[T o d d]

How do you 'care' for more than one dog? Is there insurance plans that are reasonable and cover MOST THINGS like humans?

The reason I ask is that I want a second dog and we have no problem affording the food or grooming but what concerns me is the possible multi-thousand dollar vet bill(s).

I`m curious how people with 5+ dogs can afford if even 2 have serious health issues.. what do you do?

Is there a secret I`m missing here?

 

[WonderPup]

I've seen insurance plans for dogs but when I fugured the monthly premiums per dog it worked out to be to expensive. I would rather pay the vet bill. Of course, with only two dogs it might not be that bad, but when you're talking about three or four or more dogs then it starts getting pricey. The plans I have seen are just like human plans in that they insure a specific dog, not one plan for every dog. Thats not to say that somebody hasn't decided to make a plan that would cover all the canines in a household, but I don't personaly know of any. I have a bank account JUST for the dogs. I put X amount in it monthly or if we have a litter any money that was left over after paying the cost of rasing the litter goes into that account. This comming up weekend I'm handling a bichon at a show for a friend since they needed help and bichons will be right after tibbies in the same ring that I was going to be in anyway. The handling fee that they pay me will go into that account. You get the idea. If something unexpected comes up the money in that account is there as is a seperate credit card that only gets used in dog emergancies. When it's time to do annual visits I have the option of paying for them out of the dog account OR using my own checking account. It's worked out well for me. We had a major issue last year with a litter of puppies that cost us a little over 5grand. Thankgoodness for the dog's saving account

 

[SECRETO]

I've seen insurance plans for dogs but when I fugured the monthly premiums per dog it worked out to be to expensive. I would rather pay the vet bill. Of course, with only two dogs it might not be that bad, but when you're talking about three or four or more dogs then it starts getting pricey. The plans I have seen are just like human plans in that they insure a specific dog, not one plan for every dog. Thats not to say that somebody hasn't decided to make a plan that would cover all the canines in a household, but I don't personaly know of any. I have a bank account JUST for the dogs. I put X amount in it monthly or if we have a litter any money that was left over after paying the cost of rasing the litter goes into that account. This comming up weekend I'm handling a bichon at a show for a friend since they needed help and bichons will be right after tibbies in the same ring that I was going to be in anyway. The handling fee that they pay me will go into that account. You get the idea. If something unexpected comes up the money in that account is there as is a seperate credit card that only gets used in dog emergancies. When it's time to do annual visits I have the option of paying for them out of the dog account OR using my own checking account. It's worked out well for me. We had a major issue last year with a litter of puppies that cost us a little over 5grand. Thankgoodness for the dog's saving account

I agree that the usual annual premium's paid is more then the average person spends on there dogs annually with out insurance. My girl friend had insurance on her two small dogs (toy poodle and lhaso) and she ended up canceling because of that. Its good if your dog gets chronic infections, skin issues and etc. Or even maybe something to consider when your dog starts to really age. Well thats my thoughts on doggie insurance.

 

[roxy25]

I never had pet insurance for any of my dogs. This discussion came up on another forum and most breeders and owners told me its best to just open up a savings account and dump money into that monthly. So if a emergency occurs you will have funds to pay for it.

I rarely take my cats to the vet I mainly give them meds my self this includes shots. I only take my cats for serious issuses such mastitis or for major surgeries.

As for my dogs I only take them to vet for shots , most of my dogs never really had issuses.

But if your dog is always sick or has some type of disorder/disease I would get some pet insurance.

 

[WonderPup]

Another thing to consider is wether or not the insurance will cover ongoing illnesses or pre-existing conditions. Just like with people insurance, the name of the game is how can the company get money from you without giving you any more than they absolutly have to.
I looked a plan ummmm two years ago that did not cover things like meds for diabetics, and did not cover surgeries relating to genetic defects like displaysia. I kind of though that was bogus. It also did not cover more than a certain amount on accidential injury and was specific about the fact the injuries had to occur in the home, no hit by car coverage... ??
My mother mentioned a plan to me not long ago that sounded like a good idea, I'll have to see if I can get more info on it to post.

 

[chester-the-lion]

i think the whole pet insurance thing is a hit or miss type of thing. you never know what could happen in the years to come. it is kind of pricey a month, but in my experience, i think its totally worth it.

when i first got chester, i was offer pet insurance for him at $36 a month. i thought it was way too much for pet insurance so i decided i didn't need it. well three years later he gets kidney stones, and has had three surgeries (including one to have a new hole for him to urinate out of, because a stone was stuck in his penis and they were unable to remove it). well in a week, with his surgeries, we've paid over $6,000. man, do i wish i took the pet insurance. it only came out to $432 a month and $1,296 for the three years before he developed his problems. totally worth it! i have recently got him the pet insurance, because he may need more surgeries in the future, and he has to go for xrays every 2 months.

there are many different plans and they do cover ongoing illnesses, if you have the plan for it. if you are interested in getting pet insurance you can get a free quote on how much it would cost a month at www.petinsurance.com. they explain all of their plans and what each plan covers.

hope this helps you in making your decision!

