Pet Insurance

[Cos]

.

[C_Dave45]

I'll give you the other side of the coin Cos. I am very anti insurance. We get insuranced to death. Life, health, car, consumer goods, etc etc. Cant even buy a $50 radio without having some sort of insurance protection plan being pushed on. us. Is it cheaper to just save that monthly pet insurance premiums and have a savings account on the off chance you have an extreme circumstance? Of course it is. But you know you wont. No one does. Labs are very prone to health issues down thr road. Hip dysplasia is common among others.
When we got our Shadow, who is like our third child to us, my sister who works in insurance BEGGED me to get pet insurance. I was like you. But not even a year after we got her, there was an accident and she suffered life threatening damages. That cost me $6500. 4 years later, complications from that injury cost me another $3500. $10,000 so far!!! Sure, this was an extreme situation and the odds are against anything like that happening...but for only $50 a month I could have had that covered. Now I just consider that $50 a month a necessary cost that comes with the responsibility of having a dog. Just as food and vitamins are. Hell I drop a $50 on a work lunch at least a couple of times a month. My dogs health is certainly worth the odd lunch. Because if that time ever comes, God forbid, and your faced with the decision of money over that look in your dogs eyes as shes laying on a vet operating table...it sure would be nice to have coverage.

[BokCh0y]

Bumping this up for you Marino. Some stuff for you to read about for your Russell Griffon.

Dk.

[BlueHaloGirl]

I too was on the fence about pet insurance. When are you going to need to use it and how often to make it really worth while.
Once I stated thinking about how active our 2yo rescue Shepard mix is it was decided that it was a good idea. $50month and $100 deductible.
So very happy I did as she tore open her foot playing fetch while we were camping and needed 5 staples to close it. A $300 vet bill only cost me $100...hey I saved $200!! Then being the crazy active dog she is and having trouble resting for 2 weeks she ripped a staple out and we had to take her to the vet again while we were on vacation. Again pet insurance covered the visit and cost of re-wrap and drugs no questions asked since it was the same injury as previous.
So I think in the long run when she gets older and things could happen that at least I have peace of mind cause she is our fur baby and a very important part of our family.

[klumsy_tumbler]

@BlueHaloGirl who did you end up going with for the insurance? I'm going to be adding a pup to the family soon (also an active breed), and am trying to decide on a provider before we bring a pup home so that we have coverage from day 1.

Was the higher monthly premium just because of how old she was when you registered?

[BlueHaloGirl]

Originally posted by klumsy_tumbler
@BlueHaloGirl who did you end up going with for the insurance? I'm going to be adding a pup to the family soon (also an active breed), and am trying to decide on a provider before we bring a pup home so that we have coverage from day 1.

Was the higher monthly premium just because of how old she was when you registered?

I went with Trupanion, the higher premium was because I chose the lower deductible.

[JordanEG6]

Bump

Getting a pup pretty soon, so the GF and I are starting to look into the merits of getting pet insurance. I've heard most pros and cons from both getting pet insurance and not getting it, so I'm pretty torn. Some say it's worth putting aside money for medical expenses and skipping insurance entirely, others suggest it, just in case you have to foot a large bill (say $4K and up).

I've been reading previous Beyond posts and some reviews online, so I'm starting to look into getting a plan from Trupanion. Submitting and getting reimbursement for most claims so far doesn't seem to be an issue based on my findings. But what I find shady and in the 1-4 star review submissions is the massive increase in premiums, despite no claims submitted for healthy dogs. The site says no increase in premiums due to claims, but some dog owners are being hit with 50-100% increases annually depending on the dog. I understand the premiums are likely to be bumped up a bit as the dog ages, but from what I'm reading, 50-60% on average is ridiculous, especially if the dog is healthy.

Anyone have experience with this increase?
Also, if you have submitted any claims, how well was it handled and did you have to jump through hurdles to get your reimbursement?
TIA

[MalibuStacy]

Okay so I am playing devils advocate here, but I am a big supporter for pet insurance largely due in part to my gf being a vetmed student. Too many people simply choose to euthanize their animals because of cost or inconvenience. That being said, my cat has never needed anything over her 12 year life, plus I can barely afford my own health insurance haha. So I see the cost being difficult to justify if your animal is healthy, but as my gf has educated me on previously; using this mindset is wrong because you are removing the animal as a living being and simply holding it as a possession. Plus with the insurance, should anything terrible happen your animal is safe.

