Pet Insurance

[danaf]

Is it worth it or not?

Please share your experiences and advice.

[Flamingo]

Depends on the breed of dog/cat. If you have a specific breed of dog that is prone to certain ailments/problems that may cause many visits to the vet and/or surgery down the road, it's worth it (for example...cocker spaniels, lhaso apsos, shi tzus, etc. are prone to kidney stones and urinary ailments that could require kidney removal or many years of monitoring for diet/blood. Investigate your breed of dog for issues that run in the breed. Removing a kidney in a dog or any serious surgery can be $3,000 to $4,000 with all tests, surgery, ultrasounds, etc. It also depends on what your limit is spending for animal care...some people will pay the thousands to keep a pet alive and some stop at the first visit to the vet that there could be major surgery or lifelong continuous visits to the vet.

[LuciluS]

We have a 6 yr. old Shih Tzu. Early last year, hubby mentioned we ought to get Pet Insurance on her and I said why? she is healthy. I ate my words.

In Oct., she began shedding & shih tzu's don't shed. Long story short. she has crystalization in her bladder (kinna like kidney stoned) & a Severe Skin Allergy. We have spent over $2,000 in tests, 2 prescriptions a month and prescription dog food. Of course, all of her expenses will Not be allowed when we file BK on 9/30/09. Our Attorney told us No on the $ figure, but did say we could expense some..but who knows but him how much.

If the insurance is not that expensive and covers major illnesses & the testing diagnoses for the major illness - go for it! I could 'kick myself' for not getting it.

Luci

[Catie34]

Luci, it's so heart breaking to have a sick pet and then deal with money issues. I lost one of my fur kids last year. A big chuck of my credit debt is from his treatment and he still never made it. But I would do it all over again!

[Flamingo]

One thing folks also have to watch are puppies purchased from pet stores that may come from puppy mills. Genetic and health issues abound with those pups as there may be a lot of inbreeding or other health issues they are exposed to while being at the mill. A pet health insurance policy purchase would be beneficial in those circumstances escpecially at the expiration of any health guarantee provided. Again, many breeds are prone to certain disorders which can be very expensive to treat and it can be a shock to have something major go wrong with a very young dog/cat who could be prone to certain disorders and cost a fortune to fix or monitor for the rest of its life. This goes for any animal, dog, cat, birds, etc.

Insurance is insurance - it is a gamble...just like taking out life insurance, trip insurance, flight insurance, etc. You may pay for it for years and never use it or use it shortly after purchase.

[LuciluS]

The person we bought are Shih Tzu from in 9/03 works with my MIL. He breeds only Shih Tzu's and has our dog's brother. Our Shih Tzu didn't become ill until we moved to a different county in AR on 12/20/07...not sure that has any bearing on her illnesses; however I sometimes wonder.

Me being disabled, I'm an internet junkie and when she started shedding, I began research. I knew part of her problems were due to her Bladder. When Dh took her to the Vet, he told him I thought it was her bladder. So he performed an Ultrasound of her bladder & found she had the crystalization. Vet told Dh to tell me 'I was good at recognizing part of her illness.

I pray she lives a long life. Dh is a long haul truck driver & is usually home 1 day of a week. She is my Companion & so Smart. I've had to move her meds 3different times as she knows when I've gone to retrieve them. She has a small cage in our great room & knows how to open & close the gate on the cage for what she believes is 'for her safety'.

She also knows when Dh goes to the linen closet to retrieve her special bath towels for her bath and off she goes to her cage. Dh has picked the cage up with her in it, carried it to the bathroom & has literally had to turn the cage downward so she has to slide out.

It's heartwarming to open the newspaper & read where dogs are helping the attitude's of elderly people's in nursing homes & also young cancer or burn patients. She sure has helped mine & aids in limited mobility.

Luci

[needachance]

We have a different alternative to pet insurance. If you have a Pet Smart near you they have a program call Wellness plan through Banfield pet hospital. It is a plan that has several different levels but it covers immunizations, routine screenings, check-ups and sick visits, then any treatment or meds would be in addition to the monthly fee (very reasonable, ranges from 15-45 dollars a month) but would be discounted because you have the plan.

