Comments on: Make 2010 The Year Of Affordable Pet Health Care!

By: Jamie Roux

Jamie Roux — Tue, 10 May 2011 15:05:00 +0000

A cousin of mine is a vet in the UK and I was amazed to hear what people are willing to pay for their dogs in particular in terms of insurance. In South Africa there is no such thing as insurance for your dog/cat. This does not mean we don’t have dogs/cats or not like them. On the contrary. Some of my friends have had a lot of expenses taking their dogs to a vet. My son’s two cats have already cost him a fortune. So it seems like a good solution to get insurance for your pet!

By: Amber

Amber — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 19:48:26 +0000

Wow! Thanks for compiling this very helpful information for us. I have a 5 year old dog and I’m thinking of getting her insurance.

By: Meredith

Meredith — Tue, 22 Mar 2011 21:52:18 +0000

Thank you for this informative article. I have a healthy 14 year old cat. About 2 weeks ago I decided to get her insurance, just in case. I have been researching pet insurance companies. A few days ago I took her in for a regular check-up. It turns out that she has hyperthyroidism. I had a saved quote with PetPlan that I was going to take but I also just found out about her condition. I want to treat her with the best treatment which is Radioactive Iodine. This kills all the diseased tissue and then it would be gone. Is it still considered a chronic condition and is there ANY company who will still insure her? Thanks in advance.

By: Chuck Robinson Jr.

Chuck Robinson Jr. — Tue, 22 Mar 2011 20:03:38 +0000

OK….Here goes:

Molly was diagnosed with a chest tumor on 1/19/11. I had purchased PetPlan in 2010 after reading Dr. T’s research. The plan I bought was an 80/20 for Molly.

The surgery was involved and Molly was at Founders all day getting Xlnt care. She wound up with a large incision in her left armpit.

That night she chewed the stitches out. The next day Dr. Zempo sewwed her up again.

Molly wasn’t having any of this and even under heavy tranquilization, opened herself up again.

Back to Founders and they added a couple of stitches and an E-collar. (Great alternative to the cone BTW!)

Molly was then heavily sedated for 2 weeks and she finally closed up well enough that the stitches could be removed and the collar taken off. It was a very difficult 2 weeks and she did not tolerate the sedation nor the collar well.

Our out of pocket was about $1600.00. With the help of the very friendly staff at Founders who helped with all the paperwork required for the claim, we were reimbursed exactly as promised by PetPlan.

It went very smoothly and I could not be happier with the decision to buy pet insurance last year and the provider I chose because of the due diligence of Dr. T and Founders Vet.

Thanks Founders and PetPlan for taking care of us and our pets.

Chuck and Joyce Robinson

By: mary

mary — Sun, 06 Mar 2011 11:54:00 +0000

MY Baby a Pitbull/ pointer mix whose is 5 years old was diagnosed with renewal kidney failure.He’s on prescribed food from the Vet is there ANY INSURANCE THAT WILL TAKE HIM .Help my Tatertot

By: mary

mary — Sun, 06 Mar 2011 11:46:42 +0000

Help does ANY POLICY COVER A CONDITION THAT THE DOG WAS JUST DIAGNOSED WITH? LIKE RENEWAL KIDNEY FAILURE?

By: rocco

rocco — Sat, 25 Dec 2010 16:03:48 +0000

What about vpi? My friend has it and says they’re satisfied — your thougths on that insurance?

By: Amy

Amy — Tue, 26 Oct 2010 16:01:36 +0000

What about VPI pet insurance? That is the only one I ever knew about and never have heard of these 3 insurance companies that you have discussed. I’d be interested to know what you think about VPI…

http://www.petinsurance.com/affiliates/PPCGoogleAdwords.aspx?ec=CI0133&src=adwords&gclid=CIfYnqbz8KQCFQIGbAodeFsV1w

By: Dr. Doug Kenney

Dr. Doug Kenney — Sat, 14 Aug 2010 02:01:13 +0000

Excellent in-depth analysis, Dr. Terifaj.
You mentioned to look at possible reduced benefits when taking to an emergency center or specialty hospital. PetPlan has a higher copay 20% or 30% (depending on the state) if you go to an emergency center with a non-life threatening emergency or are referred to a specialty hospital regardless of your plan’s regular copay. It used to be 30% in all states, but they are seeking the 20% pending state by state approval. This could be considered a disadvantage by some, however, some of the insurance companies use a 20% copay in their standard policies.
I believe that PetPlan did eliminate the age restrictions this year.
I agree that PetPlan is one of the better insurance companies.

Embrace is changing their policies later this year and I’ve been told that the 25% limit on chronic conditions is being eliminated.

One other thing that I’d suggest. Pick the company first and then pick which policy the company offers would give you the lowest out-of-pocket expense (including the premium) should you have to file a large claim e.g. $5000 or $10000. For those companies that let you customize your policy, it will take some figuring, but you might be surprised at the answer.

Again, pet insurance is a complicated subject and I admire your willingness to do an in-depth analysis and be able to offer your clients an educated opinion. As you know, there are many veterinarians who have brochures from one or more pet insurance companies available for their clients, but don’t really know much about what they are recommending.

By: Dr. Doug Kenney

Dr. Doug Kenney — Sat, 14 Aug 2010 01:11:13 +0000

Judy, I forgot to include a link to their webpage for the family plans:

http://www.petfirsthealthcare.com/plans/family-plan/