Healthcare insurance for dogs. No, really.

Due to Mrs Grouse’s latest bad idea, which I’m not even going to get into at this point because it’s just so bizarre, but anyway, we’re (meaning “I’m”) now in a situation where we (I) think it would be smart to understand options for doggie healthcare insurance.

Needless to say, I have never looked into this before, but my understanding is that the costs of vet care are now so high that it’s certainly something to consider.

What are the ins and outs of pet healthcare insurance? Companies to look at or companies to avoid? Worth it or not worth it?

Finally, are most policies only for accidents? Or do they cover diseases/chronic conditions?

All advice is appreciated.

I totally relate to the vet bill shock! When I got my dog, I started looking into pet insurance and found it really helpful. Companies like Healthy Paws and Embrace popped up a lot in my research. They cover both accidents and illnesses, which is great because you never know what might happen.

One thing I learned is to really dig into the policy details—some don’t cover pre-existing conditions or have limits on payouts, which can be a bummer. For me, the peace of mind was worth it, especially since my pup can be a bit of a klutz! Just take your time to compare plans and find one that suits your needs.

After lots of research and talking to our vet, we found it not to be worth it. To many ways that they can just deny claims. The vet told me the lucky few come out ahead, most others don’t. The vet is my buddies wife so I took her advice

I have PetsBest Health insurance for my 2 year old Golden. It is 400 dollars a year and covers:
Emergency Care
Surgeries
Specialist Care
Hospitalizations
Outpatient Care
MRI, CAT and X-Ray
Medication Injections
Lab Tests
Accident & Illness Exams
Prescription medication
(see formulary)
Accidents & Illnesses such as:
Being hit by a vehicle
Laceration, cut, abrasion
Metabolic disorder
Bite (animal, insect, snake)
Torn nail
Congenital conditions
Foreign body ingestion
Cancer
Viral diseases & infections
Bone fracture
Hereditary conditions

It has a 5,000 annual limit. Haven’t had to use it yet but I do hunt with her so sure an ER visit could be more than 5K but it will help.

Look into ‘Pets Best’ which is underwritten by Allstate. I researched it all a while back and again recently for my newest pup. Any well marketed plan costs an arm and a leg. Pets Best was the best value by far. I’ve had to use it and it was relatively hassle free. Has plenty of options between full coverage and accident only plans with different deductables. I have an accident only plan with around a $250 deductible and pay about $120 per dog per year. It has paid for itself multiple times over already. I can’t stress enough to people to at least get an accident policy on your dogs. A must have for any hunting dog. Depending on breed I’d get illness too. Wish I would have had that on my Boxer who lived for 2 years with cushings and a $350 per month medication bill.

When I looked I thought it wasn’t worth it at $30-50/month depending on options. There are deductibles, annual maximums, and then it might only cover some percentage of the bill. I think it’s useful for those who couldn’t withstand any surprise bill over $500 or $1000 or whatever.

Think of what you would do if your dog needed something that was $5k right now. If you think well that sucks but poop happens and you pay it then you don’t need insurance. If you think there’s no way you could pay that and have to let your dog die because of the cost then insurance is a good idea.

Whether its car insurance, or home insurance, or health insurance, these companies are not doing this out of the goodness of their hearts. They are the house, and they will always take in more than they pay out. That said my dog isn’t a hunting dog and his total cost over 14 years has only been vaccinations and his initial adoption fees. If I had two or three years training in an upland bird dog, I might want some insurance. Up here its still possible to see a vet and if its an emergency make payments, but it better be your regular vet, and its getting to be less and less of them.

Tend to think it’s not worth it and have also heard too many stories about denied claims etc.

For folks who are truly in such dire financial straits that they can’t afford a couple grand, there are options available. About 20 years ago our dog had to have an eye removed and the humane society in golden valley did it for almost nothing because we qualified for a low income program at that time. We would’ve had to put the dog down if they hadn’t helped, and he had several more good years in him after that.

Grouse I’d love to hear the details. hoping Mrs. grouse can rival mrs dirty’s antics when it comes to animals, I just want to feel better about my life so help me out here. We once adopted a dog that was born without optic nerves, just blind as a bat. Spent thousands at the U of M getting him all sorted out.

I have not yet taken the dive into pet insurance with my dogs but several family members have and state they have came out way ahead compared to where they’d be without it and they highly recommend it. Important caveat is both of these family members have dogs that one way or another end up with several unplanned vet visits a year.

