· By Steven Wong
Are Dogs Getting Unhealthier? What 5 Years of Pet Insurance Claims Data Reveal
Published August 2026 · Pet N Pet Editorial · National Dog Day Science Series
Somewhat, but the honest answer depends on which number you're looking at. Pet insurers' own reports show a few real, verifiable multi-year trends, rising allergy claims, climbing premiums, more chronic conditions, and a lot of single-year snapshots that get repeated online as if they were part of one continuous curve. They aren't.
Here's what the actual claims data says, which numbers are genuine multi-year trends versus one year in isolation, and what that means for how you're actually caring for your dog.
What's Actually Trending Over Multiple Years (Not Just One)
A handful of pet insurers publish their own genuine multi-year comparisons, and these are the closest thing to a real trend line in the industry.
-
Premiums up 20.8% industry-wide. The pet insurance industry's written premiums grew 20.8% over the last five years, with the sector more than doubling in the last three, according to the North American Pet Health Insurance Association's own 2025 State of the Industry report.
-
Allergy and ear-infection claims up 42%. Comparing 2019 to 2023, Trupanion found a 42% increase in the frequency of allergy and ear-infection claims among its insured pets, with the average dog filing 16 allergy-related claims over its lifetime at a combined cost of roughly $2,300.
-
Average claim costs climbing steadily. Embrace Pet Insurance's own data shows average claim cost rose 17.5% between 2021 and the first quarter of 2024.
-
Seasonal hazard claims spiking. Trupanion's claims data from January 2021 through December 2025 found heatstroke claims up 279% in the summer months, foxtail-related claims up 303%, insect bite claims up 97%, and snake bite claims up 145%.
The Single-Year Numbers Getting Mistaken for a Trend
Not every widely shared 'pet health' statistic is part of a multi-year pattern. Several of the most-cited numbers online are one year of data, dated and real, but not evidence of a rising or falling trend on their own.
Skin allergies have been the #1 most common dog insurance claim for 15 years running, according to Nationwide's 2025 report, based on more than 3.3 million claims. That's a genuine streak in rank, not necessarily a rising severity trend. Six of the top 10 conditions on that list are now chronic rather than one-time issues, including a first-time appearance from seizures. Nationwide's separate 2021 data also found 1 in 4 dogs will develop cancer in their lifetime, with $53 million in cancer claims that year alone, a real number, but a single-year figure with no published multi-year comparison since.
Banfield Pet Hospital's 2024 report found 73% of dogs seen at its hospitals in 2023 were diagnosed with a dental-related condition, with Beagles the highest-risk breed at 80.7%. That's a striking one-year snapshot, not a tracked trend line. Banfield hasn't published a comparable follow-up report since.
Only a Sliver of Dogs Are Actually Insured
Just 4.27% of US pets are insured at all, according to NAPHIA, including only about 5.99% of dogs. That means most of the claims data driving 'pet health crisis' headlines, including everything above, comes from a small, likely more health-conscious slice of dog owners, not the full US dog population. Combined US claims paid reached roughly $3.07 billion in 2025 alone, up 23.6% year over year, on a base of just over 6.4 million insured pets.
What This Actually Means for Your Dog
The clearest signal in the data isn't that dogs are suddenly getting sicker. It's that chronic, manageable conditions, allergies, ear infections, dental disease, are consistently the biggest and most expensive category, and that seasonal and environmental hazards like heat, foxtails, and insect bites are showing up in claims far more than they did five years ago.
A lot of that daily management comes down to basics: keeping paws and skin clean after outdoor exposure, since allergy and irritation claims are the single biggest chronic-condition category, and staying on top of routine cleanup that keeps a dog's environment sanitary rather than just comfortable.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are dogs actually getting less healthy over time?
The data doesn't clearly show that. What it shows is that chronic conditions like allergies and dental disease dominate insurance claims, and that specific seasonal hazard claims, heatstroke, foxtails, insect bites, have risen sharply between 2021 and 2025 per Trupanion's own data. That's different from proving overall canine health is declining.
What's the most common health problem dogs are treated for?
Skin allergies, for 15 consecutive years according to Nationwide's pet insurance claims data through 2025, based on more than 3.3 million claims. Six of the ten most common conditions on that list are now chronic rather than acute.
How much has pet insurance gotten more expensive?
Embrace Pet Insurance's own data shows average claim costs rose 17.5% between 2021 and early 2024. Industry-wide, written premiums grew 20.8% over the last five years, according to NAPHIA's 2025 report.
What percentage of dogs actually have pet insurance?
Only about 5.99% of US dogs are insured, according to NAPHIA, out of roughly 4.27% of all US pets combined. That means most published pet-insurance claims data reflects a small, non-representative slice of dog owners.
Are seasonal illnesses in dogs actually increasing?
According to Trupanion's own claims data comparing January 2021 to December 2025, yes for several specific hazards: heatstroke claims rose 279%, foxtail-related claims rose 303%, insect bite claims rose 97%, and snake bite claims rose 145%.
Bottom Line
The real multi-year story in pet insurance data is narrower than the headlines suggest. Premiums are genuinely climbing, allergy and seasonal-hazard claims are genuinely rising, and chronic conditions are crowding out one-time issues. But a lot of the most-quoted 'pet health crisis' numbers are single-year snapshots, real, but not proof of a trend on their own. Reading the difference matters more than reading the scary headline.
SOURCES & CITATIONS
Nationwide Pet Insurance "Chronic Conditions Dominate..." 15th annual most-common-claims report, based on 3.3M+ claims (2025 data). https://news.nationwide.com/chronic-conditions-dominate-this-years-list-of-most-common-and-expensive-pet-health-problems/
Nationwide Pet Insurance 2021 cancer-claims data: $53M in claims, 1 in 4 dogs will develop cancer in their lifetime (single-year figure). https://news.nationwide.com/nationwide-supports-pet-cancer-awareness-month
North American Pet Health Insurance Association (NAPHIA) State of the Industry 2025 report 20.8% five-year written-premium growth; $3.07B US claims paid. https://naphia.org/news/naphia-news/soi-report-2025/
NAPHIA State of the Industry 2026 highlights 4.27% of US pets insured (5.99% of dogs). https://naphia.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/NAPHIA_SOI2026_Report_HIGHLIGHTS_26-06-24.pdf
Trupanion (truInsights) 42% increase in allergy/ear-infection claim frequency, 2019 vs. 2023. https://investors.trupanion.com/news/Press-Releases/news-details/2024/truInsights-into-Pet-Allergies-Trupanion-Decodes-Trends-and-Provides-Tips-for-Pet-Parents/default.aspx
Trupanion (via Veterinary Practice News Canada) Seasonal hazard claims trend, Jan 2021–Dec 2025 (heatstroke, foxtail, insect bite, snake bite). https://www.veterinarypracticenews.ca/claims-data-highlight-seasonal-risks-for-pets-in-north-america/
Banfield Pet Hospital "State of Pet Dental Health" 73% of dogs seen in 2023 had a dental-related condition (single-year figure). https://www.banfield.com/about-banfield/newsroom/press-releases/2024/state-of-pet-dental-health
Embrace Pet Insurance Average claim cost +17.5%, 2021 to Q1 2024. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/embrace-pet-insurance-quarter-1-2024-highlights-pet-health-trends-and-rising-costs-of-veterinary-care-302138794.html