It has worked out very well for our 2 high maintainence Siamese kitties. When they are babies if you get the basic plus plan then it is like 25 a month and it covers all screenings, blood work, immunizations and getting fixed! So worth it. And when one of them got a respiratory infection the dr visit was covered, and we just had 22 dollars for the medication.

[OregonMom]

Nope, I have a great inexpensive vet near me who only charges $10 per visit for shots and a check up. I have also had people who had to have a dog's broken leg fixed with surgery and it was only $250. He has about 6 or 7 vets in the office and are packed because they are so affordable.

[twuoo]

Pet insurance was a rip off for me. I had 3 dogs. I paid high premiums. When I needed emergency care, I remember the insurance didn't even cover 25% of the bills.

[OregonMom]

I was reading somewhere that it costs around $16,400 to raise a dog from a puppy until it is 11 years old. That is expensive, just keeping my one dog and not adding another to that mix.

[crookedoak]

Is it worth it or not?

Please share your experiences and advice.

I have had it on one my shepherds for 3 years now. to this day what I paid in and what we have been paid back for, I am about 100 dollars in the hole.

It seems its not worth it, but when you need it is there.

[danaf]

Thanks for the responses everyone.

The reason I asked is because I have 2 mini schnauzers - a boy and a girl - both fixed. My girl was exhibiting signs of difficulty urinating. So I brought her into the vet thinking she had a UTI. And it turned out she had bladder stones. The poor thing is only 2 and we so weren't expecting that. So the next day she had major surgery. Those stones were huge! The vet was excellent and not extremely expensive - it cost us $1000 which is cheap considering. And thank god I had been putting money away and could afford it.

Obviously now, her condition would be an exclusion on any pet insurance. We changed both their diets to one that balances their PH which should prevent this from happening in the future. And we've made a few other changes as well....i.e. no plastic bones...filtered water, no plastic bowls...ect.

BUT - it got me to thinking. This could happen to my boy despite the special diet which is expensive.

AND also, I live in Phoenix - something I've never revealed on this site (where I live). And here in the valley, there is something known as valley fever which both dogs and people can get. If the dogs get it, medication can be expensive. At this point, I don't think they will get it but who knows?

Not to mention the various other emergency situations that could come up.

So I've been seriously thinking about pet insurance and researching the various companies. So far the best I've found is Embrace when compared to the others. They also have the best reviews in so far if something happens while insured, they won't consider it an exclusion after the fact.

BUT it's pricey. I really cannot afford it but at the same time, if something serious happens again, I can barely afford that either. As someone said earlier, it's a risk - either way.

I'm just really torn on this issue.

[robivi3]

In the case of a smaller dog like our Long Hair Chihuahuah I would say yes. Given the unique dental and health problems Banfield has paid off. On a mixed breed like our lab/shepherd maybe not. In any case it was $60 a month we had to say bye-bye to for the moment.

In the case of Schnauzers I'd look into it. The only bad thing about Banfield, turnover.

[falken]

We have a different alternative to pet insurance. If you have a Pet Smart near you they have a program call Wellness plan through Banfield pet hospital.

Just watch any non-covered services. Bandfield is just about the most expensive vet you can go to (even with your discount). When you had your kitty fixed did you see the "you saved" bill? My guess is you saved over $1000, which was there normal price. No other vet would have charged anywhere near that amount.

The plan is not too bad of a deal if you use everything that is included... but like I said, if you need anything at all extra its very expensive.

[ready2puke]

Ok I was going to start another thread for me but I'll tell you all here...I have a Shih Tzu, Gabby, she just turned 11 May 23rd. She was very very young for her age..Does a million tricks and performs for everyone and goes to work with me everyday..
I've had VIP insurance for her since she was 2yrs. I had to drop the wellness since her insurance was getting really expensive. I still have major med and cancer endorsement.

Gabby had a seizure on last Tues..We have a apt with a neurologist tomorrow and a possible MRI. I am really afraid she has a brain tumor.
I'm so sad I can't stop crying shes all I have in the world shes my everything...I will do everything I can to save her..
Am I glad I kept her insurance going? You bet I am !!!!

Please say a prayer for us...she has changed so much overnight weight loss and really confused...Please God make her be ok....