Pet Insurance for Golden Retrievers: Is It Worth It?

Golden retrievers are among the most loving, intelligent, and loyal dog breeds. Their friendly nature makes them perfect companions for families with kids of all ages, but you’ll want to invest in solid pet insurance for golden retrievers when adopting one into your home.

Golden retrievers are prone to several illnesses and injuries, including cancer, heart disease, hip dysplasia, and bloat. Their inquisitive nature also means they may ingest things they shouldn’t—and require emergency vet care. Here, we’ll review the best pet insurance for golden retrievers.

Best pet insurance for golden retrievers

Many pet insurance companies cover golden retrievers. Check out our list below for our top pet insurance options for golden retrievers.

Lemonade – Best for fast claims

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LendEDU rating: 4.7 out of 5

• Deductible: $100, $250, $500, or $750
• Reimbursement: 70%, 80%, or 90%
• Benefit limit: $5,000, $10,000, $20,000, $50,000, or $100,000

Lemonade pet insurance is known for its fast, AI-powered claims process. Given that golden retrievers may require several trips to the vet over their lifetime, it’s nice knowing you’ll get cash back in your pocket soon after you leave the vet, for any covered bills.

Lemonade is also known for its lower prices, but the premiums can increase once you start tacking on optional coverages. Speak with your vet about anticipated needs throughout your golden retriever’s life to determine which optional coverages, such as physical therapy and behavioral conditions, your golden retriever may need down the line.

Other perks of Lemonade include its abundance of discounts, customizable policies, short accident coverage window (coverage starts two days after enrollment), and easy online platform. Unfortunately, Lemonade is not available in every state (yet).

Fetch – Best Coverage

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LendEDU rating: 4.9 out of 5

• Deductible: $300, $500, or $700
• Reimbursement: 70%, 80%, or 90%
• Benefit limit: $5,000, $10,000, or $15,000

Fetch pet insurance has the most comprehensive coverage on the market, with policies that cover exam fees, alternative and holistic care, online vet visits, physical and behavioral therapy, diagnostic tests, supplements, and even advertising and rewards if your pup gets lost.

Fetch also emphasizes that it covers breed-specific issues. Parents of golden retrievers can trust that no matter what issues their four-legged friend develops—be it bloat, heart disease, or skin allergies—they’ll have the coverage they need.

We like Fetch because there are no restrictions on vets and no lifetime limits. Prescription meds, emergency vet visits, holistic care—they’re all covered. 

Note, however, that there is no option for an unlimited annual benefit amount. Should your golden retriever develop cancer at some point, your bills could easily surpass the $15,000 max benefit.

Spot – Best selection of terms

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LendEDU rating: 4.5 out of 5

• Deductible: $100, $250, $500, $750, or $1,000
• Reimbursement: 70%, 80%, or 90%
• Benefit limit: $2,500, $3,000, $4,000, $5,000, $7,000, $10,000, or unlimited

Spot pet insurance offers policies that cover accidents, medications, diagnostics, exams for covered conditions, and treatments, including alternative therapies. Spot also provides preventive plans for dental cleanings and vaccinations.

Spot offers a range of policy options for golden retriever owners, including accident and illness coverage, accident-only policies, and optional wellness coverage. Pets can be enrolled as young as eight weeks without a preliminary medical exam. A 14-day waiting period applies for accidents and illnesses before coverage starts. 

A notable benefit of choosing Spot is that it covers microchip implantation, which many other insurers don’t. It offers a 30-day money-back guarantee if no claims are made, and it reimburses exam fees for covered conditions. 

Spot also differentiates between curable and incurable pre-existing conditions, offering more flexibility in coverage. For those with multiple pets, Spot extends a 10% discount for each additional pet insured, making it a cost-effective option for families with multiple animals.

Embrace – Best for quick coverage

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LendEDU rating: 4.7 out of 5

• Deductible: $100, $250, $500, $750, or $1,000
• Reimbursement: 70%, 80%, or 90%
• $5,000, $8,000, $10,000, $15,000, or unlimited

Embrace pet insurance is a great option for golden retriever parents who want coverage quickly. Accidents are covered in as little as two days after enrollment; this can be useful if you have an inquisitive golden retriever who gets into everything and loves to run and play.

