# Pet health insurance



## Chris Keister (Jun 28, 2008)

Does anyone here have health insurance on their pet? With the luck I have had the past couple years I am considering it for the first time. 

If you are using health insurance I would greatly appreciate input on what company, what plan, and how your experience has been when you have had a claim?

Thanks


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## Katie Finlay (Jan 31, 2010)

A lot of clients at my work (animal hospital) have insurance. I would say the best are Healthy Pets, Trupanion, Pets Best and Pet Plan. I would stay away from VPI.

I would also recommend getting a plan for emergencies only. If you're just doing vaccines and exams, you'll pay more per year than you would without insurance. But I've seen companies cover 80-90% of extensive treatments for cancers, pancreatitis, kidney failure, etc. and accidents like hit-by-car or dog attack.

I personally have Trupanion but have yet to file any claims.


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## Sara Waters (Oct 23, 2010)

I have Petsecure which is Canadian in origin I think. I have claimed about $5500 so far and they have always paid promptly and I like them. My only complaint is that originally I picked them because they had a plan with a larger excess which reduced the premiums considerably. I only wanted a plan that covered big ticket items and I covered 3 of my dogs.

Recently they changed that. The only plan now is one with no excess and 100% coverage which has almost doubled the premium. Result is that I decided to drop the insurance cover on one of my dogs. 

I would change to another company with a plan I wanted but I am locked in now because 2 of my dogs would then have preexisting conditions which they developed while covered with Petsecure and which may need further surgery down the track and would no longer be covered if I changed companies. They are potentilaly big ticket surgeries like a hip replacement surgery so I am between a rock and a hard place.


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## rick smith (Dec 31, 2010)

i haven't tried to wade thru the complexities of animal insurance but would imagine it is the same minefield as for humans....
so i have no experience to draw on regarding the questions asked

aside from a traumatic injury, i WILL say the best insurance is a breeder who has a long established rep for selecting for health as their primary goal over titles, beauty and temperament. 

especially if they can back it up with a high percentage of their lines dying from old age rather than diseases. few can and it's easy to come up with their excuses why they can't track the lines

i'm sure all breeders talk "health" but have my doubts it is as high a priority as it should be
...many years ago i knew a Ja golden breeder who bred for health ONLY, and this was when goldens were the fad over in Japan ... their life expectancy had dropped to about 6-8yrs :-(
he turned out MANY great dogs....i knew one who was 15 and still moving around pretty good...he made me a believer that healthy dogs depend a LOT on the breeder and responsible owners

he had strong feelings about how he wanted to develop his lines ... he would S/N almost 90% of his pups and was VERY selective about allowing an intact pup to go to a new owner and even more selective who he sold to.
...one of the few breeders i've seen who bred for quality rather than money and fame

hope you get some first hand experience about insurance from people who have "been there", but just wanted to throw this in too because canine health is a big issue for me


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## Nancy Jocoy (Apr 19, 2006)

Heard very good reviews on Pet Plan on another forum and got it. It is about $450 a year for a young GSD.

My plan is $8000 a year max for any one condition, $200 deductable, and 100% after that. IF you go to the next year, the same condition is not excluded. There are lot of other options though.

There is no well care coverage etc. .... I figure in the course of 10 years on any dog I have had an injury or illness worth a few thousand dollars. Once the pup gets past the age where the common genetic issues are past, I may reconsider though and just set a savings account for vet bills...


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## Sara Waters (Oct 23, 2010)

Nancy Jocoy said:


> Heard very good reviews on Pet Plan on another forum and got it. It is about $450 a year for a young GSD.
> 
> My plan is $8000 a year max for any one condition, $200 deductable, and 100% after that. IF you go to the next year, the same condition is not excluded. There are lot of other options though.
> 
> There is no well care coverage etc. .... I figure in the course of 10 years on any dog I have had an injury or illness worth a few thousand dollars. Once the pup gets past the age where the common genetic issues are past, I may reconsider though and just set a savings account for vet bills...


