Once again, the Petsmart Wellness Plan earns its keep.
We pay $325 a year. It covers semi-annual checkups, vaccinations and unlimited office visits. We also receive a 15% discount on most other services.
The plan also includes a dental cleaning. It sounds kind of ridiculous – or did to me the first time – but it’s actually recommended for all cats over three. At that point, they’re at risk for gingivitis which can lead to tooth decay, etc.
Sandy has had dental problems in the past, including lesions and tooth extractions, so I decided it was cheaper to get her one prophylactically each year. I’m not sure how many more teeth she can afford to lose.
Dental cleanings, if you can believe it, run around $300. They have to sedate the cats, which means they also have to run an organs test. So yeah, it adds up. Add in the cost of a yearly checkup, including vaccinations, and we’re already saving money on services rendered.
But even if we didn’t want the cleaning, I’d think the plan is a good deal.
Now that Sandy is getting older, she’s having to go to the vet more often. Just in the last five weeks, she’s had two appointments about her mobility and one this week because of a bladder infection. She needs a follow-up appointment in about 10 days.
Those four visits would have been $164, and we’ve saved at least another $25 on services like x-rays, urine test, antibiotic shot, etc. Again, the yearly checkup and vaccines would be around $80-100. Even conservatively, that’s $269, or less than $60 more than we pay for the whole year.
A lot of it is peace of mind. We can take her in whenever we’re concerned without worrying that we’re wasting $41. I try not to be the pet owner that runs to the vet for every little thing. But I could. That’s nice to know.
We also got a plan for Patches. She was puking at least three times a week, and the vet wanted to rule out any major issues. We signed her up. Immediately, the exam and most of the tests were covered. The rest were discounted. Since we’d have to come back in a few months for her yearly exam/vaccines, the plan was $25 more than we’d pay out of pocket. And she’d get a dental cleaning.
Don’t get me wrong. The plan isn’t for everyone. Unless you’re concerned about dental care, a healthy cat shouldn’t need to join. If you’re presented with a bill that would make it worthwhile, you can just sign up then.
On the other hand, if your feline is starting to have health and/or tooth problems, this is a great deal.
Note: Petsmart/Banfield are not compensating me in any way for this post. I’m just really happy with the service.
So what about you guys? What are your pet’s medical expenses? How do you minimize costs?
Liz says
Short answer: I'm not a fan of Banfield, due to one particular vet. I've taken my business elsewhere since then. They were a great deal when I lived near one with a fantastic and kind vet.
Currently, our animals need mostly routine shots and there's a low-cost mobile vet clinic here that will do that for something like $30/pet. We have a low-cost vet nearby for anything serious ($100, including antibiotics, visit and test, when the dog had some infection) and an emergency vet that is (yikes!) $250/visit, but also rational about not testing everything just for the sake of doing so. They're fans of the "wait and watch" if the situation allows it.
We do spend more on food though– our cats run about $80/month on frozen raw food (cheaper than good canned stuff) and the dog eats $40/month in expensive but stomach friendly kibble. Diet matters a lot with our animals, so we try to make sure that they eat well to minimize trips to the vet.
Abigail says
I'm pretty happy with the care we get. Though I definitely like the second vet because she doesn't do baby talk to the animals she's caring for. Plus she kind of sounds like Amy Pond. So there's that.
In general, the vets have been pretty good at not going all out. In the case of Patches, we couldn't say how long it had been going on. So she was a tad concerned. But the second vet there is definitely good about the wait and see approach. She actually recommended we skip cortisone shots, saying they weren't very effective most of the time.
Linda says
I no longer live near a Banfield. I now live in a rural area and vets are pretty cheap. They make most of their money on large animals–not pets.
Banfield really saved me because of the teeth cleaning alone. When my male cat was having problems, the x-ray showed he had a BB in him. Thankfully, it didn't need to be removed. I adopted him at 3 months and his paperwork said he had been found in a dumpster. He never, ever liked anybody but me. He didn't trust people. That BB spoke volumes about his psyche and why he was afraid of human beings. Somebody hurt him.
Vets at Banfield where I went were fine and price was right. When I had bigger problems, I did take them to a cat specialist.
Kat says
We use a different pet insurance- it's cheaper than Banfield, and we exchanged the once a year wellness check appointments for a much lower deductible. For 6 cats over 7 years old, and an 11 year old dog, we pay 45 a month total. Then it works like a PPO insurance plan- reason specific visits are 10, with multipet visits being 15. Dental cleaning is 30, and any ordered bloodwork falls under one payment of 20 (unless it's attached to sedation- then it's covered by the copayment for the procedure). Emergency vet visits cost 50 flat.
