Dog insurance, pre existing condition - Cruciate Ligament

Hi, I reserved a dog from an adoption home that a couple of months ago had Cruciate Ligament Surgery, they are still recovering and have a good prognoses. I have read up on this and it has the potential to happen with another leg and will likely cause arthritus over time.

What I am wondering is, is it possible at all, any way to get insurance to cover the dog for this, we are happier to pay what I would assume to be inflated premiums, or would it be a case of covering him for everything else and should issues resulting from this occur we will have to pay?

We are very responsible pet owners and should the case be no insurance we will get estimates for any potential problems and costs and put the money away immediately, but obviously we would rather he be covered. Thanks
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  • toniq
    toniq Posts: 29,340
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    edited 29 December 2016 at 8:15PM
    If it has been 2 years since he had treatment you might have a chance with one of a few insurers.

    My dog had that very same surgery a few months ago, we put £100 a month into an ISA to cover future vet bills, since we paid the £1600 for surgery out of his £2000 saved he has another £400 saved now.

    I know this one covers you from 2 years after treatment for an ailment https://boughtbymany.com/offers/pre-existing-medical-conditions-pet-insurance/

    This is just by my own knowledge of looking at this market after my dog had the surgery but I preferred the route of saving ourselves, we do have decent savings too that will more than cover our boy if the ISA isn't enough.

    Our dog was initially insured from birth but when he turned 8 his premiums went to over £90 a month even though we had never claimed, so we set up the ISA with a decent sum to get going and sods law a few months later he tore his cruciate.
    #JusticeForGrenfell
  • Unfortunately the surgery was only in October, we fell in love with him before we realised the seriousness of what he'd had done, so we won't be letting him stay in the kennels!

    I think the best option might be to save and then go for insurance in 2 years if no further symptoms have presented. Poor pup is only 14 months old and don't want him being pts because no-one wants the burden!
  • Person_one
    Person_one Posts: 28,884
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    14 months and a cruciate repair already? Is he a very large breed?

    As the first cruciate has gone at such a young age I'd say you're almost guaranteed to get the other one going and fairly soon too. My dog had both done almost exactly 12 months apart. You're also potentially looking at a lifetime of arthritis treatment, anti-inflammatories, joint supplements, maybe steroids down the line so be prepared for that to be considered a pre-existing condition too.

    You say you would save for 2 years, does that mean you wouldn't have the money to hand if the other cruciate were to go in 3, 6, 9 or 12 months?

    Its admirable that you're wiling to take him on still knowing that there will be trouble ahead, but please think it through very very carefully!
  • He's a boxer cross, crossed with a Staff from the looks of it but can't be sure, probably average boxer size at the moment.

    I've done some reading and had guessed the other would go, also along with arthritis. Do you know how soon arthritis will likely need treatment? My plan is to phone our vets that he will be registered with tomorrow and ask their advice, likely costs etc. We're also visiting the dog again Saturday (won't be collecting until next week) so will ask for some more info then.

    We would have the money to hand if the issue were to happen next week, obivously it would be nice to insure against this but it seems unlikely.

    How are your dogs long term after their surgeries, are there many ongoing problems, he's still a very lively dog and we'll do everything possible to give him the best life (i've already been looking at hydrotherapy pools!)
  • gettingready
    gettingready Posts: 11,330
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    If one cruciate was done it does not mean the other leg will not be covered by the insurance - unless you got with AF which are ridiculous with denying claims from silly reasons.

    Look at PetPlan - always the best.

    Zara had one cruciate operated on and the other one went just before 6 months was up. Then about a year later she needed to have a metal plate removed from one as the leg was getting infected.

    She is a 40kg o a dog and each cruciate repair cost was over 5k.

    Do not mention this to the vet before you get the insurance in place and wait the 2 weeks for it to kick in properly as anything you mention and ends up in dog's notes - will be excluded. It has not happened yet, no reason to mention at this point.
  • Person_one
    Person_one Posts: 28,884
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    emmadhc wrote: »
    He's a boxer cross, crossed with a Staff from the looks of it but can't be sure, probably average boxer size at the moment.

    I've done some reading and had guessed the other would go, also along with arthritis. Do you know how soon arthritis will likely need treatment? My plan is to phone our vets that he will be registered with tomorrow and ask their advice, likely costs etc. We're also visiting the dog again Saturday (won't be collecting until next week) so will ask for some more info then.

    We would have the money to hand if the issue were to happen next week, obivously it would be nice to insure against this but it seems unlikely.

    How are your dogs long term after their surgeries, are there many ongoing problems, he's still a very lively dog and we'll do everything possible to give him the best life (i've already been looking at hydrotherapy pools!)


    The arthritis could start in 5 days or in 5 years unfortunately.

    Cruciate ligament ruptures are usually either traumatic (result of a specific injury) or degenerative (result of wear and tear) and while the first type will generally lead to arthritis eventually, with the second type the arthritis is usually already there and will only get worse (this is what my ortho vet told me, I am not a vet!)

    My dog has done really well after his ops, he has full function in both legs, no obvious pain or discomfort, and can run and jump (when he wants to) but he was 8 for the first op and 9 for the second, now 11, he is also much smaller at 7kg. He didn't have significant arthritic changes at his last x ray which was 6 months after the second surgery, but he is on long term low dose steroids for an auto-immune condition so wouldn't necessarily show symptoms as other dogs might.

    Your dog will be using his damaged legs for a lot longer than mine will (hopefully!) and there is a lot more weight and stress on them. Keeping the dog at a healthy weight and in good condition is really important, and I would also find out how the ligament was torn in the first place and what type of repair the dog has had, as there are several different options and some offer better long term recovery than others or need different management.

    If you already have a vet you trust, it would probably be a good idea to book a consultation just on your own (you might get some funny looks in the waiting room though!) to talk through everything and get an idea of what the future may hold.
  • Thanks for the replies everyone.

    Insurance wise we were looking at petplan but I'm not sure what their exception/exclusion policy is. I beleive that the rupture was traumatic and caused by jumping I beleive, he's quite bouncy! Not sure on which type of surgery he had but I will find out.

    I think best course of action will be speak to my vet tomorrow to get a rough idea of what to expect and then see what the rescue vet says when we go to visit again. Hopefully they'll be fine for a while but I'd rather be prepared if not.
  • Person_one
    Person_one Posts: 28,884
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    I don't want to frighten you too much! My dog is healthy and happy and to look at him you'd never know that he's had several major ops and that his back half is nearly as much titanium as it is dog!

    However, he has set me back several thousand pounds and needed a fair amount of increased care for a few months after each op. I think its always a good idea to be realistic and do plenty of research if you know you might be looking at a situation that isn't straightforward. Information is your most valuable resource.
  • What rescue are you getting him from? I have heard of bigger rescues covering the ongoing costs of the preexisiting issue. A friend's dog had patella surgery in the right hind and the ongoing arthritis medication etc was covered by the charity
  • We're getting him from Birmingham Dogs home, we're collecting him on Wednesday but will be going back down to visit tomorrow where we will try and find out a bit more. They didn't mention anything about covering any ongoing treatment but it's something I can enquire about

    *turns out that my account I couldn't access has me automatically logged in on my work pc, so I am OP
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