Again I am a hack hers because I would love to have it but simply cannot afford it presently.

[boarderfatty]

We have Trupanion for our English Bulldog and it has been a huge help for us. our premiums are ~$140 per month, but in the 2.5 years we have had her, we have had over $50k in vet bills and insurance has paid out over $40k. Our concerns with Pet Insurance were maximum claim amounts and total claim amounts allowed per year (we dont really care about invoices under 3k, but do care about ones over 10k). Most policies max out a $5k per incident and two incidents per year. with Trupanion they pay 90% of the invoice minus the deductible of your choice with no maximum claim amount and unlimited claims per year they also cover any genetic pre-dispositions which is helpful. Our premiums have gone up with our dog, we started at $110/mth, the following year it was $125/mth, this year it went up to $140/mth (That being said even if our premiums were $1000/mth we would still be in positive territory with our dog) I will admit that we have a lemon of a dog, but a lot of it is not necessarily typical of an English Bulldog her major bills have been as follows

1) Dog Attack ($800)
2) Urinary Track Infection ($1500) - likely from the breeder due to her eating something outside
3) Hiatal Hernia ($12,000) her stomach moved up through her diaphram and was pinched preventing any food from entering her stomach, basically she would chew then throw it right up
4) Esophagus Sphincter repair ($5000) - Due to the Hiatal Hernia the sphincter never developed since the diaphram acted in its place, so after the hiatal hernia surgery whatever she ate came right back up since there was nothing to stop it
5) Cherry Eye (Both eyes) ($3000) - typically not this costly but her glands protruded much further than most cherry eye and we had to see a specialist for the surgery where the glands were pinned back in two locations
6) Dog Attack ($1200) - in an offleash dog park at night a shiba came in ran over and attached her, a bunch of punctures around her face and eyes
7) Laser Surgery for distichia in both eyes x 2 ($2000) - ingrown eyelashes that rubbed her eyes and caused eye ulcers the first surgery was removing 30-40 per eye, the second was 5-12 per eye
8) Removal or fold in stomach lining and installing a funnel between the stomach and intestines ($8000) - her stomach lining had wrinkles and one folded over and blocked stomach contents from entering the intestines
9) Torn ACL + Physio Therapy ($6,000) - She enjoys jumping for frisbees and playing catch, noticed her limping, scope showed torn ACL, fixed that then 8 weeks pf physio therapy, hydro therapy and laser therapy
10) Ongoing Allergies ($2000) - Eye allergies leading to hives on her eyes causing bad tear stains and rawness in her face folds, needs eye drops twice a day

There are more bills surrounding the diagnosis of her problems like X-Rays, Ultra Sounds, GI Scopes, and follow up visits that make up the balance.

[taemo]

we have a non-spayed pug that is over 9 years old and never had insurance, so far all in all we have spent less than $1000 for her medications.

then my sister in law has a jack russell that is 10 years old and frequently at the vet so fortunately she got Trupanion insurance for the past 3 years as she doesn't have a lot of money either.

my sister on the other hand had a 10 year old bulldog mastiff that we put down earlier this year, he's been through an eye removal surgery and tumor for the past 2 and she had insurance (not Trupanion) and she said that honestly it would have been cheaper having money saved aside than going with an insurance.

so in short IMO, it's cheaper to put money aside, unless your dogs breed is prone to many diseases.

[sabad66]

If you're going to get it, get it when they are a pup and keep it on. I didn't, so now our quotes are crazy high for our 2 year old corgi.

When i was looking around at companies, trupanion was the best and mostly because they have no caps for payouts.

[max_boost]

When you pay $6k Christmas Eve because your cat swallowed a shoe string, yup you gonna wish you had pet insurance!

[Brent.ff]

What kind of dog are you planning on getting? It's fairly predictable which breeds are going to have the most problems (bulldogs for example, see above, are renowned as being unhealthy)

[Rocket1k78]

This quote is hidden because you are ignoring this member. Show Quote

When you pay $6k Christmas Eve because your cat swallowed a shoe string, yup you gonna wish you had pet insurance!

