'Serious trouble': Kransky the sausage dog's snack almost cost owners $4,000
By Kristine Tarbert|
Kranksy the ?sausage dog could have ended up in 'serious trouble' after snacking on something he shouldn't have จC and it almost cost his owners $4,000 after the subsequent trip to the vet.
According to his Melbourne family, the two-year-old mini-daschund has "a lot of personality", but it was his pet persona as a 'muncher' that saw him rushed to the vet after ingesting pain relief medication.
"Kransky has mild anxiety and he loves to chew toys, socks and sometimes the corner of a shoe, but otherwise he's never swallowed anything else before," owner Timothy McLeod? tells 9Honey Pets.
READ MORE: Four tips on controlling your dog's gross habits
McLeod? came home from work one Saturday to find vomit on the carpet and after searching high and low, he discovered the chewed-up packet of medication on the table, with four tablets missing.
"Unfortunately, they had been left on a low table where Kransky got into them," he says. "He loves to munch on anything and everything, so we're not surprised that he and Whinnie tucked in when they were home alone and had the opportunity.
"Both dogs were looking guilty so I was immediately alert and tore through the house trying to figure out what had been eaten.
"Finally, I found the chewed-up packet of pain medication and saw that four tablets were missing. I called our local vet, who instructed us to go straight to the emergency.
Kransky and his sister Whinnie were both examined.
"They are inseparable. They are partners in crime."?
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"But at this point we weren't sure if both Kransky and Whinnie had eaten the painkillers, so we grabbed them both and hopped in an Uber to have them examined. It was a very tense car ride."
Kransky, who weighs in at just 7 kilograms, was then admitted for treatment for ingestion of toxin.
"They said it was incredibly lucky he was treated so quickly after eating the painkillers, otherwise he could have been in serious trouble."
Also incredibly lucky, was the fact Kransky's family had pet insurance, that included a GapOnly ready policy.
Because after the treatment, the vet bill totalled $3,700.
?"Our insurance covered part of the treatment cost and we just had to pay the gap; I paid $740," he says. [The gap is the difference between the vet's bill and the eligible claim benefit]
"As it was a weekend, we wouldn't have been able to get finance to pay the full cost, so it was such a relief that we didn't have to pay the full vet bill upfront. It was already a stressful experience."
Following his treatment, Kransky has made a full recovery and was back to his cheeky self in no time จC still sniffing around the dishwasher, demanding cuddles from his owner, and striking a pose for his online fans.
Pet parents are being encouraged to pay close attention to their furry friends, as new data from GapOnly, an innovative payment solution powered by PetSure, shows how many of these unexpected events or mishaps lead to vet visits.
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As a result, four key pet personas, including the 'munchers' like Kransky, have been identified to help owners stay on top of potential risks their particular pet may be more predisposed to.
'Munchers', for example, are the kind of pet you can't leave alone at a family BBQ. From erasers to socks and human medication, their love of food could land them at the vet for treatment for ingestion of foreign bodies, ingestion of toxins or even diabetes over the long-term.
The average case amount for pet insurance claims related to the 'muncher' was $1,196 in 2022, with an average benefit reimbursed of $843 or 71 per cent. In some cases, claims related to 'munchers' were as high as $33,334 for dogs.
"It might be an obvious one, but don't leave anything munchable จC including painkillers จC out in low or easily accessible places, we learnt this lesson the hard way," McLeod? says to other 'muncher' pet parents.
"No matter how vigilant you are, pet mishaps and accidents happen."
The other pet personas determined by the research are:
Opportunists are cousin to the Muncher - also food-driven, they are cheeky and clever and they know how to work a room to get what they want. Making up 11 per cent of annual cases, claims related to Opportunists include ingestion of foreign bodies, pancreatic disease and gastrointestinal conditions. The average size of a claim related to Opportunists was $842, while the largest claim amount for the Opportunist archetype for dogs was over $40,000.
Daredevils are bold and courageous, but could head to the vet for claims related to bone fractures, tissue damage or traumatic injury and musculoskeletal conditions. Claims related to Daredevils make up 11 per cent of annual cases. The average size of a claim for conditions related to Daredevils was $659, and in some cases it was as high as $38,000.
Wranglers are keen to get off the beaten track, and likely to encounter not so friendly critters on their way. Snake bites, insect bites and tissue damage or traumatic injury are potential conditions for these pets, with claims related to Wranglers representing eight per cent of annual cases. The average case for conditions related to the Wrangler was $562 while the largest amount claimed for dogs was also as high as $38,000.
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