Only 4% of Pets Have Insurance. Dr. Michael Bailey Explains Why

Money Talk With Tiff · Aug 6, 2026 · 18m

I am not a pet owner. Fish and birds, that's my lane. But I am the friend people call when the vet bill arrives. $3,000 my friend didn't see coming. Another friend spent more on his dog's diabetes than his own health insurance deductible. I didn't even know pets got diabetes.

So I called Dr. Michael Bailey, president of the American Veterinary Medical Association, to ask what people miss when they calculate the true cost of pet ownership.

Here's what he said.

Preventative care is not optional. Six-month checkups catch things before they become catastrophic. Vaccinations matter. And not for…