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Thread: Pet Insurance

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Dec 2007
    Location
    Hope & Tulameen
    Posts
    8,621

    Pet Insurance

    Occasionally the subject comes up here, opinions range from "a waste of $$" to "a must have" so thought I would post our recent actual experience. First, full disclosure - I was in the Insurance Industry for over 45 years, never in Pet Insurance so I do have some biases.
    We have had Insurance on our dogs for years. Our 14 year old recently went through a somewhat serious spell involving extensive surgery and now chemo. Costs to date are @ $9,000 with at least another $1,000 to go and depending on results could go on for a long time. Our Insurance covers @ 80% of that after the deductible, co-insurance and things that are excluded. Over the years we have had a number of relatively minor Vet visits for the dogs and in most cases don't bother claiming, we have the Insurance for "The Big One." If one just considers the economics of it, we've paid maybe $6,000 in premiums on this dog so we certainly haven't "lost" on the deal.
    Had a long chat with the Surgeon after all this and he says that many pet owners simply can't afford the cost of care so the pet gets put down.
    Having Insurance removes that from the equation leaving the pet owner to decide if the treatment is reasonable under the circumstances for quality or longevity of life.
    In our situation we would have proceeded with the treatment whether or not Insurance was available, finances are not an issue for us but it really is nice not have to dig into the savings.
    The Insurer we have sent the settlement cheque to us before the bills even showed up on my Master Card, certainly can't complain about the service.
    Our dog is 14 but according to all the Vets that have seen her has the body of a 10 year old. One of the Vets didn't believe she was 14 so checked her ID and was amazed. Hopefully she has a number of good years still to come.
    So, to all you pet owners, think about it and make an informed decision. It works for some, maybe not for others.

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  3. #2
    Join Date
    Sep 2004
    Location
    By the beach in the Van.
    Posts
    6,235

    Re: Pet Insurance

    Who did you go thru? Our pup just turned a year old and was looking at different providers a month or two ago but need to get back at figuring this out.

  4. #3
    Join Date
    Mar 2011
    Posts
    2,559

    Re: Pet Insurance

    We've looked into quite a few different ones and they seem to be pretty restrictive on what they'll cover based on the breed of the dog.

  5. #4
    Join Date
    Oct 2008
    Location
    Jordan River
    Posts
    3,601

    Re: Pet Insurance

    Good on you Iron Glove i knew you were a stand up guy, even if you root for the nucks. We too have pet insurance, have had it for 2 dogs and it has paid off for us with both of them. Some people will get it when they first get their dog and keep it for the first couple of years as this can be the time when lots of things may show themselves. The service we have received form the insurer has been awesome, Trupanion is who we use. I think i have loved my dogs more than i have most people ...hhhmmm maybe that's because they don't hide behind the invisible wall of the internet

  6. #5
    Join Date
    Dec 2007
    Location
    Hope & Tulameen
    Posts
    8,621

    Re: Pet Insurance

    We are with Trupanion, have been since the start.
    Very pleased with them and the coverages provided. With them you can choose different plans ranging from a basic one up to one that covers almost everything. All at a cost of course. I sat down last year and changed the deductible around a bit, taking a higher deductible on the younger dog on the assumption that being younger less chance of disease and such. With the juggling we saved enough to add the cat and still were paying less than before just for the two mutts.
    And yes Pipey, over the years this particular little girl has helped me through a lot of personal schitt so the least I can do for her is to do everything within my power and wallet to see her through her troubles.
    Had to laugh with the present claim, I couldn't figure out how they calculated it so emailed them about it. They said that taxes are not recoverable. Being an Insurance Expert I kinda lost it and told them that was unheard of as it was against the principal of indemnity. The Trupanion Gal politely referred me to the wordings where taxes are clearly excluded. So Mr. Insurance Expert humbly begged forgiveness for ignoring the first rule of Insurance - "READ YOUR POLICY DUMMY"

  7. #6
    Join Date
    May 2010
    Location
    Cranbrook
    Posts
    1,541

    Re: Pet Insurance

    When my dog was young the vet tried to sell us on a plan that would have cost around $3000, I don't remember the coverage it provided exactly. As a rule of thumb my limit for vet expenses is no more than the price I paid for the dog.... or about $50
    KCCO

  8. #7
    Join Date
    May 2011
    Posts
    13

    Re: Pet Insurance

    I have a policy with Trupanion as well. From my research it is the best of the worst (we're talking about the insurance industry after all). Before I got my dog I had set cash aside for an emergency health fund but reconsidered after determining the opportunity cost on having the fund liquid in this low interest rate environment surpassed the monthly premiums for a dog with no pre-existing conditions. I set a higher deductible on the policy because my cashflow situation allows me to absorb a monthly hospital visit or two for simple things but gets squeezed when a 10k surgery has to be paid for. When considering risk for a young dog, while there is less that can go wrong as far as disease and injury go, the events that do come up (ie eating the laundry) tend to be very expensive to deal with.

  9. #8
    Join Date
    Dec 2007
    Location
    Hope & Tulameen
    Posts
    8,621

    Re: Pet Insurance

    Signal, you should be in the Insurance Industry - you understand and practice risk analysis and self insurance.
    But yes, taking a substantial deductible will reduce your premiums considerably as will accepting a higher co-insurance factor.
    Those options are some of the reasons we chose Trupanion.
    Everyone has to take a look at their personal financial situation and decide what they can, or will accept to absorb.
    Our Daughter's Lab has racked up bills of @ $28,000 over two years ( that's Trupanion's share, their share is probably another $5,000 or more ) and their situation with two infants, a mortgage ....................... would've left them having to have the dog put down if they didn't have insurance.

  10. #9
    Join Date
    Jan 2015
    Location
    lower Mainland
    Posts
    2,146

    Re: Pet Insurance

    I have a basic emergency care with, 24petwatch, for my dog and thinking of increasing it..

    looking at $5000 with max $500 deductible, have to get a quote for the cost...

    Any thoughts on pet watch, how do costs go up after your first claim?
    He's anything but a hunter.
    More like another, Rain Coast Sociopath Fraud. Living off the prevails of his chronic lies, like the rest of them...

    It's an issue, because these sociopath environmentalist's, will dilute the facts.
    To the point you or Joe public, won't know them any more..
    They count on that big time..

  11. #10
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    Nanaimo
    Posts
    885

    Re: Pet Insurance

    As Rhyno states the value of the dog is pretty much what I paid.We have a German shepherd(our 5th shepherd and most likely our last dog) we paid $1500 for him.That is about it for what I would pay for vet services. As much as we love our dog it is still a dog. As hunters we value life and should treat it with honor. At some point one must come to a common sense decision on what to do .Losing a dog is very hard .As hunters we know that something dies if we are successful. All creatures die at some point. It is a very emotional time when pets become sick. Veterinarians know this and take advantage of it. Spending thousands on trying to save your pet is certainly your option. Don't let your emotion and a vet clinic make your decision .

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