Pet insurance

[pinkunicorn20]

Hi, I'm hoping some of you lovely people can advise on pet insurance. I am bringing home 2 puppies. They are covered by their KC insurance until 12 weeks.
Obviously have been looking for quotes online, but would welcome any suggestions

[CleverQuacks]

Following for advice. I am hoping to get a puppy around September time and can’t get my head round all the different pet insurance companies. What breed puppy are you getting pinkunicorn?

[missbattenburg]

There have been quite a few questions along these lines in the last few weeks - have a quick search through Th Doghouse to see the replies but they tend to go along the lines of:

• Petplan
  
• The highest lifetime you can afford
  
• Don't leave it until 12 weeks to kick in because there is a waiting period before you can claim (2 weeks) so an overlap between insurances is best.

[pinkunicorn20]

@CleverQuacks 2 blue staffy girls, we are so excited. What are you thinking of getting?

@missbattenburg thank you, Petplan was my original thought but seems to be significantly pricier, esp when considering lifetime insurance for 2 pups. Saying that, if that is the best available it's a no brainier and that's who il use, just looking for opinions.

[AvocadosBeforeMortgages]

Ditto what MissBattenburg said re pet insurance

However, I notice you say you're planning to get two puppies at the same time. I would be very, very wary of doing this. The reason is that training will be a nightmare - every time you praise one for doing something and the other one hears, it will think it's being praised for whatever it's doing at that second, even if it's an undesirable behaviour - basically, both puppies will be very confused. Also, Google littermate syndrome.

I would strongly advise you to get just the one puppy and then, if you want to, get a second in a year or two once you've got training in place with the first.

Also, get yourself to a good puppy training class as soon as vaccinations have been completed - for instance, Dogs Trust run excellent puppy classes nationwide under their Dog School banner

[snackarella]

We have a blue Staff who is covered by pet plan, unlimited lifetime cover -around £65 a month
We also have a vizsla who I left with KC and his is around £40

[BiteyShark]

Cheap insurance premiums are not always the best. You want to look for life cover and the largest limit amount you can afford as vet bills quickly mount up.

For example, I am with petplan with a £4000 limit per year. My dog is 19 months old and we have already claimed over £4500 for various illnesses and accidents. If I could turn the clock back I would have gone for a higher limit knowing how quickly bills can rise. Fortunately I opted for life cover so as long as I keep paying the premiums we are covered otherwise we would have a list as long as my arm of pre existing conditions which would now be excluded by most companies if we tried to move.

[pinkunicorn20]

Thanks for the advice so far, very helpful. Does anybody have insurance with LV?

[Wolfiefan]

Check who your vets will deal with direct.
Mine won't claim directly from animal friends for instance.
Lifetime cover.
And research litter mate syndrome. Two is a very bad idea.

[missbattenburg]

Petplan was my original thought but seems to be significantly pricier

I think you'd probably find that the cheaper plans are either for significantly lower limits and/or they would hike the premiums dramatically as the dog ages. From what I hear, PetPlan's premiums do not go up as much as the dog ages so you pay a bit more now but less or the same over the life of the dog.

Would also encourage you to really know the cons of taking on two puppies at once - if you don't already. Some do very well but it can be very tricky to get right and requires a different approach than just doing the same training twice.

[BiteyShark]

OP are you an experienced puppy owner or is this your first time?

If it's your first time definitely reconsider getting two puppies at the same time unless you have someone to enable you to train and walk them separately.

[pinkunicorn20]

I am thank you, was simply looking for advice on insurance as previously I would save an amount per month and put it away to cover vet bills. However after my last dog (a rescue) became very expensive, atopic dermatitis, i feel lifetime insurance is a better option for my new additions.

[MinisWin]

Seconding everything Avocado and Bitey have said!! Please, please think very carefully about this - research littermate syndrome, and be aware that this tends to be even worse with two bitches. Also consider very carefully the nature of the breeder allowing you to take home two bitch puppies from the same litter. This is not uncommon knowledge, and should be at the forefront of his/her mind when homing the pups. Particularly with a bull breed like a staffie (and I’m not anti-bull breed in general, in the right hands), the consequences of this could be disasterous.

[pinkunicorn20]

To clarify, this post was to ask about insurance, not receive unsolicited advice about my new family members.

If I was unsure about having two puppies I would not be undertaking this, similarly I did not have to share the particulars. I simply could have asked for advice on insurers.

However, I thank everyone who has taken the time to respond and I'll take the advice in the spirit it was offered.

[Theweaknessiscrispsandwine]

Hey PinkUnicorn. I have two from the same litter. Our house is crazy mad but the pups are lovely (we’ve had them for 8 wks now). Twice (a million) times the work but as long as you are prepared I think twice the fun and reward!!!

[pinkunicorn20]

Thanks @Theweaknessiscrispsandwine we brought our girls home yesterday, so far they've done a lot of sleeping and had many many trips to the garden. Had a lovely first night, only up twice because they were crying to go out. It's so sweet watching them snooze together :). What pups do you have?

[Theweaknessiscrispsandwine]

@pinkunicorn20 We have labradors (males). Sometimes it’s tricky, but I think that’s the same if there is only one - all the phases they go through. On the whole so far so good. It sounds like your girls have settled well. Best of luck.

[pinkunicorn20]

Aww I love labs, so gorgeous. Yeah they're doing well, currently watching them run rings around the garden. Feels like a good time to have a bbq!!

[tabulahrasa]

You want petplan, they offer the best cover for behavioural issues and many companies exclude those altogether...

[pinkunicorn20]

Thanks @tabulahrasa that's who we decided to go with :)