Dog owners question

[quickstepstar]

I was just reading the post about pet costs per month and I was wondering about 2 things:

1. What's doggie daycare?

2. What is pet insurance? What does it cover? And is it worth it?

DH really wants to have a dog when we buy a house in a year, so I am tying to figure out what the costs are...

[Deleted]

1. Doggie daycare is what it sounds like - you take your dog somewhere for daycare. They play with other dogs and are not stuck at home alone. This is particularly good for people who work long hours or only have 1 dog (IMO). I don't use this because it is expensive and seems unnecessary to me. But we have 2 dogs and aren't gone more than 10 hours a day (and even that is rare)

2. Insurance is health insurance. In a crisis (cancer, hit by a car, other major health issues) you can spend thousands on vet care. I've heard of people spending anywhere from 3-10k on these things. I got insurance through Embrace (online) that runs about $280 (I think, they just raised the rate) for my 2 dogs per year. I have a 1k deductible per year per dog so this really only helps me in a major crisis where the vet bills would be very high. I have yet to use it but I rest easier knowing that my dogs are covered and can be treated if we have an issue that would cost thousands. Some people prefer to just save up thousands but for less than $300 a year I figure it is easier (for me) to have insurance.

[thinklikeajellyfish]

1. Doggy Day Care is where you take your dog during the day while you're at work. They get to play with other dogs and be tired when you come pick them up.

2. Pet insurance covers different things depending on the company and the plan. Some plans cover only routine costs while others cover emergencies and major surgeries. Some cover pr-existing or breed specific conditions while others done. You pay all vet costs up front (at least that's what I've experienced) and then submit a form and your receipts to be reimbursed by the insurance company. Whether it's worth it or not depends on the company and plan you choose. I don't have any personal experience with pet insurance, so I don't have any that I can recommend, but I'm sure others will.

[ssmjlm]

As pp said, Doggy Daycare is just like it sounds. It's worth it for us to take our dog 1x a week b/c it tires her out, allows her socialization with other dogs and has her taking commands from more than just us. Ours is all indoors, so it's climate controlled and they have separate areas based on dog size and personality.

[dexteroni]

Ditto the others on the definition of each thing. Quincy goes to dog daycare to run off his puppy energy. He started going once a week when he was a little baby, and he stayed in the puppy room with the other little pups. Then he ramped up in energy and frequency to 2 - 3 times a week, which is where is now. But he seems to be calming down a little lately, so we might go down to 1 - 2 times a week and see how he does. If he goes too many days, he doesn't sleep as well, and can get whiny, and tries to play too actively with old Dexter. Doggy daycare is a godsend.

Dexter doesn't go. He has gone for half days here and there, and occasionally as part of boarding. But he's old and mostly just wants to lie down, and he can do that at home for free. lol.

[minniebee]

Ditto on the definitions.

We don't take our dog to daycare because 1) he's old and his energy level is low to begin with, he doesn't need to run off energy, and 2) he doesn't really like other dogs. He will tolerate dogs (he doesn't attack them or anything), but he's not playful with dogs and would be more irritated than anything if we brought him to daycare. It seems like a waste of money for us.

We also don't have pet insurance. Our dog was 6 when he adopted us, and I checked into the cost, but with an older dog, the cost was really high. Like $80/month for a plan that didn't even cover all that many expenses. It would only be worth it money-wise if there's some major emergency that comes up, and we're financially secure enough to handle the expense if an emergency does happen.

[GailGoldie]

our dogs don't go to daycare - but i do think it's a great idea for dogs who need interaction and to get their energy out!

as for pet insurance - it's like car insurance- helps when things get really bad - I will always have it for my dogs- thankfully i had it when my dog, Killian, became diabetic b/c i don't know how i would have afforded all the testing he needed otherwise.