Do you remember the day that your new pet came home? You found the right animal for you or your family. You get them home, they investigate their new place; so many new smells, new sounds, and new commands. It’s the best day ever! You picked out the right toys, foods, treats, bowls, blankets, and beds just for them. You don’t just treat your new member as an animal, but you baby them, you love them. Unfortunately, there is one thing we don’t think of until it’s too late. Accidents, illnesses, and injuries are all inevitable especially when bringing a new animal home. Visiting the vet, or emergency after-hours animal hospitals can be costly. Due to the increasing veterinary bill costs, too often, owners simply cannot afford what their animal may need. Owners are then daunted by the decision to have to surrender their animal to a shelter in order for the animal to receive the care it needs. In most cases, surrendering your beloved pet means you will not get them back after they are treated. Other times, vets will even suggest euthanizing the pet if the owner is not able to afford its care. Both of these options are heartbreaking for owners to have to make. Pet insurance is an option all pet owners should sign up for, especially with the ever rising vet costs.
Animal insurance is a must nowadays. Similarly to people insurance, we have insurance for ourselves and our families, there is also insurance for our animals! Pet insurance is generally offered by most of your “people” insurance carriers. Pet insurance generally requires a reasonable monthly payment, and then when needed, can help with the cost of treatment/procedures that can cost hundreds or thousands of dollars. After researching online, we have discovered there are a variety of insurances that are available on the market. When choosing the company and the plan, you must read the fine print. As with us, many plans do not cover pre-existing conditions. This is also why it is so important to get pet insurance the moment you adopt or add a new animal to your family. For some plans, there is a waiting period before the insurance goes into effect. For most insurance plans, the cost of the insurance depends on the age and breed(s) of your animal. We’ve also discovered that for each animal, you will want to choose a wellness plan and an insurance plan. The wellness plan is a good choice for every animal you own. This plan is a small monthly fee of, on average, $20.00-$40.00. The wellness plan does have co-pays, but when you compare those costs to a regular visit, you will be saving money. When it comes to insurance plans, this is one of those choices you will need to make, depending on your animal. After speaking to a representative for one of the pet insurance businesses listed below, they mentioned that it’s best to get insurance if you get a breed of animal that is prone to health issues. An example of breeds that are prone to health issues include Great Danes with the flipping of their stomachs, German Shepherds with elbow or hip dysplasia issues, etc. If you have an animal that acts like a couch potato, you may not need pet insurance and opt only for the wellness plan. All this to say, prices will vary on what you choose, whom you choose for insurance and the number of animals you own.
What we do know is pet insurance is a plentiful resource pet owners should be using. It has the ability to say many pet owners’ money and heartbreak. When choosing your pet insurance, be sure to do your research. Read about the insurance and call and speak to a representative if you have any questions. Not all pet insurances are the same. Some will require you to pay upfront at the time of service and then be reimbursed a specific percent after. Other insurances will have you pay a copay and they will pay the rest to the vet directly. Below are some pet insurances we have researched and think are worth looking into:
Lemonade (click to go to website)
Offers: Accident, Illness, and Wellness Plan
ManyPets (click to go to website)
Offers: Accident, Illness, and Wellness Plan
Offers: Accident, Illness, and Wellness Plan
Offers: Accident, Illness, and Wellness Plan
Offers: Illness, Accident, and Wellness Plan
