Insurance or no insurance for my 2 year old Labrador?

unkel

Apologise if this comes up regularly, I did a search but couldn't get any helpful posts.

My dog Rose is a female Labrador, she'll be 2 years old at the end of next month. She was neutered at 7 months. No health issues at all, but she has had an ear infection twice (probably from swimming in the Liffey)

What are the pros and cons of dog insurance, how much does it cost, what insurer would you recommend? Like my own health insurance, I have a very high excess of something like €500. I can pay for unexpected costs of hundreds but I'm dreading Rose would get something seriously wrong with her that would cost thousands to sort that I couldn't afford

pinktoe

My parents have pet insurance on their GSDs from the time they get them. Only 1 out of 5 had arthritis and a twisted stomach. The other 3 lived to 12 or so and died without any conditions and the final one is 5 also free from anything. It was their first one that had the problems.

Due to my parents age they are going to continue with insurance incase the dog gets sick or incase of a potential health problem but the insurance costs have outweighed the medical bills imo.

I have a 7 year old gsd which I adopted two years ago and haven't insurance on her. If something happens I would think I'm in a position to pay for her so I haven't bothered.

I think they pay around 200 for the insurance per dog so say 5 dogs live for 12 years thats 12000 in insurance. They use Allianz, I'm not saying its the cheapest but they seem to be with them for years.

Is it cheaper to pay the insurance or the dreaded vet fee? Hard to say, obviously a sum each year is easier to deal with than a huge bill but how often will a large bill arrive?

I'm pretty sure the insurance only covers up to 4000 in vet fees.

I think monthly it costs €17.

I'm not going to say anything about Labradors health issues as I know very little about them but I think they have a higher risk of a twisted stomach.

IMO I think you'll pay more than you claim but obviously the insurance would be handy if your having a bad month and then your dog gets ill

unkel

Thanks pinktoe. I'm not that worried about being confronted with an issue that costs hundreds. Rose's hysterectomy cost less than €200 and that's a fairly serious operation.

But are there situations where you would look at costs of thousands? That's what frightens me.

pinktoe

You would have to ask your vet about the price of surgery for a twisted stomach. I think that was expensive when it happen back in the 90s (definitely in the low thousands but I'd have to ask them)

The arthritis medication was expensive but again a lot can change since the 90s.

All big dogs can get arthritis and twisted stomachs. I think twisted stomach risks can be lowered by giving their food a couple of times a day instead of one big meal and if your dog is fast at eating get a bowl that slows them down in the pet shop.

We cant predict if a dog will be healthy or not in its last years but the two issues I mentioned could happen. I dont know the present costs and hope I dont have to find out.

tk123

unkel wrote: »

But are there situations where you would look at costs of thousands? That's what frightens me.

Yes 100% - cruciate surgery for a lab could cost you close to €2500 (yes I know there are cheaper/inferior options for smaller dogs).

I’ve had 12-13k in claims for one dog so insurance all the way in this house. If your dog is sent to a referral hospital they’ll likely expect you to pay up front - there are no payment plans etc. My friends dog had to get emergency surgery when she had something impacted and it was over 1k.. I could go on and on.

It really comes down to how much you can get your hands on quickly and I guess where you’re located to base any prices on. I’m in Dublin so everything is expensive lol

It’s the same as any other insurance you pay so it’s there if you need it and accept and be glad if your pet is well and you don’t claim.

cocker5

unkel wrote: »

Thanks pinktoe. I'm not that worried about being confronted with an issue that costs hundreds. Rose's hysterectomy cost less than €200 and that's a fairly serious operation.

But are there situations where you would look at costs of thousands? That's what frightens me.

Pet insurance is like any insurance at the time year on year paying with no claims you may think why bother .. then bang.. when you need it you def need it and are glad you have it.

Over the last 4/5 years we’ve had to claim
An average on 3-4k each year for numerous things.. had very little claims up to when my dog was 10 ..

I’ll put it in perspective.. 4 weeks ago my dog had to go to the vet (won’t bore you with the details) .. in one 24 hour period the bills were as follows:

Vet appointment in the afternoon until early evening - he was kept in there for 5 hours €285 (IV fluids, antibiotics, urine etc)
Then moved to UCD over night €465 (full bloods, more IV, ultrasound, over night fee
Next day 2 x CT scans €1,075

UCD deposit needs to be paid once dog is dropped off .. and balance when collected
CT scans needed to be paid in full on collection
My own vet do direct claim

Personally I’d never be without it .. for all the years and months I didn’t claim .. when I did claim in later years the amounts were substantial.. I find Allianz excellent to be honest

Even with ongoing health issues not emergency situations it still was a massive help for my guy I regularly claimed for the following :

Heart murmur (his monthly supplements €165)
Hip dysplasia (monthly supplements, weekly hydro, cold laser therapy €250 plus per month )

Everybody is different but I’ve heard numerous dog owners saying god I wish I had insurance..