Pet Insurance Companies

[Mas1981]

I have had only good experiences, I covered my pup at 8 months after he had had blocked tear duct and it cost us a few hundred dollars, since then he has had allergy problems and they have paid for everything, if I did not have the insurance I would be $4000 out of pocket this year so far....

Who are you with?

Petplan

Putting the premium into a seperate account would not work for me, even if I put $100 a month aside it would only cover his immunotherapy for a year, but nothing else at all. I will always have insurance from now on, I shudder to think what would happen if we did not have it.

[Golden Rules]

Bonnie Pup: what is the condition that is not being paid for?

Henrietta, who is 2 is insured with Pet Plan and I have only good things to say about them! They have always been great to deal with and I have claimed probably around over $18,000 since insuring Henrietta at 12 weeks old. I will insure all my future pups

Holy heck! What has happened to your lab in the last 2 years???!!!

This is why I don't bother with pet insurance, I would prefer to put the premiums I'd be paying into a seperate account in the case of illness and injury.

Insurance companies are horrible to deal with, I used to work for one

Well you'd hope not to have the same experience as KJ above!!!

I do have pet insurance and wouldn't be without it.

[Rysup]

I dont have pet insurance - 8 or 9 dogs, just tooooo expensive!

I now have a CareCredit Card, which is for Medical/Dental/Veterinary expenses only. That's what the card is designed for. You can get interest free with it apparently, but I have not had to test it out as yet, and not entirely sure how that gets offered. It's through GE Money, and no its not a cheap % rate. But we dont have a normal credit card. Its ONLY for the dogs. And the minimum spend on it is $300.

Even if I only had one or two pets, I would much prefer to put the money I'd pay in premiums, into a higher interest online savings account, and save that up for vet expenses. There are so many things that the may reject claims on, that I just dont think its value for money. Sure some people may save a lot of money, but by the sounds of it, a lot of people just pay a lot out and get nothing for their efforts.

[cointreau]

I am about to put a claim in for my dog who had a urinary tract issue.

As part of the treatment for that the vet suggested desexing - not an option at this stage- or the suprelorin implant, I didn't want to do that but ended up having to.

I am interested to see if they will pay out for that as although it is ineffect chemical desxing (and desexing is not covered)it was done more medicinal purposes and I would not have had it done if it could have been avoided.

My dog is desexed and is on Suprelorin implant and my insurance company paid up.

I would never go without Pet Insurance, I have had good experiences on the whole and saved a fortune too.

That's interesting cointreau...have just had superlorin in my boy again and never thought to claim as its not an accident or illness. I've been with Medibank for about a year with no claims yet so don't know what they're like at paying up.

My dane is a girl and has the implant for incontinence I thought I would give claiming for it a go and they paid up so I can't complain.

[KJ]

GoldenRules.........Henrietta has ED and OCD of the hock. She had arthroscopic surgery on her elbows and after the initial surgery on her hock, to remove the ocd fragment, last year she had a tarsal arthrodesis (hock fusion) and had to have the surgery recently repeated after some small joint spaces returned to motion. So all her specialist visits/surgery, pain meds, xrays, scans, cartrophen injections etc are paid for

Have also claimed for several smaller things including a tooth extraction. :D

So as I have claimed around $18,000 and have just paid my 3rd premium of around $500 (so $1500 total) it is easy to see why I think pet insurance is worth it

[thomo84]

Yeah after all the discussions and issues raised i still am going to go with Medibank Pet Insurance, i get all major surgery plus routine care. I know its more expensive for non medibank members BUT for members with the discount it works out a bit cheaper than most other places if not the same.

I just want it there for a backup plan because we don't have huge credit card limits and wouldn't be able to afford some things and if Medibank can cover those things then i am happy, its all about my new Pup from now on

[sandgrubber]

I don't do insurance. I figure my dogs are healthier than average cause I take good care of them and keep them away from roads. I figure that with insurance you're always paying for someone else's bad decisions, plus the expense of supporting well-paid professionals in downtown offices.

I have always been a saver . . . and the amount I've stashed away by not doing insurance is more than enough to pay for a $5k vet bill, should one arise.

I'd say, set up something like a trust account for your dogs, and deposit your insurance premiums in it. It won't take more than a year or two to build up a pretty good buffer, especially if you have more than one dog.

Personally, I'd stick with the insurance. If something happens on a weekend you can fork out a few thousand dollars easily. It would be hard for a student to save that sort of money and would take a fair while - and you don't know what could happen during that period.

Changing companies would be hard because of the pre-existing conditions - that is why I am sticking with my current insurer even though they took eons to pay. I would change companies if I thought they were dodgy though - no use throwing good money after bad.

thanks for the advice. Yes it would take ages to save up...

