Published: October 23, 2009 10:55 pm         

PAW PRINTS: Deciding if pet insurance is right for you and your pet

TERRE HAUTE — Few people understand all the facets of insurance. Policies are often confusing when determining which type, rate, or if we even need it at all.

Pet health insurance usually requires you to pay your veterinarian, you file a claim, and then you are reimbursed a portion or all of the fees, with most insurance companies requiring a deductible. Insurance is used to minimize financial loss should your pet need veterinary care.

The purpose of pet insurance is to ensure that you will be able to get the veterinary care your pet needs should a medical emergency occur.

Oftentimes, owners are forced to euthanize their pets due to unaffordable expenses. According to the American Pet Products Manufacturers Association, Americans will spend approximately $9.4 billion this year on the health of their pets.

Deciding if pet insurance is for you, generally, depends on your financial situation.

If your pet unexpectedly needed emergency veterinary care that would cost $1,000, $2,000, or more, would you be able to afford it?

If so, then you probably don’t need pet insurance.

If not, and euthanasia would be the necessary decision, then you might want to consider pet insurance.

Pet insurance can offer the comfort of knowing that you can care for your pet without compromising veterinary care.

Pet insurance will not cover pre-existing conditions so it will be necessary to purchase a policy before your pet becomes ill.

Keep in mind that premiums will increase as your pet gets older and most policies have spending limits. It’s important to do your research when deciding on which policy to buy as not all pet health insurance companies offer the same value.

Make sure the policy covers your veterinarian; sometimes you will need to choose from a network of veterinarians.

Like people insurance, pet insurance is offered with different types of policies. Various policies pay only for accidents or medical problems; others will pay for preventative care such as vaccinations, spays/neuters and worming. The type of coverage will affect the premium paid.

A number of policies will have a maximum they will pay out each year or per event.

The policies that are available include accident only, accident and illness, wellness care, and senior pets. Typically, cat health insurance is cheaper than dog health insurance.

Reasons include: cats usually live indoors and are generally healthier.

They also have a tendency to not get into trouble such as eating foreign objects or chasing after cars.

Approximately 2 to 3 percent of pets in the U.S. have health insurance. Pet insurance is popular in other countries, as more than half of all the pets in the U.K. have pet insurance.

More than 1,500 U.S. companies offer pet health insurance as a benefit. Pet

insurancereview.com is a site that offers feature comparisons between companies, ratings of various insurance companies, and policy quotes from multiple insurers.



Trina

Trina is a quiet but friendly collie mix. At 4 years old, she’s a young adult and weighs just under 50 pounds. She appears to be house-trained. She is very affectionate and smart. Trina knows “sit and down.” She loves attention and would be a wonderful family member. Come visit this sweet girl at the Terre Haute Humane Shelter at 1811 Fruitridge Ave. or call (812) 232-0293.