Pet Insurance
 

Yes, I know, first world problems etc. Anyway, after an expensive episode a couple of years ago, I think it's probably a good idea to get the cat some health insurance against any astronomical vet bills in the future. Most of the companies seem to offer pretty much the same sort of coverage, but the bit I'm having trouble finding is companies that will cover things like dental cleaning, which can run hundreds of dollars. Some say they cover it, then when you dig deeper will pay only $150-$100 towards it, which is not the same thing at all. It is impossible to find coverage for that sort of thing?

And either way, can anyone recommend one company over another? Or even more importantly, warn me against one company over another?

Re: Pet Insurance
 

We went with PetPlan. Like you difficult to find everything we wanted but the dog came from the shelter with a free month to Petplan, and our vet liked them, so we stuck with them. Can't comment further as we so far haven't had any reason to claim, touch wood.

Re: Pet Insurance
 

Also with PetPlan, only luckily had to use it once with our English Bulldog. Was a pretty painless process, don't see a reason to switch.

We got a 10 week old yellow Labrador last week, so will be signing him up also.

Re: Pet Insurance
 

We used to use the Canadian division of petplan, never had a large claim but did have a few small claims and they always paid no issues.

We have since switched to another insurance, but PetPlan seemed pretty good from the limited claims we had, we only switched as we needed some coverage Petplan was excluding for our dogs breed.

Never really did find any company that covered much routine stuff though, it seems to be a common thing to exclude or provide very little coverage for.

Re: Pet Insurance
 

Thanks. I have had a look at PetPlan but they aren't keen on dental cleanings and cats do need those as they age. Maybe coverage for that is just a pipe dream. Good to know that they are reliable anyway.

Re: Pet Insurance
 

Vote here for Trupanion. They pay the vet direct too so I don't have to mess with payments as long as the vet has an agreement with them.

Re: Pet Insurance
 

I'm in the UK so take this with a pinch of salt but I am a vet and we like PetPlan. Yes you will struggle with dentals, but usually they will pay if you need extractions etc. Most vets have their pets insured with PetPlan (although as a disclaimer, I do get a small discount) which says something.

Re: Pet Insurance
 

That's worth looking at.

Re: Pet Insurance
 

Thanks for the recommendation.

I've been brushing my cat's teeth (FFS :p ) but I'm sure that won't be enough for ever.

Re: Pet Insurance
 

Since a dental cleaning is not an unexpected or unpredictable expense, but rather, something that every pet needs and therefore, is likely to be used by most if not all clients, I can't see how they could offer such coverage and make any money. Does pet insurance entitle the policyholder to discounted rates, the way 'human' dental insurance does? The only way a for-profit pet insurance company could possibly offer a cleaning as a free/covered service would be if they could predict that getting a dental cleaning would prevent more expensive options such as extractions, which they would be on the hook for. So it seems like no difference from human dental ins. to me!

Re: Pet Insurance
 

That is why we switched to Trupanion, the direct billing option with us only having to pay our portion of the bill upfront, they cost a bit more, but the direct billing is worth it.

Re: Pet Insurance
 

my dog is almost 13 years old and has never had (or needed) any dental treatment. She's also only ever been fed good quality dog food. As an ex-dental person, I made sure that she was never given any treats and nothing to eat between meals. No plaque, no gum disease. I used to wipe her teeth with a muslin when she was a pup but realised that wasn't needed.

Re: Pet Insurance
 

Cats have very funky mouths though, and some cats have a predisposition to tooth resorption, ,as well as gum issues apparently related to some sort of bizarre allergy to tartar I don't think that's a dog thing. Our cat gets only good cat food too.

Re: Pet Insurance
 

Last time I ran the numbers for my pet he'd end up needing a surgery pretty often to break even. I've found it more financially savvy to "self insure".

Re: Pet Insurance
 

Plans seem to run $35 - $55 a month, for up to 90% coverage of the things they do cove (accident,injury, illness, chronic non-pre-existing conditions), and a $250 deductible. I agree it seems like a lot over a year, but the problem is sudden large expenses. Our cat had to spend one night in a hospital a couple of years back, and that plus the initial vet bill came to an eye-watering $1,500. If he had had to spend more than the one night, it would have been another $1,100 per night. Had they actually had to operate, god knows what it would have been but luckily they didn't (suspected intestinal obsctruction - luckily it cleared in the morning with the cat on a drip all night). I'm not really in a position to put that aside.