Pet Insurance

[Tubby & Peanut's Mom]

I saw an ad the other day for pet insurance. Since T & P aren't getting any younger, and with all the serious and costly illnesses we've had here at PT, I thought I'd check it out. They are online at petinsurance.com so I went there. To get an online quote your pet needs to be less than 10 years old, so I had to call them. They have two plans - superior and regular, and preventative care (office visits, shots, etc.) can be added for an extra cost. Here are the quotes they gave me for T & P.

Tubby at 16 years old would be about $543.00/year, and Peanut at 14 years old would be about $362.00 per year for the superior plan. You get a 5% discount for multi-pet families.

A kitten (less than 1 year old) would run $20.62 a month, which would include the preventative care which includes vaccinations. Basic medical care for a kitten (without vaccinations) would be $12.33 a month.

And the cheapest cat to have is 1 - 4 years old. This kitty would run you $14.00/month for basic care, or $22.28/month including the preventative care for the superior plan. And just $7.38/month for basic care or $15.63/month with the preventative care for the basic plan.

Oh, and these rates are for Illinois. Different states have different rates I guess. They also have bird insurance and "exotic" pet insurance. And you can take them to any vet you want.

I don't think I'll be getting it because Tubby's kidney "levels" would need to be normal before they would accept him. He's doing good, but I don't think his levels are at normal anymore. And I know you should get insurance when you're healthy so you have it if anything happens, but Peanut is pretty much in perfect health right now and I don't think I've spent $362.00 on her at the vet her whole life....so if I take that money and put it in the bank, and earn .5% interest on it........

Anyway, I know there are other insurances out there, but I haven't looked into any but this, and I thought some of you might find it interesting.

Do any of you have pet insurance, and if you do, have you had to use it and did you find it was worthwhile?

[boscibo]

Gosh, all my pets except Abby an Hanna are over ten. I have thought about pet insurance, but what I do is always keep a couple extra grand in my bank account in case of emergencies. Like when Bandit had his nerve damage and couldn't walk, that was quite expensive, but thanks to the extra money I keep just for that purpose, we came out OK, I guess I call it "self-insuring". Since we have so may animals it would cost a lot to get insurance for everyone.

[jenluckenbach]

I don't make enough in a year to afford insurance on my gang.
But I can see if you had one pet and it was a high maintenace breed (like a dog that is predisposed to certain medical conditions) it would be good.

[slick]

I've thought about it too but I just bought a condo 2 years ago (a little over my limit!) and I just don't have the extra money. But my gosh, $543/yr for a 16 yr old (I know that US$) seems an awful lot. Over the past 6 years I've probably spent around $2,000 on Specks so I don't know if it would be worth it for me and like Tubby, she may not be accepted because of the kidneys.

Glad to hear the Tubmeister is doing well. Smooches from Specks.

[Russian Blue]

I've worked out the figures before when we started thinking about getting a cat. After seeing the amounts for the insurance and the exclusions, we have decided to put 'X' amount aside each month in a high interest bank investment (that is easily cashable).

This way we are still putting away money for an emergency but gaining interest at the same time. For us, insurance didn't seem the best option.

[smokey the elder]

I agree. If you can, it's better to take the pet insurance funds, put them away, and then they're available for whatever emergency or to use as you see fit.