Is Cat Health Insurance Worth It Ask An Expert
Taking on the care of another living being is a big responsibility. When your pet is young and healthy it might not seem necessary to pay monthly premiums for pet health insurance, but investing in pet insurance early can save you thousands of dollars down the road. More importantly, it will ensure your pet has access to care when they need it the most.
Pet insurance is a valuable investment that can keep your four-legged family member healthy and prevent you from spending too much money on vet care.
How do I know this? Well, my fiance and I rescue, rehabilitate, and foster cats in Brooklyn, NY. We’ve seen our fair share of vet bills, and my own cat Greyson was lucky to have pet insurance to reimburse us for a $1,200 dental extraction .
What Does Cat Diabetes Cost To Manage
When it comes to the cost of cat diabetes, theres a lot for you to know. For starters, National Pet Diabetes Month arrives each year in November, and represented by the color blue, it brings up a valuable subject we all need to know more about, including what diabetes can cost, and how it might affect your vet bills in the future.
Heres a breakdown on what diabetes in cats looks like and the overall cost of treating cat diabetes.
Diabetes is a chronic illness found in many animals such as humans, dogs, and cats. Diabetes is a metabolic disorder that affects a cats ability to process food correctly. A healthy cat can process and break down their food into smaller components, like glucose. Glucose is then absorbed into their cells with the help of insulin.
However, acat with diabetes is unable to make insulin or cannot utilize their insulin correctly. This leaves a cat with diabetes unable to use the glucose from food, which leaves them with a lack of fuel to run on.
A diabetic cats inability to process glucose also puts them at risk of having too much glucose in their bloodstream. This can potentially lead to damage to organs, such as the eyes, nerves, heart, kidneys, and blood vessels. Cats with diabetes are prone to weakness of the hind legs after high blood glucose levels have damaged this areas nerves.
How Can I Get Lantus As Cheaply As Possible
A 10 ml vial is good for at least 34 months, maybe longer if handled properly.
Most cats require very little insulin, so some of the insulin will go to waste, even if it lasts for 6 months.
Pharmacists may tell you that you can use the bottle only for 1 month. They are wrong. This is the human usage instruction. Veterinary specialists have tested the insulin, and it stays effective for 34 months, often longer.
Your pharmacist might talk you into Lantus Solostar pens. These are 3 ml pens that are sold in bundles of 5. The bundle of pens is more expensive than the 10 ml vial, but the insulin will definitely stay stable and not expire.
Some pharmacies, we are told, will sell only 1 pen at a time. Its a good deal if you can find it. Local, privately owned pharmacies may be your best bet.
Talk with your vet if you want to try the insulin pen. The delivery system is not designed for a cat.
Most specialists recommend that you have your vet put the insulin in a sterile vial and withdraw your insulin from that vial.
You can check it out on YouTube.
Heres one example:
A few more ideas if youre looking to save money on Lantus:
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Cat Litter & Supplies
You will need to keep in mind that litter will need to be purchased on a monthly basis to encourage your kittys good bathroom habits. Other supplies, at least initially, will include at least one litterbox. We recommend one litterbox plus one for every cat in the home. So, if you have one cat, we recommend two litterboxes. Youll also need a litter scoop. Owners can expect to pay around $100-250 annually depending on any additional supplies, the type of litter you wish to purchase, and how many additional cats are in the home.
Can I Keep A Cat Indoors
If you think about the lifestyle of a cat which has access outdoors you will realise that being outdoors brings a huge variety to its life and allows it to use all of its hunting behaviours if it wants to. Of course, there are risks outside for cats, but you need to balance these with the very positive aspects of physical and mental stimulation and an outlet for natural behaviour.Indoors versus outdoors
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Cutting Pet Care Costs
| Routine Medical Costs | $225 |
| Preventative Medication | $185 |
| Initial Medical Costs | $300 |
| Training Assets | $200 |
| Grooming Tools | $40 |
| $1,904 |
As responsible pet parents, we have an obligation to care for our furry friends in sickness and in health. But as pet care costs rise, how do we do whats best for our pet? Here are a few tips to help you save money on your pets health care.
Schedule Regular Check-UpsDont skip your pets yearly exam. Its much more expensiveand riskyto treat illnesses than to protect against them. Its also a good idea to shop veterinary practices by comparing fees for preventative care.
