I pay £50 a month for my three, and they are all indoor cats.

There are plenty of ways they can hurt themselves indoors the way they do Formula 1 laps round the boat, doesnt matter how careful you are, they dont see the danger of leaping 10 feet from the top of a cat tree onto a table, and usually sliding to the other side to crash land on the floor

My childhood pet (Ben the Jack Russell) developed Cushins Disease when he was 7 - he lived til he was 11, but he had to have daily medication, and tests as needed, for 4 years. He wasnt insured. He was PTS when his quality of life made it kinder to do that, but I do know it cost my mum a fortune - she would have sold our house if she had to, to keep him well and happy.

I might pay out £50 for the next 20+ years, but if I know its going to get my cats the best possible care if they need it, I am happy to pay, even if I never need it.

__________________

Should have mentioned ,as well as a semi feral who had skin cancer, resulting in having an ear amputated,I had a cat who was insulin dependant diabetic for the last 8 years of her life..This is a very expensive condition to treat,it involves blood tests ,daily injections and careful diet.I had no insurance and would never risk this again.

__________________

Basically, it's your choice. Assuming the cats never, ever, leave the house then you have to consider the possibility of accident and illnesses that aren't "transmittable" e.g. stuff like cancer, diabetes, thyroid conditions, etc. Chronic conditions may mean years of paying out for expensive medication, not to mention possible surgery. Accidents happen in the best of places. Most accidents to people happen in kitchens and I'd guess a goodly few happen to pets there as well.

The conundrum is whether to pay out for insurance that you think you'll never need or put away an amount every month. The problem with putting away savings every month is that (heaven forbid) your cat has an accident or develops a serious illness whilst still young then you may have to find a lot of money for treatment. There are posts on this forum of people using up their savings because they had no insurance.

You may be interested in a reply I made on another thread here about kitten insurance (Link here) as it deals with the 'free' insurance period.

__________________
Things you should know before insuring your pet can be found at Important Facts about Pet Insurance. I can also try and answer questions about Pet Insurance via PM. I am not an insurance broker.

My 3 cats are all housecats (with access to an outside pen via a cat flap) and they are all insured with Petplan lifetime cover, and I feel so much happier knowing they are! I have had to claim a lot for my Ragdoll boy, must be about 1000 pounds they've paid out now, and he's only 1! I will always have my cats and dog insured.

__________________
Amber,

mum of Poppy- Chihuahua cross Yorkshire Terrier, Marlow- Ragdoll, Tootsie- Persian, Bramble- moggy kitty, Tuki- African Grey, Loki- yellow sided Conure, George- Hermann's tortoise, Clover and Bluebell- Pekin bantams, Violet- Pekin cross Serama, and Blossom- bearded Silkie bantam!

Like any insurance, you buy it for peace of mind should the worst happen.

No one can predict a pet's health or if an accident will happen, which may include jumping indoors and falling badly.

Only you can decide if you wish to spend money on it.

Personally, I would rather pay the premiums, so if anything bad happens I have one less thing to worry about.

__________________

Thanks for all the replies, it's given me something to think about. I'm still unsure as to whether I will continue to insure them, but you've given me some more perspective.

__________________

Cats: Zu 3 year old long haired black moggie.
Erebus 8 month old black mackerel tabby Turkish Angora.
Styx 10 week old white moggie.
Bunnies: Nuggette and Otis 4 year old orange and blue Standard Rexes

Ear infection surgery £750. MRI scan £1600. Insurance turned out to be worth every penny.

my house cats arent insured, but they should be, i keep forgetting to sort it out.
My old boxer dog sasha got knocked down by a car and 1 of her back legs was shattered. The vets/specialists bills wouldve cost us over £5000 if she hadnt been insured (for the record she made a complete recovery and lived a happy and active life with titanium bars in her leg). A bill like that is enough to make me want to insure all my pets.
even though they dont go out and wont get ran over by a car, there are still other things that could injure them that i have probably never even considered. Hell they could fall off a wardrobe and break a leg...
my opinion is it's well worth it, and thanks for reminding me, i gotta get it sorted.

__________________