We also like Embrace because of its unlimited benefit option, 24/7 pet helpline, and multi-pet discount. Embrace has no network restrictions, so you can use any vet you like (we recommend finding one who specializes in golden retrievers). You can also opt-in for exam fee coverage and dental coverage.

Especially noteworthy for golden retriever parents: Hip dysplasia coverage is standard on all accident and illness policies.

How much does a golden retriever cost to insure?

The cost of pet insurance varies by pet age, location, and breed, as well as by the coverages you select. 

While it’s hard to gauge a true cost of golden retriever pet insurance, we ran several quotes (see table below) to illustrate how insurance premiums might change depending on how old your golden retriever is when you start coverage and which deductible amount you choose.

The best way to know you’re getting a good deal on pet insurance for your golden retriever is to get quotes from at least three of the best pet insurance companies for the breed and compare monthly premiums.

Sample quotes for golden retriever pet insurance

The tables below shows various pet insurance rates for an accident and illness plan with Spot at various deductible amounts for a male golden retriever in Cincinnati. 

We kept the reimbursement rate (80%) and annual limit ($10,000) consistent to generate these premiums. Adjusting the reimbursement rate and annual limit would affect these premiums; pet insurance costs vary by location.

We ran rates for male and female golden retrievers, but gender did not impact the cost in any of the quotes.

One-year-old male golden retriever

Deductible	Monthly premium
$100	$82.11
$500	$51.99
$1,000	$35.72

Four-year-old male golden retriever

Deductible	Monthly premium
$100	$90.76
$500	$57.38
$1,000	$39.36

10-year-old male golden retriever

Deductible	Monthly premium
$100	$267.28
$500	$167.53
$1,000	$113.67

As you can see, you’ll pay lower premiums with higher deductibles. The annual deductible for a pet insurance policy is the amount you’ll pay each policy year before any coverage kicks in for your golden retriever. 

You may prefer to pay higher premiums to avoid having to come up with more funds for the deductible in case of an emergency.

Insurers have different rules for deductibles and coverage limits. When comparing policy premiums, consider the monthly cost, the total amount you’d have to pay out of pocket, and the maximum amount of care the policy would cover. 

If this is your first time shopping for pet insurance for a golden retriever, read up on how pet insurance works to ensure you choose the right policy for your dog.

Ask the expert

Rand Millwood

CFP®

If your goal is to do pretty much anything to prolong the life and health of your pet, an insurance policy that can help alleviate some of these costs is worth evaluating. However, if you’re not interested in or willing to spend large sums of money to prolong their life and health, you may decide that the ongoing costs of this insurance are not where you would like to spend your limited cash flow.

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Is pet insurance worth the cost?

How to apply for golden retriever pet insurance

Ready to purchase pet insurance for your golden retriever? Here are the steps you’ll need to take:

1. Review your budget. Look at your budget to see how much you can spend a month on a pet insurance premium. Set a top amount so you know where your limit is. You should also analyze your emergency savings or credit card limits to understand how high of a deductible you can afford in an emergency.
2. Get quotes from at least three insurers. You can get quotes for your golden retriever from multiple pet insurance companies online. Just make sure you compare apples to apples by keeping deductibles, reimbursement rates, and benefit limits consistent across insurers. Compare the quotes, but also consider what’s covered and not covered with each policy—and what the claims and reimbursement process is like. This will give you a fuller picture of an insurance policy and help you decide the right option for your pup.
3. Apply online. Complete the online process once you’ve determined which policy is right for you. Read the fine print to understand when coverage kicks in for both accidents and illnesses.
4. Understand how to use your pet insurance. Some pet insurance companies pay the vet directly, but most require you to submit a bill for reimbursement. Familiarize yourself with what the process is and how long it takes. That way, you know what to expect when making your first claim for your golden retriever.

Recap of pet insurance for golden retrievers