 

[poopoodle]

i don't know how much it is for multiple dogs, but it is a pretty good deal for mine. i have trupanion pet insurance, there is a link to it, and its around $25 a month. we haven't had any extreme claims yet but i know of others who have gotten these big accidents covered

 

[jak]

We just have a direct credit going to the vets every week

It builds up quite fast.

The best insurance is just really buying from a reputable breeder that health tests their dogs, there will always be casualties, but in general thats the way to go.

A friend of ours who has a spoo, that spoo's sister who lives nearby, has just been diagnosed with addisons disease at a year old, and is paying tremendous vet bills.

I have heard that if you can get the drugs through a doctor for your dog (as some of them are exactly the same) and you miss the huge vet mark up.

 

[I<3Poodles]

We have an insurance w/Banfield Animal Hospital in PetSmart. You have an option of 2 plans. One is for puppies (and includes Nuter/spay) and is $99 up front and then $21 per month and the other is for 6 months+ (or puppies that will not be "fixed") and is $59 sign up fee and is either $21 or $18 per month (can't remember). It covers all shots, most hospitalizations, spay/nuter if you get the puppy plan, various tests, and all office visits plus 10% off on all meds. We thought it was worth it to be able to take our dogs to the vet whenever we wanted and to have them fixed.

 

[T o d d]

We have an insurance w/Banfield Animal Hospital in PetSmart. You have an option of 2 plans. One is for puppies (and includes Nuter/spay) and is $99 up front and then $21 per month and the other is for 6 months+ (or puppies that will not be "fixed") and is $59 sign up fee and is either $21 or $18 per month (can't remember). It covers all shots, most hospitalizations, spay/nuter if you get the puppy plan, various tests, and all office visits plus 10% off on all meds. We thought it was worth it to be able to take our dogs to the vet whenever we wanted and to have them fixed.

I looked into that at the time when I was looking and I forget the specifics but I believe even there largest most expensive plan still didn't cover a lot of things.

 

[Poodle Lover]

Most pet insurances will not cover pre-existing conditions and conditions that are breed specific issues, such as hip dysplasia in large breeds prone to it and luxating patellas in small dogs, etc. Also anything that's acquired, like ear infections, allergies etc are also not covered by most. The only insurance I know that covers pre-existing and chronic conditions is petplan. Here's the link: www.gopetplan.com

 

[Emily-By]

I have three dogs currently and I just pop $100 a month into 'their' account. For my three two being expensive breeds (not poodles) the insurance would be close to $250 a month(and not even covering common illness's in those breeds UGH!). So every month for the first year that I decided to start putting money away, I put $250 into their account, and since that year $100 every month. Thankfully the account has remained unused becuase I dont go into it if i can afford it from my chequings. I also don't only have to use this vet money on my dogs, I can use it for my birds, or foster animals, my reptiles or heck my own perscriptions if I were to fall short in funds. In the next year we will likely be using a portion of the money for a down payment on a house. The house is for the dogs anyway!

 

[WonderPup]

We have an older dog suffering from congestive heart faluire, he is on I think four different meds twice daily plus asprin. Getting the meds through our vet would run us 100-150 dollars a month. However, getting the meds at walmart cost of 4 dollars a month. In a lot of cases meds for chronic problems like this one CAN be obtained through your local pharmacy. Some pharmacies even have pet perscription plans. I noticed last time I was in Walgreens they had a sign posted about pet accounts being available. All you need if for your vet to write a script for you, which ours is happy to do.

Meds that are not available through a regular pharmacy can often be purchased through comapies like petmeds, foster and smith, or KV vet supply to name a few. Again, all you need is the script written by your vet and you can purchase and have them shipped to you. One of Ike's perscriptions is being ordered through foster and smith because it's something like 27 bucks VS the 45 dollars it costs us to get it in the clinic.

 

[Shereen]

Oh my god!!! I feel sorry for you guys. I pay £10 a month for my poodle, which covers pretty much everything!!! He gets £10000 worth of cover for EACH new illness/accident every year, they will also pay the purchase price of Jake if he is lost, stolen or killed, this insurance covers any ongoing medical issues aswel. How is it that you can get this type of cover in the UK, but it is difficult/expensive in US?

 

[onlypoodles4me]

We have multiple-poodles and no insurance. The problems we have faced with our poodles have been minimal.
We have purchased from reputable breeders. None of our health issues have been genetic. No bloat or major surgeries.

I am very lucky as to have a good friend who is a vet and does our spay and neuters and small surgeries at a very reasonable cost. As well as helps me find the best price if we need an expensive medication or diagnostics he does not offer. (he is mobile)

The thing I notice with the insurance is it starts of very reasonable, but it goes up as the dog ages. I have tried to find out what the costs will be later in life, and not been able to come up with anything firm.

My most expensive vet bill was about 850, when our senior SP had/still has a fever of unknown origin. That was for x rays, ultra sounds hospital stay etc. All to find out that they don't know what is the cause! She is maintaining and that's all I can ask for at this point.

I think if you end up with one of those dogs that has everything wrong with them or some major weird thing, it would pay off.