Pet Insurance

[Guest brandi1530]

Recently my husband and I have spent a lot of money on our Barney, which we don't mind to do because he's family, but I'm wondering if pet insurance is a good option. Does anyone use it? Is it worth the cost? I see exclusions for hereditary and such, will it cover the kinds of things greyhounds regularly get? If you do have pet insurance and you like it, what kind do you use? Barney is 8 years old and has an old injury from racing, and I read that anything that relates to that injury isn't covered. Any info would be helpful. Thanks!

[silverfish]

We do insure our dogs, unless we get them as seniors and the premium is so high that it's not worth it. Our first grey cost us several thousand pounds (GB) in his last couple of years so his insurance most certainly paid for itself. He had had a cancerous tumour before we took it out so that was excluded but it never came back and the insurance company paid the cost of some expensive stuff like an MRI and neurology and cardiology referrals.

 

The next dog was ten when we got her, and she also cost us a couple of thou, but we had to pay full cost because our insurance company wouldn't accept a ten year old.

 

The next two dogs also had expensive specialist referrals, one was insured and one was not (again, a ten year old when we acquired him), and from these experiences I'd say definitely go for insurance if you can. If the premiums are too high for you, consider opening some kind of savings account and pay in whatever you can afford each month and let it gain interest. It might not pay the total of an expensive procedure, but it'll take the edge off those high bills when they come in.

 

Oh, and when you're choosing an insurance company, read the small print! Check that they will continue to cover your dog when he or she is a senior (believe it or not, some don't) and check what is excluded and what is not.

[retiredracers]

I've had it for Elphie since she was a puppy but I've never had to use it (knocking on wood) but I know it's there if I need it.

[mom2four]

We have pet insurance through Pet Secure. We now have the top level for all of our Greys except Jamey. We had level 3 for all of them and then Jamey's amputation alone took up the amount allowed per year. We had to pay for the chemo treatments ourselves. So we bumped everyone up to level 4. The premiums are high, but an amputation would pay for a year's worth of premiums for our dogs and cats.

With most insurance- home and car- you don't need it (hopefully!) but your chances of using your pet's insurance are quite high.

 

If you do choose one, check it out thoroughly! Does it have yearly amount renewals? What are the deductibles or co-payments etc. does the co-payment decrease with increasing number of claims (Pet Secure does!)

 

Good luck!

[Guest Energy11]

I have Trupanion with ZERO deductible.

 

When I worked for the vet in Florida, this was not an issue, but there are NO vet jobs here, and all of mine are ages 8-10. I NEED to have something "just in case!" I have used it about four times so far, and just with a prescription like Deramaxx, you are looking at $90 for 30 pills WITHOUT insurance. Also, Curfew has a dark, hard growth on his back, which MUST be biopsied and removed. Insurance will cover this too. They do not cover routine visits or routine bloodwork, but, still ... it is worth it.

 

With all the things that COULD happen, especially, an E-vet visit, YES, I THINK Pet Insurance is well worth it!

 

Trupanion covers seniors without ridiculous premiums, and there is a very high maximum.

[MP_the4pack]

I got VPI when they were really the only ones out there. They were very good back then, but I can't say so now. They exclude everything.

They excluded alopecia because of Jade's bald butt.

They excluded lacerations on Opal because she needed sutures for a boo-boo when I first got her. And also gastritis because I gave her a pepto bismol for an upset tummy.

However, because I had the cancer rider from the start with Onyx and Pearl, I still get to have it. They don't offer it for new clients, but I can get it on new dogs.

And Pearl maxed out on claims for her heart disease and hypertension for several years and I still got most of a claim back when she developed cancer.

So while I'm not sure I'll recommend VPI, I do highly recommend pet insurance.

It has saved me tens of thousands of dollars.

[JohnF]

Yes, I think it's worth the money. Just imagine if your dog caused an accident - where would you find 1Million just like that?

I've had my last 4 dogs insured and it has covered broken legs (one very complicated and referred to a specialist), long-term treatment of arthritis, incontinence issues and in one an emergency spay, pyometra, and mammary strip operation

I've used the Pet Plan option that continues for older dogs but at reduced payout.