This plan works for us for a lot of reasons, the big one being that we're able to stay with our vet- who's a preapproved provider- meaning we don't have to call in to get something approved. Since we use a low cost shot clinic for vaccines and wellness checks, that's not a big expense, and it halved our deductible to opt for out of pocket (the insurance does require you to prove you've kept up to date on their shots- but that's faxing the certificates and a receipt once a year).
Since we have 3 cats over the age of 13 (14, 17, and 20 respectively), we have discontinued dental scaling for them, unless they're undergoing general anesthesia for something else. The risk is a little too high for us, and our vet, to be comfortable with putting a pet under for a prophylactic treatment. Same with the dog (he's half large breed, and half giant breed, so he's an old dog by those standards). Where we save a ton of money is medication. With our 5 dollar copayment, the meds we use for our 20 year old cat to control his chronic pancreatitis and gall bladder issues are MUCH cheaper than the 60 a month one medication would be and 40 a month for the other one.
Abigail says
Wow, I've never seen that kind of insurance. The stuff I looked at over the past few years just wasn't worthwhile. What's the plan you use?
Kat says
Ours is a specialized plan available through the chain of veterinary hospitals our vet belongs to, and the company they partner with is Petplan. It's actually one of the first plans they offered- by going through vets, and making the deals with the offices, it meant that they kept costs down since they had a prenegociated rate. Most vet insurance has moved away from this model, but we're grandfathered in (the contract specifies they will continue coverage until there are none of the oringal pets left on the plan- fortunately my red cat was 8 months old at the time, so we've got a while to go).
One big thing I've noticed in terms of pet insurance is going through your vet's office tends to get you a better plan for your needs. Whether it's because the vet can make a recommendation based on your pet's health needs, or an existing contract that will save you money, you tend to end up with better rates and coverage.
Abigail says
Good to know. I'll check it out if I get any vet recommendations from friends.
jena says
The banfield at our petsmart is only open 2 days a week; which is largely inconvenient. So we found a regular vet that we like; the cost is astronomical, but what can we do? We have 2 healthy dogs, and so far the cost is just for their yearly check ups/vaccines/heart worm/flea preventative. — I would consider some kind of pet insurance if either one of them had a serious health problem, but so far, so good. Fingers crossed they stay healthy!
Abigail says
I think pet insurance covers basic shots, doesn't it? So you might end up paying less by paying a monthly fee for insurance.
I can't believe the Banfield near you is open so little. The one near us is open 6 days a week.
jp2 says
not related to banfield but….
i think you mentioned you use my coke rewards? if so, they are ending on 12/31/13. I do believe the last day to enter them is 11/30 (though not 100% on that one). The details are listed: http://www.mycokerewards.com/help.do under Program Basics, then How long with My Coke Rewards run?
just a heads up
Abigail says
Well, they do it year by year. So the current phase is set to end on 12/31/13, but I'm guessing it'll get renewed. At the very least, I know you can enter codes after 11/30 because they're running a Holiday reward from 12/1-12/12 that has to do with entering codes: http://www.mycokerewards.com/holiday?WT.ac=mcrMar…
imawindycitygal says
My dog has been very healthy, even though she's nearly 11. She still goes to the vet at least once a year for a check up, vaccinations, and heartworm test. She has monthly heartworm preventative medication, and we do keep a doggie Xanax prescription on hand because she can get super anxious about loud noises or if I go away for several days. (My vacations are very hard on my dog!) So far she hasn't needed any dental work.
Nonetheless her vet costs do add up to at least $300 a year. I hadn't look into pet insurance because I always thought it was expensive with little coverage. It sounds like I was wrong and it may be something worth looking into.
Abigail says
Definitely look into it, if you're paying about that much now. I'm sorry that your leisure affects your pet so much. I guess everyone makes sacrifices. Like the rest of the year that you're NOT in a tropical paradise so that you can a) earn money and b) pet your dog.
Linda says
I thought I replied the other day but it went "poof"!
I no longer live in an area with a Banfield in PetSmart. When I did, I did have their insurance on two cats. This Banfield was open 6 days a week and some evening hours.
The teeth cleaning and annual check up paid for the cost and their was a bit of a reduction in the charge because I had two cats insured.
The male cat got a UTI. In doing the xrays, a BB was found in my poor baby's kidney. I adopted him at 3 mos. of age. He had been fostered and been found in a dumpster. Some jerk must have shot him with a BB gun before tossing him in the dumpster. The cat never, ever trusted anyone but me and the vet said that probably explained his trust issues.
I had no issues with the vet. However when the Banfield vet wanted to do surgery, I wanted a cat specialist and took the cat to that vet. I just wanted to be a hovering mom when it came to surgery. What Banfield was doing up to that point was not getting rid of the UTI, but the new vet did the same things and it didn't clear it up either so surgery it was. So two different vets in two different practices came to the same conclusion.