Christy Bieber* says covering the medical expenses for a pet that becomes seriously ill can be a challenge.
Photo: Christian Domingues
When you have a pet, your animal becomes part of the family.
This can put you in a tough situation when your pet gets sick.
After all, you want your furry friend to get the best care possible, but unfortunately this can sometimes come at a very big price tag.
The good news is, there have been many advances in animal care and pets can have many of the same procedures that humans can have, from chemotherapy to kidney transplants to pacemaker implantation.
The bad news is, these procedures can cost tens of thousands of dollars, leaving you wondering how to cover the costs of care.
If you find yourself in a situation where you’re not able to pay out of pocket for care your pet needs, it’s important to explore all your options.
Here are a few possible sources of financing worth considering, along with the pros and cons of each option.
Pet insurance
If you have a pet insurance policy and get your insurance to cover your pet’s care, this is ideal.
Unfortunately, you’ll need to have a pet insurance plan in place before your pet gets sick.
Pet insurers can and do exclude coverage for pre-existing conditions so if your animal already needs medical care, you will not be able to buy a policy and get covered after the need has arisen.
If you do buy pet insurance, make sure to understand exactly how your policy works.
Find out if there are limits on what the insurer will spend per condition or in your pet’s lifetime.
Also make sure to see if you’ll have to pay up front and get reimbursed afterwards for the bills.
Many pet insurance policies are structured this way, but it can be a challenge to come up with thousands of dollars of cash to pay for treatment up front even if you will get reimbursed through your insurer eventually.
Credit cards
Most veterinary offices take credit cards, so you could charge your pet’s care if you can’t pay for it directly.
But credit cards often have very high interest rates.
Personal loans
Personal loans are a great solution to pay for your pet’s care and will likely be cheaper than the standard rate on a regular credit card.
Personal loans are loans for a set amount of money.
Your lender approves you for a loan based on income, credit history, debt, and other financial factors.
You receive the funds — and can use them to pay for your pet’s care — and will pay back the money on a set schedule.
Not only are personal loans usually cheaper than credit cards, but this set schedule also means you’ll know exactly when you’ll have your debt paid off, so you won’t have as much uncertainty about your financial future.
You do not have to specifically seek out a personal loan that’s marketed for vet care expenditures, although such loans do exist.
Personal loan lenders don’t care what you use borrowed funds for after your loan is approved, so you can apply with any personal loan lender and just get the money you need to provide care.
Many personal loan lenders will fund loans in as quickly as a week, so you can gain access to the funds you need to care for your pets even when time is of the essence.
In fact, it’s sometimes possible to get personal loan funds as soon as the next business day.
In most cases, you can pay back your personal loan over a three to five-year period, although some lenders have shorter or longer repayment terms.
This provides ample flexibility in how long you can take to pay for your animal’s care.
Typically, personal loan lenders require you to borrow several thousand dollars at minimum, so this is a good solution only when your pet needs more costly medical services.
What’s the right approach to pay for your pet’s medical care?
Ultimately every pet owner needs to determine what financing approach is best based on the costs of care and the options available.
If you don’t have pet insurance and want an affordable source of financing with a set repayment schedule, a personal loan can be a great approach to cover your pet’s costs and get your animal companion back on the road to good health.
* Christy Bieber is a personal finance expert at The Ascent.
This article first appeared at www.fool.com.
