Pet Owners: Recommend your pet insurance

WildRumpus

We don't have it, but after three trips to the emergency vet this week, we'll most definitely be investing in it. Suggestions?

mkrupar

We use Banfield through PetSmart for our normal pet insurance so to speak. It's about 30 dollars a mnt per dog and covers all of their basic care. I don't know what emergency care it covers because we haven't had to use it. I do know when I had to take Pepper to the doggy eye doctor I had to pay out of pocket. I don't know if this helps you at all.

ErinG93

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_pet-owners-recommend-pet-insurance?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:9Discussion:cf8d30b4-f09e-430d-a8dd-638386fbb09fPost:5ed299d4-8e33-43b8-8474-69cbadc96f30">Pet Owners: Recommend your pet insurance</a>:
[QUOTE]We don't have it, but after three trips to the emergency vet this week, we'll most definitely be investing in it. Suggestions?
Posted by Jill9288[/QUOTE]<div>
</div><div>I don't have anything to contribute about pet insurance, but how is your pup doing? 

</div>

marriedfilingjointly

Are you pretty set on your vet?  We take our pets to Banfield (inside PetSmart) and we have them all on the Wellness Plans.  They start at $18 a month (we're on the $24 plan), well visits and shots and all that jazz are 100% covered, and we get a discount on all additional meds and services.  There are no clauses for pre-existing conditions.

I don't know much about independent plans but I've heard a lot of complaints that nothing seems to be covered.  

July2012bride

I would also look into whomever you may hold your auto or renters/homeowner's policies with.  A lot of companies offer this at a reduced rate because you already have one of their services.  I don't know how comprehensive all of them are, but I've heard good things about doing it this way.

WildRumpus

Erin, doing better today. Last night was rough.

MFJ, we don't have a new vet here yet, so Banfield could be an option.

mkrupar

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_pet-owners-recommend-pet-insurance?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:9Discussion:cf8d30b4-f09e-430d-a8dd-638386fbb09fPost:ddcdaea7-045d-49d2-a635-586dbbfaa625">Re: Pet Owners: Recommend your pet insurance</a>:
[QUOTE]Are you pretty set on your vet?  We take our pets to Banfield (inside PetSmart) and we have them all on the Wellness Plans.  They start at $18 a month (we're on the $24 plan), well visits and shots and all that jazz are 100% covered, and we get a discount on all additional meds and services.  There are no clauses for pre-existing conditions. I don't know much about independent plans but I've heard a lot of complaints that nothing seems to be covered.  
Posted by marriedfilingjointly[/QUOTE]

All of this. We don't pay for appointments or shots. They get two comprehensive exams a year. You can also pay a little extra each month to add a dental plan. We also pay extra sometimes to get their nails trimmed (only the two little ones, the bigger ones tend to keep theirs short on their own).

Sweetjadedtears

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_pet-owners-recommend-pet-insurance?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:9Discussion:cf8d30b4-f09e-430d-a8dd-638386fbb09fPost:8c14bc58-c620-460b-ad5c-314310e64fc2">Re: Pet Owners: Recommend your pet insurance</a>:
[QUOTE]In Response to Re: Pet Owners: Recommend your pet insurance : All of this. We don't pay for appointments or shots. They get two comprehensive exams a year. You can also pay a little extra each month to add a dental plan. We also pay extra sometimes to get their nails trimmed (only the two little ones, the bigger ones tend to keep theirs short on their own).
Posted by mkrupar[/QUOTE]

I'm mostly a lruker but I'll give my two cents and say that I also suggest Banfield. We've had really great luck with all of our vets (except for one in Colorado, but I won't go into that--the person got fired anyways), and the nice thing is that if you move, you can always switch their plan over to PetsMart that is closer to you.

I do know that when our chocolate lab got cancer a few years ago and we had to amputate one of her legs, we had to go to a specialist and that it wasn't covered by Banfield since they couldn't do the surgery there. We ended up doing a Care Credit with the specialist but we had to pay for it all out of pocket.

At least for preventitive care, Banfield is a great deal and I really recomend it.

