Pet insurance never looked so good

When I first saw the brocures some years ago I snorted in disbelief at how ridiculous the concept was. Man, who were these suckers who would actually pay something called "Pet Insurance". $1100 later, I'm thinking it's lookin' pretty attractive. I took Tigger (the large rotund one) to the vet this morning, for the second time this month, to be seen again for his blocked nasal passages. The poor thing really can't breathe through his nose at all, but he's in denial about it, so he insists on attempting to take breaths through his nose (unsuccessfully) and begrudgingly and reluctantly sucks loudly through his mouth to get the necessary oxygen. It's painful to listen to and painful to watch. Here's the run-down of our vet estimate:

EXAM/CONSULTATION COURTESY
ANASTHESIA INHALENT 0-50#
PULSE OXIMETER/RESP MONITOR
PRE ANASTHETIC INJECTIONS
PAIN KILLER
HOSP OUTPATIENT/RECOVERY
INJECTION ANTIBIOTIC
IV CATH & FLUIDS MINOR SURG (ugh...poor poor kitty)
PHARENGEAL EXAM (mmmm)
RADIOGRAPH 2 VIEWS
CUL & SEN #400
CYTOLOGY REFERENCE LAB
STANDARD PROFILE #74
DISP: CLAVAMOX DROPS 15ML
Estimated total cost: $692.72

This is not a good month for pets.