Handling veterinary costs

The cost of veterinary care is approaching the cost of human health care—it can get expensive.

Unless you are prepared to spend several thousand dollars to cover emergency and other procedures, if needed, we very strongly recommend getting pet health care insurance, at least for its first year.

Your puppy's vaccine series isn't complete until 2 weeks after his last puppy shots at 4 months old. And a dog doesn't have a fully functional immune system until it is well over a year old. Most vaccines are safe and effective, but without a fully functional immune system, some dogs still contract awful diseases, like Parvo. Treatment for Parvo can run into the thousands of dollars ($5,000–7,000 is not unusual if your puppy needs intensive care and Tamiflu medication, for example).

Puppies chew. It's natural, and to be expected. However, if they swallow something seemingly innocuous like a sock or a small kid's toy, they can get an intestinal blockage. An intestinal blockage can kill a puppy or dog very quickly. The main treatment for a blockage is emergency surgery which can cost well into the thousands of dollars (see a pattern here?).

We never want you to have to make a horrible choice for your puppy because of the outrageous cost of treatment. This is why we recommend insurance for your puppy. Most plans start at $25-35/month for a puppy.

Please, please, please consider insurance for your puppy.