[Guest greytmiles]

Folks recently discussed their preferred pet insurers in this thread.

I found it really helpful, and plan on getting Miles on a plan sooner than later.

 

Erin

[Guest UESBrindle]

We have insurance through PetFirst (basic plan) and will continue to have it for all of our pets. We have a $50 deductable and then the remaining 10%. In the first year it has already paid for itself many times over. We've been able to use it for:

 

Well dog exams

partial refunds for frontline

Rxs

visits to the vet for: glass in paw pads ($350 visit), laceration to his front leg ($1500 total for all visits for that injury), and digestive issues ($250+)

 

It doesn't cover dentals, so we foot that ourselves, but it's been a wonderful thing for us. It takes any hesitation away from bringing him to the vet, because while I'd like to be able to think things will fix themselves with time, or I can "treat" it, I know I can't always do that, and huge unexpected bills aren't worth the risk given that we can afford the monthly payments, especially given the vet bill's we've had in the first year of owning William.

[Guest brandi1530]

Thanks everyone! I think I'm going to get the insurance for him, I just need to find the right one.

[Guest zoolaine]

I used to have all mine on PetFirst and was very happy with them. Once Sunny was diagnosed with cancer, we quickly went through the maximum per incident allowed - $2500 so I am now paying out of pocket for his chemotherapy. I switched all my others to PetPlan. I liked Petfirst but needed a higher maximum allowed - with PetPlan I picked $12,000 per year that fully renews each year. I haven't had to PetPlan yet but to me it seemed to meet my dogs needs the best. Embrace and Trupanion also looked really good.

[seeh2o]

I have a family plan for Carl & Claire through PetFirst. So long as I can afford it, I will never ever be without pet insurance. PetFirst has paid for all of Carl's claims, which were plentiful the first year he came to me. I have PetCare for my non-grey, she was too old to switch. I have a 70/30 plan with them. When she bloated in January 2008 they paid over $1300 towards her bill of $1900 and didn't cancel us!

[GreytHurleyDawg]

I have VPI and have been very happy so far. All three are now on the plan...I get routine coverage and have premium plans now for Hurley and Woodie who are both about 7. Petra has one level down, so cancer-care would be decreased for her, she is only 3. I like the routine reimbursement and have gotten a large payout ($1000 of a $3000 bill) for Hurley's bloat/ possible gastric volvulus (twisting of stomach, which it was not.) with preventative gastropexy (tacking stomach to chest wall) surgery. That was on the second-highest plan, with his current plan, I would have gotten closer to $2000 of it. I found that our emergency vet was extremely nice when i asked her to detail everything for my insurance company and had no worries about that....pet insurance is handled backwards: the insurance pays AFTER the procedures so you never have to get approved (unless you want to check with them to make sure they will reimburse if a procedure is done just for your own peace of mind). It keeps the vets in line just a little bit because they know their decisions will be "inspected" later. The vets on staff at VPI look over the details and will reimburse for reasonable tests and procedures and if on the benefits list.

 

I am slightly worried now after reading a few of these because my renewals say that VPI can terminate coverage when they want to, so although they say they won't start coverage after the age of 9(?), I thought they would continue as long as I wanted and I'm unsure of what their right to terminate coverage means. There's another thing to add to my list of things to do!

 

It is very nice to have insurance and the less you use it, the better off you are anyway!

[Guest MonsterMomma]

I'm reconsidering my choice not to carry pet insurance. Manny's latest adventure has already cost us more than $18K...it would have been higher but the vet stopped billing us after the 3rd surgery. The challenge will be to find a carrier that will cover him with all his pre-existing conditions.

[Guest Energy11]

I'm reconsidering my choice not to carry pet insurance. Manny's latest adventure has already cost us more than $18K...it would have been higher but the vet stopped billing us after the 3rd surgery. The challenge will be to find a carrier that will cover him with all his pre-existing conditions.

 

 

To my knowledge, NO carrier will cover pre-existing conditions :-( If you find one, please let me know.