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Indroducing Monthly Paid Wellness Plans at Encina Veterinary Hospital

October 31, 2012 By Leave a Comment

        Encina Veterinary Hospital is proud to now offer Monthly Paid Wellness Plans for both cats and dogs. We believe that with a Basic or Deluxe Wellness Plan from Encina Veterinary Hospital and your veterinarians recommendations, we can work together to ensure that your pet enjoys a long and happy life with you.

        Our four keys to a happy and healthy pet:
            Comprehensive physical examination
            Protecting your pet against preventable diseases by measuring their immune status and if needed, administering the appropriate vaccinations
            Regular diagnostic testing to ensure your pet’s body systems are functioning optimally and to compare test results over time
            Internal and external parasite screening and prevention

The Wellness Plans at Encina Veterinary Hospital offer these services in the convenient packages that ensure your pet gets the care they need and you get the peace of mind you deserve.

        Wellness Plans at Encina Veterinary Hospital feature:
            Customized services for both dogs and cats based on their age
            Basic and Deluxe plans are available
            Services can be used throughout the plan year, and fees for services can be paid on a monthly basis instead of one lump sum

Do you have a Trupanion Pet Insurance Policy? If so, you’re half way to our Platinum Paw Club! The Platinum Paw Club is an exclusive club designed to reward pet owners who have chosen to protect their pet’s health with a Basic or Deluxe Wellness Plan at Encina Veterinary Hospital and with a Trupanion Pet Insurance Policy which covers unexpected illnesses or injuries. We at Encina want to reward and celebrate your devotion to your pets!

Our wellness plans start as low as less than $16/month, depending on your pet and their age. If you would like more information on our plans, please give us a call and ask for a Doctor’s Assistant: (925) 937-5000

Filed Under: Blog, Cat Care, Dog Care, Pet Insurance, Uncategorized Tagged With: , , , ,

Pet Insurance 101

April 27, 2012 By 4 Comments

As you may know, we’re BIG fans of pet insurance here at Encina, but we’re the biggest fan of Trupanion Pet Insurance. We make it a point to talk about pet insurance with every person who comes through the door because we know how hard it can be to come up with a large lump sum of money to treat, care or even save the life of your pet, and we don’t want anyone to not be able to help their beloved furkid.

Here’s why we love Trupanion and what you should know:

Trupanion allows you to choose how much you would like to pay a month and how much of a deductible you would like.
     Example: Sally finds it easier to pay $56/month for her dog Rover, and has a deductible of $250 while John finds it harder for month to month payments so his monthly payment is only $35 with a deductible of $750.

Trupanion pays up to 90% of the bill back to you
     Here is a real claim from Trupanion:

Harmony the 5-year-old mixed-breed dog recently experienced some serious health complications. She was rushed to the emergency vet for lymphocytic/plasmacytic gastroenteritis, which is a form of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Secondary issues with this condition were septicemia and bacterimia which are conditions in which the bloodstream becomes infected by bacteria and can be life-threatening.

Harmony was at the clinic for 6 days receiving surgery, medications, fluids, and regular monitoring. Harmony was released and we are wishing her a quick recovery.

Costs can quickly add up in an emergency situation as you will see below. It’s fortunate that Harmony’s owner had her insured so that she could take care of all the necessary veterinary treatment without cost concerns.

     Total claim amount: $12,216.99
     Deductible applied: $500.00
     Exam fees: -$149.00
     10% co-insurance: -$1159.80
     Trupanion repaid: $10,411.19

Trupanion allows you to add on extra services
     Reward for a lost pet, boarding for your pet should you be hospitalized, acupuncture, physical therapy, feline kidney transplants and more are available through Trupanion

NO LIMITS!!!
     Other pet insurances may give you a yearly or lifetime limit of how much they will pay out, but Trupanion doesn’t! If you’re unlucky enough to have a dog who eats everything or a cat with a chronic illness, you may find that other pet insurances will say, “ok we’ll cover you but only up until we have spent $5000; after that, you’re on your own!” but that is not the case with Trupanion.

In the end, we feel that Trupanion is a simple plan that gives you the ability to customize it to your financial needs and your pet’s medical needs as well. We like the flexibility they give customers and we love that 90% coverage! If you’re interested in more information, be sure to let us know next time you are in.

Click the image to see the larger version!
Pet Insurance 101
Pet Insurance 101 graphic created by Trupanion.

Filed Under: Blog, Community Concern, Dog Care, Inside EVH, Pet Insurance Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Better Safe Than Sorry – Trupanion

February 6, 2012 By Leave a Comment


Similar to human health insurance, pet insurance provides peace of mind in case the unfortunate should happen with your pet. Its purpose is to help cover the costs of unexpected accidents and illnesses that may occur in the future.

