Government statistics show there are 171,790 dogs licensed in Hong Kong; the real figure is believed to be closer to 300,000. There are no statistics on the number of cats, rabbits and other types of pets but they are believed to be just as plentiful. But despite their teeming numbers, just a few companies such as Blue Cross and RSA offer pet policies.

Wong Man-chiu is a pet owner who feels the animal kingdom has been forgotten by the insurance industry. His insurance agent has sold him a wide variety of cover - life, medical, retirement, education - but the policy he really wants is for Oscar, his five-year-old Samoyed.

Unlike other countries where pet owners can buy insurance at the local vet or the supermarket, Wong has found it extremely difficult to buy insurance for Oscar.

'My agent calls me all the time to sell me all types of insurance - for my wife, my two sons - but he could not find any insurance for my dog,' Wong said.

'I want to have protection for Oscar as we treat him as part of the family. It is disappointing as there is little information on such insurance products. The vet does not promote it, my insurance agent knows nothing about it and the pet shops do not sell insurance.'

Wong is one of many Hong Kong pet owners who spend thousands of dollars on medical care for their furry loved ones. Wong pays clinic fees of between HK$500 and HK$1,200 for each visit to the vet, and once when Oscar was hit by a car he paid HK$2,000.

After an extensive search, Wong found RSA and Blue Cross offered pet insurance, but he is not entirely happy with their coverage.

'There are a lot of exclusions,' he complains. 'Oscar does not need much medical treatment now as he is young, but I want to cover the medical bill for when he gets old. But the policy does not provide coverage for dogs over nine years. I want a pet insurance policy for the whole life of the dog.'

Wong said the lives of many old dogs or cats could be saved with better insurance coverage. 'High medical bills means some pet owners have to put down their animals,' Wong said. 'This is very sad.'

Pet insurance in Hong Kong has exclusion clauses similar to those for people, such as for pre-existing conditions, routine check-ups, cosmetic treatment and mental or emotional disorders.

RSA Hong Kong sells policies through Manulife, which has more than 3,000 agents.

Ricky Chan, director of sales and marketing of RSA Hong Kong, said the number of people purchasing pet insurance was small but was rising.

'Given the continued birth rate decline in Hong Kong, more people are buying or adopting a pet and it's important to educate them that raising a pet is no different from raising a child,' Chan said.

'Medical costs for sickness or injury sometimes can be high. Having proper insurance can relieve them of a financial burden, which might be the reason some people decide to give up their pets when faced with a huge medical bill,' he said.

Pet insurance covered not only medical expenses but also accident and third-party liability for claims related to injuries caused by animals. 'For those who can afford to raise a pet, insurance is becoming part of the factors to consider when they decide to buy or adopt a pet,' Chan said.

According to RSA statistics, the vast majority of medical expenses for cats and dogs works out at to between HK$500 and HK$800 for each claim. Consultations for people average around HK$200 each visit.

The premium depends on a pet's age and breed. For a golden retriever under nine years old the cost is less than HK$3,000 a year for a basic insurance plan. Breeds such as Bull Terrier, Dogo Argentino, Fila Brazilieros and Japanese Tosa are excluded.

Ho Wai-kwong is among the few owners that have pet medical insurance. He had his St Bernard covered by RSA at a cost of around HK$2,000 a year and is happy with the price.

His dog weighs 82 kilograms and has skin and stomach problems requiring occasional hospital visits that cost HK$4,000 to HK$5,000 each time: the most expensive was stomach surgery costing HK$40,000. The insurance protection covers up to HK$30,000 a year and HK$12,500 for each claim.

'We have had the insurance cover for three years and have had claims amounting to the cap almost every year. Without the policies, we would have to bear the cost all by ourselves,' Ho said.

However, after three years of claims the dog is now nine years old and the company is no longer willing to renew the policy.

Mark Fenlon, a Briton who lives in Hong Kong with six chihuahuas, aged between five and seven years old, does not plan to buy insurance cover for his dogs, even though the medical bills are high.

'Each dog has a medical bill of about HK$1,000 a year and some medical check-ups cost HK$500 each,' he said.

'But I will not buy the pet insurance as there are far too many exclusions. This not only applies to Hong Kong. Even in Britain, pet insurance cover has far too many exclusions so why I should pay?

'Just like insurance policies for humans, pet medical insurance covers only the period when the dogs are young and have few problems. But when they get older and need to see the vet often, they can not get the cover. Routine medical check-ups would not be covered either.'

Munich Re has sold pet liability insurance for dogs and horses in Europe, which will cover claims from people who are bitten by a dog or kicked by the horse. But the companies does not provide life or health cover for pets and does not sell any pet insurance products in Hong Kong.

'Pet insurance tends to be a niche product, and demand only exists in countries with highly developed insurance markets,' Holger Schwarz, head of the agriculture department at Munich Re, said.

'It is especially common in the US, Britain and Sweden, and is most successfully marketed by specialist insurers. Depending on the country, the product is sold through breeders, breed societies, dog and cat societies, veterinarians, veterinary clinics, agents, pet food producers, pet shops and in the US also through supermarkets and the internet,' she said.

A spokeswoman for the Insurance Commissioner said pet insurance is a type of general insurance which does not need any specific requirements. 'We will, however, review the existing requirements from time to time with a view to ensuring that they are kept in pace with market development in this regard,' she said.

Legislator Chan Kin-por, who represents the insurance sector, said the heavy exclusions in pet insurance policies was the result of the small pool of premium holders in Hong Kong able to share the risks. If there were more people buying the products, the pool would become bigger and exclusions would be reduced.