Personalize Your Pets VaccinesSome vaccines are optional, while others are essential in preventing serious diseases. Never skip any shots required by local laws or mandatory for your pets protection, but do talk to your vet about personalizing your pets vaccine protocol.
Spay or Neuter Your PetSpaying or neutering your pet can save a lot of money by preventing serious health problems, including uterine, ovarian and testicular cancers. Many local shelters provide resources for low- or no-cost spay/neuter surgeries. Visit our online database to find a low-cost program in your area. If you live in New York City, check out our mobile clinics serving the five boroughs.
Cat Feeders And Drinking Stations
Your kitty needs to eat and drink. Depending on the product you choose, you can pay anywhere between $5 and $15 for a cat food bowl. If you will bring home more than one cat, then it is important to buy a bowl for each one.
Water is also important for cats. You can choose an ordinary water bowl for pets or a pet drinking fountain. Most cat parents prefer using a cat water fountain since its more enticing for the cat. It also solves some of the issues inherent in stagnant water. A good cat water fountain can set you back from $25 to $50. You should have at least two of these drinking stations in your house to help your kitty drink more water.
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I Am Allergic To Cats Is There Any Breed Which Is Better Than Others
Many people think its a cats hair that causes us to react to them by sneezing, wheezing or itching. In fact its a protein or allergen called Fd1, present in feline saliva, which causes the allergy. Because cats groom themselves regularly they have saliva all over their coat. This dries on the coat and when the cat scratches, moves or brushes past objects the dust or dander and the hairs which contain the allergen are spread about. Cat-lovers who really want to have a cat but are allergic sometimes think that by choosing a breed with less, little or no coat they can avoid the problem. However, as it is saliva that causes the problem, this is unlikely to help, and although longhaired cats do seem to cause more allergic reactions thats probably only because, having more hair, theyre also covered with more allergen.
Its worth trying out different cats by visiting friends with cats to see if they elicit less of an allergic reaction. Unfortunately its a very difficult problem to get around for people who react or who have family members who are allergic.
Sometimes Diabetes In Cats Is Reversible It Goes Away
With proper diet and the correct insulin therapy, a significant number of cats can go into remission or have their diabetes reversed.
We dont completely understand this, but we are getting better treatment results with low-carb/high-protein diets and early insulin intervention.
Diabetes is more common in male cats, and the statistics show that males have a slightly better chance of reversing their diabetes.
Anywhere from 3090% of cats will return to normal with early diagnosis and treatment.
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Can I Have A Cat With A Baby Or Young Children
There is no reason not to have a cat or kitten if you have children. It is up to parents to teach their children from the very beginning how to approach, stroke and handle cats and to treat them kindly. Many children have fantastic relationships with their cats and learn about respecting other creatures and being gentle it is done successfully all the time, but it is up to parents to lay down the rules. Perhaps taking on a new kitten when you have a new baby or a toddler might be a lot to handle at once, so ensuring you have time for all the parties is part of a successful relationship. Likewise, if you are pregnant there is no need to get rid of the cat. Simple and basic hygiene precautions and common sense management of the cat, while the baby is small, can ensure all cohabit happily and safely.
Home Monitoring Is Possible
Home monitoring devices are available for pets, just like human diabetics use.
These cut down on vet visits and are great for the cat who is anxious at the vets office.
Some cats wont let you prick their ear for a drop of blood. Home monitoring is certainly not for everyone, or every cat. But its worth discussing with your vet.
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What Sex Of Cat Should I Get
The sex of a kitten doesnt really matter, as long as you neuter your kitten before it reaches puberty when the influence of sex hormones kick in. Un-neutered cats may exhibit unwelcome reproductive behaviours. For example, un-neutered male cats will mark their territory with strong smelling urine while un-neutered female cats can come into season every two weeks if they do not become pregnant.
If you are getting just one cat or kitten, it doesnt matter which sex you choose. Equally, if you want two kittens and you are getting two from the same litter, the sex of either cat is probably not important. However, if you have a resident cat and are getting just one kitten or another cat, it may be worth considering going for one of the opposite sex to try and remove some of the competition factor. A kitten may be a better option than another adult cat in such cases as the young cats immaturity seems to remove this competition factor for a while anyway during which time you hope they will get to like each other! Neutering also removes the need for so much competition and makes the choice of sex much less important.How to tell what sex a kitten is
Cost Of Insulin For Cats
An avid Petful reader wrote in to tell us she couldnt find Lantus for under $285 a bottle for her diabetic kitty.
