# Saving or Insurance for gr



## mich4242 (Nov 1, 2012)

hi. I currently have pet insurance for my golden retriever pup and thought this was the best thing to do. However lots of people have said instead of insurance, save each month as most insurances won cover certain illness.
I just wondered what the majority of people do, insurance or save and pay as and when treatment is needed


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## brianne (Feb 18, 2012)

I don't have pet insurance. I have a small account set aside to cover regular and unexpected vet costs. I have heard both arguments for and against pet insurance. For me, it's an added expense right now that I choose not to incur.


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## Bentleysmom (Aug 11, 2012)

No insurance here. We put $100 per month in our "doggy acct" for unexpected vet bills. We've done it for about 15 years now.


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## SheetsSM (Jan 17, 2008)

My next golden will have insurance. My girl had surgery this past Summer that turned into a medical nightmare--$7K later she's better, it was shocking how fast costs added up due to her stay in the ICU and needing multiple surgeries. One of my boys is Mr. Allergy and it's been an expensive haul trying to get him healthy. Thankfully, I have savings for emergencies, but when something goes wrong, it happens fast & with a high price tag.


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## Sammy&Cooper (Dec 28, 2011)

I don't have pet insurance. every month $150 gets put aside for the dogs vet expenses. 


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## cubbysan (Mar 13, 2007)

I have looked into it so many times and because I have four pets it is just too expensive for me. 

I did have a bill last summer for almost 6k, at that time I wish I had it.

My local news just had a story on it last month, and they advised not to buy it because too many things are not covered or considered pre-existing conditions. They did say put the money aside instead. 

Personally, I think it depends on the company, they are not all created equally.


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## bljohnson4 (Jul 7, 2012)

No insurance here either. But we do have an emergency account.


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## Vhuynh2 (Feb 13, 2012)

I have insurance. I have had it for 8 months. Sadly, I have already received more money back than I have paid in premiums.. By a long shot..

Trupanion has been great. If you purchase early there will not be any pre existing conditions and they cover congenital conditions.


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## xoerika620xo (May 25, 2012)

I was going to get insurance for chester but i decided not to because they only cover certain things and i rather put money away every month for him that way it wouldn't be going to waste if i don't use it.


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## IowaGold (Nov 3, 2009)

I have insurance for my girls. As a vet, I see how quickly the bills add up. My girls are very active and I know it's just a matter of time before one of them tears a cruciate. I chose the insurance route because for the amount of money I pay towards the insurance, it would take several years of savings to pay for one cruciate surgery (and then my fund would be wiped out again!).

ETA: as to the assertion that insurance doesn't cover a lot of things-you just need to research the companies and their policies. There are several good ones out there. Oh and don't change companies-anything diagnosed with the previous company would be preexisting.


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## inge (Sep 20, 2009)

I have insurance for both dogs. For Liza the cost of the insurance still hasn't been paid back, she is just a pretty healthy dog, but for Tess more than four times over...and we still haven't run into really expensive things, either...


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## GoldensGirl (Aug 2, 2010)

Vhuynh2 said:


> I have insurance. I have had it for 8 months. Sadly, I have already received more money back than I have paid in premiums.. By a long shot..
> 
> Trupanion has been great. If you purchase early there will not be any pre existing conditions and they cover congenital conditions.


Thanks for this post. I just took a look at Trupanion and requested a quote from them. I think I'm going to do this for Sunny and wish I had done it for my other dogs. Charlie ran up almost $10,000 in vet bills in the last year of his life, with two stays in the ICU. That was years after he required almost $10,000 in care for three surgeries - one to remove infected teeth, one for a growth on his eye, and another for a splenectomy. Joker had surgery to remove a growth from his foot and then an emergency splenectomy several months later, running up almost $8,000 in hospital bills. My boys have generally been healthy right up to a crisis, but when the veterinary trouble hits, it hits hard.


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## Jackson's Mom (Aug 29, 2011)

I go back and forth with this all the time. My thinking now is I want to have it when Jackson is older. I've read so many stories on here about dogs getting cancer, I feel like it's practically inevitable. I know treatment can get very expensive and would never want to not get him the best treatment just because I can't afford it.


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## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

I've always insured my dogs, and have been glad I did.
I have Embrace insurance on Tito. After looking into several companies, I felt they fit my personal needs best for several reasons (everyone has different needs of course):
1. They are the only ones with a PER YEAR deductible, not a PER INCIDENT.
2. They pay for alternative treatments like chiropractic, acupuncture, hydrotherapy, etc. 
3. The price is reasonable, you can pick your own annual deductible and maximum annual payout
4. They cover everything I was concerned about.