Mine is currently $450 australian dollars which is on about parity with the greenback I think. I get $15000 per year with no excess. It used to be about half that premium with a $6000 pa and $300 excess per condition which I preferred.

I covered my young rescue untill I was sure he was genetically sound and had a feel for if he was going to pose in particular problems and then I dropped the insurance when the premiums doubled. Where I live is very high risk for snakebite, so I take that in to consideration. Fortunately my dog most at risk of snakebite is one I have covered and she also has a genetic condition so I keep her insured.


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## Chris Keister (Jun 28, 2008)

Thanks for the replies. 

Katie- what made you choose trupanion? They seem to be a little higher than some? Have you had to process a claim yet?

Nancy- how bout you had to use it yet? If so how did it go?

The only real negative about my new pup so far is he is an eater. He eats everything. So far I have been able to keep a close eye and everything has been small and passable but when he gets older and I turn him loose in the yard I foresee a good chance of a blockage in my future with this little shit. 

Anyone use or heard of , I think it's Healthy Paws? They seem pretty good and the price quote wasn't bad.


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## Maren Bell Jones (Jun 7, 2006)

My personal opinion is to get an emergency fund. The amount per dog would depend on breed. For an English bulldog, at least $5000. :???:


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## Terrasita Cuffie (Jun 8, 2008)

rick smith said:


> i haven't tried to wade thru the complexities of animal insurance but would imagine it is the same minefield as for humans....
> so i have no experience to draw on regarding the questions asked
> 
> aside from a traumatic injury, i WILL say the best insurance is a breeder who has a long established rep for selecting for health as their primary goal over titles, beauty and temperament.
> ...


This is my thought as well.

T


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## Nancy Jocoy (Apr 19, 2006)

Chris Keister said:


> Thanks for the replies.
> 
> Nancy- how bout you had to use it yet? If so how did it go?.


I have not used it yet but have heard good from those who do. I agree with the discipline of a savings plan and one of my cocnerns with these insurance plans is what has happened to human costs........driving them up in general and ensuring more expensive procedures are pushed, some not necessary.

Of course not long after I cancelled Grim's insurance is when he knocked out his teeth and went though a lot of other stuff. I would say I am easily out $5000 in the past year and a half.


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## Katie Finlay (Jan 31, 2010)

I chose Trupanion because our clients have had the most success with them. They pay 90% back, and very quickly. I have an emergency fund set aside but I can't guarantee I'm going to have enough if something traumatic really happens. And I never know what's going to happen. I might get laid off and then my dog gets bloat or pyometra and I get in a car accident. What would I use the savings on? I'd rather have the insurance than the back up plan. I might need to use that money for something else. Just MO.


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## Ryan Venables (Sep 15, 2010)

Pet insurance= waste of money IMO. I think you are better off finding out what your premiums are, and taking that money and putting it into a high interest savings account or Short term GIC that you can have access to. Insurance is a piece of mind and I've had it in the past. But when I had a dog that had a fall and broke his back they covered 1500 or 2500 (cant remember now its been a few years) of the over 10,000 into him citing most of the costs were "rehab" which they didn't cover.

So I think they may be good for some, but I would always put the money into a savings account so you don't have to pay needlessly and you collect the interest on your savings. But like the above, you have to be disciplined not to touch that money for anything other than the dog


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## sam wilks (May 3, 2009)

I had it for a little while till I needed it and found out the reality of what is really covered. Some things to know are that they do not cover anything to do with pregnancy. Also after you pay the deductible most only cover up tp a certain amount. Lets say your dog gets treated for a condition. the total bill is 500. You pay your bill and you expect that youll get all the money back minus your deductible. Then you get a check for less than that. So you call them up and they explain to you that they have an estimated value of 300 for those services. Which means you responsible for the deductible plus any amount in excess of the 300. That was my experience and I was pissed. I would say your better starting a savings account. JMO


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## Sara Waters (Oct 23, 2010)

I was fortunate enough to have better experiences. My dog had undefined front leg lameness when she was 5 months old. I had complete xrays and CT scans of front and hind end by and orthopedic vet, then at 8 months I had another set of scans front and hind, then I had bilateral elbow surgery. They covered the whole darn lot including the hind end scans. Then 6 weeks later she had pyometra and needed emergency surgery. I think the whole lot came to about $6000 and I got a cheque for about $4500 from memory after deductibles and I was paying about $220 per year for that policy at the time and it all happened in the first year.

