Expenses

A major thing to consider before looking into getting any pet is if you can afford one.

Hedgehogs can be very expensive to keep and vet bills can quickly add up. You should always have money saved for vet bills and be prepared to spend it.

The initial cost of purchasing a hedgehog is usually around £ 150.00 from a reputable breeder and their set up costs from £ 125.00 for a zoozone set up to more if you purchase a vivarium.

You should never assume you will not have to pay for vet care.

If you don't want to spend money on vet bills, a hedgehog is definitely not for you.


Over the years of keeping hedgehogs, my vet bills to date have been in the region of £ 1500.00

This includes paying for out of hours visits which normally have a standard call out fee of approx. £ 75.00 prior to any treatment.

great post

Brilliant post ... I think thats why most of us pop some money away i never break into my vet fees i did once and i regretted it ..

When Bear got sick the money was there ... an i didnt have to worry ... x

Lewie has his own little account so we know he is always covered.

Hugs

JO xx

Does he have a little cheque book Jo - think you should make one for him xx

They are worth every penny, but I do wish more people would consider this when taking animals on. I know of a few people who own animals of various types and I do wonder how they will find the money if something went wrong because I know they don't have much money. I put some away in my savings account every month. I have never taken money from it yet, and it is very reassuring to know it will always be there if I need it.

I know we've all spoken about this before and the issue of insurance came up. Most insurance policies find a way of getting out of paying leaving a huge unexpected bill from the vet still to be paid.

It really is best if you can budget for a certain amount to be put away each month and not get caught out. Vets fees don't come cheap, especially for exotic pets.

Helen, I'm really surprised that you hadn't spent more than that. I think that you have a great vet too and had it been anywhere else, the cost would certainly have shot up further.

Lou's vet also wavered a consultation fee once too due to her going there a couple of times. I think you have to count your blessings if you've not needed a vets visit yet.

xoxox

Very possibly have spent more than that Mel - was totting up as I went along - Dave is fantastic and without his help my bills would probably have doubled - where he can help out he has, charging for one lot of xrays when he has taken three or four, or not charging at all - he is fab x

My sister in law has pet insurance for her dogs. One of them had a medical condition in his leg. Not sure what it is called, but the insurance people covered it. However, they say because he has been treated for it once before the insurance doesn't cover him if he gets it again, which is very likely to happen in his other leg. The operation alone costs just over £3000, plus all the other costs, such the consultations, x-rays, tablets etc. Suffice to say they are paying pet insurance and saving as much as possible as quickly as possible. x

Ha ha Nellie love, no but he has asked for credit cards LOL!!

Hugs

JO xx

The sad thing is its not worth insuring the hedgehogs as there are so many clauses in pet insurance .x

hehe, picturing little Lewie with his own named credit card, hehe. 'That's a thousand mealworms and charge it to my card!' hehe

Really was grateful of the relationship you have with your vet, David, Helen with all the stuff with Emo. He was so good with him, and he didn't really know me so didn't have to take money off for things for me, but he did, and I will never be able to thank you both enough for everything.x