First of all, how far are you willing to go in treating problems your pets may have? That's probably the most important question to ask yourself. Some pet owners have a sharp line on the amount they're willing to spend on a sick or injured animal. For them, insurance may not be a great choice. For others, though, they're willing to spend any amount to treat issues with their pets. For those people, I'd recommend insurance, because that attitude can bankrupt someone.
Second, compare the cost of the insurance with the typical annual costs for veterinary care you have paid in the past. Average those costs over the lifetime of the type of pets you keep. Then, see where the balance is.
Third, think about typical health concerns for the types of pets you own. Cats, for example, tend to have few health issues once they are adults, until they near the end of their lifespan. For dogs, the breed of dog is important, since some breeds are prone to specific problems and have different average lifespans.
Finally, weigh all of these things against your income and your attachment to your pets.
For myself, I do not have pet healthcare insurance. I have two cats and two dogs. I take good care of them, they get their annual vaccinations, and I feed them well. My history is that there are few health concerns that come up with my pets over the years. Then, when they are old and near the end of their lifespan, if they get very, very ill, I do not choose to pay huge amounts of money to keep them alive for a short time. I will give an example:
My black and white cat, which lived to over 20 years of age, suffered a broken hip at about age 14. He was clipped by a passing car. Off he went to the vet's office. The vet xrayed the cat and informed us that a hip replacement was possible, but would involve taking the cat a couple of hundred miles to a University Veterinary School. The cost for the hip replacement would be in the five figures. My wife and I agreed that that was not going to happen. So, I asked the vet, "What happens if we do nothing?" She told us that cats with broken hips often form a false joint that allows them to walk and jump more or less normally, over a period of two or three months. We opted for that. We took him home, put him on a heating pad set on low, and fed him human baby food, since he didn't want to try to get up. We cleaned up after him, since he couldn't get to the litter box. After three weeks, he started hobbling around the house, using the litter box, and eating his food. Three months later he was running around, jumping up on the bed and acting like a normal kitty. When we moved to Minnesota, we brought him with us, and he lived for another six years. But there was zero chance that we would have paid for a kitty hip replacement. Had he not recovered, he would have been euthanized. We cannot afford a kitty hip replacement. Pet insurance wouldn't have paid for it, either, I'm sure. Our cost for the injury was the cost of a vet visit and an xray.
= new reply since forum marked as read
!