A Colorado woman had a decision to make regarding the life of her pet chicken named Blue. Seleta Nothnagel takes Blue with her to run errands, bringing the bird into places like Home Depot or Joann Fabric. The 2-year-old Blue Maran chicken regularly dresses up for the outings, often sporting a heart-covered dress and matching diaper. The 5-pound fowl loves cheese, Pop Tart crusts, strawberries, and watermelon. It also needed to have emergency surgery.
In March, Blue didn't seem like herself. She seemed tired, short of breath, and didn't want to cuddle. A former veterinary tech, Nothnagel knew to act on her concerns over Blue's health. She took Blue to multiple veterinarians for blood tests, X-rays, ultrasounds, and echocardiograms trying to discover what was wrong with her beloved bird. Eventually, a CT scan did find that Blue had a congenital heart defect.
So Nothnagel had a choice to make. She had some pet insurance but certainly not enough that would pay for a heart procedure like the one Blue needed. However, she decided that the $10,000 expense for the surgery was worth trying to save Blue. And it worked because after about a 12-hour surgery, Blue was backed to his old self. Now she just needs to figure out how to pay for the remaining $7,500 the insurance didn't pay for.