In a country in which supposedly 93 percent of pet owners describe their pets as members of the family, where 70 percent of its pet-owning citizens sleep with their dogs and 78 percent with their cats, in which almost three out of four married...
I suppose an answer to part of your questions is that it's like any other statistic. Who are they asking? Who would take the time to answer a survey like that, someone who hates animals or runs a dog fighting ring? Who would say "NO! It's just a darn dog" to someone outside of their family. I think the percentages would be skewed just by that, in fact, I'm surprised they got 7% of people to say they didn't look at their pets as family members.
I have a Care Credit card that's really only good at the emergency vet...and then only up to $2000, but it's better than nothing.
My dogs never have "cheap fix" issues. I had a dog who got a total hip replacement and a TPLO. I have a dog now who got a bilateral TPLO last year and then had to have one of the pins removed, which they also charged for. ::sigh::
I never did the pet insurance thing because my vet said you wind up paying more for the premiums than you get back in reimbursment. Do you not agree with that?
A couple of theories on greeting the pet before the spouse:
1. Perhaps it's because our pets meet us at the door and our spouse does not?
2. Is there ANYONE or ANYTHING that provides the complete UNCONDITIONAL love that a pet does? You could even CHEAT (lol....if my wife is reading this - she knows I would NEVER....lol) on your beloved pet and they would be just as forgiving as ever. Don't think we could say the same for spouses...lol
As for the other numbers, that is a perplexing issue. Times are changing. Dr. Khuly, are you not seeing an increase in your client's awareness level and/or willingness to spend more for better care?
If the percentages are that high for "pets as family," I would hope that you would see it first hand.
If not, then perhaps the poor economy is playing a bigger role? Very interesting topic....
Today would have been our beloved lil' Shih Tzu Stempy's 11th birthday. Click on my name to visit his website and read his story...
In today's disposable society, "family" is often a very weak bond. Think of all the deadbeat parents out there, the people who never even see their families, etc etc. Family might mean "I stop by with a covered dish quarterly".
This post was so refreshing to read. I'd like to think all of America loves pets as much as we do, unfortunately that's not the case. View it as a challenge, if everyone already loved pets than their would be no one to convert. Hopefully, by blogging and sharing our stories, we can help other learn to care.
Kristie, I have to say it's been worth it for me. I have a female GSD who's had bilateral TPLOs and ongoing sensitve tummy issues. I've had insurance on her since she was 10 weeks old. She's now 7 years. It's been worth it's weight in gold considering the trips to the emergency vet that she seems to strive for with her tummy issues -- never when her regular doc's still in his office!
Patty - I don't think it's just with pets that this is an issue, I think at heart we're talking about human nature. There are folks who will go years with awful tooth decay and what have you and all of the attendant problems. If they won't spend money on themselves, I don't see it as strange that they'd not spend it on a pet (not saying I agree with this but I understand it).
And when it comes to things like insurance and payments, one thing that psychologists have learned is that people by nature are risk-seeking on the reward side (explains why lottery tickets are so popular) and risk-avoiding on the loss side (people won't spend money as easily on insurance to avoid a potential loss). I think owning a pet for many folks is similar - the reward side is the unconditional love and the funny stuff that your pet does that touches your heart, all of which comes at relatively low cost (Greenies plus a few routine vet visits perhaps). But lo and behold if something goes wrong, all of a sudden we're in territory that's going to cost real money to get out of. Human nature says avoid, avoid, avoid, pass the buck, someone else worry about it. (I am generalizing here but I've had many DVMs say to me that people will call up and expect the vet to look after a sick pet for free just because they're a vet. So folks may cough up $500 for toys but not $500 for care)
Many of us view the world through glasses that are rose-tinted, again that's who we are. I can't tell you how many people we get call us saying "My last dog lived to 12 years without any problems, I don't see the need for insurance or payment plans."
