Posted by Pets Best on 10/27/2008 in Articles from Newsletters

For humans, staying happy can be a complicated issue. Not so for pets, who, as long as they are healthy, loved and well cared for, are almost always happy. With National Pet Health Month in full swing, now is a great time to perform a check-up on your pet’s health care and make sure you’re doing everything you can to protect your furry friends. Here’s what you should be doing to help maintain their good health, plus the top ten signs that your pet may be feeling ill.

Regular Wellness Exams
You probably visit your doctor, and your dentist, for a yearly checkup. Your pet, though, ages up to seven times faster than you do—if you take your pet to the veterinarian once a year, it’s like you seeing your doctor or dentist just once every seven years! Pets who have reached middle age should have a wellness exam every six months.

What should your wellness exam include? The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) endorses this list of ten important health screenings for adult dogs and cats. Your veterinarian may recommend additional tests, depending on your pet’s age and other factors.

-Vaccinations
-Osteoarthritis check
-Parasite check
-Chest radiograph
-Heartworm check
-Thyroid check
-Dental health
-Blood panel (CBC)
-Chemistry panel
-Urinalysis

Keep in mind that BestWellness, an optional plan available to Pets Best policyholders, provides annual benefits toward wellness exams as well as tests including blood panel, heart worm, and urinalysis, plus numerous vaccinations and more, all with no deductibles.

Which Vaccinations? How Often?
According to the AVMA, not all pets should be vaccinated with all vaccines. Your veterinarian should determine your pet’s needs based on the pet’s health, potential exposure, access to other animals, and travel to other geographic locations, since these factors affect your pet’s risk of disease.

Likewise, the best vaccination schedule should take a number of factors into account. A set of annual vaccinations used to be the norm, but doctors now recognize that while some vaccinations offer disease protection that lasts longer than a year, others may fail to protect for a full year. Your veterinarian should design the most effective vaccination routine around the specific needs of your pet.

Signs of Trouble
Even with the help of regular exams and vaccinations, your pet may still get sick from time to time. But pets, unlike people, won’t tell you when they don’t feel good, especially our feline companions—it is up you to watch for the signs of illness. Pet health problems are easier to treat when they are addressed quickly. Remember that the list below is not exhaustive. Pets have plenty of ways to let you know they are not feeling well, but you should definitely call your veterinarian if your pet shows any of these common symptoms:

-Loss of appetite for more than a day
-Drinking more than usual for days
-Gaining or losing a lot of weight quickly
-Strange behavior including sudden viciousness
-Being unusually sluggish and tired
-Trouble getting up or laying down
-Strange lumps
-Abnormal discharge from eyes, nose, or elsewhere
-Excessive head shaking, scratching, licking or biting
-Dandruff, loss of hair, skin sores, a ragged or dull coat

Posted by Angela Klein on 9/26/2008 in Articles from Newsletters

What a wonderful group of pets we are able to insure! When we asked you for your photos, we had no idea that we’d get such an overwhelming and amazing response. Your pets are BEAUTIFUL!!

We want to thank each person who took the time to send in a photo or two of your cherished dog or cat. We know that behind each beautiful face is a story of love and friendship that goes deeper than words.

It was unbelievably hard to choose a winner, harder because of the hundreds of photos we had to choose from. We debated, we laughed, we smiled and – in the end – we decided we had taken on a much bigger task than we had originally envisioned. Everyone was so good looking!

So, along with the winners, we had to choose several Honorable Mentions, even though we think that all the pets deserve recognition. In order to showcase all the photos, we’ve also put together a photo gallery that you can view by clicking here.

Thank you for joining in our summer fun and for the kind words that many of you sent. Knowing we are able to help so many pets and that we are making a difference is what keeps us going. We’re glad we’ve been able to help.

We hope you enjoy the pictures and thanks again to everyone who took the time to send a photo!

Posted by Angela Klein on 9/17/2008 in Articles from Newsletters

Have you had a chance to log in to your account online yet? If you haven’t, this is a great time to because we’ve been adding features that make it even easier for you to view your claims and change account information.

New features include:

Add/change your credit card information
Change your address
Change your phone number
See when claims have been received

You’re also still able to:

View chosen coverage for your pets
See when claims have been processed
Change your email address

Access your account anytime online. The set up process is easy and only takes about 3 minutes.

Your time is precious. Use your online access to take care of changes and view the status of your claims when it’s most convenient for you!

If you would like help setting up your online account access, just let us know. We’d love to help. Contact us at 1-877-738-7237 (877-PETSBEST) or customerservice@petsbest.com.

Thank you for allowing us to insure your pets and for referring Pets Best to friends and family who love their pets. We look forward to serving you and your pets for years to come!

