Medical insurance for fid's..

[AmyMyBlueFront]

..curious if anyone has this?..I did a little checking. It seems there is only ONE Ins. company offering bird/exotics insurance. (Nationwide)
In the UK there are a number of companys offering ins.
It seems Sweden was the first Country to do this years ago.

I called the 800 number to inquire,but it being sunday..well you know how THAT went I'll call tomorrow and see what is available.
I don't even know if they'd even insure Amy now "Pre-existing condition" and age.Probably find something for young BB.

Between exam,grooming,blood work,med's for both Amy and Beebs,x-rays and other things,it was costly lol,over $750. sighhhh...it could have been $7500..I would have paid it,somehow


Jim

 

[GaleriaGila]

Jim, I was looking at this page a while back.
https://www.consumersadvocate.org/p... insurance&utm_content=Pet Insurance Exact US
I know what you mean. After decades of Easy Street, the Rb's expenses have me scrambling up a rocky road, too.
Like you, yeah, I'll find a way.

 

[EllenD]

Over the years I have inquired about various pet health-insurance companies (I'm pretty sure that there are other, smaller, private companies that offer this in addition to Nationwide, as I see pamphlets from different companies on the counter of both my dog's vet and my CAV)...The problem with every single one of them that I've looked into is that they typically cover some of the "regular" stuff that dogs/cats need, such as 1 yearly "wellness" exam, shots, and maybe a neutering or spaying, like they are targeting people who have just purchased a puppy or kitten. The stuff that I would want pet health insurance for, like EMERGENCIES that are expensive because of x-rays, blood work, cultures, surgery, etc. were not covered by any of them...And then the other issue was my own vets either not accepting the insurance at all, or once I called one of the ones from a pamphlet that I actually got at my own vet's office, I was informed that the only plan that they had for "exotics" wasn't available in Pennsylvania. I would think that Nationwide would be more-widely accepted than the smaller companies would be, but honestly, I don't know.

Now if you have a pet that has chronic health issues or that requires regular treatments or testing for something, who knows, that might make it worth the cost, I don't know, as I've never been in that particular situation. All I know is that any of the ones I've looked-into did not cover things that I would want help covering, you know, the expensive stuff!!! None of them covered any tests, lab work, or emergency procedures, only the normal, regular, "planned" stuff for dogs and cats. Birds, reptiles, etc. weren't covered at all by any of the ones that I had looked into...I don't believe Nationwide was one of those, but it was a long time ago, so who know...

I do see a ton of people from the UK in this forum who have health insurance for their birds, and I've actually spoken to a couple of them about it, and in-general they've said that it's really worth your while over there. One guy said he was paying 7 Euro's a month for the insurance as a premium, and it had covered pretty much everything when his bird had gotten sick and needed to have cultures and blood work done, and then got antibiotics and Metacam. So I think for the most-part, in the UK the pet insurance is pretty good, and it covers at least birds...

I would call them tomorrow and get the run-down. You never know, it might be worth it for Amy and what he needs on a regular basis. Be sure to ask every little question you can think of!

 

[SailBoat]

The ugly part is that Amy has a preexisting illness and if they allow coverage, it will be at a much higher rate.

Prior to even talking to an insurance group, speak to your CAV's clinic manager /finance person to determine what they offer and 'if' they even except payment from such insurance groups. Note: It is not uncommon for the clinic to require payment from you and you than submit the paperwork to the insurance company for them to pay you (hopefully).

 

[EllenD]

The ugly part is that Amy has a preexisting illness and if they allow coverage, it will be at a much higher rate.

Prior to even talking to an insurance group, speak to your CAV's clinic manager /finance person to determine what they offer and 'if' they even except payment from such insurance groups. Note: It is not uncommon for the clinic to require payment from you and you than submit the paperwork to the insurance company for them to pay you (hopefully).

I'm glad you said this Sailboat, i was going to mention and forgot about asking your own CAV (who seems amazing and that is priceless in and of itself) what they usually suggest as far as insurance for birds...That was actually one of the things that I found out while looking into the insurance, my own CAV actually offered what he calls a "Frequent-Flier Plan" (pun intended, so he told me), where the more visits you have with him and the more money you spend, the bigger a percentage he takes off of each exam, test, procedure, grooming, etc. It's actually saved me quite a bit in the last 3 years with 4 birds plus the Budgies...

 

[GaleriaGila]

Frequent flier!

Gotta tell that one to my vet next time we visit (which is next Wednesday... every three weeks until we get the Vasotec dose right... talk about flying frequently)!

 

[AmyMyBlueFront]

The article I read did mention other companies offering "pet Insurance" but Nationwide was the ONLY one offering it for birds,and other exotics.
Steven,you are absolutely correct about asking questions from my CAV to see if they will even accept such a thing.
I have been going to these fine people over thirty years now (Smokey went there the first week I had her) and I'd never go looking for another. They do amazing work with the birds and I'd be damn foolish to go elsewhere.
BUT if they don't accept insurance,it wouldn't make any sense in getting any.



Jim

 

[ChristaNL]

None here in the Netherlands - for parrots anyway.
Petinsurance exists (one or two) but all they wil insure (medical bills, not deaths&burials) is dogs and cats ...


It is kind of strange because you can insure almost anything here.


A friend of mine had her CAG cremated and that is actually very affordable, the vetbills are definitely NOT.


The price of a full checkup (inspection by the vet, poopcheck, bloodwork for the 4 major diseases, sexing and calciumlevels) is about 50% what you would pay for a new bird.
(Well, the comparison goes for the african greys at least )

 

[Billdore]

My dad has nationwide for his dogs and it’s been fantastic so far. Yeah unfortunately I don’t think any of them cover preexisting conditions. At least not where dogs were concerned. Seems like you gotta have em on it right away or not at all. Kind of odd but uunderstandable from a business stand point.

 

[Karlys]

Nationwide may have not used to cover accidents/severe illness (the expensive stuff) but their website now specifically says:

"This affordable exotic pet insurance plan covers accidents and illnesses as well as examinations, lab fees, prescriptions, X-rays, hospitalization and more. We cover most birds and a wide range of exotic pets..."

It cost us $200 to go in, get a swab of Skye's mouth, and the antibiotics to treat her little infection a couple weeks ago, so I've been considering calling too.