As with many things, the devil is in the details and what can and can’t be denied coverage and thats going to widely vary from each insurance provider. The list KP stated above is quite inclusive, I can’t imagine everything being covered on there up to $5k/year. Maybe I’m a pessimist but I feel like they’d deny some of that stuff or make you jump thru hoops to get reimbursed.

I had life/accident insurance on my better hounds which proved to be worth it when one was killed by a bear and a year later another was illegally shot while hunting.
They paid $9k and $5k respectively and cost was about $120 a year back in 2001 or so. I know its not health ins., but maybe give a perspective .

We’re looking into it as well after our 1 year old pup either ate a kids toy piece or sticks outside requiring an emergency vet visit due to blood in her stool. The visit and a few tests and x-rays totaled almost $2,000 and if they had to do surgery to remove an obstruction, we were looking at $10,000….We lucked out the surgery wasn’t required…

Vet bills can get stupid expensive quickly….

We have pets best for BIG emergencies only, high deductible low cost plan.. Don’t know the exact details off hand but the Wife handles it and I trust it is in our financial best interest. Only purpose it serves is to keep us from having money stand in the way of the dogs life.
We pay for everything else out of pocket. ACL tear, Cancer, obstruction surgeries add up quick. Pre-existing conditions aren’t covered so it is best to get it young.

Many vets carry the same policy for their pets, the big emergencies take specialists usually at an emergency clinic or the U of M.

Trupanion is who I am familiar with and you can get a quote pretty easy on their website, it’s based off of dog age, sex and breed. If Mrs. Grouse is adopting a grey faced rescue, forget it, likely not eligible or if it is cost will be exorbitant. Personally unless it’s an expensive and well trained hunting dog (higher risk of injury and injury type likely a higher cost to treat), you are better off setting the premium amount aside in a savings account.

JoeMX1825 wrote:

Vet bills can get stupid expensive quickly….

Not wrong. Imagine getting the full bill for a human ACL tear surgery, or a stomach surgery etc. Blows vet care out of the park. The bills hospitals etc. send insurance companies is insane, robbery in some cases. We just don’t see the full costs having insurance.

I have a wellness plan through Banfield Health. I pay $35/month. It comes with a comprehensive visit twice a year and a complimentary spay or neuter the first year. Diagnostics, dewormer, blood tests, heart worm check, cancer screening, vaccines, etc. I see the actual coat of each semi annual visit and it’s upwards of 500 bucks each time, so it’s worth it for me, especially after the complimentary spay procedure. They use laser guided surgery, no tools or knives, so the risk of infection is much lower. Bear in mind this is primarily a preventative health plan, not emergency.

I do get a 25% discount on emergency services when the need arises. That’s happened once when my dog need some surgical staples in her leg.

I do pay for medication out of pocket.

gimruis wrote:

I have a wellness plan through Banfield Health. I pay $35/month. It comes with a comprehensive visit twice a year and a complimentary spay or neuter the first year. Diagnostics, dewormer, blood tests, heart worm check, cancer screening, vaccines, etc. I see the actual coat of each semi annual visit and it’s upwards of 500 bucks each time, so it’s worth it for me, especially after the complimentary spay procedure. They use laser guided surgery, no tools or knives, so the risk of infection is much lower. Bear in mind this is primarily a preventative health plan, not emergency.

I do get a 25% discount on emergency services when the need arises. That’s happened once when my dog need some surgical staples in her leg.

I do pay for medication out of pocket.

How did she hurt her leg?

Rooster pheasant spur ripped the skin open when she was trying to retrieve it. One of those older birds with a curled, sharp spur.

2 weeks and it was fully healed.

One knee surgery and you have got your money back.
Grouse you could check with whom ever you have your home\auto ins. with.

Also ask your Vet what companies they accept or which companies they recommend.

Not sure if all insurance providers do this, but I was able to only get accident/injury insurance. Going that route was a lot cheaper (like $13/month) for our 3yr old border collie. Adding illness coverage to the plan would basically triple the premium. She’s super athletic and energetic, and she plays hard, so we figured she’s far more likely to sprain or tear something than to get cancer/disease at this point.

I’m very anti-insurance; as listed above the goal of these companies is to make money. On average, insurance is 80% payout; in the long run for every $1 you give an insurance company, you get 80 cents back. That’s why I like the idea of self insuring; save up money so you have funds to pay the huge vet bill that probably won’t happen but has some chance of occurring.

