By Mike Roche

Back in 2000 a freak accident resulted in my first French Brittany, Lily, shattering her femur. It occurred on a weekend, and we were referred to an emergency animal hospital in Springfield. At the time, Lily was a young bird dog who had become really good and there was no doubt that this hunter was willing to do whatever was needed to get her taken care of and back in action.

It was a really stressful drive to the hospital, but the veterinarian really did a superb job, beginning with his “bedside manner” with both the dog and her frantic owner. The resulting surgery, which involved inserting a stainless-steel rod into the bone, was successful and the dog had an external brace for months. When it was ultimately removed, she recovered quickly and hunted like nothing had happened for the last seven years of her life. To date, she is still the standard by which the French Brittanys that followed her (Dinah, Laney, and now Tessie) will be judged. She was a grouse dog!

The cost of the surgery put a strain on the budget of this schoolteacher. A few more part-time jobs and we were able to remain solvent. At that time, one of my extra jobs was writing for a new internet magazine, “All Outdoors Today.” My research on pet insurance resulted in a feature article and a lot of information about pet insurance. The new and burgeoning industry was getting started and there were a couple of companies that were pioneering coverage. You would think that with all that research my dog would then be covered. Nope!

During her hunting tenure, Lily had some minor cuts but nothing major. Dinah, who came aboard when Lily was diagnosed with mammary cancer, had a few incidents. One severe paw cut severed a blood vessel and required a tourniquet and a fast trip to a vet. Did she have pet insurance? Nope again. Then came Laney. She quickly identified herself as a chewer of things. She started by swallowing an entire 40-foot parachute cord that was her lead. Fortunately, Pat Perry gave me advice about using mineral oil and the rope was in the pen, neatly and compactly bunched in the morning, so no vet trip was required.

For Laney, however, that was just the beginning. Anything left carelessly around, like socks and particularly women’s underwear, disappeared and usually reappeared on the lawn. Unfortunately, that was not always the case. Twice the object did not make it out and surgeries were required. The money could have bought a couple really fine shotguns or a boat. Her brilliant owner still did not have insurance. With the arrival of Tessie, it was time to look into pet insurance again.

In truth, over a month was spent looking at pet insurance. As everyone knows, the internet has a plethora of information on every topic, but it also has a slant and sponsorship buys you great reviews. Doing a product comparison was tedious. Among the brands out there are Pumpkin, Figo, Lemonade, ManyPets, SPOT, Wagmo, healthypaws, Paws, ASPCA, Embrace, MetLife and Trupanion. They are all similar and each has advantages, but it was confusing, to say the least. Also confusing is the fact that there are insurance products to pay for medical procedures and treatments and also pet healthcare products that cover regular visits and care. After all was said and done, my goals were first, to protect against the “big ticket” surgical incident and second, to manage my annual veterinarian costs. The dogs get regular check-ups and all available vaccines and protections. Dogs need to be protected from things like rabies, Lyme disease and leptospirosis and flea and tick protection and parasites must also be dealt with by responsible pet owners.

In the end, the choice was Trupanion. What sold me were a number of factors. My ability to choose the level of protection (and therefore cost), the automatic payment to the vet (and almost universal coverage by vets across the country), and the well-trained 24-hour staff that take your call. In my experience, pets rarely have issues during regular working hours! In hindsight, I wish that I had called Trupanion first. Susan McKendrick, the staffer who took my call, listened to me, understood what information I was looking for and answered my questions clearly. Hopefully, we will never need to use the insurance, but it is a small price to pay for protection, this time!

On the second issue, my choice was to try to manage my annual costs for Tessie by taking advantage of the Care Club Program at Adams Animal Hospital. In essence, you pre-pay the most common vaccines, tests and treatments. Included are two exams, Distemper, Bordetella, Rabies, Lyme Leptospirosis and flu vaccines, blood tests and urinalysis and a microchip implant. Tessie had a visit this week and it was nice to have it not cost anything. Even better, you can pay for the plan monthly with no interest! Maybe after all these years this writer has smartened up.

This Sunday, the Orange Gun is holding their annual Kid’s Fishing Derby at the club ponds on West River Street in Orange. Fishing for all ages will be from 9-11 and is free to all. With two ponds stocked with hungry trout, all age groups fish at the same time and every kid will win a prize and enjoy free hot dogs and soda. The club does a great job, and all the kids get to enjoy the fun of fishing.

Mike Roche is a retired teacher who has been involved in conservation and wildlife issues his entire life. He has written the Sportsman’s Corner since 1984 and has served as advisor to the MaharFish’N Game Club, Counselor and Director of the Massachusetts Conservation Camp, former Connecticut Valley District representative on the Massachusetts Fisheries and Wildlife Board, has been a Massachusetts Hunter Education Instructor and is a licensed New York hunting guide. He can be reached at mikeroche3@msn.com.

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