Should You Get Pet Insurance for Your Puppy? That Mutt

Note: I’ve partnered with Pet Insurance Quotes to bring you this post.

Should you get pet insurance for your puppy?

I’ve never had pet insurance for any of my pets, but … times have changed. I decided I am signing my weimaraner puppy Remy up for pet insurance, and I’ll tell you why.

Why I’m getting pet insurance for my puppy

1. Peace of mind. I don’t want to worry about something happening to my dog or how I’m going to pay for it. I don’t want to make healthcare decisions for my dog based on whether or not I can afford it.

2. I’d rather pay monthly premiums than a large vet bill. Since we don’t have pet insurance for my senior dog Ace, I’ve paid thousands out of pocket for his vet bills and medications in the last 8 months. It’s been difficult, and I hope to avoid that with puppy Remy.

3. It’s not necessarily about saving money. I used to value pet insurance based on whether or not I would “save” money long term. I don’t look at it that way anymore.

It would actually be ideal if I lose money on pet insurance for Remy over his lifetime because that would mean he’s lived a long, healthy life. (See peace of mind, above.) On the other hand, pet insurance definitely would’ve saved me at least $5,000 with Ace even after factoring in the cost of monthly premiums.

[quote_center]I don’t want to worry about something happening to my dog or how I’m going to pay for it.[/quote_center]

4. Cost of veterinary care is increasing. In my opinion, the pet healthcare system is (unfortunately) becoming a lot like the human healthcare system. It’s good there are a lot of options for treatments and for extending a pet’s life and quality of life, but the costs are also increasing.

I could not believe some of the quotes I was given for Ace in the last few months, and I never in my life imagined I would spend the amount of money on any pet that I’ve spent on Ace.

But like I said … times have changed.

My own values, when it comes to my pets, have changed.

In the last year, I’ve learned the limits on what I will spend on a pet are much higher than I thought. (There are still limits, don’t get me wrong.)

My experience with Ace is what helped me decide pet insurance makes sense for me and my new puppy Remy.

The pet healthcare system will most likely continue to change in Remy’s lifetime, but for now anyway, pet insurance makes sense for us.

How to choose a pet insurance company

You may remember I wrote about a site called Pet Insurance Quotes last fall. Pet Insurance Quotes is an independent pet insurance agency that offers plans from the top providers in one place. It offers a free tool that helps you pull up quotes from different companies in seconds.

I went back and used Pet Insurance Quotes again to find the right pet insurance company for my puppy Remy.

I simply entered my basic info like my dog’s age and breed, my zip code and my email address.

Once I received my quotes, I could go in and edit details like the annual deductible I want to pay ($500) and the reimbursement level I am most comfortable with (80%).

This helped me find the right monthly premium cost for my budget. (Around $35/mo.)

For me, the top three companies recommended were:

[check_list]

Healthy Paws
Petplan
Pet’s Best

[/check_list]

Once I’m ready to sign up, I can do so directly through Pet Insurance Quotes.

What questions do you have about pet insurance?

I was on the fence about pet insurance for a long time, and one reason for that was because I had a lot of questions.

Below are some of the questions I had about pet insurance, and Pet Insurance Quotes was able to answer them for me.

In the comments, let me know what questions you have about pet insurance and I’ll get them answered. You can also learn more about pet insurance in general here.

My questions about pet insurance:

Q: Are medications generally covered by pet insurance?

A: Yes, all medications related to illness/accident are covered by any standard pet insurance policy. You can add a wellness care plan that will cover supplements, flea & tick, etc.

Q: Do the monthly pet insurance rates go down if the pet is spayed/neutered?

A: With most companies you get a 5% annual discount if your pet is spayed/neutered.

Q: Is it easy to change or cancel a pet insurance plan?

A: Yes, you can change, upgrade or downgrade with any company. Just like home or auto you can cancel at any time.

Q: Do the monthly rates generally increase each year?

A: Yes, all companies change rates annually, the average is 5-10% per year.

What questions do the rest of you have about pet insurance?

Let me know in the comments! I’m also curious if you have pet insurance for your pet and why you decided to sign up.

Click here to use Pet Insurance Quotes

mkc

Monday 20th of June 2016

Highly recommended! Our insurer pays 80% after an annual deductible. Our rates don't go up much. Older pets just have a higher annual deductible. We didn't get illness cover on our first rescue, only accident cover. Then she developed spay incontinence which meant anything to do with the reproductive organs were considered pre-existing. As well, she had a disc injury a few months after and therefore anything spine related were considered pre-existing. Insurance covered the removal of her 2 upper large molars due to bad fractures and a front canine due to an abscess. She passed away last year of cardiomyopathy (enlarged heart) - insurance covered all diagnostic costs, meds, and fluid drains as well as the euthanasia and cremation costs. It sounds like she was an unhealthy dog but she wasn't - just unfortunate, maybe accident prone, and her background of neglect didn't help. We put our next 2 rescues on full insurance as soon as we adopted them, even when they were at the foster to adopt stage as there is an initial 30 day no-claim period. So no exclusions. Our second rescue has a badly healed compressed disc injury which occurred before we adopted him but was only discovered a year in with us. He also has mild arthritis. So insurance covers the costs of x-rays to track progress, pain meds, and annual blood tests required for the issue of the meds. Alternative therapies are covered as well when he had chiro. Of course, some years the vet bills don't exceed the deductible so we get nothing back - I count that as a good year!

Lindsay Stordahl

Tuesday 21st of June 2016

Good to hear you're happy with your pet insurance! Thanks for sharing some examples.

Sarah D.

Great article! I have really been considering getting Pet Insurance for my 6 year old girl now, while she is still in good health because from my understanding does your insurance go up in price as your dog ages or acquires health problems?

The rate does seem to go up quite a bit once they reach the "senior" age which I think is generally around 7. I can still sign up for it for Ace with some companies anyway but the rate is much higher and existing conditions would not be covered. You can put your info in at the pet insurance quotes site and it will give you a good idea and the best options.

Emma

We definitely recommend pet insurance starting as a puppy before you even have pre existing conditions to consider. It may seem like you are just paying in all the time, but when you need it that first time, you will be so happy to have it. Bailie has had it for almost three years and just used it for the first time this spring which covered a $400 or so bill which is the equivalent of a year of premiums. It provides peace of mind unless you have a lot of spare cash sitting around for just in case situations.

Thank you Emma. I know you've recommended it in the past and you also said it was more for peace of mind. I can relate to that.

Jill K

Thanks for your post! I look forward to your posts and never fail to find something useful in just about every one of them! My partner and I adopted a 12-month old beagle mix rescue early this year. We bought him pet insurance and are wondering if we should submit a claim for his visit to the vet for a bout of loose bloody stools that he developed a couple of months after we adopted him (he was diagnosed and treated for a worm & Giardia infection). Any comments?

Hi Jill. So glad my blog is helpful. Do you mean you are concerned your rates will go up if you file a claim?