Posted by Angela Klein on 9/16/2008 in Articles from Newsletters

IF YOU FIND IT HARD TO THINK ABOUT LIFE WITHOUT YOUR PET, IMAGINE YOUR PET’S LIFE WITHOUT YOU

Amy Shever has had a passion for pets all her life. From 1985-2001, Amy volunteered at local animal shelters in Northern California because she wanted to help pets. What she didn’t realize was that she would witness large numbers of animals undergoing euthanization because there were no homes for them.

Many of these pets had been surrendered to animal shelters simply because they had outlived their pet owners, and these owners had made no plans for their continued care.

This experience led to a personal mission to help make a difference in the lives of pets and help prevent unnecessary euthanasia. Amy founded an organization, 2nd Chance 4 Pets (www.2ndchance4pets.org). This all-volunteer organization works across the U.S. with pet owners, veterinarians and animal care groups to ensure lifetime care for pets should pets outlive their owners.

In the United States, there are 4 to 5 million abandoned and orphaned pets euthanized each year. Thousands of animal companions are relinquished and euthanized in animal shelters and in veterinarian offices each year simply because their humans died or were too ill to care for them. Armed with these statistics and a deep desire to make a difference, Amy asks the tough question: “What will happen to your pets if they outlive you?” Pet owners are encouraged to plan for their pets and prevent them from becoming yet another statistic.

For more information about 2nd Chance 4 Pets and to locate resources and lifetime care information, visit them online at www.2ndchance4pets.org. The website content covers a range of topics on planning, including the importance of selecting potential caregivers for your pets, the basics of pet trusts and alternative lifetime care solutions.

By planning for your pets’ future now, you’ll be sure that your pets always have someone to care for them.

Posted by Angela Klein on 9/10/2008 in Articles from Veterinary Newsletter

You Asked. We Listened!

These are exciting times at Pets Best! To keep up with our record growth, we have redesigned our web pages to better meet your needs.

See for yourself at www.petsbest.com/veterinarians

Specifically designed with you in mind, on the new web pages you can:

Request or Download an Information Kit
Order or Re-order Pets Best brochures
Sign up for the Pets Best Veterinary Newsletter
Learn More About Staff Trainings
Find Out How StaffBest Can Save You Money

Be sure to check out our new brochure that we’ve enclosed and order more online or by phone today!

You know that having pet insurance means that your clients are financially prepared and able to say yes to the best veterinary care and treatments available. Share the good news!

Go online to www.petsbest.com/vets and see how easy it is to share Pets Best with your clients.

Want to Learn More? We Make It Easy!

Join a Pets Best Webinar and get all your questions answered in a 30-minute interactive presentation. Learn more about pet insurance and why Pets Best truly is simply the best pet insurance available today.

Based on your feedback, we’ve expanded our Webinar offerings. Now you can pre-register for a Webinar at a time that’s most convenient for you and your staff.

All you need to join is a high-speed Internet connection and a speaker phone.

Choose the date and time that works best for you
Log in to your webinar online at gotowebinar.com 5 – 10 minutes before your scheduled time
Call into the conference line (1-877-661-9832)
Enter your I.D. number (83301)
Enjoy your presentation!

Every Webinar has a question-and-answer session at the end to make sure your questions are covered. Register for your Webinar and you’ll even be sent a reminder the day and hour before to remind you.

Learn more and have fun at the same time!

If you’d like to talk with us about Pets Best webinars, give us a call at 1-877-738-7237 ext. 4. We’d love to hear from you! Or, Register Today — you’ll be glad you did!

Posted by Jennifer Jones on 9/10/2008 in Articles from Veterinary Newsletter

Often, we hear people say that they don’t quite know what pet insurance is, how it works, and what it does and doesn’t cover. We understand!

To meet this need, we’ve worked to put together an interactive presentation over the web that will guide you and your hospital staff through the fundamentals of pet insurance and how Pets Best compares to the rest.

Of course, we will go over our specific plans here at Pets Best to help you better understand them and pass those benefits on to your clients.

All you need is an Internet connection – DSL or other high-speed connection is preferred – and a free hour to gather your staff for the web seminar and question-and-answer session that follows. (The actual presentation itself is around 30 minutes.)

Understanding pet insurance is the first key to being able to help pet owners understand how it works so that they can make an informed decision for their pets.

Advantages of a Pets Best Webinar

Better inform your staff of the benefits of pet insurance
Provides staff confidence in marketing pet insurance to clients on a regular basis
Provides a fun, interactive way to learn why Pets Best is a better alternative to other pet insurance companies

Learn more about signing up for a Pets Best webinar online or by calling Pets Best Veterinary Services at 1-877-738-7237 (877-PETSBEST) ext. 4 or by emailing vetservices@petsbest.com.