It's cheapest to insure your dogs while they are young, thinking you will just get insurance when they are older is a falacy. The premiums will be very high, and no insurance company will insure a new customer with a dog over 10 years old.

While Embrace offers wellcare coverage, I declined it. That doesn't usually pay for itself. 

I picked a $1000 per year deductible, and a $15,000 per year maximum payout (they pay 80% after the deductible). 

Tito's premium before he was 5 years old was $13 per month.
Now that he's over 5, it's $15 per month.

I'd personally rather throw away the $15 a month than put $150 a month away in an emergency savings account, but that's just me. I know a lot of people disagree. But I like the peace of mind that if something major were to happen to him, they would cover such a big chunk of it.

We did meet our deductible this year and went over by quite a bit. They pay quickly and haven't disallowed anything. I've been very, very pleased.


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## Dallas Gold (Dec 22, 2007)

We used to pay from savings, but with 3 rescues and all with special needs, we saw just how expensive it can get. Our next dog will have insurance. Our vet actually suggested we look into it for any new animals because she said the cost of veterinary care is going to continue to increase in the future (like everything else).


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## cgriffin (Nov 30, 2011)

My two seniors had whopping surgery bills in the last 12 months and still ongoing issues and medications.
Luckily for credit cards and a savings account, we could and can afford it. 

I also have mixed feelings about pet insurance but who knows, maybe I will check into it some time.


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## GoldensGirl (Aug 2, 2010)

hotel4dogs said:


> ...It's cheapest to insure your dogs while they are young, thinking you will just get insurance when they are older is a falacy. The premiums will be very high, and no insurance company will insure a new customer with a dog over 10 years old...


Thanks for all the information in your post. I will check out Embrace for Sunny. But Trupanion just gave me a quote for Joker, now age 12, for $58 per month. Though expensive, that seems quite reasonable for his age and it is less than what I set aside for emergency vet bills. For $5 a month, I can add coverage that would pay if I have to cancel a trip because he is sick. PetPlan also gives me a quote for Joker at a similar cost.

Hmmm. Lots to think about, but I am delighted just to have the option at this point.


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## Sweet Girl (Jun 10, 2010)

I have no insurance - but I had an emergency vet account. I say "had" because it is now gone. I don't regret not having had insurance - it's a choice I made. Doing my own saving was right for me. And I was able to say yes to everything Tesia needed this past two weeks without thinking. The six nights in hospital is where the huge costs came from - but there were also two surgeries, and lots of treatments and meds. But again - no regrets. I do have other savings that I can access for the upcoming cancer treatment.


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## IrishTiger (Nov 23, 2012)

I am also considering insurance for my 3 year old GR. I've only looked at VPI insurance. I didn't think there would be too many companies out there. I just remember my old GR, Jake, had cancer, hip dysplasia and all sorts of minor things. The vet bills were outrageous (I was in middle, high and college so I didn't pay them) but I always thought pet insurance was a good idea, not knowing it really existed. 

Now with my own Golden, with ME paying the bills... I think I definitely want it. 

Edit:

Can someone list all the pet insurance companies that are well known and used by other Goldens? So far we have Trupanion, Embrace and VPI.


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## newport (Aug 8, 2011)

I have petplan Gold insurance on Lola. It is for catastophic illness or injury. Not for small time issues. With insurance I am covered at about $300.00 a year. To me it is peace of mind insurance. I can afford the $200- $1000 dollar vet bill... it is the unexpected high multi thousands that might cause me a problem.... and I would never want to have to make a decision on life or death with Lola because I could not afford to have something done to save her life possibly.


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## Max's Dad (Apr 23, 2012)

I agree completely with "newport." A few days ago we took out the Gold plan from Petplan for Max. We had never had pet insurance on any of our other dogs, but wanted to be protected against a catastrophic event. 

I did some research, and it looks like Petplan is a reliable company that pays claims.


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## Jackson's Mom (Aug 29, 2011)

GoldensGirl said:


> Thanks for all the information in your post. I will check out Embrace for Sunny. But Trupanion just gave me a quote for Joker, now age 12, for $58 per month. Though expensive, that seems quite reasonable for his age and it is less than what I set aside for emergency vet bills. For $5 a month, I can add coverage that would pay if I have to cancel a trip because he is sick. PetPlan also gives me a quote for Joker at a similar cost.
> 
> Hmmm. Lots to think about, but I am delighted just to have the option at this point.


