Planning for Pet Costs with Anne Weigand
At the Financial Gym, one of the most important questions we ask clients during their financially naked meeting is “What’s Important to You?” In other words, what are your non-negotiables? What are the areas of your budget that you would protect over all others? Because other than 1% of the population, 99% of us have to make choices when getting financially healthy. We can’t have everything we want, but we can certainly get everything we need. Of the thousands of clients we work with, the large majority will say that travel is their primary non-negotiable, but a very close second for people are fur babies. Especially since the pandemic, we have seen a rise in fur babies in our client’s homes and while they bring us so much joy in life, they also come with their fair share of expenses. So joining me today is Financial Gym client, Anne to share her story about fur baby costs. How she manages them and the pros and cons of pet insurance that she invests in to help her offset those costs.
What are we drinking?
Anne - Black coffee, half-gallon of water & a protein shake
Shannon - Second cup of coffee for the day
Podcast Notes
Anne is a member of the Financial Gym and lives in Ohio. Throughout college she had jobs and even though she was constantly working, her general feeling around money was always, ‘I don’t have it.’
She did different kinds of jobs, from working in restaurants to being a tour guide, and working in the communications office. Through one of those jobs, she was recruited to do a business owner-type internship program where she learned about painting houses. This is when she discovered her love of sales.
She graduated college with minimal debt but felt she wasn’t managing her money well. In 2017 she worked for a start-up and moved to Brooklyn. The Financial Gym came into the picture around this time. When she had her warm-up call, she was matched with Sara B and is coming up on her third year anniversary.
Shannon tells Anne that a financial health journey can take years, and clients like Anne who show up ready to do the work are the ones who find the most success.
It’s common for people to listen to the podcast or follow it online for a while before joining. When people are ready to receive the information, they make the leap.
The day Shannon and Anne were scheduled to record this episode, she had to reschedule for an unexpected vet follow-up. Spumoni, her beloved family cat, recently had an eye problem, which Shannon shares about in detail. It required multiple visits back to the vet and $300 overall.
The emotional aspect of pet care is hard because they can’t tell you what’s wrong and you can’t explain you’re helping them.
As a fur baby parent, budgeting for your pet is more than just food, supplies, and daycare. Medical costs and trips to the vet must be budgeted for.
There are only so many pet providers out there, and there isn’t much room to negotiate when it comes to the bill. When you have fur babies, things will happen. They are your family, and you want to budget for the best care possible.
Even if they’re in great health, there are annual wellness visits and check-ups.
Shannon asks, ‘How long have you been a fur baby parent?’
Bently will be 7 at the end of this month and Anne adopted him in September 2015. He was just under a year old at the time, and she decided to get pet insurance.
For the first few years of the policy, she didn’t need the insurance for anything major but was reimbursed for her annual vaccinations and other wellness visits.
2019 is when Bently started having health issues. She was out of town when it started, and it sent Anne down a journey of vet visits, bills, and no solid answers.
Shannon asks, ‘How much do you pay for pet insurance?’
Anne pays between $40-50 per month for her plan.
Unlike car and homeowners insurance, pet insurance is not easily transferable once you’ve been with a provider.
When she was shopping around, there weren’t a lot of options for companies, but there are more now.
There are different structures to pet insurance, but in general, you have to pay up front and then submit a claim for reimbursement.
Shannon almost always recommends pet insurance for people who have dogs. It’s usually worth the investment, especially if wellness visits are included. Surprise visits will happen, and having insurance can offset the cost.
We’ll do anything for our family but sometimes you have to make really hard decisions. You want to do everything you can and ensure the quality of life of your pet, all while being realistic about the costs.
How is Bently now?
She’s done a lot of research on Bently’s health and he got sick again in June of 2021 and was in the doggy ICU for a few days. After more waiting and tests, they figured out he has irritable bowel disease. This means his medication is special and can only be obtained through this special compounding pharmacy. She thought all of this would be fine because she has pet insurance. When she submitted the claims, she started getting denials for all of the requested care. They said because of his breed, they wouldn’t cover anything related to this specific disease.
She went back to the vet and tried to negotiate with the insurance company. She wasn’t able to get everything reimbursed but was able to get some of the costs covered.
The Financial Gym is a huge fan of pet insurance. If you want to shop for options,
Policygenius is one place to compare.
Lemonade also has pet insurance
Takeaway: My biggest takeaway is that fur babies cost money, but as long as you have a plan and budget for the inevitable medical challenges they will face, then they can bring you so much joy without adding financial stress to your life.
Random Three Questions
When Bently crosses the rainbow bridge, will you adopt another one?
What is your bucket list travel destination?
If this was your last meal on earth, what would it be?
Connect with Anne
Instagram: @anneweigandofficial
Listen to Anne on Financially Naked: Stories from the Financial Gym talk about Medical Bills
If you have any topics you would like me to cover on this podcast, or if you’d like to get in the financially naked hot seat, I encourage you to email me at Shannon@fingyms.com, or join the private Martinis and Your Money Facebook group, and let me know what you want to hear.
We have a lot of exciting things happening at Financial Gym in 2022, but the most exciting has to be our Certified Financial Trainer Licensing program. If you are a personal finance nerd with a passion for helping others, this is the course for you. It’s based on my 10 years plus of helping people get financially healthy and led by my amazing team at The Financial Gym. We’re about to start raising the pricing, so if you’ve ever thought about doing something like this, don't waste any more time, head over to financialgym.com and under our services, you’ll find more on the Certification Program.