little Darmah the shop dog got attacked by a bulldog this week requiring surgery and a bunch of stitches.
When the dog owner brought over the payment for the vet bill, he said that if i had pet insurance it wouldnt have cost anything.
sooo...im looking into it.
anybody have any experiences to share or companies to recommend?
TIA
and pic-
(http://www.monsterparts.com/temp/darmah1.jpg)
We have insurance through Banfield pet hospitals (they are in Petsmart). 20 bucks a month gets us all of her shots and checkups, half off medicines, no office visit fees, and deep discounts on almost anything they do at the office. Just using it for the check-ups and shots saves us like $300 a year. Plus my German Shepard likes to get hot spots in the summer and is there a few times a year. The good thing is that it is covered at all the Banfields so we have many options to choose from and places to go when traveling.
It does not cover surgeries and things done at a med vet as we found out 2 years ago when we paid 3,800 to fix her when she turned her stomach over.
tell Darmah i hope she feels better soon :)
Poor Darmah! Hope she heals up quickly.
Years ago, I had VPI (Veterinary Pet Insurance). They were the main pet insurance player at the time, although I think there are now a lot more options.
Things may have changed, but I found that they would only cover very limited amounts of my bills (apparently California vets charge more than their standard costs). In fact, I spent more on premiums than I ever got back in coverage, even with a fair number of vet visits / surgeries / tests. So I cancelled the policy, figuring I was better off putting aside the money each month in case it was needed.
Also filing claims was a hassle, I had to do it all myself, the vet hospitals would not do it.
I have heard that pet insurance plans have improved since then, but I haven't really looked into it. Anyway, do your research first.
Quote from: JEFF_H on January 21, 2009, 11:55:47 AM
When the dog owner brought over the payment for the vet bill, he said that if i had pet insurance it wouldnt have cost anything.
sooo...im looking into it.
Glad your dog is OK.
When the dog owner said that I would have A) reminded him that if he controled his animal it wouldn't have cost anyone anything. And B) if I had pet insurance it would have cost me the monthly premiums and the deductible and the insurance company would have went after him for the cost they covered anyway.
Quote from: hbliam on January 21, 2009, 02:27:52 PM
Glad your dog is OK.
When the dog owner said that I would have A) reminded him that if he controled his animal it wouldn't have cost anyone anything.
My first thought.
Good looking Boxer.
Hope Darmah heals quickly.
And as a new dog owner, I'd like to kick the bully's owner in the nuts.
Quote from: Randimus Maximus on January 21, 2009, 05:19:40 PM
And as a new dog owner, I'd like to kick the bully's owner in the nuts.
+1. And as a black belt in karate I have a lot of nut-kicking experience. [evil]
Quote from: somegirl on January 21, 2009, 05:30:20 PM
+1. And as a black belt in karate I have a lot of nut-kicking experience. [evil]
[laugh] [clap]
Quote from: somegirl on January 21, 2009, 05:30:20 PM
+1. And as a black belt in karate I have a lot of nut-kicking experience. [evil]
Good grief woman! Is there anything you don't or can't do?!? [bow_down]
;D
Threadjack over:
Sorry to hear about Darmah! Hopefully it will be a speedy recovery for her!
We have VPI on our lab/pit mix (Gabby). There are a couple levels available, and they spell out specifically what cost is covered for each procedure. You could take that list to your vet and compare with their rates to see if it is worth it.
We opted for a plan which only covers major things...not routine visits or shots. We pay $14.99/month I think...which isn't too bad IMO. We mainly got it because Gabby is pretty crazy when she plays and I was worried about her blowing out an ACL...which isn't all that uncommon. I think they pay $2,000 for that procedure. Hopefully I never have to use it though.
Last summer she ran under a tree at the dog park and sliced open her back...she didn't even notice! We took her to get stitches, which cost us about $150...VPI reimbursed $75 if I remember correctly. Not as much as I was hoping, but again, I have it for the big injuries.
Hope your pup gets better soon. [thumbsup]
Sounds like one of those things were they are going to try to get out of paying wherever they can.
You know like a people insurance company, but with less regulation.
Thanks for the input (and well wishes)
And Darmah's not too happy with me today [laugh]
(http://www.monsterparts.com/temp/darmah2.jpg)
aaaaaaaaaw :( she looks so sad
she's just peeved we made her sit across the room and used her cone for tennis ball beer pong.
[laugh] [laugh]
Sorry to hear about your dog. I have a bulldog and typically they are the sweetest most docile dogs around. That said I have VPI pet insurance coverage. They have been great and have always paid around 50-75% of the bill. Service is outstanding as well.
d
IMO, pet insurance is kind of like extended warranty - if the companies didn't make good profit, they wouldn't offer the "service".
