Dermatitis, otitis externa among most common conditions that prompt veterinary visits

Columbus, OH – For veterinarians, treatment of canine and feline conditions such as dermatitis, otitis externa or gastropathy is routine. But for pet owners, having a sick pet is an often unexpected and unwelcome event, both emotionally and financially.

“When we talk about protecting pets from the unexpected, there can be a temptation to jump straight to big ticket items like cancer or orthopedic disease. While these are definitely situations where it’s beneficial to have pet health insurance, the idiom that ‘common things occur commonly’ runs true,” said Dr. Jules Benson, chief veterinary officer for Nationwide. “Skin, urinary and gastrointestinal disease are everyday occurrences where having a pet protection solution in place can make a big difference in whether pet owners seek veterinary care, and then in what diagnostics and treatments are viable for them.”

Last year, Nationwide pet health insurance members filed more than 1.35 million claims for treatment related to common medical conditions affecting dogs and cats. The nation's pet health protection leader analyzed its database of more than 1.1 million pets to determine the top medical conditions that prompted veterinary visits for dogs and cats. Below are the results:

Among Nationwide-insured dogs:

• For the 10^th year in a row, skin allergies were the most common health issue with more than 335,000 individual claims received.
• For a single dog, the highest cost from the top 10 conditions came in at just over $16,700 for degenerative arthritis.

Among Nationwide-insured cats:

• Feline cystitis or lower urinary tract disease was the most common medical condition with more than 16,000 individual claims received.
• For a single cat, the highest cost from the top 10 conditions came in at more than $19,000 for feline cystitis or lower urinary tract disease.
• Nationwide also covered more than 9,300 individual claims for “fever of unknown origin/undefined” diagnoses.  Veterinary teams will immediately identify with being presented with a cat who is ADR (“ain’t doing right”).

With Nationwide pet health insurance, many veterinary expenses associated with diagnosis and treatment of these common conditions are eligible for reimbursement based on the member’s chosen coverage. Information about pet health insurance coverage for dogs, cats and many avian or exotic pets can be found by visiting petinsurance.com.

About Nationwide pet insurance
With more than one million insured pets, Nationwide is the first and largest provider of pet health insurance in the United States. Nationwide pet health insurance plans cover dogs, cats, birds and exotic pets for multiple medical problems and conditions relating to accidents, illnesses and injuries. Medical plans are available in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Products underwritten by Veterinary Pet Insurance Company (CA), Columbus, OH; National Casualty Company (all other states), Columbus, OH. Agency of Record: DVM Insurance Agency. All are subsidiaries of Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company. Pet owners can find Nationwide pet insurance on Facebook or follow on Twitter. For more information about Nationwide pet insurance, call 800-USA-PETS (800-872-7387) or visit petinsurance.com.