Finance

Preventative Financial Planning

Pet Insurance. There are many different companies with multiple plans that vary in coverage and monthly premiums. Register your pet early and while healthy, as with people, there will often be exclusions for pre-existing conditions that can result in limited or no coverage:

Pet Secure
Pet Plan
Pets Plus Us
Trupanion
24 Pet Watch

Dedicated credit card or line of credit – If you have adequate credit, you can pay for emergency pet insurance using credit cards. One approach is to choose a low-interest credit card and dedicate that card specifically for pet emergency medical bills. Consider choosing one with no annual fee.

Emergency Options

Pet card financing – PetCard represent an immediate option for covering emergency vet bills. This product is provided by iFinance Canada and is a financing arrangement, not a credit card, that allows you to request a financial amount and determine scheduled monthly repayment periods that can span from 6 months to 5 years.

Raise your own pet funds online – Web-savvy pet owners can pursue another emerging avenue for generating funds. They can post emergency pet care expenses as a cause on one of a growing number of fundraising websites. The National Crowdfunding Association of Canada says that FundRazr has a fundraising campaign page specifically for animals and pets. Other websites that enable Canadian pet owners to raise funds online include Indiegogo and Youcaring.com.

Despite the enticing opportunities, consumers should carefully research any required fees before signing up for any fundraising service.