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PetCare insurance

I have VPI (Veterinary Pet Insurance) for Oliver. I have had it for about a year now and with all of his bouts with diarrhea, it has about paid for itself. After being on this website,I looked further into his insurance and I dont think it will cover anything genetic, so Im hoping that wont be a problem...but, down the road, who knows...I think at this point it would be too late to switch as he will have a lot excluded--including his stomach issues which have been quite costly.

Does anyone else have VPI or heard anything about it?
 
I've heard of VPI. I believe it is the most popular insurance company in the USA primarily because they marketed to vets, who then passed along the brochures, etc. However, the catch with VPI, as you note, is that they do not cover genetic problems. With cavaliers, their genetic problems are expensive to treat. MVD and SM are highly prevalent genetic disorders with cavaliers, and both require costly, long-term treatments of medication and possibly even surgery.

If your dog outgrows its stomach problems--or the occurrances of issues become less frequent now that he's older--you might want to consider switching. Weighing the cost of the treatment he needs for a stomach issues vs the treatments for MVD or SM, you'd probably be better off with a different company.

Please, note, though--this is just my two cents!!

FYI:
The other insurance company in the US that covers genetic diseases besides PetCare is PetPlan www.gopetplan.com
 
Thank you---I will definitely look into it. I appreciate the feedback, Cindy!

Didn't you just get another Cav named Holly? I like the name...:)
 
Why, yes I did. Our Holly (11mo old ruby) came to us just 6 days ago. We're looking into her insurance as well!! ;)
 
Thanks, Molly's Mom, and Moviedust, for replying to my frantic message. :)

I did a search on both insurance companies. I was going to try to compare the plans, but I don't know how easy that would have been. As it happens, PetPlan doesn't offer insurance in Massachusetts so I signed up for PetCare immediately. 90% coverage, maximum of $36K, at almost $50/month! Yikes! Guess I could have searched for other companies as well, but I just wanted to sign up right away.

The vet has to send their file on Molly to the insurance company within 30 days. I'm going to ask them to give me a copy of what they send so I know for myself what was noted. It really should only be diarrhea, but who knows what else I might have mentioned??

Now I just hope I can wait the 30 days to take my Molly to the vet for the "symptoms" she's experiencing... (But you didn't hear that from me) ;)

Bev, do you have any idea how Molly's SM treatment and surgery cost you (or would cost without insurance)? I know this is a personal question, so if you choose not to answer, I certainly understand. It just sounds sooooo expensive, I wondered how expensive it really is... :(

How is Molly doing? Do you have any more recent photos? :D

-laura
 
Laura,

I'm glad you to hear signed up for insurance. Just remember any symptoms of any illness have to appear after the 30 day waiting period.;)

Molly's MRI was $1400 (I think it may pay to shop around)
The SM surgery totaled $3200. With the insurance, the MRI and the surgery both fell under the nervous system catagory so my $3000 limit was eaten up quickly. As you may have seen in my thread, Molly had a very unusual set back with neck pain. Multiple hospital visits, and testing brought the grand total to almost double the initial MRI and surgery. We were lucky that the repeat MRI and subsequent CAT scan were paid for through a research fund. Again let me preface that Molly's complication is not the norm.

The most recent pics of Molly can be found here:
http://board.cavaliertalk.com/showthread.php?t=18633

Where is Peabody MA? My oldest daugher will be a senior at Clark University in Worcester this fall.
 
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Wow... that sure is lots o' money. But I can see from your photos that Molly is a beautiful girl; how lucky you are to have each other.

I know they say any symptoms have to appear after the 30 day waiting period, but how would anyone know? I mean, right now, Molly's symptom is scratching. That could very well be normal (it could be that I'm paranoid, but I just have a funny feeling about it). Assuming nothing changes, great... it's nothing. But what if, say, on day 39, she starts the touch sensitivity, or something else that prompts me to go to the vet. And say, they determine she has SM (God forbid, but I'm trying to make a point here) at that point. Since day 39 was the first time I take her to the vet for scratching, it would be covered, right?

Well, let's hope I'm just being paranoid. After all, I am a first time mom. :D

Peabody is north of Boston, near Salem. I know a couple of people who went to Clark, but I was never there. Is your daughter excited?
 
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