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Post by hazel on Feb 9, 2021 13:12:28 GMT
Oh, this was such a silly oversight of mine. I have no idea whether or not I'll be able to pay for degu vet care  At first I thought, oh, this'll be no trouble. I'll be sure to take out pet insurance, which might be a ripoff but will at least give me peace of mind over if they ever fall ill. Now I know not only is pet insurance not a thing for degus, but even if it were it might itself be a beyond my means ripoff! Ahh There's nothing for it, I'll have to abandon all hopes of keeping degus. And with that hope goes the hope of keeping any other pet as well. It's that or my peace of mind, and countless hours of sleep lost to guilt and worry. Farewell, forum members. You've been very kind and helpful. |
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Post by savvy on Feb 9, 2021 13:16:15 GMT
Please don't give up hope, just yet. Have you thought about fostering degus? Many rescues need foster carers and any bills are usually covered by the rescue organisation.
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Post by hazel on Feb 9, 2021 13:29:44 GMT
Please don't give up hope, just yet. Have you thought about fostering degus? Many rescues need foster carers and any bills are usually covered by the rescue organisation. But I don't have any experience taking care of degus, I don't know how I could take care of degus recovering from abuse or neglect. And this may sound selfish, but I'd like a pet of my own. As in, one to take care of and get to know and all, without having to give the degus up within weeks or months. |
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Post by savvy on Feb 9, 2021 13:39:35 GMT
That I can understand, and everyone was a beginner with degus at first.
I've just done a quick online quote to insure Reggie, my 3 year old. They want £153 per year, will not cover pre-existing conditions and I have to pay the first £65 of any vet bill.
I've had Reggie since she was 7 months old and she has been to the vet once, at a cost of £25 for a health check when I first got her, and once, at a cost of £10 to check on a change in behaviour.
As any pet ages, their health care needs increase, it's the same with us humans. Dixie is 10 this year so his needs are increasing.
If you look at your monthly budget, and see how much you can comfortably afford to set aside for vet fees, then you will have a better idea. Even £10 each month, which is less than insurance premiums would give you £120 a year vet contingency fund.
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Post by moletteuk on Feb 9, 2021 13:46:45 GMT
I'm really sorry to hear this. It really pains me that somebody doing everything right, finding out about degus in advance, doing all the research to put themselves in the best position to be an awesome degu keeper and have a good experience finds out so much that they get put off. We need more responsible and informed degu keepers and you have shown all the signs of being a good fit apart from the potential vet fee hurdle, which seems like such a shame. Vet fees are the biggest unknown cost with degus, lots of degus will cost less than £100 over their lifetime in vet costs, but on the other hand it's easy to rack up a bill of £300 or more.
Have you had other pets? I think before I got pets (I only got pets after I turned 30) I would have been horified at spending £100s on vet bills, but as soon as the little furries (I started with dwarf hamsters) entered my life it just became part of having them in my life that I would budget for them. It was always the stress of illness in my pets that I found more difficult than the financial cost, but of course that depends on personal circumstances and personality.
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pbbdegu
Foraging Degu
Dedenne will be my profile pic until I can get some actual degus. I guess it looks a bit like a goo?
Posts: 52
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Post by pbbdegu on Feb 9, 2021 13:48:38 GMT
I'm facing the same problem as Hazel. Vet bills are STEEP where I live, and I'm not sure an extra $300 will get me far.