She was correct. In the course of a few short years, the cost of Lantus more than tripled!
It is very expensive and very crazy, this reader told us. We agree.
Unfortunately, youre at the mercy of greedy Big Pharma when it comes to filling human scripts, such as insulin, for your pets.
Your vet may go to another insulin, PZI , when Lantus has not worked. Unfortunately, these other, less expensive insulins dont seem to work as well in cats.
Here are some simple facts about the cost of treating cat with diabetes today:
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Before You Adopt Paws And Reflect On The Fees Of Owning A Feline
How much does a cat cost? Well, like most good things in life, a lot of cats are free. According to the American Pet Products Association survey of 2018, approximately 32 percent of adopted cats were stray animals before their owners took them in. Though many families do find their feline friends on the street, adoption costs that include necessary testing and vaccination costs still have the potential to add up. The price of cat adoption fees can be as low as $50 for older cats, or thousands of dollars for pure-bred designer cats from breeders.
Be Sure You Know The Pricetag For Providing A Home For A Cat
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Being a responsible owner of a cat carries with it certain financial obligations. If you are not in a position or are not willing to meet these costs, it may be better not to take in a cat. If your budget is tight, but you are willing to make certain sacrifices for the sake of having the pleasures of a cat in your life, then you may be able to accomplish that dream.
It is difficult to resist that cute kitten in the “free to a good home” box or that friendly stray on the street who begs to come home with you, but if you can’t afford to give it the bare necessities, you are probably doing the cat or kitten no favor. Fortunately, you have options if your love for cats far outweighs your means to properly care for them.
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Which Vet Bills Do Pet Insurance Companies Cover
Many companies sell pet insurance to help cover the costs of some veterinarian services that your cat receives throughout their life. Most pet insurance companies cover a percentage of the bill for the emergency, accident, and sudden illness vet services in exchange for you paying them a monthly premium. For an extra monthly fee, some insurance companies will cover the costs of preventative care, including wellness exams, deworming, and flea treatments, minus a deductible.
Most companies offer reimbursement plans, which means that they will pay you back after you pay for the veterinarian services yourself. However, depending on the insurance company and the vet you are working with, you may be able to score a plan that does not require you to pay for services out of pocket at all.
The Cost Of Owning A Cat: Annual Expenses
Once your cat is all settled in, its important to factor in the costs you can expect to pay every year. These costs usually add up to between $690-$1,485 annually for the average cat parent.
Lets break these costs down: Annually, most cat parents spend between $180-$840 on food, depending on the brand and type of food and how much your kitty eats. Litter is another essential for most cat parents, and it typically costs between $205-$240 a year to keep your cats bathroom fresh and clean. And while cats arent as prone to regularly destroying their toys like dogs, its important to keep them active and stimulated with new toys to hunt and play with. Cat toys cost anywhere from $5 to $25 a year depending on how often you need to replace them.
Routine vet visits are essential for any pet parent, and cost the typical cat owner about $160 per year. If your cat ventures outside at all, you should factor in flea and tick prevention and heartworm prevention costs.
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Unfortunately The Cost Of Insulin For Cats Is Ridiculous
And we were on such a good roll there with all those upsides to having a diabetic cat!
Oh well. Now weve reached a huge, honking downside: the skyrocketing costs of insulin.
When the first version of this article was published, in 2012, we mentioned that a bottle of Lantus insulin considered by many vets to be the first insulin choice for diabetic cats ran about $100.
Research has shown that early treatment with Lantus gives the best possibility of remission. Its labeled for human use for only 30 days, but veterinary experts believe its effective for several months past the expiration.
Anyway, $100 a bottle of this stuff wasnt too bad considering it can last a few months. But times have certainly changed. The cost has skyrocketed lately.
Are Ragdolls Worth The Money
So, are Ragdolls worth the money? With all of this information in mind, it can be hard to make a decision! We think that when you factor in how much does it cost to own a Ragdoll cat, they are definitely worth the price most breeders quote. Theyre loving and affectionate companions who will bring joy into your life for many years to come!
So as you can see, even though Ragdolls are one of the most expensive breeds, they do come with some added benefits that make them worth the price. If you have plenty of time to spend playing and grooming your new feline friend, then they will reward you with years of love and companionship!
If you have any more questions about how much do Ragdoll cats cost or anything else related to these wonderful creatures, then feel free to leave us a comment below, and well get back to you as soon as possible.
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