eskieservant
Posted : 3/14/2006 2:49:26 PM
You can take out pet insurance or you can start a savings account and hope that nothing serious happens until there are sufficient funds to cover the serious condition. There are companies offering pet insurance these days - unlike when there was basically one and we paid $80 a month for coverage - that did not include any of the normal preventative procedures. We had this plan for 2 dogs. Well of course we paid premiums for over 6 years and in case both dogs required life saving surgery (Dachshund back/neck disease) that cost over $6,000. So when you take the premiums we paid, plus the actual cost of the surgery and consider that we were reimbursed about $1,000 - well a savings account is the way we went after that. Many people have experienced this. We now have a different breed of dog and we were setting up a savings account for him. Our vet told us about a company - primarily only in Canada at the moment (how unusual!) - I looked at your profile and noted you are in SC. This plan covers up to $15,000 lifetime for your pet with no limitation on coverage per illness - either lifetime (compare to kids' braces) or per year. The plan does not cover hip dysplasia though and Eskimo dogs are prone to it. For this reason I initially did not take out plan because I have a dread of illnesses in dogs resulting in an inability to walk - and I seem cursed with this. But at 16 months as I watch the little Hoover walk down the street on those long legs, and after learning about cruciate ligament, luxating patella, the cost to set a broken leg, I decided to enroll him. Since he had no pre-existing conditions, should one cruciate ligament go, both legs will be covered etc. Teeth are not covered, but should he break a canine tooth while landscaping, the plan would pay for reconstruction of the tooth. My vet has this plan as she also experienced the unhappy high premium situation that we did as well - and also had the midnight run to the vet hospital for midnight surgery where you pay 50% upfront in cash or equivalent or no surgery. So for $35 a month we have piece of mind, especially considering that these days the cost of an overnight stay is a flat rate - anywhere from $135 to $175 - the days of a "boarding fee" of say $40 plus cost of nursing as required are long gone. This plan requires that we pay first $25 of each day of hospitalization. There are no deductibles, but they pay 90% of the cost. Some people use the whole $15,000 if their animal has say an expensive ongoing health condition such as heart problems, diabetes, Cushings etc. requiring pricey meds for life and frequent blood tests. This plan wasn't available when we had our Dachshunds - and wouldn't you know it, it covers Dachshund disc disease - well, for the moment anyway, they are getting lots of claims. In my case had I had this plan I would have "kept" the $15,000 on reserve just in case of disc disease. Apparently only 1 in 50,000 pets ever uses the full $15,000 - well we have a two timer here. A broken leg could cost $2,500 - and that would be for the first cast (I can only imagine how many he would eat). Another thing to watch out for is fine print stating time pet is spayed/neutered. This will determine if hormonal related diseases are covered - and this includes diabetes of all things. We did have occasion to use the plan once. Our guy came down with a virus that was rampant in Toronto - throwing up and diarrhea - had to be hospitalized for 3 days. Plan didn't cover consultation or special take home, high fibre food, but covered 90% of the cost of treatment and his hospitalization less our $25.00 per day. Already I am "ahead". I couldn't believe a claim of mine was paid. The company is trying to move into the US - and I think they are set up in some states - [link
http://www.vetinsurance.com]www.vetinsurance.com[/link]. Good luck and remember, there is that darn waiting period.