Why Pet Insurance Is Worth It

Pet insurance is a fantastic product that can help pet parents and their pets in many ways, providing peace of mind and financial assistance. When you sign up for a pet insurance plan, you also gain access to a community of professionals with your pet’s best interest in mind. Plus, many providers also have online resources to help with anything from education on an array of pet-related topics to numbers to call in an emergency.

For many pet parents, pet insurance may still be a relatively unknown product. However, the benefits of pet insurance can last a lifetime and prove helpful in far more ways than cat and dog parents may initially realize. Learn why pet insurance is worth it.

• Affording veterinary care
  The cost of veterinary care can vary based on many factors, such as where you live, how many pets you have, the specific veterinary office you visit, your pet’s breed, and the specific services they’re having done. As many pet parents can attest, veterinary care can quickly become expensive, especially if you must make multiple unexpected visits.
  
  The good news is that with pet insurance, your coverage can help make these visits more affordable. Once you sign your pet up for a plan, their waiting period passes, and you meet the annual deductible, you can submit a claim and be reimbursed for a percentage of that bill if they receive veterinary care for a covered condition. Having your insurance to help get some money back in your hands means you can put it back in your pet emergency fund or use it on something fun like new toys or treats.
• Budgeting for a pet
  Whether it’s your first or fifth pet, budgeting for a pet before bringing it home can be immensely helpful. You should figure in initial expenses like vaccinations, spay or neuter surgery, toys, treats, a collar and leash, bowls, and a litter box. Also, consider recurring costs such as food, annual veterinary visits, and flea, tick, and heartworm preventives.
  
  While you may be able to plan and set money aside, with pets, unexpected costs could still affect your budget—especially if it’s a multi-hundred or even thousand-dollar procedure. Although some people may initially consider pet insurance to be another monthly expense, the wonderful thing about your plan is that it’s an expected amount you can easily know ahead of time and work into your budget. Plus, if a covered veterinary bill pops up out of nowhere, you can also have some financial assistance, allowing you to stay more within budget.
• Provides peace of mind
  One of the best parts about being a pet parent is watching your cat or dog live their best life. Whether they’re basking in the sun’s rays, enjoying the wind in their fur, or running to their heart’s content, pet parents should be able to enjoy every moment with their best pal without constantly worrying about something happening.
  
  Although there is no true way to avoid an accident completely, you can try your best to be prepared for when one does occur. For instance, imagine if you bought a brand-new boat and opted out of insurance coverage. You may be incredibly excited to take it out on the lake, but instead of relaxing and genuinely enjoying your time, you find yourself worrying about things that haven’t happened yet and how much they’d cost you: “What if another boat hits my boat? What if I run into the dock? How much does it cost to fix my boat after a storm? What happens if I accidentally injure someone else?”
  
  These stressful thoughts could bring clouds on any beautiful day spent on the water, so why wait to get coverage? Instead, if you chose to look into your insurance options beforehand and had coverage on your watercraft starting on day one, you can head out on the lake with a mind that’s more at ease.
  
  The same scenario is true for your pet. Let your cat or dog live their best life and enjoy it right by their side, knowing you’ll already have insurance if something does happen to occur.
• Help manage multiple pets
  Although adding a pet to your family can be fun, rewarding, and beneficial to the other pets in your home, it also adds a layer of budgeting and worries to your life. With another mouth to feed and four more paws to keep healthy and safe, pet insurance providers understand that some pet parents may feel a tad overwhelmed at first, and that’s why many providers offer an ‘add-a-pet’ option to customers with an existing plan.
  
  As pet people themselves, many pet insurance providers also understand that each pet is unique and has their own needs, so there’s no ‘one-size-fits-all’ plan. The good news is that many companies offer the option to have all your pets on one account while still allowing you to customize each individual plan to what will work best for that pet.
• Customizable
  Even if you only have one cat or dog that you are signing up for pet insurance, the customization options can be a convenient way to create an even better plan for both your pet’s needs and your budget. If you're working with a budget in mind, accident-only plans, on average, are lower in cost than accident and injury plans, and you can select the deductible, annual limit, and reimbursement percentage that will work best for you. You also have the option to add preventive care to your existing plan for a low additional cost.
• Can assist with many services
  Your pet insurance is available to help you and your pet, so never hesitate to research beforehand and reach out to your provider to double-check all the benefits they offer. For instance, a plan from the ASPCA® Pet Health Insurance program can get you coverage for more than just emergency care and standard treatments for your pet’s unexpected accidents and illnesses. They also cover chronic, hereditary, and congenital conditions, behavioral issues, and alternative therapies prescribed for covered conditions, as well as microchip implantation. Coverage is available for prescription medications, prescription food, and supplements used to treat a covered condition.* You can even have assistance with costs related to end-of-life services. And adding preventive care coverage to your base plan can help reimburse you for the costs of some routine medical care your pet may need throughout their life.

Whether your canine or feline pal is just a few months old or their gray hairs have earned them the title of senior (though they will always be your puppy or kitten at heart), the fantastic thing about pet insurance is that you can enroll your pet at any point after 8-weeks of age or older.

Do Pets Really Need Insurance?

The benefits of having pet insurance go far beyond just simple coverage, and by understanding how your plan can work for you, you can better appreciate how far your dollar can stretch each month. Finding affordable pet insurance plans is one of the best ways to ensure that your pet’s coverage benefits your budget and lifestyle.

This can be done through online research, asking acquaintances if their pets are enrolled in a plan, or getting a free quote from a pet insurance provider. The average cost of pet insurance can vary based on multiple factors such as your geographic location, how many pets you have, their ages, species, and breed, and their current health status. After considering the cost versus benefit that pet insurance can provide, it’s easy to see that, while pet insurance may not be a requirement for pet parenting, it is a valuable amenity that can bring you comfort and peace of mind knowing you're covered.

*Prescription food & supplements are covered if they are prescribed to treat an eligible accident or illness. Prescription food & supplements are not covered if they are used for weight management or general health maintenance.

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_{An ASPCA^® Pet Health Insurance plan can help you with eligible costs for covered conditions like surgery expenses for accidents and help provide peace of mind that your pet can receive the care they need. Check out our online resources to learn more about your insurance options and get a free quote today. The information presented in this article is for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute or substitute for the advice of your veterinarian.}