I then had hip scans done on another dog and they were almost totally covered. So I guess so far I am out in front. If I need more elbow surgery or hip replacement surgery down the track on either of these dogs it is a relief to know that a good chunk will be covered. With my other dogs I have to take pot luck but have a saving backup in my mortguage.

With rehab you need to check your policies. I dont care because I live 500kms from any form of rehab - have to do it myself. However a friend of mine recently claimed $9000 worth of rehab on her policy.

The detail is in the fine print and other peoples experiences.


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## Katie Finlay (Jan 31, 2010)

I used to be a medical biller so I guess I knew what to look for in fine print. I chose a $1000 deductible to keep my premium low. Since I plan on using it for emergencies only, I figured I'll definitely always have $1000 put aside to handle an emergency.

It would have been nice to get ~$1500 back from my Corgis $2500 IBD diagnostics.


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## Nancy Jocoy (Apr 19, 2006)

What plan gave you a $1000 deductable option?--NEVER MIND-- I see Trupanion and I have heard good about them. May switch once we get past the OFA x-rays.

That is how I view insurance...for catastrophic purposes. Honestly though I haver heard that Petplan does not get into schedules for reimbursement etc. and is very east to work with. VPI, now you were LUCKY if you got 50 cents on the dollar for a claim.

Thing is, they are all in the business to make money which is how insurance works and having insurance drives up medical costs because it does not force people to make decisions about where to spend the money, JMO.


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## Taryna Mitchell (May 13, 2010)

I have Pet Plan on 3 of my dogs and have been very happy with them so far. I've only had to claim one thing, which was an obstruction surgery and they paid what I expected to be covered after a $300 deductible promptly and the claim process was extremely easy. I did the math early on and if I pay premiums for the life of the dog, it comes out to about the cost of 1 knee surgery. Not sure if that math still holds true, but since I've had 2 with cruciate injuries (no surgery yet knock wood), I think it's worth it to know I have the insurance if I need it. I pay $360 - 600 per dog. The rates vary by age of the dog.

Pet Plan was recommended by my sister who used it for spine diagnostics and back surgery for her dog and the plan covered everything, including 2nd and 3rd opinions.


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## Katie Finlay (Jan 31, 2010)

Agree. Pet Plan and Trupanion cover the most from what I've seen and the turn around is fairly quick.


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## Sara Waters (Oct 23, 2010)

Nancy Jocoy said:


> Thing is, they are all in the business to make money which is how insurance works and *having insurance drives up medical costs because it does not force people to make decisions about where to spend the money,* JMO.


 
I hadnt thought of it like that. I must say I am still very selective about what I have done to my dogs - having insurance just gives me potentially more options. Like going to the doctors I am not particularly attached to visiting vet surgeries or putting my dogs through surgery. 

With my dogs elbows I did a lot of research over a 3 month period and didnt take surgery lightly but I am glad I did invest in it because we got it so early, before any joint damage occured and I havent had a problem since.


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## Katie Finlay (Jan 31, 2010)

I would say <10% of our clients have insurance on their pets. So as of right now I don't at all think it's a factor in driving up costs.


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## Chris Keister (Jun 28, 2008)

Thanks so much guys. 

What I have found so far.....

Purina has the lowest monthly rate available but with 1000 deductible and 80%. 

Truepanion and Healthy Paws are very close but Healthy Paws I can get the same price with a $500 deduct. Truepanion states monthly rates go down after 2 months. 

Haven't looked into Pet Plan yet. 

Don't get to much of the" fine print" on the wbsights though. Healthy Paws offers 30 day money back trial so I will get a chance to read my policy to see if I really want it. 

So thanks again and this is what I found for those who may be thinking about it.


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