You might want to check out Healthy Paws as well. I did a quote for my ten year old foster boy just to see, and it was around $38. They cover everything I'm looking for, and when I'm ready I'll most likely go with them.


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## GoldensGirl (Aug 2, 2010)

Jackson's Mom said:


> You might want to check out Healthy Paws as well. I did a quote for my ten year old foster boy just to see, and it was around $38. They cover everything I'm looking for, and when I'm ready I'll most likely go with them.


Thanks for the suggestion. The Healthy Paws site also has a table comparing their policy to others: Pet Insurance Comparison - Healthy Paws. It's an interesting comparison, though I encourage doing one's own due diligence in checking the coverage.

Someone asked for a list of the major companies providing pet insurance. The ones listed in the Healthy Paws comparison are Embrace, 24PetWatch/QuickCare, ASPCA/Hartville, VPI, Trupanion, PetPlan, PurinaCare, and PetsBest.

That's way more than I was aware of!


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## Dallas Gold (Dec 22, 2007)

Pet Insurance Review - comparison of VPI, ASPCA, etc.

Thanks to another forum member for posting this on another thread. It's helpful. 

There is a one month waiting period from the day you sign up. Puppies must be 8 weeks as well before they are eligible. 

I believe pre-existing conditions aren't covered for insurance so senior dogs may have more exclusions- I hope I'm wrong on that but, for example, I'm pretty sure I can't get Toby's eyes covered given his history with cataracts.


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## GoldensGirl (Aug 2, 2010)

Dallas Gold said:


> ...I believe pre-existing conditions aren't covered for insurance so senior dogs may have more exclusions- I hope I'm wrong on that but, for example, I'm pretty sure I can't get Toby's eyes covered given his history with cataracts.


That site with comparisons looks great! It lists all of the companies we have discussed and several others, with a section for Canada and a link to review for the UK.

At least one company - I think it was Trupanion - said they may extend coverage to a preexisting condition provided it hasn't required treatment in 12 months. 

When I look at the cost to insure Joker at age 12 and I compare that figure to the cost of one brief stay in an ICU, I think I'm sold, especially on a policy that includes cremation coverage. It makes my heart ache to acknowledge that he is not immortal, but slowing steps tell me the truth. Now I just have to figure out which company.


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## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

while that Healthy Paws chart is interesting, I cannot imagine where they hallucinated that $91.51 for a 2 year old lab mix in Chicago for Embrace, since I pay $15 a month for a 5 year old golden retriever in Chicago....in fact, I'm going to forward that to Embrace for their entertainment pleasure.
As was said, do due diligence!

ETA--I see what they did, they used the lowest annual deductible. They didn't "mention" that their plan doesn't include the veterinary exam fee, which in effect adds a per incident deductible to their annual deductible. From the Healthy Paws website, referring to their own insurance, "....Based on your selection, your policy covers the actual veterinary bills for costs arising from any injury or illness, less the veterinary exam fee and your selected annual deductible...." One of their example claims shows that the $375 exam fee for the veterinary exams at a specialty center was not covered. 

ETA...they do NOT cover acupuncture, chiropractic, etc. It is important to me that those be covered, but not to everyone.


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## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

Lucy, I don't think Embrace will ensure a 12 year old dog, so Trupanion is probably a better choice. But it's worth checking with them, anyway.


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## eslucky (May 10, 2012)

After spending quite a bit of money when our dogs Lucky and Penny were sick I decided to get insurance when we first got our puppy Daisy. I got it through Pets Best Insurance and received a 5% discount because our Vet recommends them. I just feel better knowing that she will be covered for most anything that happens to her.


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## BajaOklahoma (Sep 27, 2009)

We have had an emergency account for over thirty years. Maude, Abby, Mandy, Reuben, Bennett, Bailey, Riley and Banker. We take their annual vet trips out of it, along with Bailey's meds (200/mo, just for her liver pills), and their monthly heartworm/flea treatment.
Bennett was our expensive one - emergency surgeries for a torn tendon/bleeding artery, linear obstruction (almost died), obstruction, and his final episode - removal of spleen, hemaniosarcoma and lymphoma. So 500, 3500, 2500 and 6000 over a five year period. All of which we had the money to pay immediately.
Over the past few years, we've increased the amount put back each month as the vet costs have increased. And honestly, if we needed the money for something else, it is there.


