What should I expect for the costs of pet insurance for a young cat? I’m really worried about potential medical emergencies. Hey everyone I’m a grad student thinking about adopting a young cat as an ESA I grew up with cats and love them
If I adopt a cat I want to make sure I’m responsible about it My main concern is the cost of vet bills and emergencies My biggest fear is facing a huge vet bill for emergency surgery and not being able to pay for it I have some savings but tuition is also a factor If I have good pet insurance can I feel more secure? How much should I plan on paying for pet insurance?
I totally understand the stress about vet bills especially with rising costs
A few things to keep in mind most insurance companies work on a reimbursement basis So it’s important to think about how you might pay upfront in case of an emergency and wait for the reimbursement Some people use Care Credit or Scratchpay along with their insurance to cover costs and then pay off their credit once they get reimbursed Others might use credit cards
Trupanion is a bit different since they can pay the vet directly if they are in their network but they tend to be pricier
Also keep in mind any pre-existing conditions your new cat might have since those usually aren’t covered by most plans Since you’re looking at a young cat this might not be a huge issue
Many cats do end up with dental problems so personally I’d look for a company that offers good dental coverage Some companies like Embrace Pets Best and Trupanion provide decent dental coverage but they require regular dental cleanings as recommended by your vet
For a young cat in a medium-cost area you could expect to pay around $20 to $50 per month with a $500 to $750 deductible and coverage over $10k with an 80-90% reimbursement rate If you’re in a big city it might be more but in a smaller area it could be less It really depends on where you live
I’d recommend getting quotes from Trupanion Pets Best Embrace and maybe Felix which focuses on cats I’m not too familiar with Felix’s dental coverage since they’re newer You could also look into HealthyPaws and Lemonade but they aren’t as generous with dental care
Try to compare similar plans since for example Embrace has a plan that maxes out at $2k per year which is cheaper but harder to compare to Trupanion’s unlimited reimbursement policies
Check the quotes you get and feel free to come back if you want to talk about the pros and cons For instance Pets Best has been slow on claims lately due to switching underwriters and some people are waiting a month or longer for reimbursement You can also search the subreddit for company reviews once you get quotes
Hope that helps.
Avoid the cheap options don’t go with Spot They won’t cover anything