[Dianaleez]

We're wondering about pet accident/illness insurance after reading about some of the dog misadventures here. But it seems as difficult as choosing a phone plan. Does anyone have a recommendation or warning?

(I know this topic has been covered in the past, but when I do a search I mostly get out-of-date threads.)

 

[Starla]

I have never had insurance before, but a few months ago, I did sign up for embrace. I plan to keep it for a couple of years, mostly as insurance for hip dysplasia. Phoebe shouldn’t have it based on her parents results, but we do have slick floors and stairs and she is always pell-mell, so I worry. I got embrace through USAA because of the discount.

 

[Mini Mindy]

I looked into pet insurance decided not to get it the price keeps going up, around the age of 10 the monthly premium gets very costly if you figure the total cost over a 15 years I didn't see any advantage also certain known issues for the breed may not be covered . I would like to get some feed back from someone that has experience with pet insurance .

 

[Dianaleez]

I looked into pet insurance decided not to get it the price keeps going up, around the age of 10 the monthly premium gets very costly if you figure the total cost over a 15 years I didn't see any advantage also certain known issues for the breed may not be covered . I would like to get some feed back from someone that has experience with pet insurance .

We've always passed too. But our neighborhood website has been buzzing about someone's visit to the local emergency clinic. Then others chimed in about what emergency visits had cost. It seems that humans have coverage for things like MRI's and X-rays, but it can add up for pets really quickly.

I'm wondering which companies to avoid. We're thinking large deductible and unlimited coverage.

 

[Raindrops]

I have embrace and it has so far been great. They have paid every claim submitted. The cost does go up every year. If I could afford trupanion I would do that. Their costs stay more constant as your pet ages. But embrace is a good low cost option. They have good coverage.

 

[TK9NY]

It can be costly, yes. But if you find the right plan with the right coverage you could get pretty good reimbursement for emergencies - or serious illnesses (like cancer). Which, really, emergencies or serious illness/injury would probably be what you use it for the most right?

We have it for Limerick and Dublin. We use Pet's Best and so far they've been great, fast with reimbursements, easy to work with. Dublin is around $62/month and Limerick is around $51/month. $500 deductible with 90% reimbursement. We chose one of the lower tier plans, but it still covers a good bit - exam fees, diagnostics (x-ray, ultrasound, blood, etc), specialty/specialists, surgeries, illness/injury, emergency. Even covers hereditary issues and cancer. The higher tier plans cover things like holistic care, rehab, alternative practices, and so on. Lower tier removes a few things (like the exam fees). We also opted to get their Wellness plan, which offers anywhere from $300-$450 or so reimbursement for preventative care (wellness exams, heart worm testing, flea/tick meds, and so on.)

We wish we had gotten Kiley insurance before they found her lung tumor. In the last year of her life we were at the vet every other month, or so it seemed - often enough to have easily met the deductible, at any rate. Could have saved a good couple thousand dollars but we don't regret paying it all. Just, now we know for future dogs.

The only downside is many insurances won't cover pre-existing conditions and will reach out to vets for records. So it won't really help if your dog has been to the vet for something you want covered. Some won't cover hereditary issues, some charge WAAAY more for mutts than purebreds, and some do increase their price drastically over time. If it's something you want to get for your pet/s, i suggest making a chart with a list of all the options. Write out the cost of each, if the prices increase over time (and how much), what each covers, doesn't cover, and so on.

I personally feel like it's worth it, but some people won't.

 

[Dianaleez]

We decided on a Trupanion plan after reading your very helpful posts. We did the $1000 copay; it's the high cost of tests and treatment for serious illness/accidents that concerns me. I don't want to be faced with having to choose between his care and eating. I'd probably keep Normie and live on beans and rice.

 

[Pearl Grey]

Love Trupanion. My Maisie's breeder called me one day about a year ago, to say she'd just spent five figures on whatever you call colic surgery when it's a dog. I signed up for Trupanion the next day.
Never been sorry. Maisie developed liver and digestive issues and Trupanion cheerfully repaid me the contractual amount directly to my bank account within days for her tests and treatments.

 

[TerraFirma]

I've always just cash flowed things, treating vet costs as it's own budget line item each month - looking at the long term potential costs. I average saving about $80-120 per month per dog for vet "savings." The pro is no contract and no one to deny my claim. The con is, if my estimates are exceeded, or if a dog has a crisis early, it's out of actual savings and not vet savings (I realize not everyone has the privilege of finances to allow for this).

BUT...my experience with the black Spoo boy this spring who had neuro issues and needed MRI made me wish that he came with complimentary pet insurance just like my new SFT just did (Trupanion). If it only would have cost me 1k, I would have sent that little boy through for full neuro eval and MRI.

I'm still not sure if I'll keep the pet insurance on this new SFT boy - they're so much hardier of a breed, but when I try another Spoo, I believe I will.