 companies in the US, including Office Depot and Google — provide the coverage as an optional employee benefit. Unfortunately, pet insurance isn’t usually something you can ask your independent insurance agent about, although it’s always worth a try, since she or he may well have pet insurance themselves. Another good way to begin is to speak with your vet’s office and ask not only which insurance they accept, but which they recommend.
This article from MSN Money has a wealth of information on pet health insurance and ways you can cut your pet health care budget. It suggests simple steps like using local shot clinics instead of your vets office for yearly inoculations such as rabies shots and, just as you would for your own care, getting second opinions and fully researching your pet’s health issues. You may decide that a pet savings account makes more sense for you than pet health insurance. On the other hand, as more and more companies offer pet health insurance, the cost is going down.
