Pet insurance

Birdnest · 07-12-2003, 01:13 PM

Belle, my lab, has gone and done it. She has blown her ACL in her left stifle joint. It seems like only 7 months ago that we repaired her right ACL. :depressed: (Actually, it is the CCL for the detail oriented).

So if you have a doggie, do yourself a favor and get pet insurance. I however am to stupid to follow my own good advice and will be paying out the nose, again. I called for some details through Metlife...18 bucks a month for their major incident package. You will also need to be insured for 1 year before an injury like this would be covered.

After the injury, my wife commented that I should rename her "Boat Jewelery", since that is where all my play money will now be going. :shocked:

Joe

1pump · 07-12-2003, 11:12 PM

Jeez, what a bummer. :depressed: I've seen so many posts here about Lab health problems, most of them orthopedic.
My 13 year old Lab has been free of major health issues so far. She's old and creaky, and can't run like she used to, but she hasn't cost me much money at the vet (except for the raccoon incident).
How do you avoid problems like this in the first place? Were your dog's parents OFA, and does that mean a lower incidence of these kinds of problems?
I want to get another Lab some day, but I want one as healthy as the one I have now.

Capin' Dan · 07-13-2003, 01:46 AM

Guys even when doing the best home work possible problems will sometimes creep up. Respectable breeders will stand behind their breeding 100%. 1pump when looking for that new pup give me a call and I may be able to help steer you in the right direction. At a minimum hips/eyes/elbows should be certified.

Dan

Birdnest · 07-13-2003, 06:26 AM

1Pump,

She is a pure Lab. The way it was explained to me by my vet...ACL injuries are the #1 orthopedic injury to dogs, Labs and Rots are at the top of this list. There seems to be a correlation between heavily muscled dogs and the extra strain they place on their joints. Once they have torn one side, they have a 50-60% chance of tearing the other.

Another kick in the pants is the 4 months of careful rehab to help insure she doesn't undue her surgery. "Just keep you lab from jumping for the next 4 months"

Her first rehab went pretty well. Once she was able, I would take her swimming for the good range of motion exercise with low impact. Only challenge is to have her not lunge into the water. I would put on the waders and keep her on a tight leash until we were in the water, then let her swim on her 20' leash. I got some funny looks in Feb. doing this. [img]graemlins/eek13.gif[/img]

With all of this said, I will always be a lab guy. I know that is not an original statement, but they have such a kind heart and I just can't get enough of them. [img]graemlins/hearton.gif[/img]

Joe

drhall99 · 07-13-2003, 08:25 PM

Birdnest,

The only pet insurance that I am aware of is Bluepaw and the list of things that it DOESN'T cover is longer than the list of things that it does. I would be very suprised if your dog would have been covered since Labs are prone to those types of injuries. Make sure that you check out the coverage very carefully.

D.

TundraIII · 07-14-2003, 02:03 PM

I had insurance on my black lab for the first 3 yrs of his life because of what turned out to be a seasonal allergy. The insurance saved me a pile of money but eventually the dog outgrew is allergy somehow and I cancelled the insurance. The insurance rate was 274 per year which I signed up with automatic monthly bill pay through the insurance co. It was quite a few months later that I realized that the ins. co processed my info incorrectly and had been deducting the full yearly rate each month! I got a nice big check in the mail and an apology. Sort of a savings account that dont pay interest [img]graemlins/berry.gif[/img]