Dog with Arthritis but is my insurance worth it?

medders2604

I have lifetime insurance for my dog and have claimed on it over the years for a number of things including her arthritis but nothing in last year or 2.
However she is getting old now (nearly 13 and quite a big dog) and I have just had her insurance renewal through. The new premium is £32 per month with an excess of £150 per condition per year and then I also have to pay 30% towards the cost of the claim as well.
As I mentioned she does have arthritis and takes painkillers every day to keep her moving (is very happy as long as she takes them) the monthly check-up and medication comes to a total of about £40 per month which means I can only claim £231 from insurance but bearing in mind my premiums are £384 is it worth keeping her insured?
I know other things could happen but not sure if I am better just putting the £32 per month on one side just in case or keeping the insurance.
Any suggestions please?? I can't go to another insurer as she is too old to be accepted and they would also exclude the arthritis.

tankgirl1

Personally I would always recommend keeping insurance - especially with an older pet, as there is just no way of knowing if you will need it. As I'm sure you know, you are much more likely to claim with an older pet, and as you say it would be difficult to get new insurance because of her age - and even if they did they would exclude her arthritis, and any associated problems which may develop in the future! Big dogs also cost more to treat than smaller ones in just about every way - from anaesthetics, to xrays, hospitalisation, and of course medication.

I would defiantly keep the insurance if I were you

lowis

personally, having just made claims over 18 months totalling £12,000 for my cat who had cancer, i would keep my insurance going. a £150 per condition excess plus 30% excess would make me think twice, but i think i would end up keeping my insurance, especially with an older pet x

UKTigerlily

And don't forget insurance covers third party also which IMO is worth it!

medders2604

Thanks for your comments I'll keep the cover going to be on the safe side.

potshot

This is not a joke - but try acupuncture. It really worked for my retriever and he didn't have to take any more drugs. Most good insurance policies will cover it

kurjam

medders2604 wrote: »

I have lifetime insurance for my dog and have claimed on it over the years for a number of things including her arthritis but nothing in last year or 2.
However she is getting old now (nearly 13 and quite a big dog) and I have just had her insurance renewal through. The new premium is £32 per month with an excess of £150 per condition per year and then I also have to pay 30% towards the cost of the claim as well.
As I mentioned she does have arthritis and takes painkillers every day to keep her moving (is very happy as long as she takes them) the monthly check-up and medication comes to a total of about £40 per month which means I can only claim £231 from insurance but bearing in mind my premiums are £384 is it worth keeping her insured?
I know other things could happen but not sure if I am better just putting the £32 per month on one side just in case or keeping the insurance.
Any suggestions please?? I can't go to another insurer as she is too old to be accepted and they would also exclude the arthritis.

i feel sorry for you, but would it not be kinder to let your dog be put to sleep?
we had the same thing in may this year, our springer spaniel had arthritis in her back legs, she could hardly walk and took many tablets everyday..some days she struggled to get off her bed to go to the loo even with tablets, she had also had her knee part on her back legs operated on due to an accident when smaller...
she was 14years old, it was the hardest thing i have had to do and i still miss her, byt slowly i got better each day...
i still miss her but you must do what is right for your dog.
what ever you decide it will be for the best.
hope you go on alright !!

lowis

kurjam - sorry to hear about your doggie, must be difficult for you. i am sure the OP would be the best judge on whether her dog is ready to be PTS - there are different levels of severity of arthritis, it can be mild and an animal can live quite happily with it. i suspect my cat has a touch of arthritis because when he first wakes up he slightly limps, as if he is stiff in one leg. it soon wears off and he resumes playing chase with his brother.

Hintza

Although we don't know the severity of the OP's dog. I suspect there are many who do not know when it is time to let go.

I for one would not be paying any insurance on a 13 year old dog and assuming it is still happy would muddle along until the next big thing came along and would then think seriously about euthanasia.

lowis

that's your choice hintza. and yes i am sure some people do wait too long to do the right thing. and if by 'muddling along' you mean keeping a pet alive that is in constant pain then i agree with you.

vet care has come along leaps and bounds and what may have been considered untreatable 5 years ago is now treatable - at a cost. this is where insurance comes in, i would personally hate to be faced with having to put my pet down just because i couldn't afford the treatment. i had a cat with cancer and if it wasn't for the insurance paying for treatment she wouldn't have had the extra 2 years of normal, quality life that she had - doesn't sound much but in human years that's probably about 10-12 years of extra life.

medders2604

Thanks for all your comments, as long as she takes the painkillers and doesn't do too much she is fine, I did think I was going to have her PTS a while ago when she was struggling to get up but the vet suggested we try new medication and within hours she was back to herself. I do know they are not going to work forever but while she is happy and not in pain I'll just keep on with the drugs. It would seem wrong to put a happy dog TS while she still has a fairly good quality of life.