During your first day of having a puppy in the house, you just might notice that you keep sneezing and coughing whenever the little pup comes near you. Should the condition worsen, you might have to fact the possibility of having a pet allergy. As unfortunate as it may seem, pet allergies are quite common all over the world, and even amongst pet owners! This is because most pets are guilty of carrying dander. And this is the primary allergen you have to be wary about when you have pets in the house.

Constant exposure to dander can trigger episodes of sneezing, itchiness, wheezing, and having such watery eyes. These allergic reactions can vary from being mild and tolerable all the way to being severe and extreme. But if you are an avid lover of dogs or cats, what are your chances to having such pets in spite of having pet allergies?

There are actually a number of methods that you can employ to deal with pet allergies. First and foremost, there is the need to reduce the onset or episodes of allergic symptoms manifesting themselves. Thus, there is a need to reduce the existence of allergens in your environment. To do this, you can have your pet sleep in an area that is separate from you. No matter how tempting it can be, do not let your dog or your cat sleep with you on your bed. Well, unless you are ready to face the consequences of sneezing and wheezing the very next day. For severe pet allergies, you just might have to declare your room as off-limits to your pets. Also, you may need to have your pets off your furniture in all of your rooms.

By brushing the hair or fur of your pet regularly, you also lessen animal dander. But be careful as to where you brush your pet's hair because animal dander can stick to just about any surface. Your very own carpet can be laden with much animal dander right at this moment, so you have to vacuum it regularly as well.

You can also choose pets that carry less dander than other pets. For this, you can consult your local veterinarians for the different breeds of dogs and cats that you can go for. Just explain your pet allergy case to the vet and he or she will definitely help you in every step of the way. With that kind of support on your side, you can certainly get the pet you want and stay healthy at the same time.

Are you suffering from Pet Allergies?

To Find out more about choosing the right Allergy Treatment for you, Click Here

Jen Miller is a health and fitness enthusiast. She is also an allergy sufferer and currently runs a website providing allergy information and allergy remedies at http://www.allergyremedy.org

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jen_Miller

Labels: Pet Allergies

With vet bills soaring and fancy new treatments available, it's an option more owners are considering. Plus, eight ways to cut the cost of keeping a healthy pet.
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By Liz Pulliam Weston

A few years ago, pet insurance would have ranked right up there with policies on children and dread disease coverage on my list of insurance you don't need to buy.

Now I'm not so sure.

I still believe most people are better off forgoing the policies and instead putting the money they would spend on premiums into a savings account. Pet insurance can cost $2,000 to $6,000 over the life of an average pet, and the chances are slim you'd ever have to shell out that much for treatments.

But if you're the type of person who would do anything to save your pet, including spend thousands of dollars on medical treatments, pet insurance might be a preferable alternative to going into debt.
New tests, treatments, monstrous bills
What's changed in recent years is the state of veterinary science, as well as the economics of running a veterinary practice. Vets today can offer treatments that were unheard of just a few years ago -- and at prices that could make you howl. Consider:

o Treatments once reserved for humans, from radiation therapy to kidney transplants, are currently available for pets. That means once-fatal conditions are now treatable at costs ranging from $1,000 to $5,000 or more.

o Vets have access to increasingly sophisticated and costly diagnostic tools such as MRIs. Such screenings not only boost the cost of exams but often detect problems that once would have gone unnoticed, and untreated.

o These expensive tools and procedures have helped create health-care inflation in the pet doctor world.

That inflation has helped fuel a significant rise in the pet insurance industry. American Demographics magazine estimates that 5% of American pet owners have the insurance, up from less than 1% in 1995. Insurers have teamed with the American Kennel Club and Petco Animal Supplies to offer the insurance, while several major employers now provide the coverage as an optional employee benefit.
Deductibles, exclusions and surcharges
The oldest company, Veterinary Pet Insurance, has seen its revenues climb at a 40% annual rate since 1997 -- the year it finally broke even after 15 straight years of losses, according to founder Jack Stephens. VPI, which has about 85% of the pet insurance market, had gross sales of $110 million in 2005.