And the other element of the reason so few pets have savings plans is because many vets are scared of talking dollars with clients. I can't tell you the number of vets I've spoken with who avoid talk of money with clients for fear that it will create the impression that the vet is interested only in the unholy dollar. So rather than the vet saying "Just like with people, there are many things that can go wrong with your pet and a good financial preparedness plan is essential. I'll ask you to go away and consider how you could come up with $2,500 [or other amt] if something were to happen to your pet tomorrow.", instead the conversation is avoided like the plague. I'm not advocating for pet insurance in particular here: Care Credit, savings, whatever it takes to get the job done. I think vets have an obligation to initiate the discussion but many choose not to.
Yeah -- my wife greats the pets before me, but they get to the door much more quickly and greet her much more eagerly than I do. Maybe I should fix that.
Did you have a link to post under the New York thing? I hadn't seen a proposal there.
I wish the animal community at large would work harder to fight off breed bans. No politician would touch a breed ban if they knew that the 50% of the people in this country that owned dogs would run them out of office for life if they passed it...and yet, we don't have enough people who fight hard enough.
"Why, if we love them so fervently then, do so few of our pets have health insurance, savings plans or serious”backup” in the event of an emergency?"
Over 40% of the human population does not have this for themselves. For them, you're asking why the four-footed members of the family aren't getting something the human members either aren't able to provide for themselves, or, in the case of healthy young adults, especially healthy young adult males, honestly do not believe that they need.
But make no mistake, an awful lot of people in this country don't have health insurance for themselves, because they can't afford it or simply can't get it, at any price that anyone but the super-rich can afford. And you're asking why these people don't have health insurance for their pets.
For those of us who do realize we need it, and even have (so far!) insurance for ourselves--for many years I would periodically check on the pet health insurance offerings, and find nothing, literally nothing, that would actually help me keep my pet alive in the event of an expensive medical emergency. I would have been taking the money and flushing it down the toilet, for all the good insurance would have done them. Recently, on my latest check on pet insurance, I DID find a plan that I decided was worthwhile for my healthy, two-year-old dog, and so I bought it for her. My two cats--they're age ten and age fifteen. The only insurance I could get for them is accident insurance--no coverage for the illnesses that are a far more likely risk at their ages. And even that would be at a signficantly greater premium than full coverage for my healthy young dog.
So two-thirds of my pets still don't have health insurance, but it's not because I don't love them, or am foolishly blinding myself to the risks involved.
" Why do we euthanize alarming rates of animals in our shelters every year?"
Because lots of shelters haver really sucky adoption programs, sucky hours for working families, sucky marketing skills, and a huge emotional investment in the idea that the Bad Owners need to be punished by putting to death the "unwanted" pets.
Lots of shelters, of course, have been changing those policies, behaviors, and attitudes--and over the last thirty years, shelter deaths have fallen DRAMATICALLY, despite equally dramatic increases in both human and pet populations.
So, no, I don't think you can realistically lay that at the feet of the Bad Owners who claim to regard their pets as family, but don't.
" Why do pit bull bans flourish? (Check out this newest proposal for NYC.)"
Pt bull bans aren't being pushed by dog lovers. Generally, they're being pushed by political grandstanders who are abysmally ignorant about dogs.
" And why do I still have a hard time convincing some clients that their pets’ teeth must be brushed or professionally cleaned?"
Checked out the complaints of human dentists lately?
Really, you're complaining that people really do provide the same care for their pets that they provide for themselves--sometimes even better care.
I saw a statistic a few days ago that is more in line with my experience: 77% of people who buy or adopt a pet keep is less than two years. I don't know the specific details about where this stat came from, but it is in line with our experience doing rescue.
Ditto to Mary's comment, any long-time breeder or rescue person can tell you that there are all "levels" of pet-owners, but I wouldn't be a bit surprised if most say "of course, my pet is a family member"----until x,y,z comes up!
