It’s a question most pet owners ask at one time or another. How do I pay for veterinary care when an unexpected medical expense comes up?
Annie’s Story
In this story, I told you about our dog, Annie. She spent a week in the Intensive Care Unit not too long after we brought her home. And, she had to endure a six-hour dental surgery. As you can imagine, her vet bills were enormous. They totaled over $11,000 that first month we had her. We knew we couldn’t afford it, but our focus was to keep Annie alive. As long as she continued to fight to stay alive, we were going to fight for her.
Although we have a 501(C)(3) nonprofit animal rescue, our rescue focuses on farm animals, not domestic animals. We can’t use rescue funds for our pets. Rescue funds were scarce at that time so even if we could use them, we didn’t have them.
Tabby, Doug, and I took out loans and maxed out every credit card we had to pay Annie’s vet bills. We went from having no credit card or loan debt to being completely overwhelmed within a month.
community donations
Donations from the community started coming in as people started hearing about Annie’s story through social media. We asked anyone who wanted to help her to give money directly to the vet hospital that was doing her mouth surgery. That way, people would be reassured that the money was going to Annie’s care, not to our personal Christmas fund.
Go Fund Me
Lots of people asked if we had a Go Fund Me page for Annie. We didn’t so Tabby set one up. Between the direct donations to the doctor’s office and the Go Fund Me page, she raised $3,200 towards Annie’s future medical care. That was on top of the $11,000 we spent through credit cards and loans.
There are no words to describe the feeling we got when strangers started giving so much support, help, and love to little Annie. People apologized for only being able to give $5 or $10. They don’t understand that we were grateful for even a penny in donations.
A Hedgehog’s Story
Several years ago, when Tabby and I were at the vet’s office with one of the rabbits, a teenager came in upset saying her hedgehog may have broken his leg. She became even more upset when she found out she couldn’t afford the cost of the emergency visit to get him looked at, let alone pay for x-rays or pain meds for her little guy. She had no choice but to leave the office with her hurt hedgehog and no way to help him.
I followed her out to the parking lot and talked to her. I offered to pay $300 of his care. That would have been enough to have him examined and get him pain meds. She was hesitant in accepting my offer. I told her there were no strings attached and that I just wanted to help. Then she started to cry. She finally agreed to let me help her.
We went into the office, and I gave the receptionist my payment information. The staff immediately rushed the teenager and hedgehog into an office to start the exam. Tabby and I left before they came out. I promised there would be no strings attached. We didn’t even tell each other our names. There’s no way to know how the appointment went or how her little hedgehog recovered.
How to Pay for Veterinary Care
Just about all veterinarians require payment at the time of service. Like in the story of the teenager and her little hedgehog, when your pet is in the middle of a medical crisis, sometimes it’s hard to switch your focus from your pet to trying to figure out a way to pay for care. All you can think about is how your pet is suffering and you need help right away. Here are some ideas that will hopefully help if you ever find yourself in this tough situation.
ask friends and family
When a vet emergency comes up, there’s no shame in asking friends and family for a loan to help pay for care. They know how much you love your pet and they might be in a position to be able to help you.
go to people pharmacies
To help with the cost of medication, don’t get meds from your vet’s office. Instead, as for a written prescription that you can leave the office with. Most pharmacies will fill prescriptions for pets for less than what it would cost at the vet’s office. GoodRx is a free prescription discount program that allows pets to get discounts on their meds through “people” pharmacies. Chewy also has a large pharmacy for pet meds.
Go Fund Me
Setting up a Go Fund Me page for your pet’s medical care is a good idea if time is on your side and care isn’t needed right away. It’s also good if your pet has ongoing medical needs like cancer treatments or recurring medication.
social media
It seems like everyone is on one form of social media or another. Don’t be shy about getting the word out about your pet’s medical needs on social media.
One word of caution about using social media…
When your pet is in a medical emergency and emotions are running high, well-meaning advice online can come across harshly. Without talking to the person face-to-face, it’s sometimes hard to interpret their intent by reading their online response. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve read posts from people asking for help with their pet only to have a handful of people respond with advice to euthanize the pet to prevent the need for medical care. In those situations, I want to believe that people meant well and were genuinely trying to help, but their advice came across as harsh.