I hope your fur baby is doing ok!

whonamesthemselvessnippybetches

I like butt juice personally

marriedfilingjointly

Another cool thing about Banfield is they have really convenient hours.  You can drop off for well visits as early as 7:30 and pick up when you get off work, and they are open on Saturdays and Sundays too.

achiduck

We use Petsecure. It has different levels you can choose from.

jayjoe

We have PetPlan but i have to say, not too thrilled with it. They dont cover any basics and the deductible is $200 a visit but it has to be for the same ailment. Def looking into something else.

MNVegas

We use Banfield wellness plan also. We have the plan that includes dental.  No complaints.

WildRumpus

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_pet-owners-recommend-pet-insurance?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:9Discussion:cf8d30b4-f09e-430d-a8dd-638386fbb09fPost:e8db8eac-9bc6-4d39-9097-448ba6c62ef6">Re: Pet Owners: Recommend your pet insurance</a>:
[QUOTE]We use to have VPI (Veterinary Pet Insurance).  The older your pet gets, the higher the premiums.  They had different plan levels; the plan that covered shots wasn't worth the premium since there was a cap on what they pay - and that goes for everything.  My dog had to have emergency back surgery which was about $4k and I was reimbursed about $1700.   It just didn't seem worth it to carry the coverage when the payback is less than 50%. <strong>What's wrong with your pup?  (bulldog?)</strong>
Posted by jcbsjr[/QUOTE]


Sorry I got busy. Yep, he's an English. We have an American as well. They got into a little fight on Sunday and by Sunday afternoon, he was acting really strange, very lethargic and shakey. We took him in, and the vet said he pulled a muscle in his neck and sent us home w/ pain killers. By Sunday night, one side of his face was swollen, but we figured it was just bruising and continued to ice it and just keep an eye out. Last night when I got home from work, it had doubled in size. So, we took him in, and it turned out he had an abscess. Brought him home, only to end up at the vet again 2 hours later because he started to have tremors, like this:
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7wyDnKKxqZg" rel="nofollow">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7wyDnKKxqZg</a> (this isn't him)

I guess it can just happen to bulldogs, there's no real rhyme or reason. They kept him overnight and he didn't do it again.

amymaysa

We have VPI and it is good with reimbursement for something and awful for others. We had looked into Banfield when we got her, and seeing these posts, we may have to switch. We like our vet, but Petsmart is closer and she already goes there for day camp, so it isn't too too scary.

WildRumpus

I'm also checking into Purina's plan w/ Geico...since our car and renter's insurance are through Geico, maybe we could get a better deal?

amys325

Obviously this won't help since you've already spend the money, but my vet recommended to just set aside the $30 per month that you would spend on insurance and keep it in a separate savings plan and then use it if you need it and if not, you have it there for other things as well.

That's what we are doing.  We have a pet emergency savings account that we contribute to each month.

Birdie1483

OMG Jill that would scary the crap out of me. Poor guy!!

Birdie1483

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_pet-owners-recommend-pet-insurance?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:9Discussion:cf8d30b4-f09e-430d-a8dd-638386fbb09fPost:4367d48b-0caf-4c15-85a6-7a80c4be0519">Re: Pet Owners: Recommend your pet insurance</a>:
[QUOTE]Obviously this won't help since you've already spend the money, but my vet recommended to just set aside the $30 per month that you would spend on insurance and keep it in a separate savings plan and then use it if you need it and if not, you have it there for other things as well. That's what we are doing.  We have a pet emergency savings account that we contribute to each month.
Posted by amys325[/QUOTE]

That's a really good idea actually. I've never bought pet insurance before because the premiums were so high. Oz had some issues this summer, but we would have paid more for the premiums and we can't guarantee his issues would have been covered anyways.

WildRumpus

Amy, that's a good idea. We may just go w/ the basic emergency only plan. ::knock on wood:: they're both pretty healthy. This week was our first trip to the ER ever. Hopefully the last!

bmoruzzi

Poor pup.  We have "Pets Best" insurance.  You pay for everything out of pocket and then submit your receipts to the insurance co for reimbursement.  We've had the full coverage plan since we've had our beagle since he's under 2 years old.  But, now that he's getting older, we're going to go with just the emergency plan which is less money per month.  The full coverage included some shots, one visit a year, one poop test, one blood test, etc.