Is it worth insuring an elderly cat

mrsdwhite

My cat is getting on now, he is 13 coming up to 14. Mostly he is in good health. Though last years we spent a few months going back and forth from the vets as he had some mystery condition that wasn't getting any better, it turned out in the end to be a blocked anal gland and since that was sorted he has gone back to being fine.
While we were trying to work out what was wrong with him he was treated for numerous problems such as arthritis as he was massively over grooming his backend. A heart murmur which went after his blocked anal gland was treated and fleas (which he didn't have) due to the over grooming.
We claimed what we could to cover the treatment for all of this from his insurance though that meant that they will now never pay for anything to do with fleas, arthritis, or his heart as he has been treated for it and the cover was a basic cover which doesn't have life long treatment.
I continued to pay the premiums but the contract is now due for renewal and I'm wondering if it's still worth it? I can't shop around now as the issues we had last year will be considered pre existing and not covered, the premiums will go up because we claimed and the existing insurer won't cover things like arthritis anymore as they have already paid out for it once which at his age may well become an issue in the future.
Shall I just cancel the cover and try to out a little to one side each month just in case?

~Chameleon~

The massive over grooming at his back end was almost certainly caused by the blocked anal gland rather than arthritis. What diet do you feed him? This would be the most likely culprit of his blocked anal gland, more frequently seen in dogs than cats but it does occur, especially when being fed diets that aim to reduce waste elimination.

I wouldn't call your cat particularly elderly at 13 but insure policies would add an age premium. May well be better off saving a monthly amount to use in case of future vet bills.

mrsdwhite

He eats a mix of normal dry food and wet, which is what he was on when I adopted him and told to keep him on. It has never happened before or since thankfully. He doesn't sound old at 13 but he is definitely slower and spends a lot more of his time sleeping these days!
I always had him insured before as I know cats have tendencies of getting hurt out and about and wanted to know it could be paid for if that happened. I can't decide if its worth it anymore as the insurance barely paid anything towards what we paid last year, along with sending a letter saying they would never cover those issues again so it seems pointless now.
I am quite annoyed at the vet for not finding the issue sooner and leaving him in so much pain for so long to cost us a fortune and effectively rendering our insurance useless by writing on his notes all of the things that (we now know) he doesn't have.

~Chameleon~

mrsdwhite wrote: »

I am quite annoyed at the vet for not finding the issue sooner and leaving him in so much pain for so long to cost us a fortune and effectively rendering our insurance useless by writing on his notes all of the things that (we now know) he doesn't have.

Yes, I would be too! As a (now retired) vet, for me the symptoms were immediately obvious and very much related. I guess hind sight is a wonderful thing and would pretty much depend upon the experience of the vet(s) treating him. Any possible action of recourse?

mrsdwhite

I did wonder if it was a problem with his anal glands but didn't like to try to tell the vet how to do their job. I did keep taking him back when I wasn't convinced the treatment they were trying was right and it was my insistence that led to them trying that as a last resort, he was better almost immediately bless him.
I didn't bother with it all at the time as I was just glad he was ok as I was coming round to the idea that he might well die as we were considering things like tumours and surgery before they found it.
I have dug the letter out now to see exactly what is no longer covered and it is this:
Lethargy, over grooming and resulting conditions, growths, tumours and resulting conditions, heart conditions and bone diseases.
Doesn't leave much else really, especially as those are things more likely to happen with his age.

I may ask the vet to remove those things from his notes but suspect that it won't make a difference now.
Yes, hindsight is a wonderful thing!

gettingready

With so many vet visits, a lot of things would be excluded as "pre-existing" I am afraid and not covered by insurance - if you decided to insure him/her now

his_missus

I have chosen now not to insure my two older cats (14years+) partly because I think if they were really ill (such as cancer) the kindest thing would be you-know-what

Other conditions often aren't covered by insurance or the treatment costs are just over the excess I'd have to pay anyway so insurance isn't worthwhile having.

They don't wander too far thses days so I doubt I would be faced with broken limbs etc.

I would advise having some money put aside for any future treatment.

bacardi66

When my cat got to 14/15 I stopped insuring him - the premiums were so high and I was facing redundancy. I thought that if he was in road accident, got cancer etc I wouldn't want to subject him to lots of treatment/operations as it wouldn't be fair on him at his age and he is a very nervous cat who hates the vet so I would have wanted him to be PTS.

I have put the money saved aside "just in case" but he is now 19 and in good health - I dread to think how much the premiums would be now if I had carried on insuring him!!

UKTigerlily

his_missus wrote: »

I have chosen now not to insure my two older cats (14years+) partly because I think if they were really ill (such as cancer) the kindest thing would be you-know-what

Other conditions often aren't covered by insurance or the treatment costs are just over the excess I'd have to pay anyway so insurance isn't worthwhile having.

They don't wander too far thses days so I doubt I would be faced with broken limbs etc.

I would advise having some money put aside for any future treatment.

Remember older cats are more likely to get things like diabetes, thyroid problems & kidney disease & these conditions can be pretty expensive

his_missus

UKTigerlily wrote: »

Remember older cats are more likely to get things like diabetes, thyroid problems & kidney disease & these conditions can be pretty expensive

As is the insurance premium for them on the off chance they may get a long term condition. It's a risk I've been prepared to take.

UKTigerlily

I pay £17 a month for my oldie which isn't too bad at all, still if you can afford thousands it's not a problem either way, I wouldn't insure if I could get a credit card or had savings