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Post by hazel on Feb 9, 2021 13:49:43 GMT
That I can understand, and everyone was a beginner with degus at first. I've just done a quick online quote to insure Reggie, my 3 year old. They want £153 per year, will not cover pre-existing conditions and I have to pay the first £65 of any vet bill. I've had Reggie since she was 7 months old and she has been to the vet once, at a cost of £25 for a health check when I first got her, and once, at a cost of £10 to check on a change in behaviour. As any pet ages, their health care needs increase, it's the same with us humans. Dixie is 10 this year so his needs are increasing. If you look at your monthly budget, and see how much you can comfortably afford to set aside for vet fees, then you will have a better idea. Even £10 each month, which is less than insurance premiums would give you £120 a year vet contingency fund. Well, you see, easily-unstrung nerves run in the family. If there's even a chance of my degus being unwell and my being unable to cough up for continuous treatment, know it will torment me horribly. But £459 a year to cover all three, at least? I just can't do it. Well, all I can say is I'm glad I took the time to do the research first. |
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Post by savvy on Feb 9, 2021 13:56:01 GMT
That I can understand, and everyone was a beginner with degus at first. I've just done a quick online quote to insure Reggie, my 3 year old. They want £153 per year, will not cover pre-existing conditions and I have to pay the first £65 of any vet bill. I've had Reggie since she was 7 months old and she has been to the vet once, at a cost of £25 for a health check when I first got her, and once, at a cost of £10 to check on a change in behaviour. As any pet ages, their health care needs increase, it's the same with us humans. Dixie is 10 this year so his needs are increasing. If you look at your monthly budget, and see how much you can comfortably afford to set aside for vet fees, then you will have a better idea. Even £10 each month, which is less than insurance premiums would give you £120 a year vet contingency fund. Well, you see, easily-unstrung nerves run in the family. If there's even a chance of my degus being unwell and my being unable to cough up for continuous treatment, know it will torment me horribly. But £459 a year to cover all three, at least? I just can't do it. Well, all I can say is I'm glad I took the time to do the research first. This is why I don't unsure mine, it costs more to insure than I pay in vet fees. I just put what I can afford away each month and built a vet contingency fund as a buffer. It's a pity that you're not continuing, you would be an awesome degu mum because you're doing your homework first. Not all degus require vet treatment, I tend to panic with mine too, especially at first, but have learned to be more relaxed with them now, not that I don't still worry. Degus can be tough little critters despite their size. |
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Post by hazel on Feb 9, 2021 13:56:31 GMT
I'm really sorry to hear this. It really pains me that somebody doing everything right, finding out about degus in advance, doing all the research to put themselves in the best position to be an awesome degu keeper and have a good experience finds out so much that they get put off. We need more responsible and informed degu keepers and you have shown all the signs of being a good fit apart from the potential vet fee hurdle, which seems like such a shame. Vet fees are the biggest unknown cost with degus, lots of degus will cost less than £100 over their lifetime in vet costs, but on the other hand it's easy to rack up a bill of £300 or more. Have you had other pets? I think before I got pets (I only got pets after I turned 30) I would have been horified at spending £100s on vet bills, but as soon as the little furries (I started with dwarf hamsters) entered my life it just became part of having them in my life that I would budget for them. It was always the stress of illness in my pets that I found more difficult than the financial cost, but of course that depends on personal circumstances and personality. Thank you, that's kind of you to say. When I was very little we kept stick insects, but I can hardly remember them now. I do, however, remember when they bred and bred and at first we threw all the eggs out that we could and in the end my mum took them outside into the cold. *shudder* I was too young then to know exactly about how different animals are adapted to different climates, and instead worried about whether they would outcompete local species for the leaves they ate :/ I had read somewhere about invasive species, but as a child trusted my mum's counsel. I hope they at least ate their fill of juicy leaves before they perished from the cold. |
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Post by hazel on Feb 9, 2021 14:00:53 GMT
Well, you see, easily-unstrung nerves run in the family. If there's even a chance of my degus being unwell and my being unable to cough up for continuous treatment, know it will torment me horribly. But £459 a year to cover all three, at least? I just can't do it. Well, all I can say is I'm glad I took the time to do the research first. This is why I don't unsure mine, it costs more to insure than I pay in vet fees. I just put what I can afford away each month and built a vet contingency fund as a buffer. It's a pity that you're not continuing, you would be an awesome degu mum because you're doing your homework first. Not all degus require vet treatment, I tend to panic with mine too, especially at first, but have learned to be more relaxed with them now, not that I don't still worry. Degus can be tough little critters despite their size. And if the pet bills pile above the vet contingency fund? Or if a degu succumbs to illness before much could be saved up? I don't poke holes in your case for its own sake, only what if? What if? WHAT IF? The eternal question, it won't ever leave us as a species in peace. Surely most prospective pet owners do their basic research at least before they buy/rehome... surely? |
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Post by savvy on Feb 9, 2021 14:11:50 GMT
You would expect so, but you'd be surprised how many don't. There are still people who get pets on a whim, don't do any research and then get into trouble. That's why rescue centres are always full.
If we lived our lives on what if, we'd never get out of bed in a morning. I do understand your anxiety about their welfare, but what if you take on a degu group and there's absolutely nothing wrong with them? It does happen.
We've had degus on here who have never seen a vet in their lives, we have some that are there a fair bit, but they are usually older.
If you use a reputable breeder, rehoming centre etc, then these issues can be lessened to some extent. If you go down the route of using free to a good home ads, then you usually find that degu already has health issues and the owner doesn't want the responsibility.