At the same time, I believe a pet-owner can be totally devoted and have certain ground rules: no jumping up on furniture, no sleeping in my bed (you have your own), no begging for people food, etc. Oh gosh, I'm not saying "I" institute those rules.
In my home, you have NO choice but to greet the pets first, as they all congregate as a mob towards/at you to insist upon their share of greetings and pets!
Allow your visitors to search your website directly from their browsers. We have developed an incredible solution, which will allow you to create a small piece of code which can be placed on your website. This will allow the users to add a search plugin to their browsers - be it Firefox or Internet Explorer. So your site will be searchable directly from their browser. This means additional visitors and repeat customers. Get started now, its free for life. http://www.BrowserSearchPlugin.com
P.S. Do get back to us if you need any type of installation help.
Thanks Rich
# Posted By Browser Search Plugin
| 7/18/08 4:09 AM
I echo Lis' comments almost to the letter; I don't think whether or not I have pet insurance is in an indication of an hypocrisy on my part when I consider my dog family. I tried insurance at one point for my dog, and it was a complete waste of money, and I have yet to see an improvement in coverage that would make it worth my while. So that's why I keep several thousand dollars on hand to cover ANY emergency: mine OR my dog's, and if necessary it will get used for either of our needs. But that money is not especially earmarked as a pet savings fund.
The brushing of the teeth, well now, that's a good one. I definitely need to improve on that. :)
Neither of my cats are insured either, both have medical history's that make them unattractive to insurers. However, I do have a $10, 000 line of credit that could and will be used in the event of an emergency if I decided that it was in my cats best interest to do so. Neither ever has or ever will be denied health care due to lack of insurance or funds.
And no, I don't brush my cats teeth. My vet and I discussed it and they eat a special dental diet which is probably more effective at keeping their teeth clean and healthy than my ineffective brushing is.
As with many of the previous posts I can confirm... my husband greets the pets before me. When he walks in the door he immediately begins singing a song to our dog Sydney. (A different one every night - made up spur of the moment, typically from whatever he last heard on the radio!) She responds with unreserved glee, wagging her whole body and bringing him whatever toy she can quickly find.
Meanwhile Seamus (our cat) saunters to the front door, always magically avoiding being bludgeoned by the dog's wagging tail, for his greeting.
Sometime after, assuming he remembers, I get a hello.
And I LOVE it. Seeing the joy that these three bring one another makes my heart sing.
Our Sydney came to us with demodex mange - resolving that cost thousands of dollars. At six months we nearly had to do ACL surgery. Seamus had $1,500 surgery (when I was making less than $20K per year) but I found a way to make it work. My last cat had $2,000 in procedures and tests before she was finally diagnosed with cancer.
There may be people who falsely claim that their pets are family, but never fear. There are MANY of us who value our pets as equal members of the family.
Heck... my husband... who still proclaims that the pets are mine and not his... once slept on the FLOOR all night because the cat was asleep on his half of the bed and "looked so comfortable I couldn't move him."
I don't have health insurance for my ferrets because pet health insurance typically does not cover the big diseases that are likely to affect a ferret at some point in its life--adrenal gland disease, insulinoma and lymphoma (if you're really unlucky, you hit the jackpot and your ferret gets all three). I'm not sure if treatment for IBD, which seems to be occurring more frequently, is covered either. The covered services--shots, yearly exams--come out to be about equal in cost to the insurance payments, so there's not much point in it. Ferrets are tough enough critters and generally spend so little time outside of the house that injury doesn't seem to occur that frequently, so the insurance wouldn't be terribly useful there either.
I do brush teeth though! I adopted my current ferrets about six weeks ago and have been building a bond with them before I go sticking stuff in their mouths, but given how good they were about getting treated with Ivermectin earlier this week (apparently I adopted hundreds of critters for the price of two :-/ ), I think I can start brushing now. My previous ferrets had their teeth brushed nearly every day. Ferrets generally like the taste of poultry flavored toothpaste--the trick is to get it on their teeth before they eat it all!
