Hello,

Just wondering if anyone could advise me on the best insurance plan for a Shar Pei. Abviously I would like to pay a reasonable amount per month and would be looking for Lifetime Cover etc. I will be getting my pup in around 6 weeks and would like to make sure I have it in place for then.

Your help is much appreciated.

Chris Palmer
chrisjohnpalmer@aol.com

Hi Chris, if you are talking from the UK and the pup is to be registered with the Kennel Club, once you change the ownership to yourself the pup will be covered for the first 6 weeks anyway and you can extended that for as long as you like, it is not one of the cheapest though, but it does give you time. I would suggest you have the best insurance you can for the first year you own the pup. Because should anything happen in that first year you need an insurance that will cover that problem and any off shoots of that problem for the rest of it's life. Some companies only cover the one episode or 12 months.

Some breeders who do not register will offer some form of insurance for the first 6 weeks but I don't think I would suggest you buy from such a source and would suggest you join a breed club now to start learning and gaining an insight into the possible problems you may come up against. Think eye structure and skin are the main ones to be sure about before you buy & check that both parents hip scores are below the breed average of 18.

Sorry if you know all this, just imagine that I am speaking to those who don't.

jackie---the hips arent done by many in the uk, -- its not something  thats asked for,  :)

They do appear on the D list and at a BMS of 18 and with the highest score of 81 perhaps they should be thinking about it. If as a group they don't score they don't know how bad the situation may be

I think our own range is 0 to 61 the highest scored, with anmean of aaround 13 or 14, and all breeding stock is required to be scored.  I do think that there are many breeds that do not routinely score that have had high scores, so no room for complacency, better to test and stop aany problem before it becomes comm0nplace.

As the Shar Pei have a similar, if not more exaggerated, rear assemble to our breed, I think not only hips but knees should be kept an eye on, any breed that slips from a moderate conformation at any point to an exaggerated should keep a very close look at the joints in the limb in question.

Hi Chris,......Petplan seems to be a popular one for insuring the shar pei....the KC is also good but in my opinion expensive. One of my puppy buyers has their shar pei insured with Tesco, no problems so far. Sue. 

Unfortunately Marks & Spencer will not insure a Shar-Pei together with Pitbulls!

Strange people, wonder why not, sure thing they no nothing of dogs.