Hi everyone,

I am new to this forum and hope you can help me   We have 2 pedigree GSDs (father and daughter). We have used our male, Oakley, as a stud twice now (next litter due 10 July).  We were going to neuter him (our current insurance policy only allows 2 matings) however we are getting more and more enquiries and requests to use him as a stud with other bitches. Before we make a firm decision, I am keen to look in to the best insurance policies to ensure we are appropriately covered but I am struggling to find many options.  Most seem to be specific to the bitch. 

What companies do you use/recommend?

Many thanks in advance for your help!

Julie :-)

I've never heard of insurance policies having anything to do with breeding?? 

That sounds totally bizarre...

There are policies (expensive ones) for people who want to insure bitches they breed from, but I've never heard of stud dogs...

Are you looking for regular insurance which don't exclude dogs and bitches which are used for breeding or insurance which covers stud dog duties?

Ideally just one that doesn't exclude. I didn't think it was a thing but an old insurer told me they wouldn't insure a dog used for stud. That led to me asking other insurance companies who also confirmed same. Tesco, who I'm with just now, would allow a max of 2 - any more they consider to be commercial breeding. We currently have our bitch insured with the Kennel Club as we do intend to breed her when older but it is sooooo expensive. Any advice welcome! :-)

I've never heard about insuring, or not, a stud dog specifically.  Insuring him against what specifically as a stud?   When we had numbers, insurance wasn't feasible for us in any case.  And for an insurance company to restrict the use of a 'stud dog' to two matings .... weird.   Why?  Are insurance companies into the business of dictating who breeds how often now?   

However, do you know enough about the bloodlines and conformation of the bitches you are being asked to mate your dog with so your dog won't be doubling up on faults?  When we had a couple of dogs at public stud, it was at limited stud only because I didn't want my boys involved in producing inferior puppies and in fact I turned away more enquiries, than I accepted.   My males were only castrated for medical need too.

I would guess the insurance companies consider breeding brings extra risk so either exclude or refuse to insure dogs used u  in that way .  After all.they are in the business of risk and arnt actually dictating who can breed and who cant
. It also.sounds like there is the angle of when does something become a business.business insurance in all quarters is usually different from domestic
It may well be that people dont realise that their normal pet insurance might not payout for anything if it was found that they were breeding  regardless of if the illness or injury was connected to stud duties or pregnancy the OP has fortunately found out the t and cs on her insurance
My interpretation of the ops enquiry is for normal pet insurance that doesn't exclude if the dog is used at stud

Tricky things insurance company's  !:).

Vip4u specialist pet insurance brokers maybe worth a call
I've found them very helpful for difficult pet insurance situations

"There are policies (expensive ones) for people who want to insure bitches they breed from, but I've never heard of stud dogs... "

Since typing my above comment, I was thinking (too late to change my original comment) - again, what exactly would insurance for a 'stud dog' cover?   Injury during the mating - some disease picked up from the bitch(es)?   I can just about see insuring a bitch against complications resulting from being mated/pregnancy/specifically whelping and going forward, but none of that would apply to a stud dog?  In my time, insurance companies wouldn't insure anything to do with breeding.  Do they now?

Again going back to allowing a dog to be used or not - the stud dog owner is 50% responsible for the quality of the puppies their dog might be involved in producing.  Worth remembering.

I dont think the OP specifically wants cover for using her dog just ordinary pet insurance to cover illness and Injury in the normal way . apparently once the company  knows the dog is being used will not cover for anything .it seems

> I dont think the OP specifically wants cover for using her dog just ordinary pet insurance to cover illness and Injury in the normal way . apparently once the company  knows the dog is being used will not cover for anything .it seems

That being the case, do companies ask (on their application forms)  specifically whether the dog (male or female) is being used for breeding?   Before paying out, would the insurance companies check (eg KC Registrations) to see if the dog in question is siring litters?   I appreciate that insurance companies will wriggle out of paying anything, if they can

This from somebody who has only once insured one of their hounds - the first, years ago when the premium was only shillings and pence and for the life of me, I couldn't understand how the company survived!

