Is Pet Insurance Worth It? Here’s What To Know…
Is pet insurance worth it? How much is pet insurance? Here’s everything to consider.
Choosing to obtain pet insurance is much like choosing the right home or school for your family. There are several factors to consider, and it’s a decision that only you, a loyal pet mom or dad, can make. ❤️
When pets need surgery, it can cost thousands of dollars out of pocket. With insurance, it’s about $35/month, and most of the time, that includes surgeries. No family should have to choose between saving a furry family member and paying their expenses.
How does pet insurance work?
Just like human medical insurance, you pay a small amount every month to get coverage for those big, unplanned vet bills. Whether you want an emergencies-only plan or one that covers routine care, there are plenty of options at various price points on the market.
What is pet insurance going to do for you and your pet? Let’s consider the benefits of pet health insurance…
Pet insurance will give you more peace of mind if your pet were to become ill or injured. With a plan in place, you’ll:
- Be able to select care from any licensed veterinarian in your area
- Get coverage for dogs, cats, birds, and even exotic pets
- Drastically minimize the budget hit from hefty vet bills
- Focus more on your pet’s health than the cost of their care
Did you know? Tractor Supply Company offers a PetVet Clinic with no office visit fees. Their clinics offer affordable and convenient preventative services from state-licensed veterinarians. No appointment is necessary.
What’s the typical pet insurance cost? Pet insurance plans are flexible to meet your individual needs.
For those who can’t afford expensive surgeries or treatments, sometimes putting your pet to sleep is the only option. That’s a painful decision. 💔 And it’s also pricey, with euthanization costing around $300. And since not all cities allow backyard burials, you might have to pay even more to cremate your pet.
Additionally, you’ll need to take your pet’s breed, especially dogs, into consideration. If you have a show dog, you’ll want to think about theft or life insurance coverage for your furry friend, whereas if you have a breed deemed “dangerous”, canine liability protection is another facet you’ll want to consider.
Get the most out of your pet insurance plan with these helpful tips:
- Pet insurance pre-existing conditions. If your pet already has a serious health problem, you might not be eligible for coverage with many plans. Some insurance providers also have age and breed limitations.
- Read the fine print. Many plans require you to pay the vet first and then be reimbursed; however, some may pay their portion of the cost directly to your vet on the same day of service.
- Do the math. Monthly premiums tend to average about $25 per month for cats and about $45 per month for dogs. If your pet is relatively healthy, an expensive plan might not save you money in the long run.
- Shop around. Save money on prescription medications by asking your vet to write you a prescription and then check your local pharmacies, most also carry pet medications. For example, Walmart’s online pet pharmacy is very affordable. Vets are often willing to price match, too!
- Check for discounts. Some employers offer pet insurance discounts that could help keep more money in your pocket. Many insurance providers also offer discounts for multiple pets, so you’ll likely save more when you insure your second furry friend. In fact, Embrace offers a 10% discount in most states when you insure more than one pet through their insurance policies.
- Open a pet savings account. Just like a health savings account, you’ll be able to conveniently manage your pet’s expenses in one place.
While we can’t always learn from other’s mistakes, it’s important to weigh your options and give pet insurance some solid consideration.
Our vet was our dog’s lifesaver, but Trupanion was our money saver! Sometimes we wondered if it was worth the money since we never had any issues. But recently, our 5th child (aka our dog) developed a major skin issue / autoimmune disease, and wow, the bills! Trupanion covered SO MUCH of the months’ worth of bills totaling around $15,000. 😬 We now have our dog back to himself, and we didn’t break the bank! – Hip2Save reader
If you ever listen to one piece of advice, please, please let it be to look into pet insurance for your pets. I’ve seen firsthand how quickly unexpected vet bills can add up, and having insurance has helped cover a large portion of the costs after the deductible. Every plan is different, and pricing depends on your pet and coverage choices, but it’s something I’m truly grateful to have had in place. – Hip2Save Sidekick, Angela
Ready to choose a top-rated pet insurance company?
If you do decide pet insurance is for you, here are some top-rated providers that we recommend:
- ASPCA: ASPCA pet insurance will cover behavioral problems in addition to health problems.
- Embrace: Embrace pet insurance offers the best value for the price and a 24/7 pet health line.
