I am a first time dog owner so I am probably paranoid but I am considering getting pet insurance. We got Carly (click for picture) from a foster / rescue a few months ago.

I am worried about stuff like she swallows something, gets blocked up and would require a surgery I couldn't afford.

Any other shih tzu owners here

Had one as a family pet when I was a kid. Quiet, trainable, Keeping them looking good involves some work.

Pets are luxury items. Some more than others.

Pet insurance... It's your money, I'll neither encourage you to spend it that way, or say nay if you do. Be happy.

Have you looked at the prices on pet insurance? They're outrageous. I'd suggest that you just put that money in a rainy-day savings account.

In Australia one of the home and car insurers charges something like $2/week extra when you have their home and contents insurance also. It has an excess of $50 and pays "upto" $500.

I'll be the first to admint I'm not a pet person but even then I don't think it's a real good deal. I think you'd be better off investing that money particularly given the limited claim amount. It's not like car or home insurance where the premium is such a small percentage of the potential payout. Insurance is essentially a gamble and the odds aren't good IMO...

Depends on the specific breed and type of pet you have as well. Certain ones are prone to expensive problems.

From what I have found it's about 20 dollars a month for something that does not cover preventative care (annual shots). Yeah I could save 20 dollars. I was walking with the dog around my block and some dope threw some paint balls on the ground so of course she had to chew on one. I saw her do it before she swallowed it or bit into it but I am thinking what if I didn't. Would she get a blockage and have a couple thousand dollar bill for surgery to remove it. At 20 a month it would take me 8 years to save that.

But I am probably paranoid.

I should ask a vet how much some treatments cost maybe.

We've spent about £500 in pet insurance over the last four years. In the same time the insurance has paid out for around £1000 in vet bills, so we're ahead at the moment...

Where did you find insurance for $20/month? I might be interested in that.

Vpi is 23.00 a month, petsbest is 19.00. There were others but those were the first two in google.

I'm still in shock that you have a dog

I adopted two cats last March/April from a Humane Society here (their names were Garfield and Ziggy - I swear, so I just kept them and people think I'm either pathetic, nuts or funny except for the folks at the shelter, they thought it was awesome). The VCA clinic told me Garfield has some extra teeth, so he may require dental surgery in the future if it starts bothering him.

I had no idea about pet insurance. I might have to look into that. Thanks for the idea and names.

The things to be careful of are the same things as human health insurance, except it's far less regulated. They will have standard ways conditions are treated, and you'll have to get whatever your veterinarian wants to do approved.

They often don't cover genetic or congenital problems. Does your golden retreiver get ear infections? That's common for golden retrivers, it may not be covered. Does your german shepard have hip dysplasia? That's definitly a genetic condition, and there's nothing they'll do to help.

There are two ways for insurance companies to make money - chargeing more than the costs of what they provide and negotiating low costs for the same work. I havn't heard of any pet insurance companies doing the later, so it's pretty much gauranteed that on average you will pay more to get the same thing with insurance.

You would come out ahead if your pet has a unprobable catastroiphic ilness that is covered. However, it's likely it won't be covered to the extent that it could be.

Insurance could be great for pet owners, the cost of vet bills are rising to new heights as people insist on the same treatment for their pets as they get in a human medicine, but someone has to pay for it and historically insurance companies have been interested in making money, not spending it.