Pet insurance - to have or not to have?

I would always recommend taking out pet insurance.

Maggiemaybe
It is quite common round here in rural Wiltshire. The first time the fox got her in the leg - she obviously got away and ran up my neighbour's plum tree, He heard her yelling and we went out to get her. Pitch black, howling gale and lashing with rain and me in my dressing gown! We got her down and there was some blood from teeth marks so we cleaned her up and took her to the vet first thing the next day for antibiotics. He looked at the teeth marks and said it was a fox. 6 months later a fox nearly took her tail off but luckily he managed to save it. We have a church just behind us and behind that there is a large woodland area. We often see people with shotguns up there as squirrels are a bit of a pest too. Not red, the tree rats.

try to check out independent vets not the ones part of a chain , my vet does his own insurance which ranges from £30 -50 per month for dogs depending on size and breed , for that cost you are covered for everything including vacs worming fleeing, any emergencies etc check ups etc .

I've been desperately wanting a rescue dog for ages but the cost of insurance puts me off. I just can't afford around £50 a month but wouldn't dare risk going without. I also suspect that once the vet knows you have insurance the cost of treatment goes up!
I grew up on a farm where we had several working dogs and cats, as well as the farm livestock and I don't ever recall vet insurance being mentioned, this was during the 40s and 50s so maybe it wasn't available then.

My dog over the years has given me unconditional love and devotion, no matter how grumpy I am, or if I tread on a paw by mistake, or even forget to feed her and she has to remind me. For that love, I would ALWAYS insure her. I could not live with myself were she to need veterinary care and I couldn't afford it, and the only course of action were to have her put down! It's as simple as that in my book.

No insurance, have three dogs. Put £50 monthly in a separate bank account got about £5,000 in now, some of this was boosted by puppy sales. Parasite prevention and vaccinations pay for separately. Have paid in the past for tetanus which cost £6,000, very rare in carnivores, 24 hr nursing in specialist vets, they kept the bill down as much as possible as knew I was paying. It depends on your finances but that was the only time in 50 years of dog keeping that such a catastrophe happened.

I took out insurance on my two cats when they were babies 18 years ago, when they were 6 weeks old. 4 years laters one of them wasn't well and he was diagnosed with a condition that would be life long. The insurance company refused to pay out as they claimed it was an pre-existing condition. Not true! I stopped paying the insurance. READ THE SMALL PRINT carefully.

Yes yes yes...get insurance! Go onto a comparison website to get best prices although Direct Line are good as is Petplan....just check the excess like you would for any insurance but whatever you do get it!

I would always recommend dog insurance - we moved from another country recently and they would not transfer our dog insurance despite us being with a UK insurance company - our dog is 10 years old and on heart tablets that cost us 300.00 every 3 months, these were covered when we were Insurance’s. I am constantly worried that if he becomes ill for any reason we will be in for a really hefty vet bill -

I can tell you from experience it’s well worth taking out pet insurance. I had a beloved cat who developed Lymphoma at the age of 12 and my pet insurance at the time allowed for ten thousand pounds as a maximum for one condition. The treatment gave him a good quality of life and we had an extra two and a half years with him, which we wouldn’t have had as we would never have been able to afford the specialist treatment. Over that period, the treatment cost just over nine thousand pounds, and it allowed him to come to the end of his ‘borrowed time’ naturally, as we were just under the limit.

Our new moggy is insured with Pet Plan, which in my opinion offers the best value for money. Their premium plan allows for eight thousand pounds worth of treatment per condition, per year, but they have cheaper plans available. It’s not cheap (ours is around twenty five pounds a month for the premium plan) but knowing what I know now I would always insure a pet because treatment is so expensive and it may be the difference between life and death for them if you can’t afford it. Our mog was hit by a car earlier this year and broke his jaw. The treatment and hospitalisation was over a thousand pounds and the insurance paid up with no quibble or fuss. Our vet also offers an additional plan for twice yearly check ups which includes all vaccination boosters and excellent prescription grade flea and worm treatments. This costs around eight pounds a month but when you add up the cost of the boosters, worming and flea treatments, the plan works out cheaper. You never know what’s round the corner and if you value your pet, it’s well worth it.

Without a doubt, go for the insurance.

Without a doubt, go for the insurance.

Without a doubt, go for the insurance.

Without a doubt, go for the insurance.

Without a doubt, go for the insurance.

Without a doubt, go for the insurance.

Without a doubt, go for the insurance.

Without a doubt, go for the insurance.

We had cat insurance with More Than and needed it when he had surgery. They also paid out some money when he was sadly run over and killed. Obviously we weren’t worried about that ? but I’d definitely take out insurance again. We also has a pet plan at the local vets which covered regular stuff like nail clipping, vaccinations etc. None of it big money and less if your pet is young and healthy.

Having read most of the replies, I'm glad I don't have any pets. No hairs all over the place, no hsving to go in long walks at least twice a day no matter the weather or how you feel. No cleaning up after them (dogs AND cats), no vets bills and having to either find kennels while you go on holiday or find a hotel which will take animals (and you still have daily walks and poop scooping to do)
Other than that, you have to have relatives or friends to look after them for the duration.
No thanks.

*oops! having
on not in

YES yes yes. Insure the pup immediately before it gets any health problems, which would void any insurance claims for related illnesses. Make sure it is Lifetime insurance, which will cover the dog for any life long illnesses.
Its great for peace of mind. Once you get attached to your dog you will do anything to keep them alive.
Do a google search for lifetime pet insurane, and decided what amou t of cover you want.
I'm with Petplan and Lifetime with £4000, which doesn't go far if the dog needs tests, scans and other in depth treatment.

Enjoy your puppy. Very hard work for months, but suddenly they get everything.

Definitely get pet insurance, I had a cat who had heart failure, luckily she was insured,she had a year on tablets then sadly had a massive heart attack which killed her,
The tablets would have cost me £30 a month,
I have 3 other cats all insured with Animal friends,less than £6 a month,excess is £60,
Dog would have cost more, but nothing like £40
My dog is covered by the PDSA which was £7-50 a year, they have just stopped that as it was costing them too much ,they now do it for £4-50 a month, still well worth it,
My dog developed a skin condition, which would have cost me £66, it cost me ^, as they ask you to pay a percentage, I paid more than the £6 though as I was very grateful for the reduction
All those paying upwards of £40 I am sure you can get it much cheaper,
I couldn't afford that,but I do recommend getting it for life especially for dogs as they are more likely to get injuried etc
My cats are indoor cats, go in the garden sometimes, but never go away, but could develop illnesses,
To get PDSA cover you need certain conditions like council tax or housing benefit, and I think pension credit counts too,but worth enquiring about

Yes always get pet insurance our setter develop epilepsy at 2 years old the pills the treatment you have to have you never know just research and compare companies

Regarding worming and flea treatments I buy off the internet, just the same stuff as from the vets, but I don't worm or flea treat monthly, only twice a year, but they are mostly indoor cats
Also don't vaccinate after the initial one,they don't need it, and now even some vets agree the vaccines last for about 3 years
I do vaccinate my dog regularly and flea and worm more often than the cats as she obviously goes out, and wouldn't risk her catching anything
Its all about money with vets insisting flea and worming monthly,
Never ever seen a flea on my cats or dog
It is just too many chemicals,