When your insured pet becomes sick or injured, you bring him or her to Encina Veterinary Hospital. You then submit your invoice along with the pet insurance claim form to be reimbursed at a percentage, less your chosen deductible (you can choose your own deductible and even make it $0 if you wish!). Trupanion allows you to customize your own plan (your deductible amount and your monthly subscriber amount too).

Here is an actual testimonial from pet owner with an unlucky pooch …

Calypso the 2-year-old Boxer had some unfortunate luck recently. She had a run in with a porcupine and got to experience the frightening and painful quills. Sadly, one of the quills punctured her lung and caused pneumothorax which is a collapsed lung. Calypso spent time at the emergency veterinary clinic where she had surgery.

She is doing better since the attack and we are very glad that we could be there to help during such a scary time.
     Total claim amount: $7,852.67
     Deductible applied: -$0.00 ($100 deductible already met)
     Exam fees: -$165.00
     Unrelated charges: -$90.05
     10% co-insurance: -$759.76
     Trupanion repaid: $6,837.86

Trupanion Pet Insurance is now offering a FREE 30 Day Trial of Trupanion Pet Insurance with a complete physical exam! For dogs and cats between 8 weeks and 14 years old. Call us today to learn more (925) 937-5000

Filed Under: Blog, Cat Care, Dog Care, Pet Insurance Tagged With: , , ,

September is National Pet Insurance Month!!

September 15, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Happy Pet Insurance Month!

Pet insurance is a much discussed topic these days, as people are looking to provide the best possible care for their pets in a mercurial economic climate. Financial analysts have been changing their tune on the topic, as Liz Weston from MSN Money puts it, “A few years ago, pet insurance would have ranked right up there with life insurance for children and dread-disease coverage on my list of policies you don’t need. Now I’m not so sure.” In fact, several companies such as Google and Office Depot are now providing pet insurance coverage as an optional employee benefit.

In order to help sort through the confusion, Encina put together a team of employees to specifically research different pet insurance policies in order to find one that would benefit our patients and clients the most. After months of pouring through policy information, we decided upon Trupanion Pet Insurance (www.trupanion.com). Trupanion provides coverage for 90% of veterinary costs for accident and illnesses, with no payout limits. Encina does not receive benefits from Trupanion for promoting their insurance, we merely hope to provide our clients with a way to save money on treatments for their pets.


For more information on pet insurance, feel free to stop in and chat with any of our client service representatives or doctor’s assistants, or call us at (925)937-5001.

Filed Under: Blog, Pet Insurance, Uncategorized Tagged With: ,

Miracle Maggie

June 16, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Maggie, Politely Asking For Breakfast

One of the most famous patients at Encina is Maggie Della Valle, who has been seeing Dr. Atwater for over 13 years. Though her parents stand out as kind and caring owners, and her sweet countenance makes exams a pleasure, it is Maggie’s medical history that is the cause of her notoriety around the hospital. Maggie was diagnosed with lymphoma at age 3, after her family noticed a mass near her rectum. She was treated with a chemotherapy protocol that typically yields median remission time of 10 months, and a median survival time of 14 months. Although she has come out of remission one time since her original treatment, after two total rounds of chemo she is currently considered to be in complete remission, at the age of 16! As Dr. Atwater says, it is “extremely rare for any dog to survive as long as she has with her disease,” and that she is essentially “cured of her disease, although the word cured is not a certainty, the length of time that the cancer does not appear to have recurred would be considered a cure by some definitions of the word in veterinary medicine.”

View From the Bowl

Maggie and her brother are personal friends of mine, and, trust me, her moxie is definitely still evident! Maggie enjoys eating as much as any Labrador I’ve ever met, and patiently waits for her snack of Charlee Bears treats and boiled chicken at 9pm each evening. We at Encina would like to applaud Maggie for beating the odds, and for disproving the theory that the good always die young.

Kenji and Maggie Hanging Out At Home

Filed Under: Blog, Cat Care, Community Concern, News, Pet Insurance, Pet Tips, Uncategorized, Unusual Encina Tagged With: , , , ,

Pet Health Insurance Comparison

April 3, 2011 By 1 Comment

The Veterinary News Network (VNN) did a direct comparison of one test case using four popular insurance companies.

There are many companies with many different coverage limits, deductibles, restrictions and even add on coverage. VNN only had time to look at four companies. But they gave them the exact same case for a head-to-head comparison. You may be surprised at what they found …

As always, Encina Veterinary Hospital only recommends only the best: Trupanion Pet Insurance. Click the image below to check out their website.

Filed Under: Blog, News, Pet Insurance, Video Tagged With: , , , ,