Why Get Pet Insurance?

[Lucy & AnnaBelle's Mom]

I decided to post this in the Puppy Madness group because I felt that is the first place that the majority of our new members, as well as the majority of our 1st time dog owners would spend a lot of time learning about the new member of their household.  When we first got our girls in April of 08 I didn't think too much about Pet Insurance.  However, the more I read about health issues here on DK and saw the amount of money it could cost me I started thinking about it.  Because we had two puppies that played really hard it wasn't long before we started to see that in the blink of an eye we could have a serious injury.  Just running through the yard and stepping in a hole could result in a broken leg ... you get the picture.  So, I started looking into different insurance and how much it would cost me.  I wasn't interested in something that was going to pay for the routine things because I knew up front I had to pay for those things and was ok with that.  It was the broken leg or hip dysplasia that was worrying me.  We took out our policy in March of '10 when the girls were two years old.  It was one of those things always on the list of things to do that just never got done.  Then I read a story here about an owner with some serious Vet bills and I stopped what I was doing, started researching insurance and did not stop until I clicked the complete to purchase policy button.  What a relief.  The girls were now covered and I didn't have to worry about it any longer.  So, I'm here today because we have just used our insurance for the first time.  As I was on the site today looking at our claim status I noticed that across the bottom of the screen they show the claims that have been paid recently.  Here is just a sampling:  $829.31, $500.20, $1579.67, $1207.20, $816.61, $1133.73, $1092.00, $629.12, $671.30, $5088.21, $1,000.00, $1,477.30, $3,186.70.  Those numbers in many cases are only a portion of the original charges when you consider deductibles and things like that.  However, a deductible is better than the whole amount.  Those are the claims that they indicate they paid yesterday.  They were for everything from vomiting to tumors to a broken tooth to CCL tear to cancer.  The days of $50 Vet bills are a thing of the past.  The good news is they can save so many of our beloved Pets now that they couldn't in the past, but it comes at a price.  If you don't have this kind of change sitting around that you would like to hand over to your Vet, I urge each of you to consider stopping and investigating Pet Insurance now.  Don't wait until it is too late.  Once a note is made in your Doodles file, it is too late.  Please, stop and think about what you would do if your puppy got seriously sick and the Vet told you it was going to cost $3000 to save them?  Could you write a check?

[Lucy & AnnaBelle's Mom]

I think if I'm not mistaken that if you put in the code doodle you not only get a discount but they pay $25 to Doodle Messenger.  For some reason I'm also thinking DRC might have some deal with them but I can't remember for sure!

[Jess & Stewart]

I've had tons of questions about this, glad someone made this a thread!  First off, what are the best companies for Insurance? I know I've heard certain names mentioned over and over again that you all use here, I just don't remember them. Also, how much per month typically would you say is average? $30, $40, $50? I do not have my GD yet, but I'm just trying to get an idea of how much the big expenses will cost me.

[Lucy & AnnaBelle's Mom]

Jess -- Deciding which insurance is right for you is a very personal decision.  We personally chose PetPlan simply because it fit with our needs the best.  If you do a DK search on Pet Insurance you will find many discussions and comparisons of the various plans.  There are so many variables like age of dog, breed, where you live, how many dogs are covered, what you want your deductible to be, what % of coverage do you want paid.  Just make some time in your schedule, do a search, read through some of the posts and then decide what works best for your situation.  As an example, with PetPlan, our girls are now 4 y/o and for where we live, for $200 deductible per illness, 100% pay (for regular vet), 80% pay for Specialist we are now paying about $78 per QUARTER per dog which is about $26 per month per dog.  It goes up each year.  So an an example for our first claim for a CCL tear our bills were just under $2100 and they reimbursed us just under $1500.  More than covered the 3 years premiums I've paid thus far.  However if I never use it again I'll still be happy I have it because of the piece of mind.  Do a little searching and if you still have specific questions, don't hesitate to come back with them.  Many people have plans other than Pet Plan so I'm sure they would be happy to provide input on those as well.  The important thing is to have coverage.

[Lauren & Buddy]

My DH and I decided that there was no amount of money worth our new puppies life, so we signed up for pet insurance before we even brought Buddy home. Even though we haven't had any major problems, just the little stuff that we have had in the last year added up. He's had hot spots, skin problems and a bad bout of diarrhea...overall the insurance has already paid for itself. We love our pet insurance...pays 90% of the total claim with only a small deductible every year. It does not pay for routine stuff and the initial vet exams but will pay for everything else. I believe it was one of the smartest decisions I ever made...I never have to ponder the question of how much money I would be willing to spend to save my dog.

[Lauren & Buddy]

No, we use Healthy Paws. They are awesome!

[Diane, Hurley and Sidney]

Thanks.

[Christine & Camus]

I have Pet Plan for Camus.  I only have the bronze plan, but it certainly helped when he had a severe bout of gastroenteritis and again when he broke a bone in his paw.  You can get an inexpensive policy that covers the unexpected, but expensive illnesses and accidents.  I am so glad I got insurance for him, it really helped.  

[Gail and Bailey]

Lucy and Sophie's Mom,  thank you for starting this discussion.  I have been thinking about insurance for Bailey for the past 6 months and this "got the ball rolling" for me.  I just now got finished signing up with Pet Plan and it feels great to have it accomplished!  Thanks for the push to get it done! :)

[Lucy & AnnaBelle's Mom]

You are welcome ... it is a great feeling not to have to worry so much about it anymore I know!

[Barbara]

I amdeffinately looking into pet insurance.  last month when Penny was five months old she became very e very lethargic and threw up a couple of times. She had done this a few days before in the evening but the next day she was fine and acted herself.  this time I decided to take her to the animal hospital, she would not lay down and sat slumped over.  When I got to hospital they asked me if she if she had eaten anything she is with me all the time, so I was quite sure that she did not, blood test were done and they did not show anything, she was failing quite quickly when the vet decided to do an xray which showed she had a diaphramatic hernea which could have been genetic but it something that does not show up right away and can only be detected by xray.  I had to make a immediate decision to have surgery for her for her or she would have died.  I honestly know what it is like to almost not be able to save Penny as the cost was 4600 and had to figuire out in seconds how to pay and and just figuire out every other bill later.  It was the worst moment ever and not sure if I could every afford to do it again and as soon as I recover a lilttle I am deffinately getting insurance. Penny seems to be doing good but must remain calm for the next month or two until she recooperates.   which is very harad for a 6 month old puppy.  Although I don' have insurance yet, my suggestion to everyone would be to get insurance as soon as you get your puppy so you never have to go through  what i did.   

[Gail and Bailey]

Wow, sorry you had such a scare!  Glad that Penny is doing well now.  Hugs to both you and Penny.

[Lucy & AnnaBelle's Mom]

This is exactly the type of situation that I'm talking about.  Imagine if you have no savings, no balance on any credit card and know that your credit will not allow you to get some of the loan type programs that vets have in their offices, but you have less than 5 mins to make a decision about saving your doodles life.  What do you do?  Pet Insurance is a great way to be prepared for those situations and it isn't all that expensive.  The cost of a couple dinners out a month and you are covered for any emergency.