Low-income pet owners are eligible for a variety of helping pets programs.
Most animal lovers and pet owners know that no cost is too great to preserve and prolong the life and longevity of our furry family members. The costs of veterinary bills can be staggering to low-income pet owners and sometimes the financial burden of caring for our pets can be far less than affordable. Fortunately, numerous organizations across the country provide helping pets programs for low-income households and animal advocate groups.
Emergency Grants And Veterinary Credit Cards
In times of emergency when your pet experiences a life threatening emergency you may be qualified for an emergency pet-care line-of-credit. Often times low-income pet owners can apply for on-the-spot financial assistance to cover exorbitant emergency vet bills and pay the balances in low monthly installments. CareCredit offers immediate veterinary care credit to qualified applicants and applications are accepted by most veterinarians. Non-profit animal organizations such as The Pet Fund For Domestic Animals, United Animal Nations and Lifeline Rescue Grants provide low-income families, senior citizens and rescuers of homeless and injured strays with grants for vet bills and discounted veterinary services.
Animal Shelters And Humane Societies
Many larger cities have animal control centers where stray animals are turned in, treated, inoculated and put up for adoption. Most of these animal shelters--such as Chicago's Anti-Cruelty Society--operate on-site veterinary clinics to care for the animals and also offer low-cost veterinary care to adoptive and low-income pet owners. Other animal care facilities--like New York City's Animal Care & Control--sponsor programs affiliated to a network of veterinarians who offer discounted rates for low-income pet owners. Typical veterinary procedures included in low-income animal care programs are spaying, neutering, micro-chips, rabies and distemper shots.
Dog, Cat, Disease And Breed-Specific Organizations
If you have a certain breed of pet or your pet suffers from a particular ailment, you may be eligible to qualify for financial assistance from non-profit animal agencies that contribute to specific causes. The Anti-Cruelty Society veterinary clinic in Chicago offers pit bull owners significant discounts on vet care through its "Pit Pals" program; including free spay or neutering. Canine Cancer Awareness is a non-profit organization that helps low-income families nationwide who have dogs that suffer various types of cancer. If you have a cat with a life-threatening injury or disease Cats in Crisis Inc. supports animal welfare groups and individual cat owners in need of immediate feline veterinary assistance.
Help For Elderly Pets, Pet Owners And Service Animals
When it comes to affordable pet care, special considerations are given to senior citizens as well as senior pets by numerous animal organizations. If your are elderly or disabled The Assistance Dog Institute offers financial assistance in purchasing service dogs to qualified applicants. If you are the owner of a retired military, law enforcement or service dog for the blind or disabled organizations such as The Assistance Dog United Campaign and Orthodogs' Silver Lining Foundation can provide your pet with low-cost veterinary care. Low-income seniors on fixed incomes can often take advantage of reduced rate veterinary services through the Help-A-Pet Foundation.
Pet Health Insurance
When you have pets in a low-income household, it's a good idea to carry a pet health-insurance policy to help in the case of unexpected illnesses or injuries to your pet. Veterinary bills can be quite expensive when they are required to be paid upfront and in full; especially for low-income pet owners. Having pet insurance enables you to pay low monthly payments to cover future potentially exorbitant veterinary expenses that you may not otherwise be able to afford.
Tags: financial assistance, low-income owners, veterinary care, animal care, animal organizations, low-cost veterinary