Today, while I was at lunch, there was a conversation about pets getting sick and the cost of medical care. The subject came up of making the difficult decision to put your pet down instead of incurring the high medical costs. One person mentioned that she would not spend the money to keep her dog alive and put him down if he became sick. She would not even pay for insulin or anything. Of course, I didn’t agree with her at all.

There was a survey conducted in April which involved 1,112 pet owners around the country. This information was obtained from The New York Times Well section.

Most pet owners (62 percent) said they would likely pay for pet health care even if the cost reached $500, but that means more than a third of pet owners said that might be too much to spend on an animal.

What if the bill for veterinary care reached $1,000? Fewer than half of pet owners said they were very likely to spend that much at the vet. Only a third said it was very likely they would pay a $2,000 vet bill.

Once the cost of saving a sick pet reached $5,000, most pet owners said they would stop treatment. Only 22 percent said they were very likely to pick up $5,000 in veterinary costs to treat a sick dog or cat.

This author feels that if the pet’s prognosis is a positive one and the pet will not live in pain and will make a full recovery, then I would go through any means to keep it alive. Even if it drained my bank account. We love our pets. They are a part of our family so it’s only fair that we do what we can to provide for their well being. I know that many pet owners may feel differently but as I close each blog with, your pets count!