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## betsy3971 (Nov 21, 2012)

Getting Pet Insurance for our Abby was the first thing I did after losing our Sam to cancer. Abby is a 10 year old Golden w/ no previous medical issues. The insurance is only for accidents and illnesses, but I feel better knowing that she's covered. Sam's treatment expenses depleted our savings and I wanted to make sure she would get the same level of treatment Sam did. There are a lot of options out there and different policies to suit just about everyone's needs. I would encourage anyone interested to do their research and make the best individual choice. I've done the math and if I pay for coverage for Abby for two years and don't use it; it's still cheaper than what we paid in two months of cancer treatment for Sam.


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## Jessie'sGirl (Aug 30, 2010)

After Jess had his first bowel obstruction surgery, the vet tech warned us that some goldens were "repeat offenders" as she put it. I immediately signed him up for insurance, and 5 months later, he had another obstruction which involved a perforated bowel, peritonitis and necessitated a second surgery where 23cm of necrotic bowel was removed. He was a very sick boy and was lucky to have survived. I gladly pay my insurance every month and hope that I pay in much more than I will need.


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## GoldensGirl (Aug 2, 2010)

hotel4dogs said:


> Lucy, I don't think Embrace will ensure a 12 year old dog, so Trupanion is probably a better choice. But it's worth checking with them, anyway.


Thanks, Barb. You're right about Embrace. I have a couple of options now and just have to make up my mind about which one to go with. I have enough experience with $10,000-a-year vet bills to know that I should have done this long ago.:uhoh: :doh:


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## OutWest (Oct 6, 2011)

I did get it for my two young dogs. I sleep better at night having their health care needs paid for in advance, just as with my DD and me. I didn't get it for Tess, who is older and has numerous pre-existing conditions. The price was too high. I got PetPlan and paid for it for the year, in advance.


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## Jennifer1 (Mar 31, 2012)

I have petplan for all 4 of my critters. It's paid out way more than I've paid into it yet, I've had it a little over a year. Since I've had it, I went through chemo with Bear. Had a cat needing hospital care for a week due to a fever that we never did figure out the cause, and then Guinness's splenectomy in September. They paid everything they were supposed to (over 10k between the three critters) without any hassles.


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## tomw (Jul 9, 2012)

I have insurance for Lacie (turning 7 months in a couple of weeks.) It costs me about $30 a month and covers hip operations, cancer operations and recovery costs, and emergency operations. My neighbor does not have insurance and just paid over $6,000 to save her dog who had to have an emergency operation for bloat. For me, $30 a month is cheaper than having to put $100--$150 away each month. I hope I never have to use my insurance for Lacie but, if the unfortunate should happen, I am happy to know that it is there and that her medical needs will be covered.


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## Rainheart (Nov 28, 2010)

I also have insurance- petplan. I haven't had to use it yet. It costs me about $30 a month. I will gladly pay this. I know that for what I am paying for I might not have to use it for years. I mainly have it for when he is an older dog who may need surgery, chemo, etc. that can really add up. I signed him up at 8 weeks so no pre-existing conditions. When I have talked with them on the phone they have been really great to me and their customer service has been wonderful. 

I don't ever want to have to make decisions about my dog based on money and this is the way I can do that.


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## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

My vet has said in the past that many dogs who have insurance get better medical care than dogs who don't, because owners are more likely to agree to expensive tests etc. if they know the insurance will pick up some or all of the expense.
Just as a small example, before I took Tito out of town for 10 days for Golden National, I took him to the vet for a thorough check-up because of the throat polyp he had had removed a few weeks prior. I knew the insurance would pay for all but about $4 of the visit, so it was a no-brainer. If I had had to pay the whole thing myself, I probably would not have taken an apparently healthy dog to the vet just to be on the safe side.


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## cubbysan (Mar 13, 2007)

hotel4dogs said:


> I've always insured my dogs, and have been glad I did.
> I have Embrace insurance on Tito. After looking into several companies, I felt they fit my personal needs best for several reasons (everyone has different needs of course):
> 1. They are the only ones with a PER YEAR deductible, not a PER INCIDENT.
> 2. They pay for alternative treatments like chiropractic, acupuncture, hydrotherapy, etc.
> ...



Thank you for posting this. These prices are very affordable.


