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| When cats fall ill, it can be a traumatic and sometimes costly experience. |
When cats fall ill, it can be a traumatic — and costly — experience. Veterinary Pet Insurance (VPI) ranked the most common, expensive illnesses based on claims received from thousands of pet owners.
The costliest conditions typically involve diagnostic tests and emergency surgery, where average fees run from $500 to nearly $3,000, VPI reports. The most expensive conditions for cats and their average fees are:
1. Foreign Body Ingestion (Small Intestine) — $1,629
2. Urinary Tract Reconstruction — $1,399
3. Foreign Body Ingestion (Stomach) — $1,391
4. Rectal Cancer — $1,011
5. Bladder Stones — $989
6. Intestinal Cancer — $942
7. Hyperthyroidism (Radiation) — $920
8. Fibrosarcoma (Skin Cancer) — $780
9. Acute Renal Failure — $565
10. Mast Cell Tumors — $497
Although some conditions cost significantly more, these figures represent the most commonly claimed conditions based on reports from VPI’s 460,000 insured pets and their owners. Illnesses or injuries that were not commonly reported were not included in the ranking.
Treatment costs vary case by case, and financial figures were compiled based on the average cost of initial claims. VPI states that the figures are not intended to suggest typical reimbursements, reflect a national average of veterinary fees or account for ongoing fees associated with any of the conditions.