Some ferrets can get nasty periodontal disease. I used to work with an exotics vet who was rabid about dental hygiene in her exotics and she used to love showing us how bad it can get. Thanks for brushing!
3 of my 6 are insured. I haven't seen it pay for itself yet. What it does cover on regular maintenance stuff is just a small fraction of what that really cost.
Yep, they sleep with me, they greet me at the door and I rub their ears more than I do my wife's. Sometimes we sleep in separate beds so they can have more room. Is that crazy or what?
How is it that when I was a kid, my parents always had dogs, we fed them purina, only took them to the vet for vaccinations, never cleaned their teeth and they lived long healthy lives.
Now I pay for dental care, buy expensive food, take them to the vet for every little thing. 4 of my 6 all have major illnesses from liver problems , allergies, to arthritis. Only the 2 youngest are completely healthy.
Did I mention that one of my dogs is even allergic to cats??
Should I not spend all the money? We are a 2 income no kids house. I traded in my SUV for a bigger truck for the dogs, I bought the house because of the yard..for the dogs, I'm remodeling the house right now for the dogs.
I'm guessing everyone on this website will agree, I'm doing nothing wrong.
"3 of my 6 are insured. I haven't seen it pay for itself yet. What it does cover on regular maintenance stuff is just a small fraction of what that really cost."
Now, see, I think having insurance that covers routine maintenance stuff is a mistake. All that does is raise the cost of the policy, because any pet owner responsible enough to buy insurance will do the regular maintenance stuff, so that coverage has to be allowed for in the premium--and the insurance company still has to make a profit.
The ideal outcome is that the circumstances NEVER arise in which insurance will pay for itself, because if good insurance pays for itself, something bad has happened to whoever or whatever you insured.
What I've always looked for, and never found until quite recently (and then onlly for my youngest pet), is pet insurance that had affordable annual premiums, NO regular health maintenance costs covered, a fairly high deductible--and a high maximum payout after that deductible is reached. THAT is what will hopefully make a difference to my ability to keep her alive, if something catastrophic does happen.
Because, oddly enough, being able to save her is something goes wrong is why I'm paying for insurance--not so that some stranger will believe me when I say I regard her as a family member.
Lis: I agree. Pet insurance is something we buy not to pay for the basics we should've already taken into consideration when adopting/purchasing a pet, but to hedge against the uncertainty of serious *unseen* challenges we may not be able to afford.
Pet insurance is for peace of mind. That's what you're paying for, IMO. If it "pays for itself" you've gotta count yourself among the unlucky ones--statistically speaking, that is.
I guess I worded that wrong. "pays for itself" apparently isn't what I wanted to say. I can't see the normal everyday person being able to afford this though.
in my opinion. It's pretty expensive and yes, I suppose it's there for piece of mind, like two of them got into it with a raccoon this AM.
At the pet supply store where I work, we keep a list of "Stupid Owner Questions."
We write them down because, let's face it I have the memory of a 142 year old alzheimers patient, but here are some of my favourites:
Customer: "Do you have dogs?" Me: "Yes" Customer: "How many times a day do they need to go outside?" Me: "My guys are really good, they really only want to go out in the morning, when we get home, and then again before bed/after dinner." Customer: "YOU MEAN THEY HAVE TO GO OUT MORE THAN ONCE A DAY!!??" **Please note customer was holding a four month old Shih Tzu pup and was previously lamenting how she couldn't get it to housetrain**
Customer: "How much is this tartar remover?" **Tartar remover is previously sold veterinary brand, sold specifically for dogs who are unsuitable for anesthetic** Me: "$69.99 CDN Customer: "$69.99!!?? What are you #@* crazy? Me: "Well ma'am, that product is specifically catered towards senior dogs who can't handle anesthetic or people who simply just can not afford the $300++ of a full dental cleaning through your veterinarian. However, we strongly recommend getting a recommendation from your vet first as to the condition of your dogs mouth prior to using any product as your dog may require abstractions if it's that bad." Customer: "This is a conspiracy, you're all in it together!!!"
