OT: Pet Insurance?

[makoti]

After the past 6 months of pet costs, I've thought about getting pet insurance going forward with pets. Anyone have it for theirs? Really wondering if anyone has gotten a rescue, maybe an older one, and been able to insure them.
In the last 6 months, I've had several ER visits, a kidney removal, chemo, Ultrasounds, an MRI, and spinal surgery on my dogs. That's more than one dream bike that I won't be getting.
Has pet insurance been worth it for anyone? Who do you use? Restrictions?

[Bruce K]

We just adopted a rescue puppy from the local shelter.

After looking at vet bills for our cats I am giving the insurance a try for the pup.

The problem is that wellness and "standard" treatment requires a fairly expensive policy.

I guess I am thinking more about emergencies and major illness.

Too new to provide much more than this.

BK

[daker13]

With your situation, it sound like it might be a good idea. I had pet insurance for my rescue for about four years, about $35 a month (went up every year), $200 or so deductible, and I basically went with it because my wife thought it was a good idea. The insurance I had had a good reputation, but I never got above the deductible, so eventually I cancelled. (My dog is about to turn 7.)

My dog got attacked by a coyote about six weeks ago and needed surgery (he was off leash and chased it into the woods, once in the woods, coyote turned on him and went to town. I ran after them and the coyote backed off when I entered the scene, but he followed us at a distance... this was at 9 am). Very scary, took him to an emergency animal hospital, slowly nursed him back... mostly, puncture wounds and one big laceration, no major arteries hit. Cost about $1200. He's fully recovered now.

I love my dog dearly but there's only so much I would spend if he were to get sick, etc. We'd have to take into account prognosis and chance of recovery and quality of life (the coyote thing was a close call, but $1200 was a no-brainer). I hope this doesn't sound cold hearted, I'll be absolutely heart-stricken if/when I lose him, but I grew up with pets and this was kind of how I was raised.

[R3awak3n]

I was talking about this with my wife today. Its a tough one for sure.

My dog is at the hospital, this will be the 3rd night there, I know we are now at close to $4000 in bills already and they still don't know whats wrong with him. That said, he has been great for 14 years, never had a single problem. We are hoping he comes back but there is the chance that he doesnt and its so expensive.

[makoti]

The cost to care for you pet can get nuts. I paid it because that's just me, but can't fault anyone for saying they can't afford it. Luckily I had the money (mostly from getting hit by cars, but I wouldn't suggest that as a plan), but if I didn't, I don't know what would I would have done. Brackets was only 7 when his hit, so thinking he had a long life in front of him made the choice easy, and Damsel all happened so fast and at such a bad time, I didn't really even think.
I'm hoping that, for catastrophic things, the coverage might be worth it. I'll cover day to day stuff. It's the surgeries & ER visits I want covered.

R3awak3n... pulling for you guys. Good luck.

[R3awak3n]

It is indeed a really hard situation (that insurance would technically make better). Its hard to say no and not try to get my boy ok. I am pulling some money from savings to do this and to me its worth it, even if its to hang with him for 3 more months (providing his quality of life is good of course) but I understand if someone does not have the money then the situation changes.

and thank you! He was doing better today but still not great. We were going to bring him home today but doctors want to keep him over night. Still no real idea what is wrong with him, they might have to do an endoscopy soon.

[Don49]

I had it for several years with my cat. I don't believe it saved any significant money overall. There were some stiff exclusions for age and pre-existing conditions, and if the policy was allowed to lapse it was non-renewable.

[Ken Robb]

We have it on our two rescued dogs. It gives us peace of mind to know that we will never have to decide if we can afford to get one of them treated. When you get right down to it why shouldn't we be thrilled if the insurance cost more than we ever collected because that would mean our pets had been healthy. :beer:

[Clean39T]

Not really the same thing, but we have a wellness plan for our cat through Banfield Vetrinarian clinics: https://www.banfield.com/pet-healthcare/optimum-wellness-plans/cat-wellness-plans

He's getting up there in years and we did the math - without any "accidents", we're about break-even for the year - but have a bit of peace of mind in case something weird happens.

[Bentley]

I did not have it for my bulldog that passed last year and I had some crazy vet bills, let's just say 3 operations and about 10 grand, not including all the other vet bills.

My youngest daughter has insurance thru Banfield, seems to work and its reduced her bills. Just like people our other family needs insurance too.

Ray

[classtimesailer]

We got insurance for our newest dog from Trupanion. 50 bucks a month has already paid for itself for this dogs life expectancy and she is only 15 months old. We will get insurance from now on.

