Prevention is Cheaper than Cure

There are lots of things you can do to keep your dog healthy, prevent illness, and avoid expensive treatment.

1. Brush their teeth - Did you know a dental treatment including an anaesthetic, x-rays, teeth extractions and scale and polish could cost you between £500- £800 (maybe more). If you were to brush your dog’s teeth at 3 times a week but ideally every day, you could improve your dog’s oral health and hopefully prevent the need for major dental treatment.

2. Keep them slim – According to the Royal Veterinary College, a 2021 study suggested 1 in 14 dogs are overweight. Obesity means they are more likely to suffer from joint pains, heart disease and breathing problems, all of which are expensive to treat. Aside from the huge number of benefits to keeping them a healthy weight, often by feeding them the correct amount, you go through less dog food, in turn spending less.

3. Keep toxins away – Treatment for poisonings can be costly and life-threatening so be extra careful to keep common toxins away from your pets. Raisins, chocolate, medications, some plants and chemicals are all common reasons for an expensive hospital admission at the vets.

4. Sign up to a health plan – they are schemes designed to cut the cost of parasite treatments and other preventative healthcare such as vaccines and neutering. Often you can save hundreds of pounds in a year whilst also keeping your pets as healthy as possible.

5. Insurance to cover the big bills - Some dogs are real thrill seekers, because of this, accidents happen! Fractured legs, open wounds, impalements could cost you £1000 plus. And it's not just accidents, lifelong diseases such as diabetes, Cushings disease, atopic skin disease have ongoing costs. A good insurance policy will cover your dogs accidents and illnesses for life.

Of course we would all do anything for our dogs when they're not well. By preventing illness and injury as much as possible, we can fend off heartache and breaking the bank.