Tell me about your pet insurance experience

[First Lady]

I've had various pets over the years and for the last 4 years have owned a purebred English Bulldog.
Our vet bills for him exceeded his purchase price within the first 6 months. *Fingers crossed* he has been pretty healthy since then.

Recently I've become involved with Alberta Bulldog Rescue and seeing the plethora of things they can be subject to has me thinking about getting insurance for Stewie.
I've done some internet research and likely will get a couple of quotes, but curious to what others have experienced.

Discuss....

[macker]

Originally Posted by First Lady

I've had various pets over the years and for the last 4 years have owned a purebred English Bulldog.
Our vet bills for him exceeded his purchase price within the first 6 months. *Fingers crossed* he has been pretty healthy since then.

Recently I've become involved with Alberta Bulldog Rescue and seeing the plethora of things they can be subject to has me thinking about getting insurance for Stewie.
I've done some internet research and likely will get a couple of quotes, but curious to what others have experienced.

Discuss....

Some home insurance policies have started to include this coverage but it is quite limited typically and usually just for accidental injury or accidental death in most cases. Coverage is often only for $2,000 per occurance to a maximum of $6,000 per year. For more comprehensive coverage Pethealth used to have some very good policies. Haven't looked into this in a few years though?

[johnnyrocket03]

Im sorry that I cant answer your question in regards to pet insurance, I was just wondering what kind of health issues you ran into in those first 6 months?

My fiance and I have been considering getting an English Bulldog and any input you have would be quite valuable!

[Suzles]

We have always had our animals insured. Here in Canada we went with Trupanion. They just paid out a $4,000 claim for one of our cats who had eaten a small piece of rubber and ended with emergency surgery to clear a blocked bowel. Our dog, who died last year from hemangiosarcoma, had $10,000 in treatment in the last few months of her life. We have certainly got more out of insurance than we have ever paid in.

[First Lady]

Originally Posted by johnnyrocket03

My fiance and I have been considering getting an English Bulldog and any input you have would be quite valuable!

We paid $2500.00 (plus GST at the border...LOL)

He had, had cherry eye surgery in one eye before we picked him up. The other eye ended up needing to be done shortly after we got him, plus the original one had to be "re-done". To this day that eye isn't quite right and will still prolapse occasionally. He also had an anaphylactic (sp?) attack shortly before he was 6 months. We don't know the cause, we suspect bee or wasp sting. We got him to the vet within 5 minutes and his throat was restricted to less than the size of a straw. Had we been any later, they likely couldn't have saved him. There was a third thing, but it escapes me right now. Either way our vet bills for those 6 months were just over $3000.00.

Beside the eye issues, bullies have other chronic issues, like infections in wrinkles, yeast in toes and/or ears, breathing problems, skin problems like acne, eczema (allergies are common), joint issues, arthritis, they don't fair well in extreme heat or cold weather.

One of the common reasons people surrender their doges to Alberta Bulldog Rescue is that they didn't realize the amount of work and/or cost involved. Many need need daily cleaning of wrinkles and/or ears. They might need daily drops if their tear ducts no longer work. And this all starts early, these aren't "senior" dog issues.

We are always looking for foster homes for bullies. Both English and French bulldogs are placed in foster (temporary) homes until a suitable permanent home is identified. This might be of interest to you if you want to "try it out" before making the commitment.

[Canehdianman]

I looked into pet insurance when we got our Yellow Labrador 2 years ago. In the end, it seemed like it was going to be a waste of money.

Thus far, he has only had vet visits for his shots and checkups, so it appears to have been the wise decision (so far).

I will note that we are in a position where a $5,000 vet bill for some emergency wouldn't destroy us financially, so that definitely played a factor in the decision.

[HELPNEEDED]

how much is pet insurance?

[Travis Munroe]

on the trupanion site you decide how much you want to pay. The less you pay, the higher the deductible.
I went with a $30 a month payment and $300 deductible as I know if the time comes where I need to use it, $300 will be pennies compared to the total.
I bought this after spending 2-3 times the dogs worth in the first week of owning him and not having insurance.

[Bean]

What a timely thread; I am trying to research pet insurance as well and I had heard that Trupanion was the one to go for. The drawback with these guys however is that they apparently would increase your rates annually regardless of any claims made. Anybody have experience with this?