[djg21]

After the past 6 months of pet costs, I've thought about getting pet insurance going forward with pets. Anyone have it for theirs? Really wondering if anyone has gotten a rescue, maybe an older one, and been able to insure them.
In the last 6 months, I've had several ER visits, a kidney removal, chemo, Ultrasounds, an MRI, and spinal surgery on my dogs. That's more than one dream bike that I won't be getting.
Has pet insurance been worth it for anyone? Who do you use? Restrictions?

My dad is a vet a few hours away from me, who is in the process of winding down and just sold his practice. He highly recommends pet insurance for most people, and for me.

Veterinary care has become very expensive as veterinary medicine has become more specialized, large corporations have bought up practices, and vets have stopped covering their own emergencies and emergency clinics have proliferated. Unless you have resources sufficient to cover very large emergency vet bills without question, insurance can prevent you from being in the position of having to decide whether to put an animal down because you cannot afford necessary care. That piece of mind is worth the cost of insurance in his mind, and mine.

I now have Healthy Paws insurance for my Golden Retriever puppy, which is 18 months old. I pay $33/month. I have a deductible that I can live with. I do not have insurance on my older Golden, which is 11+ years old. When I did need emergent care for my older dog a few years back and could not get to my dad, I wished I did have pet insurance. I paid close to $5,000 at an emergency clinic over a weekend, and my dad ended up diagnosing the condition over the phone and suggesting the course of care to the emergency vets who were stumped (a lupus-like condition called immune mediated polyarthritis likely resulting from a virus contracted at a kennel).

The monthly premium is smaller if you lock in the price when the dog is a younger (the premium does not change), and the insurance won't cover preexisting conditions. I got the insurance effective the day I picked up my puppy from my breeder (the puppy was vetted before by my breeder's vet and I had all records to submit). Read the policies you are considering and the exclusions carefully. Most pet insurance doesn't cover routine care like inoculations or neutering.

I have a work colleague who has Healthy Paws insurance and has made a number of claims without issue. Her dog now needs to have bilateral cruciate repairs, and Healthy Paws is covering. Those surgeries probably will end up costing close to $10,000. She is very happy to have insurance.

[Climb01742]

We just went through $7000 spinal surgery for our cocker spaniel to restore mobility in his back legs. It certainly got me thinking about pet insurance.

[shamsixnine]

Our vet recommended insurance-naturally the one that he had pamphlets in the waiting room. We signed up for coverage for our German Shepherd. Read the fine print! You'll be surprised at how much they do not cover. We basically signed up for any emergency that may come up-and guess what, it did. My Shepherd sliced her paw open on broken beer glass in the park. I applied first aid, and brought her in. This was maybe12 years ago, so I don't remember the exact fees, but obviously expensive because , at least around here, vets charge fee for emergency cases. Anyway, the gist of it was that if there was anything that really should haver been covered really well was this emergency situation, and we basically got like between $35-$50 back from the insurance.

[makoti]

We just went through $7000 spinal surgery for our cocker spaniel to restore mobility in his back legs. It certainly got me thinking about pet insurance.

I just did the same for my Peke, except it was for all four legs. The good news is she's walking great. Never again to run the stairs, but she likes to be carried, anyway.
It was the trigger for me, as well. The cancer for Brackets... a fluke. Never had an issue with 6 other dogs. Then this. Ok, maybe things happen more often than I think.

[makoti]

Our vet recommended insurance-naturally the one that he had pamphlets in the waiting room. We signed up for coverage for our German Shepherd. Read the fine print! You'll be surprised at how much they do not cover. We basically signed up for any emergency that may come up-and guess what, it did. My Shepherd sliced her paw open on broken beer glass in the park. I applied first aid, and brought her in. This was maybe12 years ago, so I don't remember the exact fees, but obviously expensive because , at least around here, vets charge fee for emergency cases. Anyway, the gist of it was that if there was anything that really should haver been covered really well was this emergency situation, and we basically got like between $35-$50 back from the insurance.

This is what worries me - the stuff they don't cover. Since all my dogs are rescues, I have no firm history. I would have thought ER visits would be mostly covered. You only got $50 covered?

[Ken Robb]

Lots of options and prices so READ the policies to see which one suits your needs and budget. We have had several ER visits covered.

[daker13]

To state the obvious, it's also worth running a few web searches and seeing what other customers have experienced. While (as I said above) I never filed a claim, the company I went with for the four years I had pet insurance (Embrace) had a reputation for actually paying on their claims.

