To Insure or Not to Insure?

I've never had pet insurance. Back when Kaya was my dog, by the time such a thing was well-known she was a geriatric pup with pre-existing medical conditions and I assumed no policy would cover her.  That may or may not have been the case, I didn't think to investigate it at that point.  But now that my money situation is likely to become somewhat precarious, I have been pondering what  preparations I can take in advance to avoid potential financial disaster, and securing pet insurance for Maisie is one step I took.

Not knowing which company to trust, I did some research on the Pet Insurance Review website.  I decided on Petplan because they not only offered three different deductibles and three different coverage plans, they also allow you to choose your reimbursement level once your deductible is met.  Petplan was also very highly rated (9.3 on a 10 point scale) by reviewers.  I opted for the most basic (Bronze) plan, with the highest ($200) deductible but with 100% reimbursement after that.  It will pay the costs of any illness or injury Maisie experiences, up to $8000 total per year.  To my surprise, even alternative therapies were included in the coverage, as long as they are recommended and administered by a licensed vet.  I wish I'd known that was possible years ago, when Kaya was receiving monthly treatments at the holistic vet!  The price of the policy I selected for Maisie is just under $22 per month, and that seemed pretty fair to me.

Best case scenario, Maisie will remain a healthy, injury-free little dog and I will never even need to utilize the insurance.  But considering her crazy, occasionally accident-prone ways, I figured better safe than sorry!

Do you have pet insurance?  If so, what have your experiences been like?  Good/bad?  Please share!

And because we all know who the star of the show is here, I now share with you a photo of Maisie and her antler du jour this morning.  She tried to bring it upstairs with her, but kept dropping it as she attempted to carry it in her mouth and run up the stairs at the same time.  So she settled for a chew session at the bottom of the staircase instead.  Silly silly puppy...

 

p.s. for more frequent Maisie updates and pics, please "like" our Facebook page if you haven't yet!

Friday Favorites

From reading this blog, you may get the impression that Maisie cares for only three things...antlers, food and her mom.  And it's true that there are things that Maisie does NOT like, such as sitting outside in the hot sun.

 And this dog (who she lunged at during our walk for no apparent reason).

Plus of course, being forced to "wait" before eating a treat!

She also REALLY hates being left home alone, thunderstorms and right now, the Chicago Air and Water Show because it means very loud fighter planes are flying overhead and scaring the bejeezus out of her.

However, I now offer proof that Maisie does take pleasure in other things...some have already been covered here, some may be new information.  As previously mentioned, Maisie loves constantly unmaking the bed.

She also thoroughly enjoys a good belly scritch.

As well as lounging on the futon while her mom works.

One of Maisie's most important jobs is working security.  She prefers to guard the deck while soaking up a sunbeam whenever possible.

Maisie also looks forward to resting in the shade during our walks.

In addition to frogging out on the cool wood floor, post-walk.

And finally, getting to eat that treat for which she waited not-so-patiently!

Happy Friday, everyone!  : )

p.s. for daily Maisie updates and pics, please "like" our Facebook page if you haven't yet...and if you have, thank you!!!

Wordless Wednesday - Morning Antler Love Edition

p.s. for daily Maisie updates and pics, please "like" our Facebook page if you haven't yet!

High Anxiety

Since I have been working from home, Maisie and I are rarely apart these days.  I think it has made her even more sensitive to my moods, and that's saying something 'cause she was pretty attuned to them from the start.  But with my work situation becoming increasingly uncertain, I have definitely been worrying more lately (and as you may have noticed, posting less).  Combine my anxiety with all the thunderstorms we've had recently, and I've found myself with a nervous little pup on my hands. 

It's not like Maisie's behavior has completely changed...she still does a lot of this:

And this:

And this:

And this.

treat dance!

I have noticed some differences though.  The last few times we've gone to the park, Maisie's main interests have been eating grass and rolling in the sprinkler puddles.   But she still ran or wrestled with other dogs for at least a bit.  Last weekend when we went, she chowed down on grass as usual but other than that, she seemed kind of scared and refused to leave my side.  She wouldn't go near other dogs unless I literally walked her up to them and turned away (at times even running away) when other dogs approached her.  She sat right next to me (nearly on top of me sometimes) and ducked when other people tried to pet her.
It was a concerning change and one that I hope will be temporary.

Since she won't run at the park and is no longer going to daycare, she isn't getting much exercise which I know is not helping the situation.  So as I previously mentioned, I hired a professional dog runner service to take her out once a week (at least while I can still afford it).  Maisie had her first run last week and I was ecstatic to have a VERY tired dog return home.  Here's the email I received from her runner that night:

"Maisie did well on the run today. We covered 3.8 miles. We kept a pretty easy pace and stopped for water breaks. She wouldn't drink much water so I poured some water on her back a few times to keep her cool. I also took a few walk breaks with her to allow her to cool down a little.  We ran over by the lakefront and she ran right alongside me without getting distracted. Even with bikers whizzing past us at times and going by other people, she didn't really react at all so all in all it went well and I think she'll do great on future runs."

I was thrilled that it seemed to work out so well and look forward to Maisie's second run on Thursday.  Hopefully the activity will help alleviate some doggie stress, and therefore also some mommy guilt!

p.s. for near daily Maisie updates and pics, please "like" our Facebook page if you haven't yet!

Working from Home Wordless Wednesday

Time for a snuggle break...

p.s. please "like" our Facebook page if you haven't yet...there are new pics and info nearly every day...for example, an adorable video of Maisie and her three antler chews that I just posted!

New Routine

Maisie and I are settling into a new routine now that I've been working from home for a couple weeks.  We are definitely spending lots of time together, though she's actually being crated more than before because I have been trying to get out of the house when I can and she hasn't been going to daycare very often (it's not that close to the house and kinda seems like a waste of money unless I'll be away for a significant amount of time at this point).  Maisie has been taking advantage of having the couch downstairs all to herself while I work upstairs... 

Other times, she hangs out with me and rests on the futon in the guest room/office.  She usually just sleeps, but occasionally feels the need to express her feelings about me not paying enough attention to her.

Yesterday, my co-worker Emily and Chrissy (both work-from-homers too) came over and we all worked together in my living room.  I'm not sure who was more sleepy...Chrissy:

Or Maisie.

Today will have a couple new experiences for us...first, my monthly cleaning service just arrived and Maisie has never met them...I'm sure there will be plenty of vacuum cleaner-fueled terror for her today!  I have never been home while they cleaned either, so I'm hoping we won't be in their way too much.  Second, for whatever reason Maisie has not been running at the dog park like she used to (and again, she has limited daycare visits now) and I am concerned about the overall reduction in exercise for her.  I definitely have noticed a slight increase in Maisie's leash aggression and I think the two things are related, so tonight we are meeting with a professional dog runner service for a consultation.  It costs $30 for a 50-60 minute run of between three and seven miles, and it would be great if that helped alleviate some of Maisie's crazy energy.  She's never really been running before, so we'll have to see how it goes.  I'll keep you posted!

p.s. please "like" our Facebook page if you haven't yet...I post pics and updates not included on the blog pretty much daily.  we'd love to see you there!

Thankful Thursday

Maisie is feeling thankful today.  Thankful for things like big yawns...

Morning walks...

A refreshing beverage on a hot day...

Breakfast (and also dinner)...

And air conditioning!

Maisie's Mom is feeling thankful too.  For morning espresso...

Her new home office setup...

This face...

And air conditioning!

Plus we've achieved over 100 likes on our Facebook page!  As I said there, it seems you like us, you really like us...and we couldn't be happier about it!  : )