Customer: "Do you have a flea powder for cats?" Me: "How old is the cat?" Customer: "A mother a four week old kittens." Me: "I'm sorry, Sir, but you need to see your vet for product that is safe to use on such young animals. OTC product can cause neurological disorders in young kittens and doesn't have nearly the effectiveness that prescription products have. I recommend you try Revolution or Advantage if you can wait until they are older." Customer: "I tried that, the stupid vet won't give me anything unless I take the cat in for a visit, he wants to charge me all kinds of money." Me: "Well, Sir, it is a prescription and it's no different than a pharmacist giving you antibiotics without your doctor's ok..." Customer: "This is all a conspiracy!!"
Incidentally, Dr. Khuly, I would like to have it on record now as officially asking for my cut of the "conspiracy" monies. Surely somewhere there is a large kitty that I have yet to tap into. I mean, everyone seems to know of its existence except for me....
;O)
And my favourite...
Customer: "I just got back from the vet, it cost me $2300 for Fluffy, he was severely constipated. The vet sent me here for Kittymalt." Me: "Sure, here it is, it's $5.99, you just put an inch on his foot and he'll lick it off himself. Use it every few days, the tube should last you several months." Customer: "FIVE NINETY NINE!! WHAT A RIPOFF!! FORGET IT, THE DAMN CAT CAN GET CONSTIPATED FOR ALL I CARE. YOU PEOPLE SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF YOURSELVES!"
People never cease to amaze me. All I can do is chuckle, with my house full of rescue dogs, and my hypothyroid, epileptic, hip dysplastic dog with AIHA, my IBD kitty, and everyone eating $75 a bag food... someone wants to scream at me about $6 petromalt. Honestly, folks. Family members? I certainly pray you don't treat your children this way, or Timmy's going to school in Lisa's skirts from last year. ;OP
Kim – I empathise completely with where you are coming from!!! Vets often get the same type of responses, and that’s even from the clients who have taken the trouble to GO to a vet in the first place. Many people will happily spent much money / time on their pets (myself included), but unfortunately many won’t. I think the image of us as an animal-loving society is not as rosy as we would like to think it is. People tend to actually behave very differently from how they describe themselves as behaving. Its also an issue with time invested in your pet. I see countless dogs whose owners profess love, but do not play with or walk their dogs.
My dogs never have "cheap fix" issues. I had a dog who got a total hip replacement and a TPLO. I have a dog now who got a bilateral TPLO last year and then had to have one of the pins removed, which they also charged for. ::sigh::
I never did the pet insurance thing because my vet said you wind up paying more for the premiums than you get back in reimbursment. Do you not agree with that?
1. Perhaps it's because our pets meet us at the door and our spouse does not?
2. Is there ANYONE or ANYTHING that provides the complete UNCONDITIONAL love that a pet does? You could even CHEAT (lol....if my wife is reading this - she knows I would NEVER....lol) on your beloved pet and they would be just as forgiving as ever. Don't think we could say the same for spouses...lol
As for the other numbers, that is a perplexing issue. Times are changing. Dr. Khuly, are you not seeing an increase in your client's awareness level and/or willingness to spend more for better care?
If the percentages are that high for "pets as family," I would hope that you would see it first hand.
If not, then perhaps the poor economy is playing a bigger role? Very interesting topic....
Today would have been our beloved lil' Shih Tzu Stempy's 11th birthday. Click on my name to visit his website and read his story...
I'd like to think all of America loves pets as much as we do, unfortunately that's not the case. View it as a challenge, if everyone already loved pets than their would be no one to convert. Hopefully, by blogging and sharing our stories, we can help other learn to care.