[miguel]

found our dog on petfinder ~7 years ago. boston terrier/boxer mutt. she's the best snuggler around.

prior dog had some lifelong heart issues and some eye issues the last ~1.5 years of his life. a couple trips to the ER, nothing really made his quality of living better but, you know how things go when your dogs get old.

with Gretta we decided that we could get insurance at 30-50$ a month but would rather just put $50 into a savings account every month. the savings account draws interest and if there were any catastrophic accidents (gods forbid) then there would be money in an account intact.

Aside from 1 incident with a cat where we split some vet bills we havent really touched the account so far.

there should really be more photos of dogs in this thread
http://68.media.tumblr.com/fa05b3871f4dd1daebd9166027fd2783/tumblr_nab23rS0hJ1qavji0o1_500.jpg

[djg21]

found our dog on petfinder ~7 years ago. boston terrier/boxer mutt. she's the best snuggler around.

prior dog had some lifelong heart issues and some eye issues the last ~1.5 years of his life. a couple trips to the ER, nothing really made his quality of living better but, you know how things go when your dogs get old.

with Gretta we decided that we could get insurance at 30-50$ a month but would rather just put $50 into a savings account every month. the savings account draws interest and if there were any catastrophic accidents (gods forbid) then there would be money in an account intact.

Aside from 1 incident with a cat where we split some vet bills we havent really touched the account so far.

there should really be more photos of dogs in this thread
http://68.media.tumblr.com/fa05b3871f4dd1daebd9166027fd2783/tumblr_nab23rS0hJ1qavji0o1_500.jpg

I considered this and then did some basic math. If you pay a $40 monthly premium, you pay out $4,800 over ten years. If you paid that money into an interest-bearing account, you'll have something less $5,500 at the end of 10 years (I'm guessing and not breaking out a calculator) if you never have to use any of it. One trip to an emergency veterinary clinic or an emergency surgery can cost well over that amount.

Granted, you win if you never incur any emergency expenses and never have to tap into the account. But even if you have $5,500 saved, you very likely will be dipping into other funds to pay for any significant treatment that becomes necessary.

You insure against risk. The benefit of insurance isn't that your'll get your money back, but rather, that you know you will have access to funds to pay most of the cost of any emergency treatment your animal needs.

[djg21]

If anyone decides to do pet insurance and decides on Healthy Paws, send me a PM. If you are referred by a policy holder you get some sort of discount and the policy holder gets what amounts to a month of premium free.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[.RJ]

We have pet insurance for our 2 rescues, but opted for the cheaper plan to cover accidents and unexpected big bills. I did the math on what we were spending for regular visits, and the extra costs of a more extensive plan didnt make it worthwhile. We'll spend a few hundred a year on each for check-ups and shots.

https://scontent-iad3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/13263877_1002008296515205_8661944246472880860_n.jp g?oh=0bd832580e50f4010514812e545b4002&oe=59B09A42

[Climb01742]

The good news is she's walking great. Never again to run the stairs, but she likes to be carried, anyway.

Glad all is well with your dog! Ours is walking great, too. No stairs for him, either. Or jumping on/off beds or sofa. Luckily, like you, ours likes being carried too.;)

[classtimesailer]

Just got our second check for 2,000+ for Joey's most recent vet bill. Insurance from now on.

[redir]

The way I look at it is when I get old and am sick and dying I don't want anyone shelling out big bucks to keep me alive for a few more weeks either. I think it might be good for when your dog is young. But when a dog is 12 years old and gets sick then his race is run. OF course if ya got a lot of money that's a different story. But even then sometimes, if not most of the times, it's probably worse trying to prolong your beloved pets life in the end.

[classtimesailer]

We had a poodle named Blanca. She ate way to much of my son's Halloween candy one year along with the wrappers. The wrappers clogged her up and 3,000 dollar abdominal surgery was required. Later, she ate a sock that wouldn't pass. Another 3,000. Pet insurance is now de rigueur.

[aribmass]

I know that this is old af, but I want to say thank you for sharing your experience cause I'm struggling with this question rn and I'm not sure what to do. I've read many reviews about different companies and their plans, such as https://www.petinsurancereview.com/insurers/24petwatch, and can't choose one that will work for me. Many of them seem either too expensive or don't have enough offers that I would like. I didn't know that choosing a company would be that hard, hah. I'm hoping to discover something suitable from the options shown here.

[tuxbailey]

Just adding to this thread. I have insurance for my 3 cats now for issues outside of routine visit and a $250 annual deductible.

My previous 2 cat both had issues that required thousands of dollars which we paid without insurance.