[thomo84]

i can understand where you are coming from but i think in our situation it would be easier and safer for us to pay the monthly premiums... but i know what you mean about the saving etc. would be nicer that way

[TerraNik]

I have had only good experiences, I covered my pup at 8 months after he had had blocked tear duct and it cost us a few hundred dollars, since then he has had allergy problems and they have paid for everything, if I did not have the insurance I would be $4000 out of pocket this year so far....

I have a very similar story.

We have Petplan insurance and they have been brilliant!

Jedi has a chronic condition, but they will cover him for life. This year alone they have saved us just shy of $2,000 (that is taking into account the cost of the insurance and the excess).

[Agility Dogs]

I have had only good experiences, I covered my pup at 8 months after he had had blocked tear duct and it cost us a few hundred dollars, since then he has had allergy problems and they have paid for everything, if I did not have the insurance I would be $4000 out of pocket this year so far....

I have a very similar story.

We have Petplan insurance and they have been brilliant!

Jedi has a chronic condition, but they will cover him for life. This year alone they have saved us just shy of $2,000 (that is taking into account the cost of the insurance and the excess).

This is in no way a dig at you, but both these stories are another one of the reasons I don't have pet insurance. For everyone with a good story like this there are a heap of others paying for it.

Call me a gambler.

[OSoSwift]

I am about to put a claim in for my dog who had a urinary tract issue.

As part of the treatment for that the vet suggested desexing - not an option at this stage- or the suprelorin implant, I didn't want to do that but ended up having to.

I am interested to see if they will pay out for that as although it is ineffect chemical desxing (and desexing is not covered)it was done more medicinal purposes and I would not have had it done if it could have been avoided.

My dog is desexed and is on Suprelorin implant and my insurance company paid up.

I would never go without Pet Insurance, I have had good experiences on the whole and saved a fortune too.

That's interesting cointreau...have just had superlorin in my boy again and never thought to claim as its not an accident or illness. I've been with Medibank for about a year with no claims yet so don't know what they're like at paying up.

My dane is a girl and has the implant for incontinence I thought I would give claiming for it a go and they paid up so I can't complain.

My boy isn't desexed, which is why I am thinking they may not want to, but desexing him is not an option at this stage.

[thomo84]

at what age can a dog be de sexed? pretty much straight away?

[SwaY]

I have two systems set up.

I pay my vet in advance a little here and there, so im in credit.

I also have an ING automatic savings account set up, that way funds are put away for emergencies.

[becks]

One of the first questions a new vet will ask is 'are you insured' as soon as you say yes, they want to run a whole series of tests. Say no and they won't 'need' to do as much - it's been shown happening on expose tv programs.

I don't have insurance for my dogs, they won't cover what could be claims made for (ie breeding expenses - i'd need a separate insurance policy for that!!!)

[Mas1981]

I don't do insurance. I figure my dogs are healthier than average cause I take good care of them and keep them away from roads. I figure that with insurance you're always paying for someone else's bad decisions, plus the expense of supporting well-paid professionals in downtown offices.

I have always been a saver . . . and the amount I've stashed away by not doing insurance is more than enough to pay for a $5k vet bill, should one arise.

I'd say, set up something like a trust account for your dogs, and deposit your insurance premiums in it. It won't take more than a year or two to build up a pretty good buffer, especially if you have more than one dog.

Personally, I'd stick with the insurance. If something happens on a weekend you can fork out a few thousand dollars easily. It would be hard for a student to save that sort of money and would take a fair while - and you don't know what could happen during that period.

Changing companies would be hard because of the pre-existing conditions - that is why I am sticking with my current insurer even though they took eons to pay. I would change companies if I thought they were dodgy though - no use throwing good money after bad.

thanks for the advice. Yes it would take ages to save up...

It is good to save, because even with insurance you pay upfront BUT then you get reimbursed, so when the money is returned you can use it to pay off debt etc which I think is a bonus. I much rather have my money returned as if you had just saved it and had no insurance you would then have to start from scratch to save again.

Also looking after your dogs has nothing to do with whether you would need to claim or not, my dog leads a life of luxury and is well looked after but everything under the sun goes wrong with him, he has had tear duct problems and allergies - neither of these is due to neglect.

[aussielover]

what is the point of paying an insurance company monthly if they don't even reimburse you when you need it???

I've heard of so many people who have had bad experiences and many insurers make you jump through hoops to get the money back. Many busy, working people don;t have time to argue with the insurers and just give up

[thomo84]

i just see the insurance company as a bonus. In my case i will be paying $300ish a year for my pet insurance for 1 dog. If by chance something bad goes wrong and he has surgery and i get money back then BONUS but if its something i can't claim then i lose my $300 anyway.

[Mas1981]

what is the point of paying an insurance company monthly if they don't even reimburse you when you need it???

