Care to Your Dog!

Every year 1 in 3 pets become ill or injured. Given that a trip to the vet can cost you hundreds and sometimes thousands of dollars, it is not surprising that tens of thousands of cats and dogs in this country alone must be put down because owners cannot afford the cost of treatment. Further still, many of these vet visits are unexpected and hard to plan for presenting a unpleasant surprise for the effected pet owners.

In 2007, the top five reasons for an unexpected visit to the vet were:

1) Cuts or lacerations

2) Lameness

3) Road traffic accident

4) Tumor or growth

5) Abscess

The medical technology available to treat injured or ill pets have increased dramatically in reasons years, in many cases being just as good as what is available for humans. While this is great news, it has also meant to that vet fees and costs have steadily increased.

Pet health insurance can protect you from these high and unexpected vet costs, and ensure that you can afford your cat or dogs treatment in its time of need. Not only that, it doesn’t have to be expensive to take out pet health insurance for your cat or dog.

Affordable

Pet health insurance was once considered a luxury reserved for expensive pedigreed or show animals. Nowadays, this is no longer the case. The pet health insurance industry is growing, expecting to double by 2012. This means that there are more and more companies beginning to offer pet health insurance, and therefore policies have become very affordable. From just a few dollars per month, you can help minimize expensive vet bills.

Instant Protection

Typically, the coverage for accidents is immediate under most pet health insurance policies. This ensures that you are instantly protected from unexpected events. You should however, check your policy’s details to see what the waiting period is to have protection from illnesses and if pre-existing conditions are covered.

Peace Of Mind

With pet health insurance for your cat or dog, you will have the peace of mind knowing that you can afford the treatment that will possibly save your furry friend’s life. Furthermore, if your pet develops a long term, chronic illness such as diabetes or arthritis your pet health insurance company will assist you with the ongoing and expensive costs.

Even More Protection – the Added Bells and Whistles

Not only does pet health insurance covers vet bills, many companies offer other benefits too. Your policy may cover the unfortunate situation of your pet being lost or stolen, and may even pay for a reward and advertising for your pet’s return. Furthermore, just like health insurance humans, you can purchase pet health insurance that will cover your pet for any injuries sustained while on vacation overseas.

As you can see, there are having many benefits to having pet health insurance. One word of caution however, you should research any policy you are wanting to buy to ensure that you know what you are getting for your dollar. There are websites available to assist you in this.

If you have pets, you know that leaving them behind while you go on vacation can be stressful. You can minimize that anxiety by hiring a good pet sitter. This article has some advice to make the process easier.

Start by asking your vet if they recommend anyone. Pet-owning friends may also have names for you. There may be people who do it occasionally, like I do, just not as a business. Some pet sitters will advertise in the yellow pages or newspapers. Most will leave flyers or business cards with veterinarians.

There are professional Pet Sitter organizations that have websites. Some of them offer a search feature, but remember that only their members will be listed. Some smaller towns may not have local professional pet sitters.

Keep your expectations realistic. Normally, a pet sitter will feed the animals, let them out or walk them, change litter boxes and do whatever else is needed to care for the animal. They will spend an average of thirty minutes for each visit. They might even pick up your mail and water your plants.

There is usually an extra charge for additional visits during the day. Some sitters may be willing to spend the night – something you may desire if you have older or sick animals.

Make sure the pet sitter will come and meet the animals before you hire her. It is important that both the animal and the sitter be comfortable with each other.

Be sure to plan well in advance, as pet sitters are usually in heavy demand. You should ask for the pet sitter’s fees and policies in writing, so you know exactly what to expect. I would suggest getting references; a trustworthy businessperson will have these readily available.

Ask what other kinds of animal experience the person has. Someone with veterinary experience, such as a technician, is a good choice for special needs pets. A dog trainer, or someone who has trained a few animals will know how to handle dogs with behavioral issues. A pet groomer will have experience handling both dogs and cats in stressful situations.

Pet sitters are not required to have any special licensing, but those who have gone to the trouble of acquiring accreditation from one of the pet sitter organizations show a high degree of professionalism in my opinion. They will have been required to take a course that usually includes business management, animal care and animal health instruction. Accredited pet sitters will therefore likely have more diverse knowledge and experience than someone who has not been through the course. Once you have found the right sitter for you, be sure to give and get all the information you both will need.

You will want to leave phone numbers for where you can be reached, as well as a friend or neighbor who might be able to answer questions or help out in emergencies. Provide the sitter with the name, address and phone number of your veterinarian, and leave a signed letter giving permission for necessary medical procedures to be preformed. Additionally, make sure you have a way to reach the sitter at all times, in case something comes up.

Be sure to tell the pet sitter of any special behavioral problems or quirks. If your dog is afraid of people in hats, say, the sitter will not make the mistake of wearing her rain hat indoors! Point out where all the supplies are; food, dishes, toys, beds, etc. Tell the pet sitter your rules on treats, how much you feed, how often and when. If you can put everything the pet sitter may need in one central location, so much the better.

If your pet needs to be fed at certain times, or takes medicine on a schedule, you will want to be sure that the pet sitter can accommodate your needs.

Be sure your pet sitter is bonded and insured. Don’t forget, she will have the keys to your home. Also, make arrangements for payment and the return of your keys.

It is a good idea to have a contingency plan in place in the event that your return is delayed. Arrange for the sitter to call, or for you to call her at a specific time on the date of your return.

The pet sitter should also have a backup plan in case he or she is unable to attend to your pets for some reason. If not, you had better make a backup plan of your own.

Leaving the pets behind can add unnecessary stress to your trip. Knowing that you have hired an experienced pet sitter, and that you have provided her with everything she needs to do the job right can help ease that stress.