# Thoughts/experience re: pet insurance?



## Holly (Aug 19, 2013)

Just wondering if anyone has pet insurance for the Vizsla, and if it's been worthwhile. Or if it's a total waste. Thoughts? Would also be curious to know what the premiums are like. Probably pays to shop around...?


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## datacan (May 15, 2011)

I would also search the forum for "insurance" or "pet insurance", been discussed a few times 

We don't have any but put money aside into a dedicated ING account and keep him as healthy as possible. Barring any emergency accidents, we focus on good nutrition, exercise and stress free way of life :


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## VictoriaW (Mar 16, 2011)

We have PetPlan and it has already paid for itself thanks to a grass seed head that worked its way into Gracie's jaw & became infected, requiring surgery.

Keep I mind that the point is not necessarily to come out ahead -- it's INSURANCE. The point is to protect yourself against unexpected vet bills. If you have cash on hand for the worst-case scenario, then no need to insure.

Premiums vary wildly depending on both the coverage you select and your zip code. We live in an affluent area, with correspondingly high veterinary costs, and pay through the nose (~$800/year) for their highest level of coverage.


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## solefald (May 16, 2013)

Our vet gave us a 30 day free trial referral to Trupanion. When I went to register for it the very next morning, it turned out that the vet referrals like that only work till midnight of the day the referral was received. This sounds like shenanigans and raised a huge red flag, so I did some research and realized that Trupanion has more negative reviews that any other insurance. 

We registered for HealthyPaws instead. Is $30/mo. Will see how it goes and will decide if we would renew for another year or not.


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## Rudy (Oct 12, 2012)

Insurance is like gambling in a big Casino's they pimp the 1 in 5,000 that won

Not the others and masess they took out that provide there live funds to the addiction that takes out 99 percent of the folks who dare some

Look at the buildings , foods and Glam


The House Wins the sheep loses.

You beat insurance not every time with the correct food choices, supplements and exercise and buying great proven DNA blood

Insurance companies read all the exceptions and smaller print :

there greed based and Protect them very rarely your interest at heart just like Lawyers :

Data plan the best ;D

and back and be the best educated Vet you can be

cancers and worse come

them are very tough wars

Sir Copper Topper made age 18 anyone have a V made more?

He saw a vet maybe 3x in his life and he hunted 5 states and 2 countries 

I gave him all his shots and medications

His last trip to the Vet was to end his great life

the shot of Mercy I could not muster up

and Jenn held my hand

the choices you earn and make daily natural real and whole

well Insure you more then any company waiting at your back door


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## SteelCityDozer (Aug 25, 2011)

Savings account and wise spending are always better IMO. I only have insurance where required in my life in general and have accounts for the exceptions. We've paid as much as a few grand in one day on more than one occasion for our male. But opt out of insurance on either of our pups. It's a personal decision. Just answer this: what would you do if an emergency occurred? Need insurance, find away through it or ...? Plus those pet insurances seem to have a lot of things they WON'T cover.


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## KB87 (Jan 30, 2012)

Personally, we have insurance for our Haeden. I did tons of research on companies and picked the one that I thought would work best for us. It's about $25/month for coverage. On top of paying the premiums we also set asides savings as with any insurance plan you must pay a deductible and not everything is covered. You're hedging your bets by getting it and also not getting it, but you have to plan smart and having money set aside is always smart.

Luckily we haven't had to make any claims in the last year and a half but knowing we had a plan helped to put my fiancé and I at ease while we had a crazy, into everything, trying to eat any stick, all to curious about mushrooms, spazzy, 100% vizsla puppy. H also has a heart murmur so we want coverage should something out of the ordinary/unexpected happy with that.

