If it takes a village to raise a child, it takes a blogosphere to author a blog. Thanks to a faithful reader, I stand corrected on my post about equine insurance. As she writes, "You can in fact obtain health coverage for horses though it is slightly different than VPI's [Veterinary Pet Insurance] coverage."
This reader does indeed have health coverage for her "average" horses, although there are some limitations. "If you submit a claim for an illness in one year on the subsequent year's policy that ailment will be written off as an exclusion for the most part," she writes. In addition, in her experience, after a certain age, her equine policy will not be re-issued or substantially limited.
A simple Google search of equine insurance, on my part, resulted in 229,000 hits. Most included surgical, medical, mortality, loss of use , general liability and even infertility options. Some are tied in with general farm insurance but the point is that there are lots of options out there, which indicates to me, that there are probably a fair amount of takers.
In fact, it may be that the growing pet insurance industry is simply taking its cue from what seems to be a long-standing equine insurance business.
The simple truth remains. Animals get sick and injured. We as their owners must determine how much that is "worth" to us, in monetary and psychological terms. And it is when the perceived "value" of our animals exceeds their actual "worth" that the picture, in my opinion, becomes fascinating. How can you put a price tag on love?
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Years ago, when I had horses, I always carried mortality insurance on them. As my horses aged however, my veterinarian suggested that I would probably be wiser to set aside money each month in my own fund, perhaps slightly exceeding the premium payments,in order for me have funds on hand to be able to purchase a new horse, should the need arise. It made sense to me, and I stopped paying premiums.
Pet health insurance is a whole other situation. The monthly cost for coverage that is really adequate to be prepared for serious illness is quite costly. Most pet insurance companies require annual vaccinations, which we feel is not necessary, since they are indoor cats and do not come into contact with others. My veterinarian concurs. I just could not fulfill this requirement.
But then again, when disaster strikes, the cost of necessary veterinary care can be overwhelming.
Of course hindsight is always 20/20. The cost of our veterinary care and testing over the past few weeks have been astronomical.
Perhaps I should have been more willing to attempt to negotiate with a pet health insurance company to explore the possibility of some kind of exception.
The question you posed at the end of your entry raises a fact that all of us who share our lives with animals must face. For me it is a no-brainer. I just had to dig deep into my pockets to pay for their care, as there is no way that I can put a price on the love I feel for my cats, or the affection that is returned to me, without hesitation.
Thanks for an excellent article.
Jo
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