Insurance for Guinea Pigs
A Tricky Call - To Insure or Not?
Deciding whether or not to purchase insurance for your guinea pig(s) is a personal choice, made all the more difficult by the lack of choice of insurance providers for small animals. Unsurprisingly, dogs, cats and even rabbits are much easier to find competitive insurance quotes for than guinea pigs, which are still often classified as ‘exotic’ pets.
The findings of the Burgess Guinea Pig Census in 2019 revealed that only 3% of those surveyed had their guinea pigs insured. We, as part of that 3%, were struck by that statistic, although perhaps it’s unsurprising, given that finding a provider that will actually cover guinea pigs is rare.
All we can do, is share how we’ve found the ‘guinea pig insurance’ experience…and the rest is up to you!
Facing the Realities of Caring for Small Furries
The reality of caring for guinea pigs is that they are small animals, which can make treatments challenging. Small animals don’t command anything like as large a percentage of the pet market as dogs and cats do. As a result, there is less funding available for veterinary research and licensing of medication. This can mean that many health problems in guinea pigs can be very difficult (or even impossible) to treat. It can also mean that relatively simple issues become expensive to deal with.
Whilst we have had some piggies that have hardly ever needed a trip to the vet, we have also had those that have required lengthy – and costly – treatment. Some of these treatments would not have been possible to treat in the way we did without the insurance we had in place.
Without wishing to ‘put you off’ we must also be honest and realistic here: Tumours, ovarian cysts, osteodystrophy, kidney issues and bone infections are a list of just some of the more serious conditions we’ve encountered. These are not health issues you can ‘see’ or predict when you bring a new piggy into your home. So, with that in mind, alongside the joy of a new ‘fur-baby’ must also come consideration for how you will fund their care should any health problems arise. There is no NHS for animals!
Making the Right Choice
As an example of one case from our personal experience, a ‘difficult to treat’ bone infection in one of our guinea pigs had a total cost for treatment of just under £2,000. Aside from the relevant excess payment, the majority of this treatment was covered and paid for by our insurance company.In this instance, even if we had just ‘saved’ the money we would have spent on insurance, we would not have had enough to cover this course of treatment. (Believe me, I did the maths!!)
It is also worth mentioning that you could still end up spending a lot of money even with insurance in place for your piggies. As well as your monthly insurance payments, you may encounter smaller issues that may not warrant a claim being processed but still need attention. This could be £50 here or £100 there…it all adds to the overall cost of keeping small animals! So,for many people, the idea of purely setting money aside each month into a savings account for pet care is a more appealing option.
Having said that, in our personal experience, when it comes to unforeseen serious health problems like our example above, an insurance policy can mean the difference between being able to treat your guinea pig or not.
Ultimately, insurance, like life itself, is a bit of a gamble. You could pay into a policy for years and never need to make a claim. Or, you could save a load of money in a special ‘pet savings’ account and still not have enough for the unexpected treatment necessary to help your sick or injured guinea pig. The important thing is that you are happy and contented with the decision you make and take the steps necessary to simply do the best that you can with the care you provide to your guinea pigs.
Guinea pigs really are fabulous additions to a caring family. They are gorgeous little critters that can bring so much joy. But the reality is, the cost implications of these fluffy potatoes can be HUGE! Before these animals steal a piece of your heart, do spare a thought for how you would fund the vet bills, should they arise.
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