Pet Insurance-Saving Money-and your Pet's Life

For many people, pets aren’t just animals—they’re part of the family. And that means giving them the best possible care and attention, from a healthy diet to regular grooming, visits to the veterinarian (and if a condition is diagnosed) all the treatments and procedures that money can buy.

Unfortunately, that can be a lot of money. In the last decade, veterinary science has grown by leaps and bonds. Tests and treatments that were once available only for humans are now being applied to our furry friends, making it possible to cure once fatal conditions.

For example, the incidents of cancer are much higher among animals than in human beings. Before, vets would simply opt for euthanasia. Today, concerned owners can opt to get radiation therapy or kidney transplants—at the astounding price of $1,000 to $5,000 or more. This doesn’t include the cost of MRIs and other screenings, or the premium vitamins and food that vets will prescribe to boost the immune system of a sick or aging animal.

Veterinarians have also increased their fees, making even regular check ups and procedures a little painful on the pocket. Studies show that owners are paying up to 73% more than they did five years ago, making veterinary care one of the fastest-growing industries with a revenue of 19 billion dollars.

All these developments have made pet insurance a more affordable option. What’s the two thousand dollars that one may shell out over the life of an average pet, compared to the five thousand dollars one can spend in one week for delicate hip surgery?

There are also a wider variety of pet insurance policies, so you can pick one that suits your budget and preferences. It’s always important to check with the state insurance department that a company is legally registered. Then, go through the contract and ask the agent to explain what is included and what is not. You can always ask for additional riders to give you more comprehensive coverage.

But what should you include? First, you should also know what conditions your breed is vulnerable to. Also look at where you live (will your area put your pet at risk for vehicular accidents, attacks from other dogs, injuries?) and your pet’s general health and even genetic history.

Aside from getting pet insurance, you can also control your pet’s medical expenses by visiting low-cost clinics (you can get the numbers from the local Humane society). Always ask for second opinions before agreeing to very extensive treatments or antibiotics, and visit websites to find out more about the condition. Some vets will also give away samples of medicines to help you decide whether or not to commit to a long-term prescription.

It’s also cheaper, by far, to keep your pet at optimum health rather than paying for medical treatments. Invest in high quality food. Proper exercise is also necessary to prevent obesity, which is linked to many health problems. Keeping your pet on a leash can also prevent accidents and even some illnesses that he can contract while roaming unsupervised.

Getting pet insurance may be an important factor in controlling your pet’s medical bills, but it’s not the only one. It’s good to have a safety net in case something bad happens, but the best defense is what you do everyday: loving and caring for your pet.

Pet Insurance - What To Look For

Keeping a pet is a rewarding experience which many of us enjoy, but it can also be expensive. As well as all the routine costs such as food and grooming, you can also come up against unplanned expenses such as vetinary bills through sickness or accident. These bills can unfortunately be very high, so to ensure that their pets can get the treatment they need many people decide that taking out pet insurance is a sensible way of helping to cushion these costs. But what should you be looking for in a pet insurance policy?

The first thing to consider is what kind of pet you have. The cheapest kind of pet insurance is that for the most common pets - cats and dogs. Prices for these policies can be very reasonable indeed, amounting to only the cost of a few tins of pet food a month. If, however, you keep a more unusual kind of animal as a pet, then the price you pay may well be higher. Make sure that any policy you take out specifically includes your kind of pet, as many will exclude more 'exotic' kinds of animal.

The main reason for considering pet insurance is cover for medical treatment, but there are some exclusions that you need to be aware of. Firstly, your policy will almost certainly not cover routine treatments such as vaccinations, flea control, or worming. Secondly, you won't be covered for any pre-existing conditions that were already known about when you took out the policy (you should also declare any existing conditions when you take out the policy, or you risk it being declared invalid when you come to make a claim).

You also need to check your policy for claim limits: there may be a time limit of cover, so for example a long-term condition such as arthritis may only be covered for a period of 12 months, after which you will be responsible for meeting the bills. There is also usually a limit to the total cost of medical bill claims you make in any one year, but this is usually high enough to cover almost any conceivable situation.

Another major reason for taking out insurance is to help you cover the costs of getting your pet back if it goes missing. Most policies will contribute towards advertising in local newspapers etcetera, and also to providing reward money for the safe return of your pet.

Another very important part of your insurance cover is public liability, especially for dog owners. Even the calmest and most well behaved of pets could possibly cause damage to someone's property, or even cause an injury to a person. In this thankfully rare event, you could be open to huge legal bills and compensation claims - make sure that your policy includes a substantial amount of third party liability cover as standard.

Finally, check whether the policy you're considering places a limit on the age of your pet. Many policies are only available to, for example, cats up until the age of eight years. As it is in later years that your pet is most likely to need treatment, it obviously makes sense to ensure your policy will cover this, especially if your pet has a few years under their belt!