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## goldy1 (Aug 5, 2012)

IrishTiger said:


> I am also considering insurance for my 3 year old GR. I've only looked at VPI insurance. I didn't think there would be too many companies out there. I just remember my old GR, Jake, had cancer, hip dysplasia and all sorts of minor things. The vet bills were outrageous (I was in middle, high and college so I didn't pay them) but I always thought pet insurance was a good idea, not knowing it really existed.
> 
> Now with my own Golden, with ME paying the bills... I think I definitely want it.
> 
> ...


The Whole Dog Journal article below will help you research the various pet insurance companies. Company names and contact information are included in the article.

http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/issues/12_4/features/Pet-Health-Insurance_16113-1.html

I would encourage you to look at other companies besides VPI. I had VPI for 3 years (signed Chance up when I got him at 8 weeks so there were no pre-existing conditions) and was very unhappy with their claims paying.
People here seem to have had good experience with Trupanion, PetPlan, and Embrace. These sound like 3 companies to check into.

I'm just glad I didn't rest easy thinking that since I had pet insurance I was covered for major vet expenses. With VPI, the opposite was true. I got to pay the premiums AND the major medical expenses. 

VPI usually covered a small percentage of the small medical bills. Now I self-insure.


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## OutWest (Oct 6, 2011)

Came back to say that when I googled pet insurance there was online company or service where you could enter your zip code, you dogs basic info (breed, age, etc.), and they would send you a list of all the companies serving your zip code. Then each of those companies sent me a quote. After i got all the quotes, I researched the ones with the best reputations, and fiddled with the quote (deductible, level of coverage, etc.) to arrive at a choice. I found that (with Pet Plan at least) paying the whole year in advance provided a discount, and when I added Bella recently, I got another discount.


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## Dallas Gold (Dec 22, 2007)

One other point is that if you are insuring a puppy and getting a quote, the quote with some of these companies may be higher at first until the pup is spayed or neutered because many lower or even rebate the premiums once the dog is altered. So you might want to ask and see what a particular company's policy is on that.


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## MikaTallulah (Jul 19, 2006)

I save at least the amount per month of what my premium payment would be if I had pet insurance.

Works great for me


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## MicheleKC87 (Feb 3, 2011)

I save, but I also have Lily on a wellness plan at her vet. I pay $25 a month and it covers all her wellness check-ups, heartworm test twice a year, and all annual shots. I try to save at least $100 a month.


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## Thalie (Jan 20, 2008)

We have insurance (PetPlan Bronze) and also save every month. I had to use Petplan only once so far :crossfing and they paid as agreed in the contract. The savings get a little dip once a year when we run the senior panels and also when we titer but I only take half of the extra cost out so I keep a cushion.


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## Jennifer1 (Mar 31, 2012)

I also want to add that make sure you understand how the company works. Usually these are reimbursement programs, so you still have to come up with the money upfront. But it sure is nice knowing you'll get much of it back!! I think there is a company (not sure which) that works with some vets, meaning that if the vet has an agreement with them, you only pay the deductible and the company reimburses the clinic.


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## Sydney's Mom (May 1, 2012)

I have it for Sydney. And I've had it in the past (for a cat). I chose it because I don't want to ever not be able to afford all treatments possible for her. 

I use Trupanion, because there is no maximum payout over a lifetime. So, if she, god forbid, gets cancer or something, I don't have to worry about paying once it caps out (which it likely would).

I used PetCare previously for a cat and maxxed out a few things eventually. I cancelled it after that.


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## Vhuynh2 (Feb 13, 2012)

Sydney's Mom said:


> I use Trupanion, because there is no maximum payout over a lifetime. So, if she, god forbid, gets cancer or something, I don't have to worry about paying once it caps out (which it likely would).


That is also why I picked Trupanion, because of the unlimited payout. I am not comfortable with a plan that has a 10K or 15K annual limit.


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## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

I thought real hard about the annual/lifetime limits, too. 
I picked the $15,000 annual limit ($50,000 lifetime) with Embrace, because at 80% that means that he would have run up $20,000 in bills in one year, and at that point I think we are talking serious quality of life issues. 
But I agree, I did have to think about that. I decided that I preferred the lower premium ($15 a month) and I'll live with the $15,000 a year limit.


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## IrishTiger (Nov 23, 2012)

Great info here all. Thanks for the input. I am definitely going to enroll Max in a plan soon.

I wonder if any of my local vets have an opinion on this subject. 