And when it comes to things like insurance and payments, one thing that psychologists have learned is that people by nature are risk-seeking on the reward side (explains why lottery tickets are so popular) and risk-avoiding on the loss side (people won't spend money as easily on insurance to avoid a potential loss). I think owning a pet for many folks is similar - the reward side is the unconditional love and the funny stuff that your pet does that touches your heart, all of which comes at relatively low cost (Greenies plus a few routine vet visits perhaps). But lo and behold if something goes wrong, all of a sudden we're in territory that's going to cost real money to get out of. Human nature says avoid, avoid, avoid, pass the buck, someone else worry about it. (I am generalizing here but I've had many DVMs say to me that people will call up and expect the vet to look after a sick pet for free just because they're a vet. So folks may cough up $500 for toys but not $500 for care)
Many of us view the world through glasses that are rose-tinted, again that's who we are. I can't tell you how many people we get call us saying "My last dog lived to 12 years without any problems, I don't see the need for insurance or payment plans."
And the other element of the reason so few pets have savings plans is because many vets are scared of talking dollars with clients. I can't tell you the number of vets I've spoken with who avoid talk of money with clients for fear that it will create the impression that the vet is interested only in the unholy dollar. So rather than the vet saying "Just like with people, there are many things that can go wrong with your pet and a good financial preparedness plan is essential. I'll ask you to go away and consider how you could come up with $2,500 [or other amt] if something were to happen to your pet tomorrow.", instead the conversation is avoided like the plague. I'm not advocating for pet insurance in particular here: Care Credit, savings, whatever it takes to get the job done. I think vets have an obligation to initiate the discussion but many choose not to.
Did you have a link to post under the New York thing? I hadn't seen a proposal there.
I wish the animal community at large would work harder to fight off breed bans. No politician would touch a breed ban if they knew that the 50% of the people in this country that owned dogs would run them out of office for life if they passed it...and yet, we don't have enough people who fight hard enough.
Over 40% of the human population does not have this for themselves. For them, you're asking why the four-footed members of the family aren't getting something the human members either aren't able to provide for themselves, or, in the case of healthy young adults, especially healthy young adult males, honestly do not believe that they need.
But make no mistake, an awful lot of people in this country don't have health insurance for themselves, because they can't afford it or simply can't get it, at any price that anyone but the super-rich can afford. And you're asking why these people don't have health insurance for their pets.
For those of us who do realize we need it, and even have (so far!) insurance for ourselves--for many years I would periodically check on the pet health insurance offerings, and find nothing, literally nothing, that would actually help me keep my pet alive in the event of an expensive medical emergency. I would have been taking the money and flushing it down the toilet, for all the good insurance would have done them. Recently, on my latest check on pet insurance, I DID find a plan that I decided was worthwhile for my healthy, two-year-old dog, and so I bought it for her. My two cats--they're age ten and age fifteen. The only insurance I could get for them is accident insurance--no coverage for the illnesses that are a far more likely risk at their ages. And even that would be at a signficantly greater premium than full coverage for my healthy young dog.
So two-thirds of my pets still don't have health insurance, but it's not because I don't love them, or am foolishly blinding myself to the risks involved.
" Why do we euthanize alarming rates of animals in our shelters every year?"
Because lots of shelters haver really sucky adoption programs, sucky hours for working families, sucky marketing skills, and a huge emotional investment in the idea that the Bad Owners need to be punished by putting to death the "unwanted" pets.
Lots of shelters, of course, have been changing those policies, behaviors, and attitudes--and over the last thirty years, shelter deaths have fallen DRAMATICALLY, despite equally dramatic increases in both human and pet populations.
So, no, I don't think you can realistically lay that at the feet of the Bad Owners who claim to regard their pets as family, but don't.
" Why do pit bull bans flourish? (Check out this newest proposal for NYC.)"
Pt bull bans aren't being pushed by dog lovers. Generally, they're being pushed by political grandstanders who are abysmally ignorant about dogs.
" And why do I still have a hard time convincing some clients that their pets’ teeth must be brushed or professionally cleaned?"
