Piggy Insurance

[Guinea moar dragon]

Hi I was just wondering if anyone has any experience with Piggy insurance? We had an expensive emergency bill on Saturday and I was wondering if anyone has any recommendations or advice regarding insurance. I'm not sure if it's worth the cost or not?

 

[Piggies&buns]

It’s a difficult one - there are some who have insurance on here, others of us prefer to save into a vet fund (a separate bank account) so as to bypass all the red tape around insurance and simply have the money you would otherwise pay in premiums saved up for immediate use. By the time excesses are considered, recurring illness and certain conditions being excluded, it doesn’t always end up worth it. You would have to find a company and research what they offer.

There is also a lack of availability - there was only ever one company that would insure guinea pigs in the UK (Exotic Direct) but there may be one or two others now, still choice is very limited for guinea pigs

I’ve kept small animals for 40 years and having had some major issues and some minor issues, I still know that insurance wouldn’t have been worth it for me. My current two boys have only cost me about £70 for a round of antibiotics after they had a fight - that was four years ago. (Touch wood they never need anything going forward!)

A guide to vets fees, insurance and payment support.

 

[CTWC]

I have not had my boys for any where near that long but as above I looked into insurance and found it a ridiculous cost and chose to put the monthly payments they were asking for in a vet fund but you do have to be strict with yourself and make sure you do it.
A nice bonus is though once that fund reaches what you feel is a sufficient amount based on the extreme of what operations or ongoing illnesses could cost you, you may end up with a little extra to buy more things for your guinea pigs no doubt

 

[Truffolo]

The difficulty I found is that all the companies offering exotic insurance ends guinea pig insurance at five years. I don't know the age of my piggies but suspect they are middle aged at least so we are not eligible. The insurance contract lasts for about ten or twelve months and after that is renewed excluding existing conditions which can make things tricky. I think going to the vet as soon as someone crops up saves money, treating things while they are still small. If you have the money, taking out insurance is a very good thing but it doesn't necessarily provide life long insurance for rodents

 

[Claire W]

When I had my piggies, I always had a guinea pig fund where I would add money to it each month and as when when I had the funds. I always made sure there was at least £1000 in it. I find the trouble with insurance is it’s a waste if it not used but it’s up to you with what you feel most comfortable with x

We do have insurance for our cats x

 

[Merab]

I save for vet fees and top up as necessary.
I think @anyar.dris has insurance so may be able to answer the questions

 

[anyar.dris]

Hi, our 2 guinea pigs, Bodie and Carson, and our past piggies were insured via Exotic Direct. We currently pay £35/month for both of them. Early this year, we had to pay around £650+ for Carson's op to remove a lump (turned out to be an abscess), meds and some blood test for diabetes. We managed to claim almost all of it from insurance and paid just the £60 excess I think. Although we won't be able to claim for the same type of op again in the future as it'll be a recurring one. In our opinion, it's worth getting the insurance. But if your guinea pigs have existing health issues before you get an insurance, that wouldn't be covered.