Is Pet Insurance Worth It?

Essentially pet insurance works in roughly the same manor as many regular health insurance plans in the sense that you have a deductible, co-pay and an exhaustive list regarding what procedures the pet insurance will or will not cover. The procedures covered by pet insurance range from routine vet visits to kidney transplants.

According to the United States Census Bureau, there are over 45.8 million Americans that currently do not have any health insurance. That's 15% of the population! Meanwhile, in 2005 Americans spent over $100 million on pet insurance.

I know that doesn't REALLY go along with this post, but I felt the need to interject. I apologize.
Anyway, the average person can expect to spend between $2,000 and $6,000 on pet insurance over the life of their furry friend, which is probably well over the cost you will probably shell out for any type of veterinary procedures for your pet. Seems like this should be enough to make you wonder about whether or not pet insurance is worth it.

Now before you label me as a heartless animal hater, I would like to point out that I do have a cat and would be willing to spend large sums of money in order to take care of her. However, I figure financially it is probably better to cross that bridge if I ever come to it and not act preemptively by purchasing pet insurance.

It seems to me that you're probably better served trying to give your pet a happy and healthy life on your own without the aid of pet insurance which you may or may not ever need. However, there are several inexpensive ways to make sure you'll never need pet insurance and/or expensive veterinary procedures:

• Don't buy cheap food.
• Get the better quality, healthier food which will pay off with better health.
• Keep your animals indoors, in a fenced in backyard or on a leash.
• This will drastically reduce the risk for injury.
  

Don't let your pets get fat. While there's more to love, you'll probably have less time to do it and encounter more health problems along the way.

Don't feel compelled to get your pet's medication from your vet. Feel free to check around with other vets or pet medication websites to try and find better deals.

Look, I understand that in the long run, you're probably going to spend thousands of dollars on your pets during their lifetimes. I'm not saying that's a bad thing at all, especially considering what they give back is relatively priceless (awwww). At the same time, I think things like pet insurance are a frivolous waste of money.

A Pet Insurance Policy, Makes Sense For You And Your Pet

Pet Insurance is not a new, it has been around for some time. Not many pet owners think about it until something happens to their pet and they find themselves with a Vet's bill that is quite large or their pet may need an operation and a stay in the animal hospital that they cannot afford.

I was fortunate to find a book called Pet Insurance Secrets Revealed and it helped me enormously with what to look for and what to ask when I was shopping for my pet's health insurance.

Like any insurance policy you need to do some research.
*What type of cover is available? *Will it cover a visit to the Vet for the regular check-ups? *What about if there is surgery involved and a stay in the animal hospital for your pet? *Will that be covered in total or will you have to pay a percentage?

Today there are more and more insurance companies taking up the pet health care insurance so you do have a choice and it will be worth your while to look at them all carefully. It's no good thinking your pet is covered only to find there was some small print you hadn't checked out.

I know I was not aware that different breeds of pets have traits that are hereditary until I read Pet Insurance Secrets Revealed. I found there are different pet insurance packages designed for different pets. Some breeds of dogs have hereditary traits that may be excluded in a policy for you if you have that breed of dog. The age of your pet will have a bearing on the pet insurance policy too. Check out the exclusions very carefully as the conditions that may affect your pet will probably be the ones that could be excluded from the policies.

It is no good having a pet insurance policy that doesn't cover your normal trips to the Vet, you want one that will provide you with the best possible and affordable coverage.

Remember, as with most insurance, there are deductibles. Pet insurance is no different. So it will apply to your pet's health insurance too, the higher the deductibles the lower the premiums and vice versa, the loser the deductibles the higher the premiums. If you can afford the higher premiums, that may be a better option, not so much to pay out at the time of treatment.

You know, animals can have many of the same problems as humans, some humans cannot tolerate fat in their diet, this can apply to your pet also. If you are giving your pet a low quality pet food this may have a detrimental effect and cause your pet to be ill. So give your pet the best possible pet food you can afford.

You can help with your pet's health insurance costs by taking a few steps to ensure your pet stays healthy. I found some great tips in the book about this. Just watching your pet's diet can make a huge difference. We can spoil our pets without realizing it.

An overweight pet will have the same problems as an overweight human, so manage your pet's weight too, make sure they get plenty of exercise and always have fresh clean water available at all times.

Remember your pet is not a human, so don't treat it as one. There is nothing sadder than a little Maltese sulking and pouting because she had to go on a diet and eat dog food, couldn't have her favorite dish, Lasagna that her owners were having. She sat under the table and wouldn't eat. Eventually she did start eating her food and now is a much healthier dog. I think it was harder for her owner to have to refuse her favorites.

So we all like to take good care of our pets one way to do this is to make sure we have them covered with pet insurance.