Adopted Dogs and Cats

Shelters across Australia take in thousands of abandoned animals each year and adopting a pet can be one of the most rewarding ways to give an animal a second chance at finding their forever home.

Adopting a pet not only saves pets lives but every adopted pet makes space for another pet to be rescued. If you’re planning on obtaining  pet insurance for your new companion, here’s a few tips (below) to help.

No paperwork is required to apply for pet insurance, however paperwork is required when you submit your first claim. The paperwork required will vary, depending on where you adopted your pet from.

Pets adopted from a shelter

When you make your first claim, we will ask for a copy of your pet’s adoption papers or adoption certificate from the shelter. Your pet’s medical history may also be required. You can ask us to obtain a copy of your pet’s vet history for you. We’ll need a list of the vets that your pet has visited since you’ve adopted your pet.

Your pet was given to you by a family member or friend

In these circumstances, you should be able to obtain a copy of the pets medical history from their vet from your family member or friend, for the interval before you became the owner  of your pet.

You bought or purchased your pet from another owner

In these circumstances, we will require proof of the transfer (such as a receipt or transaction details between you and the previous owner). In some circumstances the vet history is waived from the date of the transfer of ownership.

We will not require paperwork when applying for new pet insurance, regardless of where the pet was adopted from.

We can help to contact the pets prior vets (on your behalf). If this is required please email [email protected] with the following information:

•     Your Full Name
•     Your Policy Number
•     Your Pet’s Name
•     Details of all vet clinics and/or hospitals your pet has been to, including the name of the practice and the postcode

If a pet was handed into a rescue shelter as a stray, it’s possible the shelter doesn't have a record of the pet’s age or breed. You can ask the shelter for their best estimate, obtain a pet DNA test or take your pet to be examined by a registered vet to determine their breed. If you’re still not sure, you can type in “unknown cat breed” or “unknown dog breed” when filling in your details in order to obtain a quote.

If you don’t know your pet’s exact date of birth, please use your best estimate. You can also take your pet to be examined by a registered vet to determine their age.

We require details of all medical conditions, injuries or illnesses the pet has had before the start of cover under the policy and details of all medical conditions during an applicable waiting period. 

Petsy Pet Insurance, like most pet insurance policies, exclude Pre-existing Conditions, which means there is no cover for vet costs associated with the treatment of a Pre-existing Condition.

Unlike private health insurance for humans, medical conditions that arose when covered by one pet insurance provider are generally not covered by another provider, if you decide to switch between pet insurance companies. You can read more about pre-existing conditions here.