I know math can be done on the pros and cons about savings vs insurance, but I never want to face a situation where I have to debate whether it is worth it to take my cats to ER for an issue, all for the cost of eating coupe lunches at a fast food restaurant per month.

[RWL2222]

I just dropped 2k on my two dogs for some undiagnosable ill. One is 12+ yo. No pet insurance. Definitely couldn't afford the vet bills. Still can't justify pet insurance though. Arggghhh.

[jkbrwn]

Cannot for the life of me imagine not having pet insurance. Have I ever met my $250 annual deductible? Of course not, but my dogs are young and I enjoy the $60 a month peace of mind. Because I’d never forgive myself if something happened and I couldn’t afford the vet bills. I’d rather eat ramen all month than not have insurance…

[klasse]

I suggest Nationwide (petinsurance.com) at their 90% plan with $250 annual deductible.

[Ken Robb]

I suggest Nationwide (petinsurance.com) at their 90% plan with $250 annual deductible.
We have Nationwide and think they have been very fair and easy to deal with.

[jkbrwn]

I forgot to mention that. I have this also. While I’ve not my deductible ever, filing claims is really easy and their vet phone line has been really helpful.

[Likes2ridefar]

Helpful! Just got a border collie mix and am debating this very topic…nationwide seems easy and fair.

Meet 11 week old Zelda

https://i.ibb.co/N2hPjFT/FA4-DE762-3394-49-DA-A69-F-9501-DA0481-C5.jpg (https://ibb.co/YB9MkN0)

[joosttx]

We have Healthy Paws and are satisfied with it.

[tuxbailey]

Yeah I have Nationwide as well. I looked at all the things they cover past the $250 deductible and routine wellness check and I can't think of if there are anything that I would need outside of that.

[tuxbailey]

yeah also get the insurance they are young. Much cheaper and the annual premium increase is not very high. I think it is about 10% per year.

[jtakeda]

I looked into pet insurance after my cat had an adverse reaction to some medication.

I asked the insurance co if they would’ve covered the specific situation that just happened and they said no and I came to realize that they don’t really cover much except for freak accidents.

It’s very easy for them to call it a pre existing condition so unless it’s really a crazy accident I’m not sure it’s worth it.

Cat is ok by the way, took her to UC Davis vet center and after a $250 visit fee they didn’t charge for anything for neurological tests or for the panel of 5-6 docs they had checking the cat out.

[makoti]

This weekend, my new rescue (the ones this thread was about are gone) got bit in the face. Thankfully, he's likely ok but came close to losing an eye to the bite. The other dog owner paid the bill, but this topic is always there. He's 9, so I think starting a policy on him would be prohibitive. For a younger dog, it makes so much sense to guard against freak bills, but as they age (my understanding is) the premiums shoot up to the point that you'd be better setting money away every month for something that might happen.

[miguel]

found our dog on petfinder ~7 years ago. boston terrier/boxer mutt. she's the best snuggler around.

prior dog had some lifelong heart issues and some eye issues the last ~1.5 years of his life. a couple trips to the ER, nothing really made his quality of living better but, you know how things go when your dogs get old.

with Gretta we decided that we could get insurance at 30-50$ a month but would rather just put $50 into a savings account every month. the savings account draws interest and if there were any catastrophic accidents (gods forbid) then there would be money in an account intact.

Aside from 1 incident with a cat where we split some vet bills we havent really touched the account so far.

there should really be more photos of dogs in this thread
http://68.media.tumblr.com/fa05b3871f4dd1daebd9166027fd2783/tumblr_nab23rS0hJ1qavji0o1_500.jpg

Just want to say that Gretta died in Feb 2019. She had some heart issues that showed up the last 6 months. We went through the savings account because we tried a couple things but I wouldn’t have done it another way.

Her account is now the “Rufus and Gretta memorial fund for Milton”

I’m trying to post a pic but I can’t get a link

[d_douglas]

We got insurance for our newest dog from Trupanion. 50 bucks a month has already paid for itself for this dogs life expectancy and she is only 15 months old. We will get insurance from now on.

Yeah, we have trupanion as well. My wife wanted it. It is about $900us /yr, and that seems crazy to me.

He sliced open his paw on some seashells on a beach this summer to th le tube of about $450 and we got about $100 back through insurance, so I cursed that the insurance was a waste. My wife pointed out that insurance doesn’t help little injuries like this, but when something major hits, that’s when things kick in. He is young and reckless, so I fear that time is coming. For now, he is sleeping between our feet in bed right now :)

[skitlets]

Just want to say that Gretta died in Feb 2019. She had some heart issues that showed up the last 6 months. We went through the savings account because we tried a couple things but I wouldn’t have done it another way.