- Fetch by The Dodo: Fetch pet insurance will cover online visits at no additional charge, and get 10% off every month for life!
- Figo: Figo pet insurance has some of the best emergency coverage and offers a 100% reimbursement option.
- Healthy Paws: Healthy Paws pet insurance processes claims quickly and also covers alternative care.
- Lemonade: Lemonade pet insurance offers up to 90% coverage with a $500 deductible while donating unused premiums!
- Nationwide: Nationwide pet insurance provides the best coverage for exotic pets and birds.
- Trupanion: Trupanion pet insurance pays hospitals directly and doesn’t have long waiting periods for coverage.
So… is pet insurance worth it? We think it’s better to be safe than sorry!
We’re so glad to hear that some people have been saved from financial ruin and are able to take care of their pets thanks to pet insurance. As always, consider what is best for you and your furry friend. No matter what you decide, I think we can all agree that pets make the world go around. ❤️
Is all this pet talk making you want to spoil your furry friend? Check out the best pet deals here!
Healthy Paws is amazing. The insurance more than pays for itself if your dog has medicine. What I like about Healthy Paw is that you have no paperwork to fill out. You just take a picture of the Vets bill and they send you a check. So easy!
We use Healthy Paws as well. I felt silly taking out a policy on a kitten, but months later, he needed emergency surgery, and then another major surgery the next day. The bill was THOUSANDS. I definitely did the right thing having him insured! I don’t know what I would have done without it! And it was not an unusual ailment for cats- quite common, in fact.
I’ve had about $10,000 in bills for ONE dog paid by Healthy Paws in the last couple of years — he got melanoma in his EYE and needed two surgeries by a top vet ophthalmologist to save the eye, and he got the cutting-edge immuno-therapy for melanoma that teaches his own immune system to mop up any surviving cancer. He has survived more than two years, and his team is optimistic that we beat the cancer — which rarely happens with dogs. It happened because we got him best-of-the-best care, due to Healthy Paws.
If anyone wants to get a Healthy Paws quote, if you go through this link, it will generate a small donation to German Shepherd Rescue for each new policy: https://tinyurl.com/rsgsr2
We have Nationwide and the monthly premium is paid through payroll deduction. They are fantastic and reimburse us very quickly for our claims. We got it when we first got our pup a year and a half ago and it has been so worth it. It even covers preventatives like heart worm pills and flea and tick meds.
Nationwide gives you a multiple pet discount, and if you already have them for home or auto when you add pet you get a discount too. No paperwork, just download the nationwide pet app, take a picture and they will send you a check or direct deposit into your bank account. You do have a 30day waiting period when you sign up, you can have regular insurance or a “rider” that covers wellness visits like nail cutting, heart worm /flea/tick, physicals, shots. I have been very impressed with them! If you sign up under someone you each get a $25 amazon gift card(bonus!). I like some people didn’t originally have pet insurance but after our first puppy was able to get to an extension cord accidentally, we ended up with over $5k of vet bills trying to save him, we immediately got insurance and it has more than paid for itself! One thing to note is nationwide will not always cover the full bill(you are only allowed so much each year for certain things – ie: $35 a year for nail clipping), they don’t reimburse for tax(I think that is true for most), and you do need to pay upfront but the reimbursement is usually less than a week.
I do PetSmart Banfield, it is more of a wellness plan, but it covers health visits, free teeth cleaning, discount off meds and some stuff inside Petsmart. I have 2 older dogs so I am constantly in for wellness checks, tummy issues, allergies. I have saved a lot of money. For 2 dogs I pay $60 a month.
I have Banfield and probably wouldn’t buy them again for future pets. My dog had stones blocking his urinate tract and the vet flat out said it is a procedure they are supposed to do but she didn’t have time and told me to go to an ER place. That was after my dog sat there all day! With that plan I should have saved 40% having it done at Banfield instead I had to go pay full price at a surgical center which was over $4000. Banfield should have been $1200 after the discount. Basically useless of a plan. I can get shots cheap anywhere.