Checked out the complaints of human dentists lately?
Really, you're complaining that people really do provide the same care for their pets that they provide for themselves--sometimes even better care.
I saw a statistic a few days ago that is more in line with my experience: 77% of people who buy or adopt a pet keep is less than two years. I don't know the specific details about where this stat came from, but it is in line with our experience doing rescue.
Or for me, in Internet Explorer 6.
At the same time, I believe a pet-owner can be totally devoted and have certain ground rules: no jumping up on furniture, no sleeping in my bed (you have your own), no begging for people food, etc. Oh gosh, I'm not saying "I" institute those rules.
In my home, you have NO choice but to greet the pets first, as they all congregate as a mob towards/at you to insist upon their share of greetings and pets!
P.S. Do get back to us if you need any type of installation help.
Thanks
Rich
http://www.nsalamerica.org/news_and_events/stop-th...
The brushing of the teeth, well now, that's a good one. I definitely need to improve on that. :)
And no, I don't brush my cats teeth. My vet and I discussed it and they eat a special dental diet which is probably more effective at keeping their teeth clean and healthy than my ineffective brushing is.
Meanwhile Seamus (our cat) saunters to the front door, always magically avoiding being bludgeoned by the dog's wagging tail, for his greeting.
Sometime after, assuming he remembers, I get a hello.
And I LOVE it. Seeing the joy that these three bring one another makes my heart sing.
Our Sydney came to us with demodex mange - resolving that cost thousands of dollars. At six months we nearly had to do ACL surgery. Seamus had $1,500 surgery (when I was making less than $20K per year) but I found a way to make it work. My last cat had $2,000 in procedures and tests before she was finally diagnosed with cancer.
There may be people who falsely claim that their pets are family, but never fear. There are MANY of us who value our pets as equal members of the family.
Heck... my husband... who still proclaims that the pets are mine and not his... once slept on the FLOOR all night because the cat was asleep on his half of the bed and "looked so comfortable I couldn't move him."
Never fear - we're out here.
I do brush teeth though! I adopted my current ferrets about six weeks ago and have been building a bond with them before I go sticking stuff in their mouths, but given how good they were about getting treated with Ivermectin earlier this week (apparently I adopted hundreds of critters for the price of two :-/ ), I think I can start brushing now. My previous ferrets had their teeth brushed nearly every day. Ferrets generally like the taste of poultry flavored toothpaste--the trick is to get it on their teeth before they eat it all!
Yep, they sleep with me, they greet me at the door and I rub their ears more than I do my wife's. Sometimes we sleep in separate beds so they can have more room. Is that crazy or what?
How is it that when I was a kid, my parents always had dogs, we fed them purina, only took them to the vet for vaccinations, never cleaned their teeth and they lived long healthy lives.
Now I pay for dental care, buy expensive food, take them to the vet for every little thing. 4 of my 6 all have major illnesses from liver problems , allergies, to arthritis. Only the 2 youngest are completely healthy.
Did I mention that one of my dogs is even allergic to cats??
Should I not spend all the money? We are a 2 income no kids house. I traded in my SUV for a bigger truck for the dogs, I bought the house because of the yard..for the dogs, I'm remodeling the house right now for the dogs.
I'm guessing everyone on this website will agree, I'm doing nothing wrong.
Now, see, I think having insurance that covers routine maintenance stuff is a mistake. All that does is raise the cost of the policy, because any pet owner responsible enough to buy insurance will do the regular maintenance stuff, so that coverage has to be allowed for in the premium--and the insurance company still has to make a profit.
The ideal outcome is that the circumstances NEVER arise in which insurance will pay for itself, because if good insurance pays for itself, something bad has happened to whoever or whatever you insured.
What I've always looked for, and never found until quite recently (and then onlly for my youngest pet), is pet insurance that had affordable annual premiums, NO regular health maintenance costs covered, a fairly high deductible--and a high maximum payout after that deductible is reached. THAT is what will hopefully make a difference to my ability to keep her alive, if something catastrophic does happen.