So, unless they pay a random one-time really big emergency bill (which sounds unlikely from the replies here) the odds are, you will end up loosing money over the life of the policy for routine vet bills.
Better off to stick your 15/month away in your sock drawer, and use it when you need it.
mitt
Quote from: mitt on January 22, 2009, 01:20:14 PM
IMO, pet insurance is kind of like extended warranty - if the companies didn't make good profit, they wouldn't offer the "service".
So, unless they pay a random one-time really big emergency bill (which sounds unlikely from the replies here) the odds are, you will end up loosing money over the life of the policy for routine vet bills.
Better off to stick your 15/month away in your sock drawer, and use it when you need it.
mitt
I don't know man I pay $240 a year and my friend just took their dog for a round of shots and it was about $200. Shots come twice a year along with all of the other stuff that goes wrong. I know we have saved at least $700 bucks this year.
Quote from: metallimonster on January 22, 2009, 01:24:37 PM
I don't know man I pay $240 a year and my friend just took their dog for a round of shots and it was about $200. Shots come twice a year along with all of the other stuff that goes wrong. I know we have saved at least $700 bucks this year.
Not being an a$$, but If everyone saved $700 a year, every year, wouldn't the insurance company go out of business?
I do agree, some years you will come out ahead, and some behind, but if everyone came out ahead 100% of the time, the companies would either raise their rates, lower their eligible expenses, or go out of business.
Will the insurance pay 100% of the $200 shot bill?
How did you have $940 in bills this year? What would be your 'typical' yearly expense?
mitt
Quote from: JEFF_H on January 22, 2009, 01:05:36 PM
she's just peeved we made her sit across the room and used her cone for tennis ball beer pong.
[laugh] [laugh]
[laugh] [laugh] [laugh] :'( [laugh]
Well ours was a rip off
California our Pyrenees Wolfhound cross blew out both crucial ligaments cost was $4000 per leg ..we had insurance but they would not pay
letters back and forth ..phone calls etc ....finally threatened them with legal action they ended up paying $2000 ..a bunch of legal crap about time frame max in one year crap ..my lawyer agreed with what they said as per fine print in contract
so in my opinion its a scam
our provider was Petplan
I guess my situation is a little diferent. Our insurance is actually through the network of vets (Banfield Hospitals)not through an outside insurance company. This means that I do not have to submit any claim but just go there and pay nothing for checkups. Like I said before my dog likes to get hotspots at least 3 times a year and I just checked the bill and it would have cost around 120 bucks for the office visit, shave of area, steriod shot, and meds. We paid 16 bucks out of pocket. I'm sure they overstate the cost of things a little but when we first went there the showed us how much it would cost without the insurance and one semi-annual checkup was a little less than the yearly premium. Not having to pay for the office visit really makes a difference. Anytime we think something might be wrong we take her there and they check her out for free. The insurance also does not cover any kind of surgeries or anything like that so it is more of a maintenance plan if you want to look at it that way.
Quote from: metallimonster on January 22, 2009, 01:24:37 PM
I don't know man I pay $240 a year and my friend just took their dog for a round of shots and it was about $200. Shots come twice a year along with all of the other stuff that goes wrong. I know we have saved at least $700 bucks this year.
Your friend is going to the wrong vet. :) My dogs shot's cost about $50 a year. If she doesn't get in any trouble then that's my yearly cost. I did have her in for surgery last week to flush a clogged up anal gland. WHile she was under they cut her nails, removed a wart, and gave her her needed shots for the year. $192.
we used to have a cheap vet (good too)
but its a 12 hour drive to go there now 8)
we went to a new vet here...and they were trying to 'up-sell' us on everything [roll]
plus they were selling Science Diet food in the office, which if you read the label is overpriced CRAP.
I trust the new vet that they are really only going to do necessary stuff...but they arent really cheap
the vet is a 65-ish woman that sounds (and smells) like she smokes 8 packs a day.
but it's like finding a mechanic...you have to trust that they are doing what needs to be done and not just trying to screw you.
Quote from: JEFF_H on January 25, 2009, 03:33:56 PM
we used to have a cheap vet (good too)
but its a 12 hour drive to go there now 8)
we went to a new vet here...and they were trying to 'up-sell' us on everything [roll]
plus they were selling Science Diet food in the office, which if you read the label is overpriced CRAP.
I trust the new vet that they are really only going to do necessary stuff...but they arent really cheap
the vet is a 65-ish woman that sounds (and smells) like she smokes 8 packs a day.
but it's like finding a mechanic...you have to trust that they are doing what needs to be done and not just trying to screw you.
Find a local dog park. Ask around for the preferred local vet. Also ask where the police take their K9's. Usually the best vets as well.