Dog Owner Urges Others To Learn About Benefits Of Pet Insurance

AURORA, Colo. (CBS4) - An Aurora couple is struggling to pay veterinarian bills for their beloved pet, and now they're hoping their story will help other families learn about the benefits of pet insurance.

It's a choice more and more pet owners are being forced to make.

"After she fought so hard to get better I couldn't just say, 'Stop treatment, euthanize her,' I couldn't do that," said April, owner of Molly, a Pomeranian dog.

April was forced to choose between her companion and her livelihood when 10-year-old Molly fell ill.

"Molly came here, really, more dead than alive," Dr Jeffrey Mullen with the Seven Hills Vet Center said. "We initially identified her problem as being a very unstable form of diabetes."

Her bill for the past two days was $5,000 and growing.

"We're on a fixed income. There's no extra money coming in and we certainly hadn't put this in our budget," April said.

Many pet owners are stuck with sky high vet bills they can't afford.

"Nowadays we provide a sophistication of care very similar to that available for human care, but as you can imagine that comes at a cost as well," Mullen said.

Mullen says animal medical insurance is becoming more prominent for pet owners.

"Every time we run into a situation like this where people have to make the decision to as to whether pursue treatment and the cost of that care is always one of the factors they have to consider," Mullen said.

For April, giving Molly what she needs isn't a choice

"She never stopped loving me and I couldn't just throw her away because she got sick," April said.

To help the family contact the Seven Hills Veterinary Center.

Those with questions about pet insurance should check with their own vet.

LINK: Seven Hills Vet Center