[macker]

PTZ stock is a bit of a dog and not very healthy
http://www.google.com/finance?cid=694652#

[TurdFerguson]

We have had it for a couple years on our dog. I think we pay $25 month through Pet Secure with no long-term commitment required. We have never had to use it though so I can't really speak to the claims process.

I'm not sure I'm sold on the value of the insurance but, as with most insurance, the value may only be recognized when you need to make a claim. Either way, it gives my wife peace of mind and that's certainly worth $25 a month to me.

[VladtheImpaler]

I recall looking into this when I had a ridgeback and a dane, and it seemed pretty conclusive that pet insurance is a scam...

[CaptainCrunch]

Originally Posted by VladtheImpaler

I recall looking into this when I had a ridgeback and a dane, and it seemed pretty conclusive that pet insurance is a scam...

Sorry not to flip on target, you had a Ridgeback, I grew up with a ridgeback, one of the smartest and most loyal dogs that I 've ever had, I just don't see a lot of them around the city.

If I was going to get another dog, that would be the breed.



This one's a knockoff for the one I grew up with. We got him when I was 7, and he lived right through to when I came home from the army.

He did like a touch of whiskey now and then.

[Travis Munroe]

In the long run you MAY end up paying more for pet insurance. Many say to put that $20 aside in a jar and if it is not used then you have a vacation.
I personally enjoy the simplicity of it and peace of mind...knowing my dog can be the biggest idiot in the world and its costing next to nothing.

[return to the red]

I have a pure bred West Highland White Terrier. They are known to have horrible skin problems but I didn't know this and having got her 4 years ago and kind of a wild time in my life I didnt think pet insurance was a big deal.

Fast forward to now and I have easily spent over what it would have cost me for the insurance as she has horrible allergies (she's allergic to everything including grass!) so her testing and allergy medication alone was over 700 dollars but it was the process of discovering that she had allergies that was so expenisive with infections and just a really horrible vet.

If I had to do it over I would get it right off the bat.

[Cowperson]

Originally Posted by Suzles

We have always had our animals insured. Here in Canada we went with Trupanion. They just paid out a $4,000 claim for one of our cats who had eaten a small piece of rubber and ended with emergency surgery to clear a blocked bowel. Our dog, who died last year from hemangiosarcoma, had $10,000 in treatment in the last few months of her life. We have certainly got more out of insurance than we have ever paid in.

Were your premiums fixed or did they change as time marched on?

Cowperson

[VladtheImpaler]

Originally Posted by CaptainCrunch

Sorry not to flip on target, you had a Ridgeback, I grew up with a ridgeback, one of the smartest and most loyal dogs that I 've ever had, I just don't see a lot of them around the city.

If I was going to get another dog, that would be the breed.



This one's a knockoff for the one I grew up with. We got him when I was 7, and he lived right through to when I came home from the army.

He did like a touch of whiskey now and then.

Do I know you? That looks exactly like mine, right down to the white lightning bolt on the chest. Where/when was that photo taken? That could be my dog. Very smart. He also ran as far as 30k with me, seemingly effortlessly...

[CaptainCrunch]

Originally Posted by VladtheImpaler

Do I know you? That looks exactly like mine, right down to the white lightning bolt on the chest. Where/when was that photo taken? That could be my dog. Very smart. He also ran as far as 30k with me, seemingly effortlessly...

Found that one on the web, the biggest problems with Ridgebacks are that they are escape artists, they can run forever and they're incredibly strong.

When they run away they're gone for days at a time and just when you think that they're never coming back, they show up at your front door with a sh%t eating doggy grin and a coat full of mud.

Ours was really loyal, was really patient with kids, but man it hated cats.

[VladtheImpaler]

Originally Posted by CaptainCrunch

Found that one on the web, the biggest problems with Ridgebacks are that they are escape artists, they can run forever and they're incredibly strong.

When they run away they're gone for days at a time and just when you think that they're never coming back, they show up at your front door with a sh%t eating doggy grin and a coat full of mud.

Ours was really loyal, was really patient with kids, but man it hated cats.

Hmmm, that patio & furniture do not look like anything I ever had, so maybe just a relative. Yeah, mine broke out through every window screen we had on the main floor.

[Rerun]

After looking at most other carriers, we found the most affordable insurance was PC Pet Insurance..

http://www.pcinsurance.ca/english/pet-insurance/pet