Pet insurance is far from a cure-all, though:

* The policies typically have deductibles, co-pays and caps that limit how much will be paid out annually.
* Pre-existing problems and hereditary conditions, such as hip dysplasia in German shepherds and retrievers, are normally excluded.
* The older your animal, the more you'll have to shell out in premiums. Some insurers don't cover pets older than 9, while others levy a stiff surcharge.
* Industry leader Veterinary Pet Insurance offers two levels of coverage that pay 50% to 90% of covered treatment costs after a $50 deductible. Here's how the numbers work out.

Premiums and coverage for pet insuranceItem Standard plan Superior plan

Deductible


$50


$50

Co-pay*


10% to 50%


10% to 50%

Cap per accident/illness


$2,500


$4,500

Annual cap


$9,000


$14,000

Kitten premium**


$93


$162

Mature dog premium***


$254


$471

Adult cat****


$94


$164

Adult dog*****


$134


$239

*The co-pay varies by condition, level of coverage and vet costs in your area. The standard plan pays $780 for removing a foreign object from an animal’s intestines; the Superior plan pays $1,363. *Kitten premium: Annual premium for a domestic shorthair less than a year old living in Los Angeles. ***Mature dog premium: Annual premium for an 8-year-old Labrador retriever living in Los Angeles. ****3-year-old adult cat in Seattle. *****3-year-old adult mixed-breed in Seattle.

Source: Veterinary Pet Insurance

Since insurance is best used as protection against catastrophic expenses -- not those you could easily pay out of pocket -- the question becomes: How deep in the hole would you go for your pet? And then could you afford to pay those costs yourself?

Pet insurance is a nonstarter for many pet owners, simply because they take a pragmatic approach to their animals. If the cost of treatment got too high, they would choose to put the animal to sleep.

"About half see the pet as disposable. If it got really ill they just wouldn't treat it," said Stephens, whose company conducted research on the issue. The other half "were willing to treat, whatever it took."
Going the distance for Fluffy
If you're in the latter category and you don't have sufficient savings to cover the treatments, you might consider pet insurance. But do your homework before you buy:

Shop around. Policies and premiums can vary widely. Note not just the monthly or annual cost but the differences in deductibles, co-pays and caps, which may limit payouts by incident, annually or the animal's lifetime. Ask whether the insurer offers discounts for insuring multiple pets. Some of the companies to check include:

* PetCare Pet Insurance, (866) 373-7387
* Petshealth Care Plan, (800) 807-6724
* Veterinary Pet Insurance, (800) 872-7387

Check with state insurance department. Like human health insurers, pet insurers should be registered with your state regulators.

Scrutinize the policy and understand the exclusions. Remember, the conditions most likely to afflict your pet are often the ones most likely to be excluded from your policy.

Beef up your savings. A Consumer Reports analysis found that pet owners with insurance may actually spend more over time on their animals than those without.
8 ways to keep overall pet costs low
Whether or not you opt for pet insurance, you can help control how much your animal costs you. Here are some other ways you can trim vet bills:

Use low-cost clinics for shots. Your vet may host one or two such clinics each year, or you can call your local Humane Society, animal control department or veterinary hospital for leads.

Get second opinions. You'll have time, with most conditions, to consult another vet before committing to expensive treatments or drugs. You also can consult The Merck Veterinary Manual online for a rundown on your pet's condition and recommended treatments.

Ask for samples. Your vet may have free starter packets of many popular medications. It doesn't hurt to ask.

Shop around for meds. You can call around to other vets, check out pet catalogs or search the Internet. Discountpetmedicines.com has links to sites that offer lower-priced medications.

Don't cheap out on pet food. An investment in better-quality food can pay off in fewer health problems, particularly with cats, which can be more susceptible to urinary tract infections if fed inexpensive cat food. Check with your vet.
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Keep their weight down. Just as with people, obesity in animals can trigger more health problems.

Keep your pet indoors or on a leash. Free-running animals have more accidents, contract more illnesses and take a bigger toll on the environment than pets that are kept under control. (In other words, Fluffy will live a longer, healthier life indoors, and the songbirds of the neighborhood will thank you.)

Consider a cat -- or a mutt. Next time you're in the market for a pet, remember that dogs tend to wind up in the vet's office twice as often as cats, and that purebreds tend to have far more hereditary weaknesses than your average pound puppy.

Liz Pulliam Weston's column appears every Monday and Thursday, exclusively on MSN Money. She also answers reader questions in the Your Money message board.

Labels: pet insurance