If you are interested in insurance I would look at www.pet-insurance-university.com. I would also wrap your head around their protocol for submitting a claim. Some companies consider each condition a new claim- ie: if your dog goes in for an emergency surgery that's 1 claim, 1 deductible and one 1 reimbursement. If in that same surgery the vet finds a tooth abscess and they remove the tooth that is another claim, another deductible and another reimbursement. But then some other companies will consider it all one claim where you pay only one deductible and get one reimbursement. It's important to understand what each company's policies are before you sign up for anything. I think that website will help you should you decide to go the insurance route. Best of luck!


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## Kay8 (Jan 9, 2013)

My old roommate and I used to joke that her Aussie mix (a bit like a Vizsla in terms of energy, from what I understand) was the poster-child for her insurance plan. Unfortunately I don't remember which company, but it was around $25 a month. My roommate had an emergency fund for her, of course, but the insurance tended to be a good deal since she's so active. We brought her jogging off leash in the woods almost every day over time the odd injuries added up. She'd take off after a deer, loop back to check in, tear off to bring a squirrel to justice, loop back again, and come back radiantly happy and occasionally bleeding. Usually just cuts that could be dealt with at home, but sometimes worse: a badly torn ear, a ugly paw cut, a scratched eyeball once. (We didn't catch that one until later in the evening since it was invisible at first, and since it was a Saturday we took her to an all-night emergency vet who asked whether she'd been to a park that day, and then was extremely surprised when we said, yes, three times. Vet said she was a darn lucky pooch. Go figure.) Then there were the really random events like an attack, which caused puncture wounds and muscle torn away from its attachment point. Awful. 

There was a deductible of (I think) $200 for each separate problem, but it still ended up being worth it financially, especially for things that needed many follow-up visits (like the paw, which turned out to be a more serious injury than expected). But I think it depends on the dog and financial situation. If you're faced with an enormous bill far beyond the emergency fund, are you in the position to just pay it no matter what, or could you be left facing a difficult decision? If the latter, I'd think insurance would be worth considering.


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## MCD (May 4, 2013)

Possibly leaning towards Petsecure. I think there were brochures in our vet's office for Petsecure, Trupanion and PC Pet insurance. Depends on what country you live in too. Every time we have taken Dharma to the vet for shots alone it has been $111.00 at least. That is just routine. I would hate to think what it would cost for something worse. Vizslas being Vizslas. Also we have 2 cats. One of them got psychologically and physically ill when Dharma came to live with us. That was a $200.00 vet bill alone. Albeit the cat is perfectly fine now.


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## AcadianTornado (Jul 30, 2012)

Semi Being in the business, I'd say you're better off putting 50$ month aside in an account if there are no prevalent health issues and no family history of early life issues. Yes, environmental and accidental issues can happen but insurance companies are there to make $$$ and cause you grief when you need help. If you're starting with a good deck of cards, don't waste your time with insurance. You can build up a pot for the future if you need it. Insurance companies calculate about a 30% return on their fees, therefore the statistics are in favour of you spending 30% more than what you actually need. And that's when you're not fighting them for reimbursement. If you're on a tight budget and don't have a "cushion" you could use in case of an emergency, well that's a different story. But if not, I would stay away in the long run. My 2 cents....


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## Holly (Aug 19, 2013)

Thanks everyone for your thoughts and opinions. I still haven't decided, but I do like the idea of simply setting up an emergency vet fund and contributing to it monthly. I've had several friends with puppies (not Vs) that have broken their legs or paws in their early months and it has cost them thousands. I'm totally on board with lots of exercise, good nutrition, etc etc as the best insurance, but it's those unexpected major things that scare me.


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## Rudy (Oct 12, 2012)

Organic Your thoughts and numbers diggy sweet butter clams? ;D

and Pics? 

lmao

trust me you need Loyds of London ;D

plea?

Guilty you honor I woke up with bed head I mean hair sir"

dna results?

99.9
Nordic Thunder

geeze they told me it was all fun sir

Have we not saw or seen you like 50 x before?

Yes your honor I was the Kirby travel and life man dealer ;D 

Crate him for life ;D

rack him and cut da corn nuts ;D


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