You’re lucky…that wellness plan from Banfield was absolute trash for us. It covers very little, it was 50/50 if the manager on duty in store would honor the in store discount, I never got to see an actual vet…no joke. I’d ask to see a vet bc I thought the tech did something wrong…I’m told no…vets don’t do those appts only techs. Needless to say I’m at a new vet and will never ever go back to Banfield. The one in Cranberry Twp PA is horrible.
My answer isn’t the same anymore, that was 6 years ago. I don’t even have the same dogs.
I have to say Nationwide (formerly VPI) has been a huge life saver for us. We think of our pets as our children and our first dog has been with them since we got her around 9 months old. I had almost canceled the policy recently due to a 30% increase in premiums last year. Something told me to not do it. I’m so glad….she ended up almost dying. She became diabetic and dehydrated. It was over $3,000 for a stay in doggy icu to save her. They paid all but our deductible of $100. We then had issues with her blood sugar skyrocketing. We found out she had Cushings as well. They do have a maximum per premium year for items so we did still have a lot we paid out last year but we saved way more. The premium went up this year again but it will pay for itself since she takes insulin and veteroyl. All the other tests, immunizations, etc. will be paid for as well barring a major crisis.
As our pets get older they’re like us they need more medical attention. Just one or two items can make up for all those premiums you pay in the younger years.
If you’re going to do get insurance make sure to do before they turn ten. The younger the better the premiums. Most wont insure after 10.
I have First Pet insurance. As a rescue dog owner, the shelter has always offered me a free pet insurance trial. My second rescue had to be taken to the vet within the first month. She had a severe uti and ear infection estimated to have been there even before I got her from the shelter. The insurance originally denied the claim as pre-existing condition but paid later on account that dog left the shelter with insurance. Cookie got once more sick to the tune of $2k and we never found out what happened . The insurance eased the financial process. We decided to insure our first dog after that. Tips: Insure for what you need. If your dog is healthy, don’t get top of the line. Get based on your experience. If you adopt, for sure sign up for the trial. Call before renewing, you might want to reconsider the amount of insurance
I have two free roam house rabbits. They’re considered an exotic species so vet care is expensive. I started putting $300 a month in a separate account as an emergency vet fund. It is up to about $5000 now. I hope I never need to use it.
I have Bivvy. Saved us a bunch and it’s $29 a month and it includes wellness.
I have Fetch insurance for my two year old dog, and it’s been WELL worth the money. My premium is only $21/mo. My dog seems to always get into things and causes him parasites and other tummy issues. We have been at the vet more times than not. Everything has been covered by Fetch quite easily. They cover 80% and usually within a week I have my reimbursement. Zero complaints about Fetch.
I have Healthy Paws, it’s the only kind I’ve used so I can’t compare it to anything else. The claims process has been a little annoying, but it’s worthwhile in the end. I got it after my cat broke her foot and I spent a pretty penny on an x-ray and medicines. That same cat is now 11 years old and diagnosed with hyperthyroidism, which is common in older cats, the medicine is covered and I was able to appeal and get her required blood work covered (it’s the only way to monitor things, but they originally told me it was preventative care). I plan on doing the radiation treatment for her, which is a cure, and that can be a couple thousand dollars – so in that sense the insurance is definitely worthwhile. She’s technically a senior, but she’s still so young considering some cats can live over 20 years.
Nationwide discontinued our policy then increased the rate by 68% (no thanks). I was able to get the same coverage from Pet’s Best for even less than what Nationwide was charging and they pay our faster.
