The American cocker spaniel's silky fur and merry disposition have made the breed one of the country's most popular show dogs, according to the website of the American Kennel Club.
But it's also a breed with a long list of hereditary conditions for which a pet might need veterinary treatment, including narcolepsy and eye problems like glaucoma.
While pet insurance can defray the high cost of veterinary care, most pet insurers exclude hereditary conditions from their policies. That means that if your spaniel has a bad habit of falling asleep while it's walking the runway, and you want your pet insurance to cover the cost to fix it, you may be out of luck.
Purebred dogs tend to exhibit a lot of hereditary conditions, says Chris Ashton, co-founder and president of Petplan Pet Insurance, a Philadelphia-based pet insurer that began in the U.K. That company does cover hereditary conditions in its pet insurance policies, as long as the pet is covered before symptoms begin to occur.
Bussewitz
Ashton says some companies won't insure Chinese shar-peis, because their wrinkly skin makes them prone to skin disease. Ashton owns a Cavalier King Charles spaniel, a breed he says is prone to heart problems.
Veterinary Pet Insurance, the nation's largest pet insurer, does not exclude any breed outright, says Curtis Steinhoff, the company's director of communications. But the company excludes hereditary conditions known to appear in certain breeds and lists those exclusions on its website. Rottweilers and dalmatians are among the breeds with long lists of hereditary conditions that are excluded.
Cat lovers should note that in general, their feline friends have fewer hereditary conditions.
The website Dog Breed Facts lists hereditary causes common to certain breeds. For instance, it says hip dysplasia is common in larger breeds of dogs, and heart disease is common in Newfoundlands, boxers, golden retrievers and rottweilers.
Breed-banning is not just limited to pet insurance. Pet lovers who own particular breeds of dogs also have a hard time getting homeowner's and renter's insurance. That's because, according to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, insurance companies have paid out about $1 billion per year on homeowner's liability claims resulting from dog bites.
What about your pet? Has Fluffy or Fido been denied pet insurance because of a hereditary condition? Have you noticed any trends in the health problems that occur in your animal companions? Tell us in the comments.
Cathy Bussewitz covers government, politics and general news for The Associated Press in Sacramento, Calif.
(AP Photo/Jeff Chiu) © 2010 AP
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