Considering Pet Plan Insurance

[Jess & Stewart]

Hi all, 

My mini F1B goldendoodle was born almost 2 weeks ago. Since I know insurance is important, I started looking around. I like Pet Plan, since it will cover pre-existing, hereditary conditions etc and it seems to be pretty affordable. As affordable as $192 a year can be, LOL. Does that seem reasonable?

My question is- should I get the insurance as soon as I can (6 weeks) if I will know what gender I want? I have pick of the litter. I was mostly thinking of getting it ASAP at 6 weeks since there is a 30 day waiting period of conditions to be covered. I will be getting my pup at 9 weeks, so the 30 day period would be almost over. 

My parents think I'm being crazy & treating my soon to be pup like a person, but I want to be safe rather than sorry since I live alone, it's my first time with a pup & who knows what could happen. 

I have a savings that I'm hoping will cover the first vet visits, vaccinations, heartworm, etc. All the start up sort of vet costs. Are the prices for the vaccinations & vet checkups pretty standard? I'm planning on calling vets around my area to see what they are. I get an employee discount at University of Penn's vet school, but I'm thinking it'll be expensive even with the discount!

Any advice is appreciated!

[F, Calla & Luca]

We just had a similar discussion. Most of us believe in pet insurance, at least those of us who are vocal here, and many of us have Pet Plan.

[Suzanne & Jack]

Check out Trupanion also.

 

[Jarka, Monty & Auggie]

Yes, pet insurance is a good thing. You hope you never need it, but it's there in case you do for the big health "disasters". Its good to have it in place for your new puppy, since the pup is hopefully healthy and there is nothing the insurance can exclude due to pre-existing conditions. We are on Healthy Paws for both boys.

If you haven't already, check out the comparisons of pet insurance companies at http://www.petinsurancereview.com/dog.asp

Healthy Paws and Pet Plan have always been rated the best.

As for the price, it depends on where you live. I pay about $26-28 per dog. The rate goes up pretty much every year, but you can always adjust your deductible if you need to.

Congratulations on your new puppy!

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

I use Pet Plan and have been very satisfied with it.  There are always unexpected expenses with dogs.  We just went through an anal gland infection episode that has already cost $1400....we'll see how effectively they settle my claim, but based on past experience I'm not expecting any issues.  Also be prepared for your premiums to increase fairly substantially each year.  I'm now paying $400 for one dog and $500 for the other.

[Jess & Stewart]

Thanks Jane-- Pet Plan has been the most affordable I've seen that also covers most all conditions. I'm hoping what I have in my savings will cover the big expenses in the first year.

[Nadia]

I just posted a similar post the other day. My Bentley is 10 months old and I just got pet insurance. I think it's well worth it. I went with VPI because they gave my husband a discount and it's deducted from his paycheck automatically.

[Lissa]

I just purchased Pet Plan for my 11-week-old doodle.  Others recommended using the promo code "doodle" and it worked!  I saved 10% total (5% online policy purchase and 5% "doodle" code).  I used this article to help me decide between insurance companies:  http://www.foundersvet.com/blog/index.php/2010/01/01/make-2010-the-...

[Wendy and Myla]

That's a great article!

[Lindsay and Stella]

Do you think it's better to buy pet insurance vs just putting away some cash every month in an emergency pet fund?

[Michelle & Ruepunzel]

Hi Jess,

One thing I want to mention, I don't know if you know about. You can apply for Care Credit. I have one of these cards, I originally applied for myself for the dentist. You can use it for all Veterinary, Dentist, and Doctors costs. It has saved me a lot out of pocket at a time. When I take Rue to the vet, I will just swipe the card. It's like her own personal credit card that I pay for :) but totally worth it and very convenient.

http://www.carecredit.com/vetmed/

 

 Now that I look at the post, I didn't realize it was from October, but this is still useful information.

 

[Jess & Stewart]

Michelle-I did end up purchasing Pet Plan, the lowest plan, bronze. I looked into Care Credit, but didn't want another card, although I know it's definitely convenient!

The waiting period kicked in just after I got Stew at 9 weeks. Luckily, he has not had any giardia or other parasites. No issues with food, allergies or swallowing anything he wasn't supposed to have, yet. He is almost 20 weeks. The only thing noted as significant in his medical records was a very slight underbite, although it shouldn't cause any problems.

[Camilla and Darwin]

We have PetPlan and it is great. Pet insurance is one of THE most important things you can do for your pup in my opinion!