Pet insurance

[L_n_O 3]

Do anyone know of any pet insurance companies that are really good?

I know that the higher the monthly payment, the better the coverage...

I used to work in a vet hosp. and know that Pet Plan was one of the better ones out there.. just want to know what's out there here.......

[Kathryn41 3,205]

Sorry - with 5 and 6 cats pet insurance was always more than I could afford. I just 'ate' the cost when the time came that I needed veterinary care - I know it still worked out cheaper for me that way. Why not check your local vets and see what they suggest?

Edited February 14, 2008 by Kathryn41

[Reba 2]

We used to use VPI for our dogs, but only kept it for their first year that we had them to cover their spay/neuter oprations and the usual first year vaccinations and whatnot.

Pet insurance here is more of a pain in the ### than human insurance. If you're even One Day ahead of schedule for a booster shot or heartworm treatment, they won't cover it, and they're more stickler on "pre-existing conditions" than human medical insurance!

For our giant dogs (2 saint bernards) we were paying $300 each for one year of medium coverage. Which hardly covered anything we found out whenever I sent in the freakin' claims forms

It really is better to just open a separate bank account for your pets and just put some money into it from each paycheck or whenever you can. sheesh...I can't believe Ijust typed "check" and never even thought about using a ...que! ACK! I've been here too long!

Anyhoo...vet care is expensive, but if you keep some money aside specifically for it, you'll do better probably than if you have insurance. Because once you've made a claim on the insurance, unless its stuff like heartworm preventative stuff, they won't cover that same ailment again. Its just crazy. So if you dog or cat gets and ingrown toenail and you have it treated at the vet, they won't cover it again if they keep getting it.

[KiminON 0]

We used to use VPI for our dogs, but only kept it for their first year that we had them to cover their spay/neuter oprations and the usual first year vaccinations and whatnot.

Pet insurance here is more of a pain in the ### than human insurance. If you're even One Day ahead of schedule for a booster shot or heartworm treatment, they won't cover it, and they're more stickler on "pre-existing conditions" than human medical insurance!

For our giant dogs (2 saint bernards) we were paying $300 each for one year of medium coverage. Which hardly covered anything we found out whenever I sent in the freakin' claims forms

It really is better to just open a separate bank account for your pets and just put some money into it from each paycheck or whenever you can. sheesh...I can't believe Ijust typed "check" and never even thought about using a ...que! ACK! I've been here too long!

Anyhoo...vet care is expensive, but if you keep some money aside specifically for it, you'll do better probably than if you have insurance. Because once you've made a claim on the insurance, unless its stuff like heartworm preventative stuff, they won't cover that same ailment again. Its just crazy. So if you dog or cat gets and ingrown toenail and you have it treated at the vet, they won't cover it again if they keep getting it.

what Reba said. i work at a clinic and many of our clients use it for the 1st year as it does cover a big part of the initial vaccines and spay/neuter expenses. the pre-existing conditions really doesn't make it worth it after that. they don't cover dentals for dachshunds (they need them about annually), bladder stuff for dal's, anything that may be related to haviang an overweight lab, etc, etc.

i think your best bet for expensive emergencies is care credit. it's a line of credit you can use for your furry family members care as well as your own health care (even plastic surgery! )with interest free payment plans ranging from 3-12 months depending on the charges. check it out at www.carecredit.com

k

[rhymeswithcandi 0]

I don't know if your vet offers this but mine does and I wondered if it was a new thing vets are doing - it's a great idea.

If you have a dog that weighs more than 40lbs, he can be a blood donor and in exchange the vet offers one free annual wellness exam (including shots) and a discount on any medical services. It's a brilliant idea but I'm not sure all vets do it.