Now, that being said, there are some situations where a worse case scenario would be catastrophic. (getting diagnosed with cancer, being the cause of a 10 car pileup, having a large mortgage and your house burning down). From those cases, health insurance, car insurance, and home insurance are necessary evils. Still, I like the idea of doing the basic minimums on those.

phoyem wrote:

I’m very anti-insurance; as listed above the goal of these companies is to make money. On average, insurance is 80% payout; in the long run for every $1 you give an insurance company, you get 80 cents back. That’s why I like the idea of self insuring; save up money so you have funds to pay the huge vet bill that probably won’t happen but has some chance of occurring.

Now, that being said, there are some situations where a worse case scenario would be catastrophic. (getting diagnosed with cancer, being the cause of a 10 car pileup, having a large mortgage and your house burning down). From those cases, health insurance, car insurance, and home insurance are necessary evils. Still, I like the idea of doing the basic minimums on those.

X2 Insurance in my mind is for catastrophe scenarios something that will cause major hardship. Obviously everyone loves thier dog but at some point the decision has to be made if the finacial burden is more then you can afford. Put a set amount of money in a savings account and hope you never have to use it.

Just wanted to circle back on this one and say I appreciate all the recommendations and advice. Thanks to all who replied.

My biggest fear is an injury or illness that is treatable and the dog’s recovery prognosis would be good, but with a huge $$$$ cost.

The only people I know who’ve had insurance was a relative who had a boxer and those dogs are a health disaster with lots of muscular/skeletal issues due to inbreeding, so they made out really well but like human healthcare insurance, I’m sure the companies have tightened up what they’ll pay.

Will report back when I have a chance to look at various options. Mainly hoping to find a higher deductible “major medical” plan, but we’ll see.

BTW, Mrs Grouse has really outdone herself on this latest bad idea. I have to say, I didn’t see this one coming, that’s for sure.

Insurance companies are for profit. Period. For every person who comes out well ahead paying premiums vs. expensive vet bills, another dozen pay in substantially more in premiums than any bills will add up to.

Everyone treats pets differently. I grew up in a very old school way that included a clear divide between animals/pets and human family members. Our dogs were outside with all the freedom and potential injuries that involved. They loved life but that came with their own costs too. I remember them hunting down coons, coyotes, rabbits, and often being worse for the wear but that was all part of it. Outside of shots I don’t remember much for vet visits. We sure as hell didn’t have dental work, pedicures, and whatever else some do with their dogs. We’ve loved a few Fidos over the years growing up but there’s a 0% chance my father was paying thousands in vet bills for a dog or taking out an insurance policy. Ironically, I don’t remember a dog we had NOT making it to 12+ years old either even without spending thousands on them at the vet.

Im guessing your dad didnt pay the insane amount of money it costs to get a dog now.

JEREMY wrote:

Im guessing your dad didnt pay the insane amount of money it costs to get a dog now.

Yeah my local Humane Society upped its adoption fees to 100$

I think it’s important to remember they don’t differentiate between higher risk dogs vs low risk. Dog insurance makes absolute sense if you have a high risk dog (hunting dog) as the insurance premiums are essentially subsidized by non-working dogs. Its a rare thing, but for many guys on this forum you finally have something that statistically and actuarially (if that’s a word, talking actuarial sciences here) comes out in your favor.

Get it ASAP as most will not cover preexisting conditions. Some are breed specific and only cover certain things per breed. Another item to look at is the lifetime coverage amount. Once your set on a policy, plan to not change policies again. Think preexisting conditions will not be covered by any new policy.

It is making the correct decision the first time and staying with it. The sooner you get it the better off it is.

Research each company for your specific breed. For us, we have 2 dachshunds and found a policy that has no lifetime limits, no per annual limits, 250 deductible and covers IVDD. Glad we have it, one of them has had 2 surgeries this year at 10K a pop already and we have been fully reimbursed. They cover their annual dental cleaning, annual checkups etc with ours.

You do pay out of pocket and then submit for reimbursement. We have never had an issue getting the reimbursements back. usually a check arrives a few weeks after the submission. Need all doctors notes, receipts etc but I am glad we have the policies. We pay $160.00 a month for both policies.

Metlife is who our policy is through

Gonna get a good vet bill today im sure. New puppy decided he has a broken leg or something. Hopefully just sprained. Yesterday at lunch time apparently had a barely noticable limp. After school a bit worse. When I got home didnt really wanna stand on it. 10pm whining and would nip at you if even touched it. This morning wont stand on it but dont cry if you touch it. Appt at 11 then vet cancelled til tomorrow but old lady already took the day off, now they said 2pm. Hope not serious cant afford a huge bill right now.

Don’t know about insurance, but just wanted to add- had my 6 year old lab’s teeth cleaned professionally(a year ago) and it cost $500.

Nutty.