Embrace Pet Insurance Blog

Breed focus: English Bulldog

Aren't English Bulldogs such hilarious looking dogs? I always wondered what people saw in them until I saw a puppy (the cutest!) and met a few in person. Wow, what personality they have! Now I fully understand why people pay thousands of dollars to add one to their family.

But on the other hand, oh those vet bills!

From the Embrace Health Center's write up on English Bulldogs:

Bulldogs' hips and spines are often malformed, as are their mouths. They suffer from a long list of respiratory ailments. Their many wrinkles and folds, and tightly curled tails, mean lots of skin infections. Cherry eye, inverted eyelids, cataracts and dry eye are just a few of the eye abnormalities that can affect the Bulldog.

Many conditions have no screening tests, even though they're known or believed to be genetic. These include seizure disorders, allergies and skin problems, several kinds of bladder stone, a long list of airway defects, birth defects, infertility and cancer, and more. Bulldogs are also at high risk for "bloat and torsion," where the stomach twists on itself, trapping air inside, and requiring immediate emergency surgery.

 All I can say about that is GET PET INSURANCE IMMEDIATELY! (and Embrace Pet Insurance preferably - we cover all those things mentioned above as long as there are no signs of them already)

The Embrace Wellness Rewards Plan

  
So now we have the optional Embrace Wellness Rewards Plan, how does it work?

I like to think of it like a pet health savings account - you have a $200 wellness account you can use towards wellness related items such as:

• wellness exams and office visits
• vaccinations and titres
• flea, tick and heartworm preventatives
• spaying and neutering
• dental cleaning
• routine diagnostics
• microchipping

With the Embrace Wellness Rewards Program, there are no sub-limits, so if you want to use all your $200 for teeth cleaning, go ahead, it's all yours. And there are no deductibles or copays. How nice is that?!

The cost is $14.95 a month or $149 a year so it's money in your pocket not ours.

Since this program isn't insurance (after all, it's totally up to you how much you spend in wellness care), it's offered through the Embrace Pet Community and billed separately so when you sign up for this, you'll see a second payment for the Rewards Program.

What do you think? Is this something you would consider for your pets?

Related Post:
How Embrace Wellness Rewards came about

How Embrace Wellness Rewards came about

OK, this is crazy but I haven't really talked about the Embrace Wellness Rewards program on the blog even though it's been available for a full year now. Yes, crazy I tell you!

I have not always been a supporter of a wellness insurance product because for the longest time, it made no sense to me. After all, when you buy car insurance, you don't get coverage for your oil changes and tire rotations, do you?

And a subset of pet parents agreed with me. There's no need to give Embrace the money for something they can budget for. Just put that money aside in the savings account or cover is along the way, and get insurance for the unexpected accidents and illness that can drain your bank account. Makes total sense, doesn't it.

Except for the other group of pet parents that viewed pet insurance to be just like their own health or dental insurance where health and wellbeing are part of the same program for their pets, no if, ands, or buts. If there's no wellness, they ain't buying the insurance.

And who was I to argue?

So, I  changed my mind on wellness - but in a way that satisfies both groups.

1. it's optional coverage - if you don't want it, don't take it (that was easy!)
2. it's not insurance under the Embrace plan so we can give more money back to you when you claim (I love it!) 

I think it's the best of both worlds and it certainly works well for both groups - those that want wellness coverage and those who do not.

Ironically, I now have the wellness add-on for Rocket and Rosie, my 2 rascally kittens, and I have more than made my money back on it. It's nice to have my cake and eat it too!

Tomorrow, I'll go into more detail about what the wellness plan covers, but if you'd like to skip ahead, feel free to check out the Embrace Wellness webpage on our website.

Related Posts:
The Embrace Wellness Rewards Plan

January is Pet Wellness Month at Embrace Pet Insurance

January is Wellness Month because last month Rocket nearly had a horrible accident in my dryer and our Claims Manager's dog Ozzie swallowed yet another dish towel ($2,340 bill) and I thought we better divert the pet health gods towards wellness instead. Just to clear the karma air...

So if you or your dog's new year's resolution is to lose a few pounds, or you are focusing on preventative care like heartworm prevention or flea and tick in 2010, we have a few tips and tricks coming this month.

Here's to a happy and healthy New Year to you and your dogs, cats, and any other beloved pets in your family!