Increase in dog insurance

r710

Hi, hope someone can offer some advice..

We have a 3 year old lab. I searched carefully for pet insurance for her and settled on the Halifax extra policy which gives approx £6k per condition per year. Originally I paid approx £16 per month for this.

Unfortunately, she soon developed atopic dermatitis and we spent many a trip to the vets trying to get a diagnosis, trips to specialists for allergy tests and a lot of money was spent trying to find medication which suited her. At one point she was on Atopica which was in the region of £175 per month, and on special food which cost £65 per large bag, but disappointingly, this made no difference. To be fair, Halifax have been really good, paying out without quibble and quickly.

Having tried numerous medication, along with herbal tinctures etc, it seems the only thing which helps her dermatitis is a low level dose of steroids. Ideally she wouldn't be on them at all, but it seems we've exhausted all options, and our vet is satisfied that we continue to treat her this way.

Our problem is that we have just had our pet insurance renewal from Halifax and it's £42 per month. Eek! It was until recently £30. I understand we've benefitted greatly from having the insurance in the first 2 years but we haven't claimed anything in the last six months. Our financial circumstances have changed within the last year and we just can't afford that figure with everything else going up too. I am well aware that another insurerer won't cover this pre-existing condition, but given that we are now medicating her with relatively cheap medication, a few pounds a month (no prescription needed), do you think we should try to change provider and forgo the cover for this condition?

I guess I would also need to question what happens if the use of steriods leads to other illnesses, as we have been warned they could possibly lead to diabetes or make her more susceptible to other problems later on in life.

What does anyone advise? Will Halifax be up for a haggle or will they know they have me over a barrel about her existing condition? Clearly would be more happy to put the money towards my dogs care rather than the increase in Council Tax, bills etc, but I just can't afford them all...:(

Thanks for reading.

glyn260962

I myself have got 9 LABS . Silly as it sounds , is it its bedding that it is allergic to. Have you changed your washing powder. There is some stuff by a company called FISH4DOGS , they do a product which is SALMON OIL , it is about £5-£6 a bottle , put that in some water. Mine are fed fresh tripe and that is really good for their skins and coats

glyn260962

Try a company called csj . You can get the number off the web . They are a dog food company but do a lot of natural sustances. Give them a ring as they are very helpful . We use them for food and other things ourselves

r710

Thanks for taking the time to reply. 9 labs? Omg, am imagining the mud!

She's allergic to house dustmites, and feathers to name a few things. We got rid of all cushions etc and swapped her to an anti-bacterial vetbed. We have medicated shampoos for her and are really careful about washing powder for her towels etc.

We give her evening primrose oil, cod liver oil and have tried various herbal tinctures. I'd heard of the Salmon Oil but was unsure whether to give it a go as nothing else much seems to help. I'll take a look at that website, thanks. Piriton seems to relieve the symptoms and it's noticeable if she doesn't have that now.

Guess we have little option of continuing the insurance for now. Something else will have to give..

regards

hethmar

Have a look at Aromesse. Im sure people must think I have shares in this firm, wish I did have! Its been a life saver (literally) for some people I have recommended it to. My own dog was on steroids and is now off them. The vet wanted to put my second dog on steroids for his skin condition and I didnt go on them, just used aromesse on him. I have told literally dozens of people about this stuff and many of them have bothered to contact and thank me as it has transformed their dogs' lives. Its 100% natural, so no need to worry about side effect (unlike steroids :eek:). And money back guaranteed and at about £8 for a block of soap shampoo - well, thats less than a third of a visit to our vet without the cost of meds.

Have a go, you have nothing to lose and everything to gain.

http://www.aromesse.com/skin-problem/petnat-equinat-healthcare-treatment-photos.html

I prefer the soap block - my dogs dont like the sound of the spray.

Ive also used the itchy ear drops. Id taken little dog several times for ear "infections" which took weeks of steroids and antibiotics to sort - they were talking about an operation on his ear canal. Next time it happened I used the itchy ear drops (scared as I was, thought nothing to lose really). Two days later, no itching, no redness/heat on the ear flap. Sorted and that was nearly a year back. Im quite convinced now it wasnt an recurring infection but the skin allergy affecting his ears.

The aromesse isnt a cure but it controls the itchiness without the use of harmful meds.

r710

Thanks for the link to Aromesse. Am going to pace an order. As you say, we have nothing to lose and we live in hope of something like this working.

Am always hopeful when we hear good reviews about products that could, potentially, help.

Regards

rising_from_the_ashes

re the insurance, I'd stick with it if you can. If it's not affordable, then have a hunt around and see how much another provider would cost (obviously excl this condition) - if you know what the cause is and treatment is affordable to buy then it's maybe a risk worth taking (and maybe put away a few £££ each month in case you need more done in the future).

Both my cats are insured but my old lab isn't - I rehomed him and couldn't get an accurate age on him (between 5 and 7) and had no medical history so the insurance co's wanted over £45/month (and that was 5 years ago) plus a £150 excess/condition. I worked out that this would be nearly £700/annum if I made one claim!

Yes, I've been lucky - he's been to the vets for the "usual" things - upset tummy (couple of times a year as he eats ANYTHING), yukky ears which usually costs around £80 a time but that is well under the excess anyway.

He's now on medication for arthritis but buying this online (incl vets prescription charge) costs less than £15/month.

Good luck.

Hethmar - thanks for the link/advice - def going to give it a try. Mr B has an allergy and gets horrible sores on his tum (nothing like those poor wee dogs on the site, what a fantastic result) so hoping this may be soothing.

hethmar

Well, my Diggs came to us from death row - he was literally naked from waist down and had bald spots on his sides and a huge open sore on his throat area. His tummy and back legs looked red raw and he had black "elephant type" skin on his throat. Vet said to me he needs to go on steroids and dont think the hair will ever all return. 6 months later, no steroids ever taken, only shampooed several times a week (at first) with the soap and the groomer was moaning how long it was taking to cut his hair.

This time of year he starts itching on his tummy and back legs again, so Im about to start bathing him with aromesse again for the first time in months.

hethmar

When I first told my vet I was getting this stuff he said "Give me your money and Ill put it down the drain for you now". A year later he was asking why I hadnt requested any steroids! I learnt about it through my work with rescue dogs - several of the rescues had been trialling it and they were amazed at the results, so I had a go and Im very pleased I did. You start to feel nothing is ever going to help them but thank goodness one of the boys never has any probs with his skin now (though he nibbles his paws now and then in the spring/summer). That boy had £500 of allergy testing and was on steroids for unknown allergies, possibly his own skin yeast. So when second boy came along, I thought no way am I starting him on steroids without giving aromesse another go.

Obviously if your mutts are on steroids you must slowly wean them off.

I really hope it works for you both. But as I said, Ive literally had dozens of people saying they are so pleased to have heard about it. One lady had had her poor westie on steroids since he was just 6 months old. He isnt on them any more - she said she changed vet and her new vet has commented on how good his skin and coat is

Do let us know how yours get on, good (I hope) or otherwise news.