Bird Insurance?

[Kirsten]

So I've been trying to think of the long-term here. I'm in a position where I'm trying to apply to a vet tech program at a community college an hour or so away. This means I would have to move and essentially wouldn't be able to pay for any surgery if the poop hit the fan (on account of not being able to beg mom and dad to help and vet techs not making much money even after finishing school).

So I've been considering insurance. So far, I've been researching VPI (as it's the only company that covers birds as far as I've found) and am considering purchasing a plan (and giving up my World of Warcraft subscription to pay for it). They say that it generally pays for up to $7000 including a certain amount of wing trims, nail trims and basic checkups.

Now I realize some of the dangers, such as making sure that the policy becomes effective immediately, that it covers Skittles for a decent amount of time, and making sure I know what procedures it covers specifically. Personally though, I think $20 or so a month is a small price to pay if something bad happens or Skittles develops an illness that I couldn't usually pay for out of pocket.

So has anyone had any experience with purchasing insurance for their bird? Have you found any companies you can vouch for? Do you advise against doing this?

Would love to hear some thoughts.

[liz]

I take my kids for yearly checkups. Other than that I took Rambo to the vet once.

I think it would be wiser to take out a charge card and hold it in reserve for emergencies. Your emergencies as well as your birdy's. If you have to use it then pay it off as soon as you can. Why make monthly payments on something you may not need. I don't have great faith in insurance companies. I think they just bleed off money you could be using for other things like bird toys.

[cml]

Both our guys are insured, and the bill is about 80$ a year for each of them, so about 160$ total. As I couldnt afford expensive vet bills otherwise, I think it a small price to pay to ensure that I can bring them in to the vet as soon as it is needed!

When we took Leroy in after his claw broke off (and we couldnt stop the bleeding at home), they treated him and he had to stay over the night at the vet getting drip, and that would have costed me around 400$, with the insurance it was just over 120$ and there was no hassle at all with the insurance company.

I dont know how good it works in your country, but here it works very well with animal insurance!

[liz]

You paid out a total of $280 to cover a bill for $400 = $120 in savings for one bird for one year. You could have been running a credit on a charge card for the emergency. Of course if it paid for regular check ups it would be worth while. Then you could have a check up and toe trim every 6 month.

As scared as Rambo and Myrtle were at the vet - I do nail trims at home. Rambo is easy. We pin him down and trim him. I can only do two toes at a time on Myrtle before she flys away because Rachel can't help me with her.

[marie83]

Insurance is exactly that, a policy that covers unforseen circumstances. Obviously they have to earn more then they pay out because they are a business but they are there to ensure you can give medical care and diagnostics when needed. You don't know that in 2 years time your still going to be able to get a credit card/loan to pay for the treatment (and don't forget you'll be paying off the interest too which could add up to alot if the bills are high).

Insurance is a good idea regardless of whether or not you have the money available or ability to get a loan right now. A few claims made in the future may easily pay for itself but if not (and hopefully you wont need to claim) then at least you won't have the worry should you fall on hard times. Vet bills can easily run into thousands of pounds and if multiple things go wrong in a short time do you have the ability to pay? Will you be able to repeatedly borrow large sums of money?

I don't have mine insured at the moment but I will (I can't at the mo as there is ongoing diagnostics at the vets) but in the meantime I have savings I would be able to access in order to get them treatment. My vet bill currently stands at around £500 and thats only for basic tests.

[liz]

So is there bird insurance in the U.S.?

[Grey_Moon]

To date and the best of my knowledge there isn't a pet insurance company in Canada that covers birds---so I've no direct experience.

HOWEVER, I would advise STRONG caution and maybe even caution against it. As someone who has chronic health issues I can say that any sort of life insurance etc is a &%$# and not worth the money.

With any plan such as these there's a lot of fine print---because of course its stupid to assume these companies *actually* want to help you in case you get stuck. What this is going to turn into is them probably wanting a detailed health report on your sun conure, nitpicking through every thing---if they find one thing they don't like they'll either deny you or charge you crazy rates.
Then, lets say something happens and your bird gets hurt, one of three things will happen:

A) Oh well---*that* isn't covered in the insurance policy (fine print---never believe unlimited everything coverage is unlimited everything in reality)
B) Oh well---*that* was due to 'pre-existing health problems' so we won't cover that
C) It'll take so long and need so much grumbling and paperwork (and you'll probably *STILL* have to pay up front and then be hopefully they'll pay you pack) that it won't be worth it.

I know this has happened to many cat/dog owners in North America and probably in Europe as well. So, if I were you---take the money that you would be paying the monthly fee with and put it in a jar for your bird's 'rainy/bad day' fund and get yourself an emergency 'vet bills' credit card instead.

[marie83]

Always makes sense to choose your company wisely. Personally I have never had any problems with pet insurance (6 dogs) but saying that I've only ever claimed small amounts. I have heard of a few companies which wont pay out for silly reasons though. No experience as yet with parrot insurance but everyone in the uk seem to recommend golden valley very highly. I really would say it would depend on your circumstances though as to whether its worth it.
To me relying on credit is not worth it as you might not get it when you need it and unless you earn alot your not going to get alot of money anyway, in which case you may as well have just saved up in the first place.

[cml]

C) It'll take so long and need so much grumbling and paperwork (and you'll probably *STILL* have to pay up front and then be hopefully they'll pay you pack) that it won't be worth it.

Actually, thats whats so great about our vet (which has a specialist department for exotic animals and birds), they dont ask for any payment up front and do all the paperwork with the insurance company.
They called, explained what had happened, and got an OK from the insurance company while I was there. The vet also knows what's covered by insurance and whats not.

It really was no hassle at all for us, which was a huge relief when we went in to the vet with Leroy.

Too bad it doesnt seem to work as well in other places .