Pet insurance- are your pets covered?

i did just get insurance for my new puppy ... i am paying for the most expensive plan which covers pretty much everything and anything for life (as long as i keep paying monthly that is) ... he will be covered at any vet in canada or the united states (we are just about to start traveling) ... he is tiny dog and all i have ever heard is they have buckets of medical problems so i figure for the first year i will pay for this insurance and then decide if it is worth it ... if he was not a miniaturized dog i probably would not get insurance because dogs i have had in the past, even a 40 dollar a month plan would be more than i would have paid in a year for vet bills ... and also, if a person has credit, which i do, there are no real emergencies, just a higher credit card bill if anything were to happen ... touch wood ...

I insured my youngest last year when he was still a puppy.

I picked a company that did not have restrictions.

Companies like VPI will not cover ANY health ailment known to a breed.

Example- Patella problems are not uncommon in Pomeranians.

VPI will not cover Patellas on Pomeranians.

VPI also only covers a percentage of THEIR fee schedule- as do many other companies.

Trupanion was ruled out because they will not cover intact animals if they were to get hit by a

car. They figure the fact a dog is hit by a car is because its intact, not say because the gardner

left the gate open and the dog ran away in a panic (not an unusual situation)

I chose Healthy Paws last year because they had no such restriction on inherenet breed problems and they pay 90% of your actual bill - not what they decide (90% is for the more expensive policy I believe their other policy is 80%)

I have not had to use my insurance yet, so I can not comment there.

The customer feed back for this company is great.

My dog just injured his leg last week and may need the surgery which is

$5,000 for both legs, we shall see how much they pay.

ADD: I spent weeks doing research before getting the policy.

My policy is $37 per month I have a $100 deductible.

PS- They are the only company I found that will cover Hip Dysplasia by the way (not a problem in my breeds), there is a one year waiting period and then its covered.

No company covers pre-existing conditions-meaning if the dog has hip problems before coverage that has been seen by a vet they would never cover it.

I do not have pet insurance for any of my dogs. I agree with Launi that the monthly premium would kill me and it is cheaper in the long run for me to have a saving set aside for mishaps. In the course of being a dog owner for 20years my most expensive bill has been about 500.00 not bad considering.

While I never really have checked into pet insurance I do get free trial notices from whatever company AKC supports. Launi..I do believe that their highest plan includes wellness checks and preventative maintenance (ie shots, frontline, heartgard etc) However, per dog...this would total probably 1000.00 per month for all of them. LOL

ADD>>> I wanted to add that many of my past puppy buyers did get insurance for their dogs. Many of them found insurance plans that covered MVD in Cavaliers. Which is a huge heredity problem in the breed. In order to qualify for that the dog had to have one heart check from a cardiologist at a year old and be deemed clear. Then anytime after a year of coverage, if the dog would come down with the condition, they would cover a percentage based on the plan the person choose, of course it was capped. Again based on the coverage plan choose. I forget what insurance company this was..but it seemed to be the one that many people went with.

I have insured my dogs with Pet Plan for many a year and will continue to do so because while I agree that there are many different way to budget for veterinary care, I would not want to be in a position where there were insufficient money in my savings account [treatment can be thousands of £/$ for a hip replacement, cancer treatment, stifle surgery or hundreds of £/$ for ongoing conditions] and have to either have the dog euthanized or take out a debt in the form of a loan or credit card balance.

Tori's policy cost in £648.00 in 2011 with £100 excess for each condition and is a cover for life policy.

The cost of a two hip replacement surgeries for my dysplastic b*tch [Tori] is an eye watering £8,000. With insurance a bargain price of £100.

A previous Dobermann diagnosed with aggressive cutaneous melanoma at four years old. Total bill paid out without delay or demur in excess of £8,500. Without treatment he had weeks to live, post treatment he had an excellent quality of life and died just before he turned eight. Was it worth it? Yes, the treatment was in his best interest.

TPLO surgery and hydrotherapy cost £3,000.

I've never had pet insurance and I never will as I have the money to take care of any medical need that could possibly come up. If a medical issue comes up where the dog can't be *fixed* to have a normal life, especially when very old, I euthanize. I don't spend thousands and thousands of dollars on a 14 year old dog that could drop dead at any moment anyway. For me, pet insurance is a big waste of money. For you it might not be, but nobody knows your personal financial situation.

Nope. I have 6 dogs. The initial yearly fee would knock me off my feet. And I am yet to find one that covers wellness checkups.

I wish I had it on my Lab when his liver was diseased. But even then, the co-pay was almost as much as his treatment.

I prefer putting money in my own emergency vet account.

Most of the Pet Insurance providers here cover such a limited amount of vet care/sugeries etc that its not worth it for me.

No, my pets are not covered. I try to be proactive by diet/exercise/genetics etc to prevent or improve my chances of my dogs being/staying healthy.

When I have had expensive vet bills (pyometra with my one female) I sucked it up and coughed up the cash.

Pet insurance is a waste of $$$. The premiums are more than your regular, yearly vet bills.

nope, can't afford

have a $5000 emergency vet fund, adding to it

as i just found out her legs are getting worse and will have to have surgery on both soon