Insurance - behaviour claim

[Plant2628]

My dog has had some behaviour issues. Growling/snapping at other dogs when on a lead and in particular us as a family not being able to sit or stand with him without him randomly going mad with the barking /pulling at some other dogs/fast movement.
He has definitely improved using treats/positive praise.
I've been on a long waiting list to see a vet behaviourist. The fee is £750-£1k.
My insurer will cover it. My vet has referred at my request.
I'm now having doubts and contemplating a cheaper alternative with say Dogs Trust as I'm concerned the claim will rack up my annual premium.
Anyone experience of this/likely impact?
Thanks

He's a terrier so instinctively he has the traits...off lead no issue. Just on a lead and where sat still for long periods.

It depends on your insurer on whether it will affect your claims going forwards, but what is the point of insurance if you aren’t going to claim on it for a thousand pound claim? I understand not claiming for fifty or a hundred pounds- but for this in my mind it’s worth it

On things like biting or snapping I wouldn’t mess around and would want to get the best help possible- if your dog bites the wrong person they could push for them to be PTS.

He's fine with people - no issues. Just grumpy with some other dogs.

Take your point...thank you

If your dog is becoming aggressive then you need proper behavioural training, not a trainer from Dogs Trust.

contemplating a cheaper alternative with say Dogs Trust

Unless you adopted your dog from Dogs Trust, they won't help you.

They do have a Dog School, but this is strictly for training, not the behaviour issue, and they will simply send you a recommended list of local behaviourists. They do, however, only recommend properly qualified positive reinforcement behaviourists, so it's not a bad place to get a list of recommendations from.

A vet behaviourist is dual qualified, and normally only required if it's a very complex case that requires behaviour meds (e.g. some dogs end up on SSRIs). A regular behaviourist (APBC or CCAB qualified) would be a normal first port of call.

Hmm not complex and I'm pretty sure meds won't be needed for such a young dog, not a serious enough issue. I was just after one that would be covered by insurance, this one was recommended.

I'm sure the vet behaviourist would be excellent and very highly qualified.

By analogy, you've gone to your GP (vet) about a concern, and thought you'd be referred to a local hospital consultant (CCAB or APBC qualified behaviourist) but have actually been referred to a multi disciplinary team at Great Ormond Street Hospital (vet behaviourist) when as far as anyone is aware it's a routine case. You'll get excellent care but it might be slight overkill.

It depends on how near you are to the top of the waiting list, how able you are to wait, how concerned you are about maxing out the insurance this year(unlikely in a young dog) etc.