Pet Insurance

I can't stress enough the importance of getting pet insurance. I found this out the hard way.

My first pet was a beautiful black cat I found as a stray. I never bothered to get pet insurance for her because from the time she was a kitten she was never sick and never left the house so I figured it was a waste of money. Fast forward to 15 years later I'm in and out of the vet on a near monthly basis with bills continuously adding up. What could I do? Not get my cat the help she needed? Let her suffer? Put her down? Of course not. This cat was a part of me, I would do whatever it takes to help her and figure out the financial stuff later. Thousands of dollars and 2 years later my cat passed at the age of 17. Had I had pet insurance most of what I paid would have been covered. 

When I adopted my chihuahua, Lucy the first thing I did was get pet insurance. I did my research and picked a policy with a deductible I could afford should something happen to her. It was the best decision I ever made. In 2016 Lucy we found a lump on her shoulder and took her to the vet. She was diagnosed with a Stage 2 soft cell sarcoma (cancer). She was given two options, they could do chemo but it would only have a 50% chance of working and she would only live about a year if it didn't work or they could amputate her leg and she would live a normal long life. No brainer, take the leg! From diagnosis to surgery I only had two weeks to wrap my brain around what was happening to my baby. I was a hot mess. I can't tell you how many times I called my pet Insurance hysterically crying asking if the surgery would be covered because she has had a benign tumor in the past and this surgery was going to cost me an estimated $10,000. Their customer service was so good and talked me down from the ledge so many times I couldn't be more grateful. They told me to just do whatever was needed, her health was most important and they would figure out the claim later. She had the surgery and the recovery was pretty intense. We had to teach her how to walk on 3 legs outside and how to get up on the couch. The hospital send the claim in for me and I had 90% of the money they pay for the claim back in my account within 2 days. It was that easy. When I needed more pain medication for her they paid that as well. I don't know what I would have done if I didn't have the pet Insurance. I'm not a wealthy person and that bill would have really been a burden. 

So let me get up on my soapbox and say GET PET INSURANCE! You may think I can't afford it or my pet is healthy he doesn't need it. You will. At some point inevitably your pet will need to see the vet, hopefully it won't be serious but what if it is? You don't want to be faced with the decision of having to put your beloved pet down because you have to make a choice between keeping a roof over your health and your pet. I have had a wonderful experience with Trupanion. They've always been willing to work with me and get my Lucy the care she needs. If you're thinking of getting pet insurance here is a link to them http://r.trupanion.com/Vn8CR with my referral code. Let's all have piece of mind knowing our pets will be taken care of.