I've heard of so many people who have had bad experiences and many insurers make you jump through hoops to get the money back. Many busy, working people don;t have time to argue with the insurers and just give up

I have never had to fight Petplan for anything and Mason has had loads of claims....

[OSoSwift]

I haven't had to fight for anything as yet, the few claims I have had have gone thorugh without a hitch.

I am only interested if they will pay for the implant due to the fact it is generally used for chemical castration and my level of insurance does not pay out anything for the cost of desexing.

The way I look at it is. I have insurance to cover for the big things, broken bones, stitch ups and snake bites etc. Snake bite is a very real risk here, skin lacerations are not uncommon in a fine skinned breed such as the Whippet. Broken bones can happen easily when you have two Whippets racing each other and they crash or misjudge and run into a tree-also reasonably likely.

So far we have only had a few small things, the way I figure it is if I have one of my dogs gets bitten by a snake - heaven forbid - I can throw all the treatment at them I can and not have to worry about where I can find $3000 plus.

I am trying to save for a new car and we have on going building/renovations that we buy more stuff and do some more as we have the money. If I had $4000 or so sitting around, it would most likely not be, but would probably have bought all the stuff to do my bathroom for example. It is easier to find $400 once a year for the next 8 to 10 years than $4000 right now.

If I never cover my premiums (which I mostly have or have been paid back more than half) then I don't really care as that means I am not rushing a dog, who is trying to die after being bitten by a tiger snake, to the vets.

In 10 years I have never had a dog bitten by a snake out here, but we do have quite a few and many many dogs get bitten around here every year, some after a few warms days in the middle of winter.

It is peace of mind for me.

Edited August 19, 2010 by Rommi n Lewis

[cavNrott]

I don't do insurance. I figure my dogs are healthier than average cause I take good care of them and keep them away from roads. I figure that with insurance you're always paying for someone else's bad decisions, plus the expense of supporting well-paid professionals in downtown offices.

I have always been a saver . . . and the amount I've stashed away by not doing insurance is more than enough to pay for a $5k vet bill, should one arise.

I'd say, set up something like a trust account for your dogs, and deposit your insurance premiums in it. It won't take more than a year or two to build up a pretty good buffer, especially if you have more than one dog

I thought my dog was a very healthy specimen and I think most of us on this forum take good care of our dogs and keep them away from roads but always expect the unexpected.

My Cavalier boy was 5 1/2yo who had never had one sick day in his entire life until 8 months ago when he suddenly ruptured a disk in his spine. Vet visits, medication, referral to ortho specialist, myelogram, xrays, laminectomy surgery, 4 days in hospital plus follow up visits = $8640.

Two or three months later a fierce storm blew a small throw pack of Ratsak from God knows where into my yard. I saw it the next day...sooo, Vet, ACT test Vit K injections and tablets for 3 weeks. Cav boy had eaten some Ratsak. Another ACT test after he finished the tablets to show all was well = $680 all up. Cav girl, vet consult + ACT test $148 ( hers not covered by insurance. My contribution for each procedure is $250).

6 months later, seemingly out of nowhere my Cavalier boy now has pneumonia. Vet, xrays, blood test, referral to specialist, more xrays, 1/2 day hospitalisation and 6 weeks of antibiotics = $1660 so far and we're not finished. Another specialist visit and more xrays in 2-3 weeks time to make sure he's ok.

So far my Cav boy's vet costs in 8 months are around $11,000. He is insured and my contribution is $250 for each seperate incident.

In addition to this, 8 months ago my elderly Rottweiler had a large internal malignant tumour excised. Vet, surgery, pathology, meds, many follow up visits = approx $5300+. This elderly rescue Rottie is not insured so her costs are my costs. A couple of months prior to this she had an indolent eye ulcer that the vet tried to fix and failed.. at the cost of $1500 including surgery and many consult fees. Then onto canine opthalmologist for successful surgery..approx $980.00. She also had a consult and medication last week due to an eye problem with the other eye. Consult, tests and meds $480.

All up in less than a year I've paid over $19,000 in vet costs for my dogs and it's not over yet. A personal savings plan of $5000 would not have touched the sides. If a dog needs a specialist surgeon only a minor procedure would cost less than $5000 and being minor would probably not warrant a specialist. Unfortunately $5000 doesn't cover much at all in veterinary costs these days. I guess if you are lucky and nothing major happens for 5 years maybe you would be ahead.

With my Cavalier boy, I insured him and my Cav girl only 3 months before he ruptured his disk. Fortunately she's needed no vet treatment apart from her test to ensure she hadn't eaten the damn Ratsak.

How lucky was I that I decided to insure the boy before all this happened. If there's one thing I've learned if things turn pear shaped it will all happen at once.