Comments on: Open Enrollment: Pet Insurance

By: Sandi

Sandi — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 20:03:01 +0000

Hey laurie! Ha ha no, I dont work for Trupanion but I did ALOT of research when I was gettin pet insurance! I even did some calling and talked to different people! So if your serious about getting pet insurance, definitely do some research! Trupanion is the one that I thought suited me well, hope it suits you too!

By: Breanne

Breanne — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 02:12:52 +0000

The wellness plan I use: http://www.banfield.net/optimum-wellness-plans

By: Breanne

Breanne — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 02:09:06 +0000

I don’t have pet insurance, per se, but my 3 dogs are enrolled in a wellness program with their vet that is very similar to an insurance plan. Though the vet is overpriced as hell, they are also super convenient and have great hours. Oh, and they let me drop the muts off to do all their vet stuff so I don’t have to sit there and cry when they get shots (yes, yes, I do cry during their shots). The cool thing about the plan is that you can opt into different tiers. I purchased the muddle tier because it would cover the cost of having the little dogs’ teeth cleaned twice a year, and blood/organ tests on the older dog. It made sense once I calculated what our regular maintenance costs are. The only benefit for emergency or extraordinary (surgery) situations are free office visits and discounts on meds.

Sucks having to calculate the costs, but it totally depends on the health of your pet and whether or not you’re the kind of person will do whatever it takes to care for your pet.

By: Laurie

Laurie — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 20:14:57 +0000

@Alexandra I’m with you — I get the sense that it wouldn’t cover what I’m looking for… and since I’m too lazy to do the math, I’m also too lazy to do any more research about it.

@Jackbuilt I’m jealous. I want onsite massage — and I want @mrscrubby to offer it to me.

@teresa Good for you!

@Sandi Do you work for Trupanion? I wonder if companies are interested?

By: Sandi

Sandi — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 16:57:21 +0000

Vet bills are suuuper expensive nowadays! Or so it seems like! Ahh. I luckily got pet insurance a couple years ago with Trupanion pet insurance. It’s kind of a newer company compared to VPI and such but the reason why I went through them is because I got to pick my own deductible! Like it ranges from $0 – 1,000 and if you pick a lower deductible the monthly premium is a little higher than what it would be if you were to pick a higher deductible. Also Trupanion pays 90% of the vet bill and that to me is just super crazy. If you are really looking into pet insurance, I would definitely recommend taking a look at their website. You can also do a free quote and you can compare other companies to one another. The website is: http://www.trupanionpetinsurance.com oh and if you want to look at reviews I would go to: http://petinsurancereview.com That website is pretty nice because you can see how other people have been treated what was covered or not!

Good luck!

By: Jackbuilt

Jackbuilt — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 14:36:30 +0000

We offer pet insurance and I have it on 3 dogs and 2 cats. I have the “my dog ate the garden hose” plan, which covers catastrophic events. I’ve always thought it was worth it and have had to use it one time for a gigantic lumpectomy on one of the dogs. I was happy.

We offer free, confidential on-site healthcare three days a week, on-site massage therapy, and long service leave – 4 additional paid weeks off – after 1 years of service and every 5 years after that

By: teresahrgirl

teresahrgirl — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 13:06:18 +0000

Laurie,
Yes to the C-section…
I didn’t want this one to end up in the cycle of baby makin’.

By: Alexandra Levit

Alexandra Levit — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 01:54:34 +0000

Hi Laurie, in my experience, it’s not worth it. I had it a couple of years for my cats, and I found that most things weren’t covered, and the things that were covered still required me to pay a majority of the costs myself. The premiums weren’t that high, but the experience was frustrating so I went back to paying for everything myself. Another observation is that you can’t take your animal into the vet with any kind of worrisome symptom without spending at least $500.

By: Laurie

Laurie — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 21:12:12 +0000

@Kristy Ooooh, I’m so sorry about your doggie. I’m sending #nosetaps (as we say on Twitter) your way. What a tough diagnosis. Good point re: good benefits vs. shitty culture. PS — We had a Starbucks at Monsanto and Pfizer and it was very nice. I was caffeinated all day. Too scary.

@InkedHR Thanks for the ASPCA recommendation — & I love how you have retirees come back to work. That’s such a nice idea.

@teresa Hahahahaha, bulldogs are such a weird breed. Don’t you have to birth them via c-section? That doesn’t sound right to me, but they are so cute. I think you’re right: most people are like F–k fancy benefits, give me cash.

@Puf Holy crap, free ice cream? I’m moving there and going back into HR.

@Joan Thanks for sharing that story, and yes, I hear you. I cannot do the math, though. That’s why I blog.

@Kara Whoa, that benefit is awesome. Thanks for sharing that. I can see how it’s a good test of your organizational pressure points. If someone disappears for two weeks, it forces you to think about how you structure work.

@Andrew I love how animal pre-existing conditions aren’t covered. Sheesh.

@JohnC I had great benefits at PFE but no relaxation center. I’m trying to think of any company that wouldn’t dump their benefit package and stick everyone on the public plan. The employer mandate is so stupid, anyway.

@Amey Whoa that is one expensive dog. What we do for the least among us, right? You gotta take care of such an awesome mix of breeds. Dalmatian/Beagle must be an amazing bundle of energy!

@LatinaHR Holy crap you need a new job so badly. Let’s make that our goal.

@Tim I think tuition reimbursement is so important. Why more companies don’t do it? Beyond me.

@MattyMat Lucy is a socialist.

By: MattyMat

MattyMat — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 20:38:08 +0000

No great benefits here– but my boss isn’t a micro-managing jerk-off– which can be the best benefit of all sometimes.

About the insurance– If the GOP & Blue Dogs have thier way– your cat will be turned down for a pre-existing condition and left to die– as they rub thier hands together and laugh while the campaign contributions roll in.

That’s the free market, baby!