Someone said it best though - I never want to have to make a healthcare decision for Max based on finances and costs. I would give up my house and anything I needed to in order to keep him healthy, but with insurance I'll sleep better at night.


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## IrishTiger (Nov 23, 2012)

Just an update.. I was pouring over all these companies and their policies. There is a lot of info out there when you really get into it. I ended up going with PetPlan, and had decided it was either going to be them or Healthy Paws. I just didn't like the "annual deductible" HP has.... that seems too good to be true - and from what I was seeing with reviews and other information I was correct in my feelings. 

I think either would have been fine, but I just want a plan that will take care of him should something terrible happen. With PetPlan, I feel I can do that - and I can refund the whole thing within 30 days if I'm not sure, and I can also change my plan around if I'd like. After the 30 day money back guarantee, I can cancel at any time. I think that's pretty standard all around though.

So Max is all insured and good to go in case something happens! :


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## bonnie1990 (Feb 2, 2013)

All of this info was really helpful. We got quotes from Healthy Paws, Embrace, Trupanion and Pet Plan. We went with Healthy Paws because it had no yearly maximum and a $250 per year deductible (instead of a per condition deductible) for $38 per month.


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## anguilla1980 (Aug 13, 2013)

Anyone know which companies you don't have to pay vet expenses all upfront then get reimbursed? I just filed bankruptcy so I don't have credit cards anymore for dire emergencies like this, I wouldn't be able to pay upfront, I would need it to work like real insurance.


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## 1stGold13 (Dec 1, 2013)

Bump up for more information and updated experiences


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## Ksdenton (Mar 17, 2013)

I bought the insurance for Bentley. I researched the various plans, read reviews, and chose what worked for me on cost and coverages. I would recommend doing both. Get the insurance and save funds as well. My plan was insurance for those major expenses so I got a little higher deductible to keep the cost down and save for the small vet bills that pop up here and there. 


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## Ksdenton (Mar 17, 2013)

http://www.petinsurancereview.com/dog.asp

Comparison chart


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## Ksdenton (Mar 17, 2013)

Another site
http://www.consumersadvocate.org/pet-insurance/best-pet-insurance.html

I made my own chart of pros and cons for each. I'm a visual person so I need to see it written out. 


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## GoldensGirl (Aug 2, 2010)

I am ever so grateful to those who shared information here. After learning a lot from this thread, I decided to invest in Trupanion insurance for my dogs about 18 months ago. I chose Trupanion because they would issue insurance on my very senior boy, who was already 12 years old at the time.

Joker had major abdominal surgery this week and I'm about to find out how good the coverage it. I spoke with a Trupanion representative last week and she was most helpful and supportive.

Joker ran up around $5,000 in veterinary bills in two weeks time with visits to a couple of specialists, x-rays and ultrasound, blood and urine tests, and then surgery, and we are not done yet. Trupanion's deductible is per condition, not per year, and the surgery covered two separate issues so they may count $1,000 as deductibles, but should cover the rest. In any case, this one episode will certainly pay for all of my boy's insurance bills. 

Joker is probably going to be on a prescription diet after this and Trupanion's site says they will pay the difference between the cost of "regular" dog food and the prescription product. If the pathology report is not what we hope for, he may need chemo, too.

Fingers crossed. :crossfing:crossfing:crossfing


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## Tayla's Mom (Apr 20, 2012)

GoldenGirl, I hope things work out for you and Joker. Insurance is peace of mind.


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## 1stGold13 (Dec 1, 2013)

Just an update from me, I posted somewhere else but figured I'd add to this thread for easier searching for anyone looking. I went with Petplan Gold 22k per year, 100% reimbursement (80% for specialists) $50.00 deductible. Paid for the year in advance versus monthly or quarterly and was $610.00 for a new puppy. Purchased as soon as allowed at 6 weeks of age.


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## GoldensGirl (Aug 2, 2010)

Just an update on how we are faring with Trupanion. They have done an excellent job of staying in touch. This week they contacted me to let me know that they have been held up by the failure of one clinic to send a pathology report and asked me to see if I could help. 

I called that clinic and the missing document was supposed to be faxed this afternoon. When I called Trupanion to let them know, they were most appreciative and promised to process the information next week.

Meanwhile, Joker is doing well but the bills continue to mount up. We have had consultations about his diet and he needs to have a urinalysis done every 2-3 weeks. He will also need X-rays taken in July and probably a couple of times a year for there rest of his life. I hope that's a lot of years to come!


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