love4Luna Posted March 19, 2013 Report Share Posted March 19, 2013 Is it worth it? Recommend it? I know accidents and illness can be costly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chula Posted March 19, 2013 Report Share Posted March 19, 2013 Well, my advice is definitely biased given what we just went through - but NOT having pet insurance cost me $2500. Chula is a chewer/swallower/destroyer of all things. As a result of her "dietary indiscretion", we had to do an emergency exploratory abdominal surgery on her at 15 weeks. It was never a question of whether or not we were going to cough up the dough to do it, but it is a painful chunk of money to come up with in one shot - and it could have been even more costly had the surgery been more complicated. Some people may not have $2500 and are stuck with an unfortunate choice. Now we have pet insurance. It has a deductible and a co-insurance, but coming up with $600 is much easier than coming up with $2500. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julieanne Posted March 19, 2013 Report Share Posted March 19, 2013 I personally wouldn't bother unless I was able to find a company that also covered genetic conditions. Most I have come by will not, unfortunately. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CARRINGTON Posted March 19, 2013 Report Share Posted March 19, 2013 I think that is up to you. We do not have insurance on Balto, however, here we are having a hard time finding one that is affordable but also covers huskies. Some do not cover huskies because of everything they are prone to get later in life and they are supposedly aggressive dogs..... -.- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chula Posted March 19, 2013 Report Share Posted March 19, 2013 In the US, there are several that cover genetic/hereditary conditions. I have PetPlan and it does cover congenital, hereditary conditions as long as there are no signs prior to the effective date of the policy. My premium is $25 a month. It will go up as she ages, but is supposed to be the same for the first four years. For ME, it is worth it to not have to be in a position where a $5000 vet bill would be impossible, and my dog would have to be put down for monetary reasons. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julieanne Posted March 19, 2013 Report Share Posted March 19, 2013 I live in Australia so it seems like i'll need to search a bit harder to find one with good coverage if I decide to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chula Posted March 19, 2013 Report Share Posted March 19, 2013 I think that is up to you. We do not have insurance on Balto, however, here we are having a hard time finding one that is affordable but also covers huskies. Some do not cover huskies because of everything they are prone to get later in life and they are supposedly aggressive dogs..... -.- Really? I have had no issue finding several that were all in the $20-$30 a month range - and you have to enter the breed so they obviously know she's a husky. I think I looked at VIP, PetPlan and HealthyPaws, they were all generally around the same price. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
love4Luna Posted March 19, 2013 Author Report Share Posted March 19, 2013 I personally wouldn't bother unless I was able to find a company that also covered genetic conditions. Most I have come by will not, unfortunately. There is one I found that I'm debating. $14,000 max annual benefit. Covers wellness visits, vacinations, flea/heartworm treatments, accidents, injuries, illness, cancer, xrays, surgeries, and hereditary coverage. It has a $250 yearly deductible. And it costs right at $40 a month. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chula Posted March 19, 2013 Report Share Posted March 19, 2013 When I looked at the "wellness" add on, it was no cheaper than paying for the visits with cash. Check to make sure there isn't a dollar limit for what the wellness/spaying covers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stormy Posted March 19, 2013 Report Share Posted March 19, 2013 I have both of mine insured you never know when you might need it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
love4Luna Posted March 19, 2013 Author Report Share Posted March 19, 2013 Found pet plan. Its nearly half, but not 100% on what's all covered Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chula Posted March 19, 2013 Report Share Posted March 19, 2013 Yeah, I went with PetPlan because I read some reviews and mostly people were happy with it. They also didn't consider her surgery a pre-existing condition - which some others did and could complicated getting reimbursed if she ever had an obstruction or exploratory surgery again. That was super important for me, but not for someone not in my situation. I got insurance as a way to cover the majority of the cost of serious illnesses/accidents. It sucks when you sit there wondering if you should do an expensive procedure that might not find anything or wait it out when your pup is suffering and her life is on the line. I am lucky that we had the resources/help to choose the exploratory surgery because she would have died without it had we waited too much longer. That wouldn't have been an issue had I gotten the insurance beforehand. I think the wellness was an addition $15 a month or something, but had a $200 annual limit - which if you multiply $15 x 12 isn't really much of a discount! Or you could get a $400 annual wellness limit with $30 more a month, but again, not much of a discount from paying with cash. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CARRINGTON Posted March 19, 2013 Report Share Posted March 19, 2013 Really? I have had no issue finding several that were all in the $20-$30 a month range - and you have to enter the breed so they obviously know she's a husky. I think I looked at VIP, PetPlan and HealthyPaws, they were all generally around the same price. We have not looked at those, but some from around Missouri that was recommended by our vet and they were rediculous and one was pretty reasonable but when we put in husky they said sorry we do not cover them. They also did not cover pittbulls, pinchers, terriers, rotts, malamutes, akitas, and maltese because they are either aggressive or have too many health issues that they are not willing to cover when they get older, so we decided that would not be worth it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chula Posted March 19, 2013 Report Share Posted March 19, 2013 Must be local companies. If you want a catastrophic insurance plan for Balto, I think there are some that are as little as $15-$20 a month, but with pretty high deductible. It would only be useful for if he had a super expensive surgery/illness. They don't work with your vet, they reimburse you for what you've spent. I think I went to a site called "petinsurancereview" or something like that to find the one that worked best. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay Posted March 19, 2013 Report Share Posted March 19, 2013 I used VPI for my two, and for both of them it is like 22 bucks a month with a $500 deductible. I did add the wellness coverage when I got Yukon, and that was like 12 extra per month or something. I ended up getting reimbursed about half of what I spent on his puppy shots and neuter. Then I cancelled it after all of his initial visits. The catch is I can never sign back up for the wellness plan for him, which is fine because it does not make sense after the first couple months. And they pay out pretty quickly, usually about 3-4 weeks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Candie Posted June 1, 2013 Report Share Posted June 1, 2013 I just signed up for PetPlan. With 4 dogs I wanted to be able to care for them if something should happen. I have a personal saving plan that I started to cover the cost but it is nice to know that I can be reimbursed. It cost me almost a 100 dollars a month for my 4. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winterchillz Posted June 1, 2013 Report Share Posted June 1, 2013 I myself can't afford $2500 surgery as Chula said, but I'm afraid there's no pet insurance company in Bulgaria Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tedfromcode Posted March 26, 2014 Report Share Posted March 26, 2014 Is anyone familiar with PDSA's dog insurance? I didn't realize charities did Pet Insurance these days. Also I've heard both good and bad things about pet plan but i'm not sure which one to pick. I'd rather have the security of knowing that I would be covered rather than the shock if something did happen to my husky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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