Because, oddly enough, being able to save her is something goes wrong is why I'm paying for insurance--not so that some stranger will believe me when I say I regard her as a family member.
Pet insurance is for peace of mind. That's what you're paying for, IMO. If it "pays for itself" you've gotta count yourself among the unlucky ones--statistically speaking, that is.
in my opinion. It's pretty expensive and yes, I suppose it's there for piece of mind, like two of them got into it with a raccoon this AM.
We write them down because, let's face it I have the memory of a 142 year old alzheimers patient, but here are some of my favourites:
Customer: "Do you have dogs?"
Me: "Yes"
Customer: "How many times a day do they need to go outside?"
Me: "My guys are really good, they really only want to go out in the morning, when we get home, and then again before bed/after dinner."
Customer: "YOU MEAN THEY HAVE TO GO OUT MORE THAN ONCE A DAY!!??"
**Please note customer was holding a four month old Shih Tzu pup and was previously lamenting how she couldn't get it to housetrain**
Customer: "How much is this tartar remover?"
**Tartar remover is previously sold veterinary brand, sold specifically for dogs who are unsuitable for anesthetic**
Me: "$69.99 CDN
Customer: "$69.99!!?? What are you #@* crazy?
Me: "Well ma'am, that product is specifically catered towards senior dogs who can't handle anesthetic or people who simply just can not afford the $300++ of a full dental cleaning through your veterinarian. However, we strongly recommend getting a recommendation from your vet first as to the condition of your dogs mouth prior to using any product as your dog may require abstractions if it's that bad."
Customer: "This is a conspiracy, you're all in it together!!!"
Customer: "Do you have a flea powder for cats?"
Me: "How old is the cat?"
Customer: "A mother a four week old kittens."
Me: "I'm sorry, Sir, but you need to see your vet for product that is safe to use on such young animals. OTC product can cause neurological disorders in young kittens and doesn't have nearly the effectiveness that prescription products have. I recommend you try Revolution or Advantage if you can wait until they are older."
Customer: "I tried that, the stupid vet won't give me anything unless I take the cat in for a visit, he wants to charge me all kinds of money."
Me: "Well, Sir, it is a prescription and it's no different than a pharmacist giving you antibiotics without your doctor's ok..."
Customer: "This is all a conspiracy!!"
Incidentally, Dr. Khuly, I would like to have it on record now as officially asking for my cut of the "conspiracy" monies. Surely somewhere there is a large kitty that I have yet to tap into. I mean, everyone seems to know of its existence except for me....
;O)
And my favourite...
Customer: "I just got back from the vet, it cost me $2300 for Fluffy, he was severely constipated. The vet sent me here for Kittymalt."
Me: "Sure, here it is, it's $5.99, you just put an inch on his foot and he'll lick it off himself. Use it every few days, the tube should last you several months."
Customer: "FIVE NINETY NINE!! WHAT A RIPOFF!! FORGET IT, THE DAMN CAT CAN GET CONSTIPATED FOR ALL I CARE. YOU PEOPLE SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF YOURSELVES!"
People never cease to amaze me. All I can do is chuckle, with my house full of rescue dogs, and my hypothyroid, epileptic, hip dysplastic dog with AIHA, my IBD kitty, and everyone eating $75 a bag food... someone wants to scream at me about $6 petromalt. Honestly, folks. Family members? I certainly pray you don't treat your children this way, or Timmy's going to school in Lisa's skirts from last year. ;OP
Many people will happily spent much money / time on their pets (myself included), but unfortunately many won’t. I think the image of us as an animal-loving society is not as rosy as we would like to think it is. People tend to actually behave very differently from how they describe themselves as behaving.
Its also an issue with time invested in your pet. I see countless dogs whose owners profess love, but do not play with or walk their dogs.