After spending $5k to to try and save out cat of 10 years from kidney disease,I realized sadly,that most people could not even think of spending that,and the average income household can no longer even have a pet because of the cost of vet care.When they need to see a vet,office visits alone for a check up and vaccinations are so high that most owners just skip it and hope for the best.😢We were blessed to be able to pay our bill,but it made me sad to think of all those who love their pets and can’t afford the cost of bills when they get sick.Pet insurance is great,but a luxury most incomes can’t support.We had two cats and now only one,and she is 12.For now she is healthy,but we know we will probably see more vet bills in our future soon because of her age,and insurance cost is way higher for older pets.Because of all this, and because we are getting older ,we have decided we will not have any more pets.Hurts my heart.The loss of a pet is so devastating 💔 Pet insurance is wonderful if you can budget it in.I wish everyone could have it.🐾💕🐾
So sorry to hear about your kitty’s illness, Debbie. 🥺 Glad you were able to provide care during that time. ❤️ I agree about how expensive routine vet visits are – I’ve sure felt it each time for my pup. Unexpected vet visits even more so. Our Hip sidekick, Angela, convinced me to check out pet insurance options, so we currently have coverage, which I know will be so helpful if it’s ever needed. Thanks so much for taking a moment to share about your experience and pets. Wishing your family and kitty the best! 🤗
Does anyone know of insurance for rescues? We rescued a shih tzu a year and a half ago. True rescue…like when she was dropped at our house she severely underweight, could barely stand, matted horribly, bugs, etc… Took a solid 6 months but she’s now one full year happy, healthy and thriving! We have no medical history, owner never found, etc…every insurance company I called wanted an insane amount of money for insurance and basically said it would only cover things like an accident. Apparently bc we have zero medical history insurance companies will treat everything like a pre-existing condition. So it’s basically useless for rescues…and a few of the company reps said as much to me as well.
Hi Jenn! Our Hip Sidekick, Angela, has rescues and pet insurance. Here’s what she shared with me – “I have Lemonade and they have you submit your medical stuff I got from the rescue or shelter and anything listed on there isn’t covered. So typically you just have to have the info from your first vet visit and from where you adopted from.” Hope this helps! 🩷
urgh…that’s my problem… Suki was found in bad shape wandering the streets by an individual. That person had a friend who said she’d take the dog while they searched for the owners. Friend takes dog and does the poor pooch no favors. A month later and no owners showed up and no reports of a missing dog. So that friend gives the dog back to the person who found her in just as bad if not worse shape. Lady calls me knowing my kids would love a dog and we have a perfect home for her. We say yes, 24hrs later Suki is in our home. Took her to the vet the next day. That’s our story…so I’m not qualified for insurance like a normal rescue bc there was no rescue agency involved. I offered to get the records from the police station and the vets where she was found demonstrating she was without a home/owner to prove she was a rescue but that wasn’t good enough. My only option would be to find a shelter willing to work with me but at the time when I called them everyone one said that I had to go through the process but they could promise I’d get her back…I’m sorry but I am not handing over a dog I just nursed back to health to an agency, not only will that be traumatizing for Suki and unnecessary but the agencies will charge me a few hundred to get her back and make me jump through home visit hoops, sign contracts, etc… nope… So frustrating and this is why we never rescued in the past.
Aww, that does sound frustrating. ❤️ My pup isn’t a rescue, but I do have pet insurance on him and the insurance companies customer service was super helpful with answering all my questions, if you’d want to try contacting the ones you’re most interested in using. A full vet check-up may still be required to discuss your rescue pup’s pre-existing conditions and current medical condition to be eligible for insurance.
Will be looking into insurance on our youngest dog my 7 year old has cost me 18k so far with cancer treaments.
Very sorry about your pup, Joanna. ❤️🩹 Hoping for a full recovery and that you’re able to find a pet insurance option to help ease the financial burden of treatments.
I greatly appreciate this post and all the comments. I’ve been wanting to get insurance on my dogs but not sure of what company to use. It gets a little overwhelming doing research but not knowing anyone that has used it.
I’ve had 3 friends that have had to do TPLO surgeries for their dogs and the cost was $6,000 up for both legs. After having senior dogs with heart problems etc it really makes you think. You never know what can happen. Especially if you have to go to a vet school. I had one friend the dog was 2 and developed a rare cancer and the cost was $28,000. I can’t even imagine. It’s very sad for people that can’t afford the medical care and having to make the horrible decision to euthanize the pet. Now that I have 3 young rescues I need to purchase some and this really helps with making a decision. Thank you!
You’re so welcome, Meg. 💓 So glad to hear this post and the reader feedback helped you start looking for pet insurance that feels right for your pups. 🐶 I’m really sorry to hear about your friend’s fur babies and those unexpected costs. I can definitely relate, hearing about others going through that was what pushed me to finally enroll in pet insurance too.
Look into Dutch pet telehealth insurance/medicine: $100/year for five pets unlimited visits included. I learned about it from a podcast between Tucker Carlson and Joe Spector, the founder. FYI states have varying laws about telehealth veterinary care.