The Best Pet Insurance for Your Senior Dog in 2025
As your canine companion ages, the potential for increased medical expenses rises. Senior dogs, being more prone to illnesses, can benefit significantly from pet insurance, which provides financial protection during emergencies. However, finding pet insurance for older dogs can be challenging. Many companies exclude pre-existing conditions and restrict enrollment based on age. Additionally, policies for senior dogs often come with higher premiums and extended waiting periods.
Fortunately, several excellent pet insurance options for senior dogs offer breed-specific coverage and end-of-life benefits without excessive costs. Here are Business Insider’s recommendations for the best senior dog pet insurance in 2025.
Best Senior Dog Insurance
- Best overall: Spot Pet Insurance
- Best for direct pay: Trupanion Pet Insurance
- Best for fast reimbursement: Healthy Paws Pet Insurance
- Best for wide-ranging coverage: Pumpkin Pet Insurance
- Best for preexisting conditions: AKC Pet Insurance
- Best for 100% reimbursement: Figo Pet Insurance
- Best on a budget: Lemonade Pet Insurance
Spot Pet Insurance: Best Overall
One of the most appealing aspects of Spot Pet Insurance is that it has no upper age limit, meaning you can secure coverage for your dog regardless of its age. While premiums will increase as your pet gets older, this is standard across most plans. Spot does not cover pre-existing conditions, but there’s an exception. If your pet fully recovers from a condition for at least 180 days, Spot will then cover future occurrences of that condition.
Additionally, Spot offers end-of-life expense coverage, including euthanasia, burial, or cremation, easing the financial burden during a difficult time.
Spot operates on a reimbursement system, where you can select a plan that reimburses up to 90% of expenses with annual deductibles ranging from $100 to $1,000. Sample policies are easily accessible, allowing you to examine the details.
Trupanion Pet Insurance: Best for Direct Pay
Trupanion Pet Insurance offers unique direct payment to vets. If your clinic or hospital is in Trupanion’s system, you won’t have to worry about filing a claim or paying up front. However, you can still get reimbursed through a traditional claim if your vet doesn’t work with Trupanion.
Trupanion covers cats and dogs up to the age of 14 and includes breed-specific concerns, like hip dysplasia, as long as your pet has no existing symptoms. There is no payout limit meaning that Trupanion will help with bills that can add up quickly with a senior pet. All Trupanion plans cover 90% of the cost of care. Its deductible system gives options for a deductible per condition over the policy’s lifetime. So if you fulfill your deductible for a certain condition, you won’t have to pay more than your 10% copay as long as your policy is active.
However, Trupanion’s premiums are higher compared to its competitors, making it more expensive for senior dogs. Additionally, it doesn’t offer discounts for multiple pets.
Healthy Paws Pet Insurance: Best for Fast Reimbursement
If your pet insurance doesn’t provide direct payments, fast reimbursement is essential. Healthy Paws reimburses approved claims within 24 hours. The maximum enrollment age is 14. To identify pre-existing conditions, which are not covered, all pets must have had a vet exam in the year before signing up for coverage, and for pets six or older, an exam within the past 30 days is required. The waiting period is a short 15 days. Healthy Paws offers reimbursement for up to 90% of emergency care, with an annual deductible.
Pumpkin Pet Insurance: Best for Wide-Ranging Coverage
Pumpkin Pet Insurance offers extensive coverage, including behavioral interventions, acupuncture, and specialty foods, which many pet insurance companies do not offer. Pumpkin even includes provisions for dental care and physical therapy. Pumpkin has no upper age limit and a short waiting period of just 14 days. Pumpkin doesn’t cover preexisting conditions but covers most ailments cured for at least 180 days before reoccurring. Pumpkin plans reimburse 90% of the cost of covered procedures. These plans include an annual deductible that ranges from $100 to $1,000.
AKC Pet Insurance: Best for Preexisting Conditions
AKC Pet Insurance is notable for covering both curable and incurable preexisting conditions, an important benefit for senior pets. This coverage becomes available after 365 days, so immediate coverage isn’t available. AKC offers accident coverage with no age limit and has a requirement that for illness coverage, your pet must be younger than 9, unless they are continually enrolled, in which case the coverage continues even after 9. AKC plans cover between 70% and 90% of the cost, with deductibles ranging from $100 to $1,000 and the annual limits range from $2,500 to $10,000.
Figo Pet Insurance: Best for 100% Reimbursement
Figo stands out by offering the option to cover 100% of qualified expenses. Figo also offers unlimited coverage. You can also choose less coverage with plans starting at 70% coverage. Deductibles range from $100-750. You can get a 15% discount on Figo if you have a Costco membership. Pets older than 8 weeks are eligible for coverage, and Figo doesn’t have any upper age limits. Its policies don’t cover preexisting conditions, with some exceptions for conditions that have been cured for more than a year. Figo makes it easy to add a wellness plan to your insurance. As a Figo member you also have access to 24/7 vet support.
Lemonade Pet Insurance: Best for a Budget
Lemonade Pet Insurance is available for pets up to 14 years old. It offers accident and illness with additional wellness benefits. Lemonade’s benefits are often found in the add-ons to a bare-bones policy, allowing owners to select and pay for only the features that they want. Various discounts are offered, including a 10% discount when bundling with other Lemonade plans, a 5% discount for insuring several pets, and an additional 5% if you enroll in the annual payment plan. Lemonade also offers a diverse range of coverage levels, from $5,000 to $100,000, deductibles from $100 to $750, and reimbursements from 70% to 90%.
Choosing the Right Insurance for Your Senior Dog
Selecting the right pet insurance requires careful consideration. If your dog has a pre-existing condition, companies with lenient pre-existing condition policies, like AKC, become essential. You should also check if your dog’s breed has certain predispositions. You may want wellness benefits, which can be added on to some standard policies, or are sometimes found in stand-alone wellness plans.
The best policies prioritize affordable rates, short waiting periods, and some degree of coverage for pre-existing conditions. Confirm the provider’s age limit, coverage waiting period, and pre-existing condition coverage before making a decision.
Managing Your Senior Dog’s Insurance Policy
When you are considering pet insurance for your dog, make sure that you understand the coverage you want, are aware of the policy’s waiting period, and know how the company addresses pre-existing and bilateral conditions. You’ll want to retain all documentation, including vet bills and records, when filing a pet insurance claim.
Special Considerations for Senior Dog Insurance
Older dogs are susceptible to health issues such as arthritis and vision loss. The specific health issues may also depend on your dog’s breed. Consider insurance plans with higher or unlimited coverage.
Most pet insurance excludes pre-existing conditions. It’s recommended to get pet insurance when the dog is younger for the best coverage.
Why You Should Trust Us
This article was informed by multiple sources, including an emergency veterinarian and a licensed insurance agent.
Kelly Burch, Author.
Evelyn He, Compliance and Operations Associate.
A panel of experts, including an emergency veterinarian and an insurance agent, contributed to this list of the best pet insurance plans for seniors.
FAQs
- Does pet insurance cover senior pets? Yes, senior pets can qualify for pet insurance, though you may have fewer options and higher rates.
- When is the best time to get pet insurance? The best time to get pet insurance is now, as costs are lower for younger pets and pre-existing conditions may be excluded.
- Does pet insurance cover preexisting conditions? Most policies do not cover preexisting conditions, such as allergies and cancer. However, you can get congenital and hereditary conditions covered with certain plans.
- What is the age limit for insuring a dog? Some companies have an upper age limit of 10-12 years old, but some companies, like Spot, have no age limit.
- Is pet insurance worth it for senior dogs? It can be worth it, especially for dogs in good health. However, premiums may be higher.
