By Vanessa Vandersande DVM
A medical emergency is every pet owner’s worst case scenario. A previously active dog ruptures a ligament in its knee and now can barely walk. A kitty accidentally gets out of the house and is hit by a car.
The good news is that the quality of care available from a veterinarian is similar to the care available for humans with similar medical issues. Every owner who brings a pet through our doors wants to do the best thing possible for their pet, otherwise they wouldn’t bring them to the vet at all. However, excellent veterinary care is expensive and sometimes the true problem really comes down to the cost of care. It can cause terrible emotional conflict when the funds are simply not available but your pet is going to need help anyway.
At our practice, we have found two tools that have helped many of our clients pay for care they could not otherwise afford. The first is Care Credit, a payment plan that many owners can be approved for over the phone. Depending on the plan, care credit can offer a way to make payments without accruing interest, which is a much better option than racking up debt on a credit card.
The second tool can have dramatic dividends. Pet insurance can be a literal life saver for some pets. I can think of countless stories from clients who signed up for pet insurance and then found it was going to save them thousands of dollars. To be clear, I do not work for or receive compensation from any pet insurance company, but I can tell you the company I have most consistently seen make reimbursements is Trupanion. I have many stories of clients whose pet had an emergency and insurance helped pay them back a large percentage for the treatment. Other insurance companies offer different benefits, so be sure to research whichever one you choose.
In a lot of places, pets have moved out of the farmyard and into the home. Sophisticated surgeries, treatments and diagnostic imaging such as MRI are available to help pets all around the world. When you really need to pay for pet care there are excellent options available. At Copper Hill Animal Clinic, we would love to tell you stories of the animals who would not otherwise be alive if it wasn’t for plans like Care Credit and Trupanion.