The University of Missouri Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital (VMTH) and Universal Guardian Acceptance (UGA) of St. Joseph, Mo., have been able to offer nearly 400 pet owners financing for various treatments and procedures over the past 10 months. UGA, which considers itself a non-traditional financing company, announced the progress of the partnership in late April. After providing an in-house payment plan for many years, the teaching hospital wanted to increase financing options available to avoid having to turn away clients who did not have the available funds necessary to pay for their animals’ medical care. VMTH and UGA partnered last year in an effort to bring new payment options for owners. “Now that we have UGA on our side, our clients and prospective clients don’t have the stress of worrying how they will pay for care their animal needs added to any anxiety they may already have worrying about their animal’s health,” said David Wilson, DVM, Dipl. ACVS, director of the VMTH. “Our staff, freed from the time commitment involved in arranging financing, is better able to focus on providing excellent customer service.” Dr. Wilson noted that UGA’s financing program alleviates the problems families face when their pet encounters a medical emergency that is unexpected and expensive to treat. “They have a choice now instead of being left with one option – to put the animal down,” he said. “Many people don’t have credit cards or pet insurance, nor do they have money set aside for treatment, and UGA financing is an option that fits their situation.”