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Post by hazel on Feb 9, 2021 14:20:27 GMT
You would expect so, but you'd be surprised how many don't. There are still people who get pets on a whim, don't do any research and then get into trouble. That's why rescue centres are always full. If we lived our lives on what if, we'd never get out of bed in a morning. I do understand your anxiety about their welfare, but what if you take on a degu group and there's absolutely nothing wrong with them? It does happen. We've had degus on here who have never seen a vet in their lives, we have some that are there a fair bit, but they are usually older. If you use a reputable breeder, rehoming centre etc, then these issues can be lessened to some extent. If you go down the route of using free to a good home ads, then you usually find that degu already has health issues and the owner doesn't want the responsibility. Oh, I know I know I know. So many times our brains (or at least mine, can't speak for everybody in the world) says can't go downstairs, because what if I slip or get distracted or I have a momentary blackout and tumble down the stairs onto the stone and die instantly, my head cracked open like a watermelon? But of course then I do, because I didn't go up or down the stairs or ask someone to on my behalf I would die of thirst. Still, it's different if you're putting another person or animal at risk in your stead. If I can't pay vet bills, who'll suffer most? It won't be me. I was planning to take in a trio of degus from an RSPCA shelter. At least then they'd have been looked over and given all the basic medical care. And why buy degus when there's already degus out there looking for a good home, I say. It isn't as if they're animals which crave human contact. |
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Post by hazel on Feb 9, 2021 14:22:39 GMT
You would expect so, but you'd be surprised how many don't. There are still people who get pets on a whim, don't do any research and then get into trouble. That's why rescue centres are always full. If we lived our lives on what if, we'd never get out of bed in a morning. I do understand your anxiety about their welfare, but what if you take on a degu group and there's absolutely nothing wrong with them? It does happen. We've had degus on here who have never seen a vet in their lives, we have some that are there a fair bit, but they are usually older. If you use a reputable breeder, rehoming centre etc, then these issues can be lessened to some extent. If you go down the route of using free to a good home ads, then you usually find that degu already has health issues and the owner doesn't want the responsibility. To explain that last point, my brother tried to talk me out of rehoming a shelter degu because I won't be able to "form a bond" with them. I rebutted how good would the bond be in the first place, either it had time to bond with its mother and I think even it'll know I'm not one of its own species, and if it was taken away before its time it must be frankly traumatised as well. |
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Post by savvy on Feb 9, 2021 14:27:26 GMT
If you're rehoming from an rspca shelter then you may be able to access rspca vet care which can be cheaper than practice vets.
I'm not trying to trivialise your anxiety, I have ptsd so trust me, I do get your worries, but you've done your research, and you've done it well. We can't always account for accidents, they happen, but with basic degu first aid knowledge, not all require vet treatment.
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Post by savvy on Feb 9, 2021 14:31:29 GMT
You would expect so, but you'd be surprised how many don't. There are still people who get pets on a whim, don't do any research and then get into trouble. That's why rescue centres are always full. If we lived our lives on what if, we'd never get out of bed in a morning. I do understand your anxiety about their welfare, but what if you take on a degu group and there's absolutely nothing wrong with them? It does happen. We've had degus on here who have never seen a vet in their lives, we have some that are there a fair bit, but they are usually older. If you use a reputable breeder, rehoming centre etc, then these issues can be lessened to some extent. If you go down the route of using free to a good home ads, then you usually find that degu already has health issues and the owner doesn't want the responsibility. To explain that last point, my brother tried to talk me out of rehoming a shelter degu because I won't be able to "form a bond" with them. I rebutted how good would the bond be in the first place, either it had time to bond with its mother and I think even it'll know I'm not one of its own species, and if it was taken away before its time it must be frankly traumatised as well. Degus are weird little guys, and you can form a bond, even if it doesn't involve cuddling like you would with a dog or cat, but even then there are exceptions. Reggie insists on being stroked through the bars at least once a day, others will interact with you in a playpen or during free run time. They are not the type of pet that puts up with being ignored by anyone! Lol. |
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Post by hazel on Feb 9, 2021 14:32:07 GMT
If you're rehoming from an rspca shelter then you may be able to access rspca vet care which can be cheaper than practice vets. I'm not trying to trivialise your anxiety, I have ptsd so trust me, I do get your worries, but you've done your research, and you've done it well. We can't always account for accidents, they happen, but with basic degu first aid knowledge, not all require vet treatment. Degu first aid? Oh... I really, really want degus, you see. I'm torn. I have a feeling I'll refer back to this forum a lot  |
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Post by savvy on Feb 9, 2021 14:34:48 GMT
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Post by hazel on Feb 9, 2021 14:38:08 GMT
Thanks for the guide! Just outside Woverhampton. |
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Post by savvy on Feb 9, 2021 14:39:20 GMT
I'm originally from the Black Country myself.
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Post by hazel on Feb 9, 2021 14:51:01 GMT
I'm originally from the Black Country myself. Oh, haha. Do you still live in England, if you don't mind me asking? I only got the idea you might not from your vague minibio. |
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