Does Pet Insurance Cover Surgery?

Yes. Pet insurance plans typically cover surgeries for your dog or cat if they get hurt or sick — including MetLife Pet. But what’s covered specifically depends on the type of policy you have and when you got it.

Since high-cost surgeries could throw a wrench in your financial plans, learn more about the kinds of surgeries and related expenses that may be included in your pet insurance coverage.

MetLife Pet Insurance Offers Coverage for Surgeries

With MetLife Pet’s standard pet insurance policy, you can get coverage for surgeries your pet needs due to new accidents and illnesses. This includes surgeries performed by vet specialists. As long as the condition doesn’t fall under any exclusions in your policy, you could be reimbursed up to 90% of covered costs.¹

Coverage for vet surgeries depends on the type of policy you have. In general, you can purchase an accident-only policy or a comprehensive coverage policy.

• Accident-only policy: With this kind of policy, your pet’s surgery must be related to an accident or injury to qualify for coverage. Surgeries related to illnesses won’t be covered. This isn’t a policy MetLife Pet offers.
• Comprehensive coverage policy: With a policy that covers accidents and illnesses, surgeries related to accidents, injuries, health conditions, and other illnesses are typically included in your coverage.

Common Pet Surgeries That Can Be Covered By Pet Insurance

MetLife Pet offers coverage for pet surgeries related to accidents and illnesses — even some that are hereditary, chronic, or congenital (present at birth). These can include:

If you’re unsure whether a specific surgery might be covered by a MetLife Pet policy, give us a call at (877) 653-5585 to discuss coverage and customization options.

Real-life surgery savings with MetLife Pet

Depending on the procedure and reimbursement rate, pet insurance could help you save thousands. Here are some examples of real savings from MetLife Pet policyholders:⁹

• Harold, a senior dachshund from Michigan, needed surgery to treat his IVDD. It cost $9,500, and MetLife Pet reimbursed his parents for over $8,300.
• Simba, a young golden retriever from New York, had to be rushed into emergency surgery to treat bloat. The bill was $5,900, and MetLife Pet reimbursed his parents for $4,650.
• Fiona, a 4-year-old cat from Colorado, needed surgery to treat cancer in her eye. It cost $3,000, and MetLife Pet covered over $2,650.

What Surgery Expenses Are Included in Coverage?

Through our standard policy, MetLife Pet can typically help you cover the cost of the surgery, as well as associated expenses, like:

• Exam fees
• Blood work and diagnostics
• Prescription medications
• Hospitalization
• Follow-up appointments
• Routine complications

Check out our coverage and exclusions page, or your specific policy, for more details on your exact coverage.

Does pet insurance cover anesthesia?

Yes, our pet insurance typically includes coverage for anesthesia if it’s related to a surgery that’s covered under your policy. A lot goes into making sure the correct dosage is used for your pet’s specific needs, which can make the cost of anesthesia pricey. But ensuring your dog or cat is pain-free and calm during a surgical procedure is crucial.

Surgeries That Aren’t Typically Covered

Most pet insurance providers, including MetLife Pet, don’t cover surgeries related to pre-existing conditions, breeding, and cosmetic or elective procedures.

However, if your pet has a health condition that’s already covered by another provider, and you switch to a MetLife Pet policy through your employer, you could still get coverage for surgeries that the condition may require.¹⁰

Since spay or neuter surgery or routine teeth cleanings are generally elective surgical procedures, they won’t be covered by an insurance policy. But an optional wellness plan — like MetLife Pet’s Preventive Care add-on — could help you provide this type of coverage for either of these procedures up to your selected limit.

Key Considerations With Pet Insurance That Covers Surgery

Pet surgeries are part of your standard MetLife Pet coverage — eligible expenses can be reimbursed after you visit the vet, pay your bill, and submit a claim. Depending on your policy, different factors can affect whether the surgery is eligible for reimbursement.

Policy details

Your specific policy likely has customizations that dictate when and how much you could be reimbursed for eligible expenses.¹ These include your:

• Deductible: Once you’ve met your policy’s deductible, you can start getting money back on covered surgeries.¹¹
• Reimbursement rate: After your deductible is met, surgery bills can be reimbursed at your policy’s reimbursement rate, up to any maximum limits. Based on your policy, these could be an annual benefit limit or a per-incident limit. MetLife Pet doesn’t currently offer per-incident limits.^1,12
• Maximum limits: If you’re below your annual limit, per-incident limit, or any other maximum in your policy, you can get money back on eligible surgeries.¹²

You can customize your MetLife Pet plan’s deductible, reimbursement rate, and annual limit so they work for your pet’s needs and your budget.^1,11,12

Waiting periods

Pet surgeries that happen during your waiting periods are excluded from coverage. Even if your pet is diagnosed with an injury or illness during applicable waiting periods, but the surgery happens later on, that surgery may also be excluded from coverage.

With MetLife Pet’s plan, accidents have a 0-day waiting period and illnesses have a 14-day waiting period.

Can You Get Pet Insurance Before Surgery?

Yes, you can get pet insurance before your pet has a surgical procedure. When it comes to getting reimbursed for it, you just need to make sure the surgery doesn’t fall into your policy’s exclusions.¹

For example, if your vet diagnoses your pet with a health condition that needs surgery and then you enroll them in a policy to help you cover it, the condition would likely be considered pre-existing. Therefore, the surgery to treat this condition would be excluded from coverage.

To increase the chance that your pet’s surgery falls under your plan’s coverage, it can be a good idea to get pet insurance while your pet is young and healthy. Take advantage of our 0-day waiting period, so accidents needing surgery could be eligible for reimbursement starting at midnight after you enroll in a policy.¹

Get Pet Insurance That Can Cover Surgery With MetLife Pet

If your dog or cat needs surgery, MetLife Pet is here to help you get your furry family member back in good health! With reimbursements up to 90% on covered surgical expenses and a free 24/7 vet chat¹³ to help when you have questions day or night, a MetLife Pet policy can be a useful purchase for your pets.¹

Explore your customization options by getting a free, personalized quote today.