DAMN! Its never a good time to have an emergency but thats gotta be the worst time lol

Unless you've got decent money in the bank dont kid yourself with the whole putting money aside thought lol. Everyone says that but i would bet 99% dont and youre also taking a huge risk if something happens within a couple years. Pet emergencies can be a simple check up with meds($200-$400) or like others have posted and me included well over the $5k mark if not more. We have the one where we submit and it does sound like a PIA from what my wife says but they've never really denied a payment or dragged it out.

[Seth1968]

This quote is hidden because you are ignoring this member. Show Quote

When you pay $6k Christmas Eve because your cat swallowed a shoe string, yup you gonna wish you had pet insurance!

Except, why would an adult hold another lifeform as a "pet" to appease their emotional dysfunction

Oh wait, I just answered it.

I dare you to answer that more objectively.

[boarderfatty]

This quote is hidden because you are ignoring this member. Show Quote

What kind of dog are you planning on getting? It's fairly predictable which breeds are going to have the most problems (bulldogs for example, see above, are renowned as being unhealthy)

You could base it on that, but there are a bunch of things that are not relegated to a type of breed. A car accident or something resulting in a broken leg can be $3-5000. Torn ligament is typically $5-8000. Twisted stomach $2-4000. Ingesting a foreign object $1000-6000 (depending on if surgery is required)

If you are paying $500-1500/year in pet insurance, you can often cover the cost of your insurance over the lifetime of your pet with a couple claims. Dont forget too, when you go to a vet, emotions often take control and logic is thrown out the window. If your companion of 7 years has hip dysplacia or cancer, or is hit by a car, good luck telling the vet to just put them down, most times you cant throw your money at them fast enough. Atleast with insurance it helps take some of the sting away.

Our neighbours dog is obsessed with chewing rocks, it is not breed specific, but requires $2-3000/year in dental work which Trupanion covers for them

[Brent.ff]

No i get that there is a lot that is not dependent on breed, however buying a breed that is well known for having health issues (bulldogs, berners, etc), would motivate me to buy insurance as i know i'd be more likely to use it

[J-hop]

This quote is hidden because you are ignoring this member. Show Quote

No i get that there is a lot that is not dependent on breed, however buying a breed that is well known for having health issues (bulldogs, berners, etc), would motivate me to buy insurance as i know i'd be more likely to use it

I agree there are some breeds more prone to health problems but pretty much any purebred should have insurance. If you look at the breeding practices (especially labs) the gene pool is so disgustingly restricted you run a WAY higher chance of health problems with a pure bred.

[Rocket1k78]

This quote is hidden because you are ignoring this member. Show Quote

What kind of dog are you planning on getting? It's fairly predictable which breeds are going to have the most problems (bulldogs for example, see above, are renowned as being unhealthy)

There are definitely some problematic breeds but this alone is not the way to base your decision on insurance or not. I had a mutt that required over $5k in work and tests in just one year alone.

This quote is hidden because you are ignoring this member. Show Quote

Dont forget too, when you go to a vet, emotions often take control and logic is thrown out the window. If your companion of 7 years has hip dysplacia or cancer, or is hit by a car, good luck telling the vet to just put them down, most times you cant throw your money at them fast enough. Atleast with insurance it helps take some of the sting away.

Exactly, Our dogs are our just as important as our kids so even if i didnt have the coverage i would be paying anything to help cure them of their problem.

If you have money in the bank for rainy days and like to gamble i could see maybe not getting insurance but if you dont and are the type where you would spend whatever it took then i would totally suggest insurance

[max_boost]

This quote is hidden because you are ignoring this member. Show Quote

DAMN! Its never a good time to have an emergency but thats gotta be the worst time lol

Unless you've got decent money in the bank dont kid yourself with the whole putting money aside thought lol. Everyone says that but i would bet 99% dont and youre also taking a huge risk if something happens within a couple years. Pet emergencies can be a simple check up with meds($200-$400) or like others have posted and me included well over the $5k mark if not more. We have the one where we submit and it does sound like a PIA from what my wife says but they've never really denied a payment or dragged it out.

yes sir! better off making small payments than one big one. us humans are will just blow the extra vs allocating haha

This quote is hidden because you are ignoring this member. Show Quote

Except, why would an adult hold another lifeform as a "pet" to appease their emotional dysfunction

Oh wait, I just answered it.

I dare you to answer that more objectively.

I not dare lol the cat belonged to the ex at the time