Her account is now the “Rufus and Gretta memorial fund for Milton”

I’m trying to post a pic but I can’t get a link

Sorry for your loss.

I self insure for my pets. One of my cats had a bladder stone emergency (common in males) and after 2 emergency visits, I still paid less than insurance premiums would've cost to that point. However, it means needing to keep a conservatively high emergency fund and the willpower to use it. As others have pointed out, insurance removes the need to consider whether vet services are "worth" it. That alone has value.

[Coffee Rider]

As someone who's had pet insurance on my dogs since they were puppies and whose rescue group recommends it, my current thought is that it's not worthwhile if you have the means to cover some expensive vet bills, more so as your dogs get older and rates really skyrocket. With the rate increases, we might be cancelling it. We will still probably get it for younger dogs and definitely if we ever get another puppy.

[Likes2ridefar]

What do y’all think is a sufficient fund set aside to cover these emergencies?

It’s a bit eye opening to see the emergency costs and I can see our young border collie getting into trouble with the plans I have of lots of travel, big hikes, camping, etc.

[Ken Robb]

Have any of us ever gotten a discount for pet care by paying cash or pleading poverty?

[makoti]

What do y’all think is a sufficient fund set aside to cover these emergencies?

It’s a bit eye opening to see the emergency costs and I can see our young border collie getting into trouble with the plans I have of lots of travel, big hikes, camping, etc.

How old is the pet? Very young? Probably $50/month somewhere will give you enough by the time you need it. Older is going to need more & for that I don't think $100/month is too much. It might not cover a big bi completely, but it will allow you to make it workable.

[Likes2ridefar]

How old is the pet? Very young? Probably $50/month somewhere will give you enough by the time you need it. Older is going to need more & for that I don't think $100/month is too much. It might not cover a big bi completely, but it will allow you to make it workable.

11 weeks old. Thanks, that is about the insurance quotes I’m getting….

[pdonk]

We're with trupanion for my garburator of a dog. To save on payments, we have a higher deductible.

We have had it since he was a puppy as we knew about the heart issues and patella issues with the breed (Cavalier King Charles Spaniel) - figured at some point we would need it. We are using it semi annual for his heart condition and associated medications - so we now close to break even each year.

In addition to his heart, we've used it a few times as he has eaten: erasers, chocolate, cherry pits, diapers, wool and a few other things. Most of these he passed / puked up through induced vomiting at the emergency vet, but he did need one operation which was mostly covered by the insurance.

When it comes time for the big decision about his life, I have told my wife that not withstanding he is her first dog ever and she has a different bond with him than I do, he is only a dog and we will not do anything foolish to our financial situation to prolong his life.

As requested here is a pic.

[Ozz]

Have any of us ever gotten a discount for pet care by paying cash or pleading poverty?

I think you are on the wrong forum.....;)

I imagine many vets would negotiate pricing for long time clients, or have a payment plan/financing option available

[yngpunk]

I think you are on the wrong forum.....;)

I imagine many vets would negotiate pricing for long time clients, or have a payment plan/financing option available

They'd probably point you to the Care Credit brochure sitting on the counter...

[Ozz]

They'd probably point you to the Care Credit brochure sitting on the counter...

No doubt....

[tuxbailey]

They'd probably point you to the Care Credit brochure sitting on the counter...

They did for my cat's surgery 20 years ago. And I used it because it was interest free. I imagine it is to help you make the decision to go for surgery easier.

[C40_guy]

When it comes time for the big decision about his life, I have told my wife that not withstanding he is her first dog ever and she has a different bond with him than I do, he is only a dog and we will not do anything foolish to our financial situation to prolong his life.


Cute King Charles!

This breed does have its challenges, as you've found.

Our cavachon is 12 and, knock on wood, is still pretty healthy. We have Embrace pet insurance, which we've used once, and I will max that out if necessary. Much beyond that, the question of quality of life comes up.

He's our first dog and is absolutely part of the family. I'm hoping that he has a long and healthy life and then goes on his own terms.

[bk12]

I would recommend it if you are willing to pay a lot to help your pet out. We have had it on all our dogs, and are well ahead. I never wanted to have the discussion with my wife regarding not spending a large amount for an emergency surgery or whatever (would have felt bad every time I bought a new toy thereafter). If you are in that kind of situation, I think it is a great peace of mind.