Why You Need Pet Insurance For Your Pet

Mom has believed in pet health insurance ever since she had Hank, her Yorkshire Terrier, from 1987 - 2003. Pet insurance was not really a thing back then, so Hank wasn’t insured initially. Later when a couple of pet insurance carriers launched, Hank was past the age limit for insurance – which was 5 years at the time.

While Hank was basically a healthy dog, he dislocated both his hips (separate incidences) and needed surgery, had skin allergies, was chased by another dog who scratched his corneas, etc. Over the course of his 16 years, mom says the vet bills totaled at least $25,000.

The Importance of Pet Insurance

When she adopted me in January 2015, pet insurance was one of the “must-haves” in addition to microchipping, when it came to being fiscally savvy about future vet bills and how to effectively manage the costs involved with being responsible for the health and welfare of a beloved pet.

The good news is that the pet insurance industry has exploded over the last decade ot two, and now there are many carriers and various premiums based on deductibles, percentage of reimbursements, etc. As a result, you have many more choices and levels of coverage based on what you can afford.

When to Get Pet Insurance

During my initial health checkup after adoption, our vet handed mom a pamphlet on one pet insurance company with the recommendation to strongly consider getting insurance.

#1 most important point to remember – as soon as your new pet has a clean bill of health – apply for the insurance policy!

Why? Because if your pet’s health records show that there are any health conditions on that initial visit, they may not cover any “pre-existing” conditions going forward. There are policies that will cover pre-exisiting conditions, but they will be usually more expensive than if your pet had no pre-existing conditions.

So in conclusion clear up any medical issues so that your pet has a clean bill of health before you apply for the policy. You have to apply within 30 days of that vet visit (check with each carrier) so act fast.

Even if your pet is not "new or young", don't let that stop you from getting pet insurance. Today many of the carriers will extend pet insurance coverage to a cat who is "double-digits" age-wise. Just make sure that it has a "clean bill of health" from the vet and apply within the 30 day window.

How to Choose Pet Insurance

Do your research!

Mom invested several hours on the internet researching who the “best pet insurance” providers were – very subjective of course – read the reviews both 5 star and 1 star…reviewed everything about their coverage, costs etc.  She also checked with "Uncle Google" and was able to compare various companies, their coverage and pricing.

Many do not reimburse for the regular check-ups so you most likely will be paying for that cost. However due to competition, some carriers will cover the wellness services which includes regular checkups.

Also they will not cover the costs of pet supplements generally unless they are approved by the FDA for pets. Right now, the only supplement recognized by the FDA is probiotics.

Narrowing down her search to 3 carriers, she called each one with a list of questions, and based on all that research selected one company to use.

And we used them until Beau arrived in October 2016 and we asked if they had a “family plan” for multiple pet households – and they said no!

Why “Family Plans” Are Important

Ask every carrier you are considering if they have a family plan even if you only have one pet now – because you never know when the next pet will walk into your life.

In the end, we switched to another pet insurance company who had family plans, as well as an ANNUAL deductible rather than a “per incident” deductible – try to avoid those!

Which Pet Insurance to choose...?

There are several very good providers in the pet insurance industry today out of at least 30 different carriers. As it turns out, mom said she wants to investigate a few of the newer ones as she says "one never knows where there is a better deal out there without checking around!" 

No matter which insurance company you go with, mom feels that pet insurance is a MUST…she says the cost per month to cover one of us cats is similar to that of a nice dinner out for ONE person – can you imagine that! Granted there is 3 of us kitties, but she says it's worth it when you consider the cost of anything catastrophic, or even a dental cleaning. 

Remember to do your homework and interview at least 3-4 carriers as there is a smorgebord of options, policies, coverage, etc...figure out what is important to you and your pet and go from there!

As always, please remember that any recommendation of a company or a service is strictly our opinions through research and personal experience. At no time are we ever compensated for these recommendations.