We weren’t asking for financial help with Annie when we shared her story on social media, but we had people tell us to drop her off at the animal shelter or to euthanize her so we wouldn’t have to incur any expenses. Neither one of those were going to happen. But we understood people meant well and were just trying to help us.
Too many times, pet owners seeking help on social media get lectured about how they shouldn’t have pets if they can’t afford vet care. I agree that you should be able to care for all of your pet’s needs…including medical. But things come up when you have pets. Just like they do when you have children. The universe has a way of throwing emergencies at you at the worst times and when it feels like a hundred other things are falling apart at that moment. Not every emergency can be anticipated and planned for.
If you come across people who offer suggestions that you’re not comfortable with, just respond politely to them, and move on to the next response to your post. Try not to get discouraged. There are a lot of people out there who are willing and able to help. You just need to keep getting the word out about your pet’s needs.
grants
There are grants available to help pet owners pay for care. The Pet Fund has resources for grants you might qualify for. A lot of these grants require you to get a written estimate for services from your vet before care is provided. Some require care to be provided up front and they will reimburse you up to a certain amount. Most of them will only consider your application if your pet is spayed or neutered.
Pet insurance
Pet insurance can be helpful in covering medical costs if you only have one or two pets. Most policies only cover one pet per policy. If you have several pets, it can get extremely expensive to get a policy on everyone.
Be sure to read the contract carefully before committing to a pet insurance policy. There are a lot of medical treatments not covered by most policies. Some policies only cover pets up to a certain age. And some policies limit the number of treatments they ‘ll cover over the duration of the policy. For example, they’ll only pay for one dental cleaning for the duration of the policy.
I’ve found that it’s better to put the amount you’d be paying in monthly insurance payments into a savings account and paying for medical care from that.
Scratch Pay
During Annie’s appointments, we discovered Scratch Pay. Scratch Pay provides loans for vet bills. Payment is made to the doctor at the time services are rendered. The application is done online, and you’ll know right away how much you qualify for. In most plans, there’s a small $15 down payment when you accept the terms of the loan. In most cases, that $15 is a lot easier to come up with than thousands of dollars on the spot.
You can use Scratch Pay for all species of animals. And it’s not just for emergencies. You can use it for routine checkups and small things like nail trimming too.
Since Scratch Pay isn’t a credit card, each payment you make lowers the unpaid balance. I love the way that works because with credit cards, it doesn’t feel like you’re ever getting the balance paid off. With Scratch Pay, you’ll be able to see the payments you’ve made and know how many payments are left in order to pay the account off. If you’re able to pay the account off early, there are no prepayment penalties.
You can even donate towards the medical expense of other people’s animals through Scratch Pay as long as you have their animal’s name and doctor’s contact information.
I don’t get a commission for recommending Scratch Pay. I’ve used Scratch Pay a lot and, from personal experience, I highly recommend looking into them if your pet needs medical care. It can literally be a lifesaver, especially when you don’t have another way to make things work.
credit cards
Although people would advise against it, credit cards can be useful in pet emergencies. I’d recommend keeping one specifically for vet care. If you use it, try to pay it off as soon as possible so it’s ready for the next time you need it.
Some credit card companies allow you to customize their cards. You can upload a picture of your pet and have the picture printed on the card as a reminder that it’s only for your pet’s medical care. That way, you’ll always have a credit card available that’s dedicated to vet care if your pet needs it.
In the past we’ve used Care Credit, but I don’t recommend it if you have any other payment options. Their minimum payments are extremely high, and no matter how many extra payments you make, it never feels like you can get the account paid off.
One Last Thought
Figuring out how to pay for unexpected veterinary care can be stressful. The most important thing to remember is everyone needs help from time to time. It’s always okay to ask for support when you need it. There’s going to be someone who’s willing and able to help, you just have to keep asking until you find that person.