Dog vet insurance is a useful investment to make if you are considering owning a pet. Though vet insurance plans and companies differ somewhat from area to area and between different plans as well, it's generally the case that vet insurance plans are designed to help cover the costs associated with taking your pet in for checkups and having operations and medications done or given to him.
Dog vet insurance functions in much the same way as human health care does as well, meaning that the insurance company will likely have a set deductible after which you'll pay for the cost of treatment, and you may also have co-pays to make that will help to defer some of the costs of the vet visit too.
ACL Conditions
ACL conditions, referring to issues involving the anterior cruciate ligament at the rear of each of your dogs legs, are typically not covered under insurance policies. Many insurance policies will not cover either ACL or CCL conditions. CCL conditions refer to those affecting the cranial cruciate ligament. Both of these are crucial ligaments that help to allow your pet to move freely and to walk normally. Without these ligaments working properly, your dog will not be able to walk around as he would like to.
There are several reasons why ACL conditions are not covered under most dog vet insurance coverage plans. Because these conditions are oftentimes considered to be bilateral, meaning that when even one side of the body is affected, it's assumed that both sides will suffer some sort of damage or effect, the conditions are generally much more extensive than other similar injuries that can happen. They therefore require a great deal more surgery and other procedures which can bring costs up quite high very quickly. Additionally, while ACL conditions are not rampant in most dogs, they are relatively more common than many other injuries that can happen to affect your pet's legs. Between these various reasons (high costs, increased frequency of incidence), insurance companies or other providers are generally hesitant to cover the costs of ACL work.
Other Insurance Issues
Dog vet insurance may change coverage or may cover different items and conditions after a set period of time. many types of insurance will be limited in their scope for the first year or for the first term of the insurance plan, but will then augment the plan for subsequent terms. In these cases, you may find that your pet will subsequently have his ACL conditions covered by insurance plans. In other cases, some of the costs of dealing with an ACL condition may be covered while others may not be. It's not uncommon for insurance plans to cover the cost of the surgery but not the medicines or post operative care, or vice versa, for an ACL condition.
Ask your vet for more information, or speak with a representative at a dog vet insurance provider in your area to determine whether your plan covers ACL conditions.