I have never needed to look although thinking about it I am sure  I have seen something about breeding .
Maybe they directly ask the vet and if a bitch more.likley to be noted
 
it may be also be in .the small print as I guess it was in this case. There is so much in the small print that's easily overlooked
I nearly missed the bit in my pet plan policy about annual oral health checks to cover all.things oral .I had thought a health check generally was sufficient but they need it  to be specific on the oral.bit
. So down to what a policyholder is prepared to risk

> That being the case, do companies ask (on their application forms)  specifically whether the dog (male or female) is being used for breeding?   Before paying out, would the insurance companies check (eg KC Registrations) to see if the dog in question is siring litters?   I appreciate that insurance companies will wriggle out of paying anything, if they can

Had this with a claim on my girl for a guaranteed her toes I had an email saying they have looked at her medical records and noticed the breeding related stuff in them and could I explain this to them and what my plans are towards breeding. I guess they were looking to void her policy as this company will not inside dogs used for breeding at all. However the insurance investigator had missed the part where it said she was spayed before the policy start date. A quick reply pointing this out and that I had spoken to them on the phone before buying the policy explaining I had had a litter from her and spayed her would that be fine and was told yes.
don't know if the investigators check kc records and adverts as well as checking medical records.

Every policy will state what there exclusions are although it's normally in the tiny small print so it's easy to miss but responsibility is on the owner To read the small print. Most insurance won't touch working dogs, hunting dogs, protection dogs and breeding dogs. i've heard some company's class showing, sports as working.

When I was planning a litter I looked for a new company as the original one is the same as I have now and every one I looked at either won't touch dogs used for breeding or will not touch dogs used for commercial breeding (allows 1 or 2 before crossing you as commercial).

Thanks, yes we are being very careful.  We are keen to ensure the bloodline remain pure.

I'm not wanting a specific policy, just normal cover for him that doesn't exclude if we use him as a stud. It's not something they generally ask but it is in the small print and they can easily find out through KC - I'm sure they will look if there is any chance they can wriggle out of a claim. I too can understand the need for a more extensive policy to cover a bitch given the increased risk there, but the stud thing surprised me too!  Who do you all insure your studs through?

Thanks :-)

What do you mean when you say "the bloodline remain pure"?

Do you mean you are only breeding to other GSD??

> Most insurance won't touch working dogs, hunting dogs, protection dogs and breeding dogs. i've heard some company's class showing, sports as working.

This sounds like pay us the premium and whistle for any kind of pay out

>an old insurer told me they wouldn't insure a dog used for stud

Frankly, how is any insurance going to know if your dog's been used at stud?!  Even a VET carrying out a medical exam couldn't tell if a male had been used at stud.

Unless there is some bizarre mating-related injury that occurs - but in which case, you just wouldn't claim on the insurance for that very random and unlikely incident. Just like, if you haven't vaccinated for lepto and your dog gets it, you can't claim for lepto on insurance because they will exclude any diseases there are vaccinations for. I think you're very unlikely to experience a mating-related injury that requires vet assistance and costs more than the excess on your insurance....

Don't make things more complicated than they need to be, the world has enough paperwork and restrictions already.

> Most insurance won't touch working dogs, hunting dogs, protection dogs and breeding dogs

As the owner of working dogs who has claimed thousands from insurance, that's simply not true. Any injuries incurred whilst working (provided it can be proven they were incurred whilst working!) are not covered. Everything else is. As there is a very grey line between a 'working dog' and a pet dog who works.... go figure.

> As the owner of working dogs who has claimed thousands from insurance, that's simply not true. Any injuries incurred whilst working (provided it can be proven they were incurred whilst working!) are not covered. Everything else is. As there is a very grey line between a 'working dog' and a pet dog who works.... go figure.

was only speaking my my own experience, the policies I looked at when I was looking for one that allowed dogs used for breeding they all had working dogs in the exclusions that they do not cover them at all. Although I don't doupt that there will be ones out there who will cover them just at the time I was looking the ones I checked didn't.

rereading perhaps I should have said most insurance I checked wouldn't touch working dogs. Sorry my bad and i can see how that would be misleading.
My current provider animal friends has a lot excluded.

Yes but as with all things, the insurance would have to be told that the injury was incurred whilst working rather than whilst out and about in the country. Unless the dog is actually shot(!) by accident, it's hard to see how the insurance would ever be told this - unless you told the vet and the vet wrote it in the notes, but really, there's no need.  'My dog jumped a barbed wire fence and caught herself' is all the detail needed, not 'I was working my dog on a shoot and she jumped a barbed wire fence on a retrieve etc etc'....

There could be implications for Working Trial or IPO dogs though. I can see that an insurance company might seek to blame participation in these sports for musculoskeletal conditions.