.svg)
Pet insurance that covers dental
Pet insurance that covers dental
Written by
Madeline Pettet
Edited by
Laura Crowden
Reviewed by
Adrian Bennett
Does pet insurance include dental cover?
Long story short
Pet insurance can include different levels of dental cover
Depending on your policy this could include accidental dental injuries, dental illnesses and routine dental care.
Pet dental treatments can be expensive, potentially costing hundreds of dollars
More complex treatments are often more expensive, along with treatment for larger animals, like large-breed dogs.
Pet dental cover can come with different limits and benefits
Check the limits, benefit percentages, waiting periods and more when looking for value for money from pet insurance.
Does pet insurance include dental cover?
Many pet insurance policies include some form of dental cover, with lower-level policies often only including cover for accidental tooth damage, while more comprehensive policies generally also cover some dental illnesses and often give you the option to add-on extra cover for routine dental care.
The level of cover for dental treatments can vary across policy types, including:
- accident-only pet insurance may only cover accidental damage to your pet’s teeth and no other dental treatments and care
- accident and illness or comprehensive pet insurance could cover accidental damage to your pet’s teeth and treatment of dental illnesses
- optional dental add-ons might cover routine care, like dental check-ups and cleans.
What’s typically covered by dental pet insurance?
Pet dental cover can include treatments for accidental dental injuries, dental diseases and even routine care, like check-ups and cleans. However, what’s covered can depend on the policy. For example, routine care is usually an add-on to comprehensive pet insurance.
You might be able to find dental cover for some or all of the following:
treatment for dental illnesses and diseases like gingivitis, abscesses and periodontal (gum) disease
treatment for dental injuries like a tooth fracture or missing teeth after a known accident
routine care, like dental check-ups and scales and polishes.
What you’d like to see included on dental cover could depend on your pet’s current dental health and even how comfortable you feel managing their oral health at home, like brushing their teeth.
What’s typically not covered by dental pet insurance?
Pet insurance usually doesn’t cover pre-existing conditions, and some types of dental illnesses and injuries; while routine dental care, like dental health checks and X-rays, often needs to be added on for an extra cost to your cover. Each policy can be different, though, and come with its own inclusions and exclusions.
Some common exclusions on pet dental cover include:
pre-existing dental injuries or illnesses, including those that began during the policy’s waiting period
dental health checks and routine dental, like scaling, polishes and X-rays
treatment of certain dental illnesses, including periodontitis and tartar buildup
missing or damaged teeth unless they’re the result of a specific known injury
at-home pet oral healthcare products, like toothbrushes and toothpaste
orthodontics
removal of baby teeth (unless they’re causing issues and aren’t treated as a pre-existing condition)
Exact exclusions will depend on the policy, including if you have routine care as an optional extra. Keep in mind that exclusions can get a little murky when it comes to dental cover. For instance, although your cover might not include routine dental, having your pet’s teeth cleaned by a vet might still be claimable if this is the recommended treatment for an eligible dental illness, like gingivitis. If you’re not sure if you can claim for a dental service, you could check with your insurer.
Helpful tip
If you’re worried about pre-existing conditions being ruled out on your pet’s dental cover, it might be a good idea to get cover for your furry friend sooner rather than later. In fact, this could be a pre-requisite of the policy, with some insurers only offering dental cover for pets if they take a policy out before they turn 3 years old.
Adrian Bennett
General Manager for General Insurance
How much do dental treatments for pets cost?
Based on a selection of advertised dental fees in May 2026, a Grade 1 or 2 professional scale and polish (teeth cleaning) could start from, on average, $440 for a cat and $708 for a dog.
More extensive or complex treatment, like removing teeth, can increase the price. For instance, the average advertised starting fee for one or more major tooth extractions was $1,633 for cats and $1,888 for dogs.
Having a larger pet, such as a large breed dog, might also increase the price of dental treatments.
If you’re unsure about how much a dental treatment for your pet could cost, ask your vet for a cost estimate beforehand.
Example dental treatment costs for cats and dogs
| Dental treatment | Cat | Dog |
| Average starting price for Grade 1 or 2 scale and polish (teeth cleaning) | $440 | $708 |
| Average starting price for treatment with at least one major extraction | $1,633 | $1,888 |
Note: These figures reflect indicative dental fees in Australia based on advertised dental fees from individual veterinary practices and are rounded where appropriate. Actual costs may vary depending on your pet, its dental treatment requirements, your chosen vet and pet insurance. Accessed May 2026.
What are some key considerations when choosing pet insurance with dental cover?
When you’re comparing pet insurance with dental cover, pay attention to how each policy treats pre-existing conditions, if there are any age limits, and what the benefit percentages, claim limits, excesses and waiting periods are. These factors can all impact the value you get out of a policy (and your pet insurance premium).
Pre-existing conditions
Typically, pet insurance policies don’t cover pre-existing conditions (that’s a condition your pet was diagnosed with or had signs and symptoms of before the policy started, including during the waiting period), but you might be able to find cover that recognises that sometimes pre-existing conditions go away. For instance, if your pet has previously had gingivitis but a clean at the vet and lots of at-home oral hygiene has fixed the problem with no signs for at least 12 months, you might be able to have your pet covered for the condition despite having had it before.
Age limits
Some pet insurance companies might restrict people to taking out dental cover only while their pet is young, as it’s estimated that up to 80% of cats and 75% of dogs over 5 years old have some form of dental disease.1The University Veterinary Teaching Hospital, Sydney – Dentistry By limiting the uptake of dental cover to younger pets, this helps insurers minimise the likelihood of pre-existing dental conditions on a given policy and helps keep premiums sustainable for pet parents. Of course, you can continue to renew your pet’s dental cover past this age limit.
Benefit percentages
Your benefit percentage is how much you’ll get back on any given claim on your pet insurance. For example, your policy might list a 75% benefit percentage. So, if you needed to claim for a $1,000 vet dental treatment, your pet insurance would cover $750 (75%) and you’d have a $250 out-of-pocket cost (plus any applicable excess).
Claim limits
Claim or benefit limits restrict how much you can claim back on your pet’s cover for the policy period (policy periods usually last 12 months). You might have an overall annual benefit limit, like $15,000 and a further sub-limit, like $3,000 for any dental treatments. Therefore, you could claim up to $3,000 on eligible dental procedures for that policy period and you’d have a further $12,000 available to claim for other kinds of vet work.
Excesses
You might be able to add an excess to your pet insurance. An excess is an out-of-pocket cost you pay before your pet insurance starts to take over the bill. For example, if you had a vet bill for $1,000 and a $100 excess, you’d need to pay that first $100 and then your insurer would pay the remaining $900 (if you had a 100% benefit percentage).
Sometimes, you might have a range of excess options to choose from, including no excess at all. Depending on your circumstances, you might prefer a higher excess as it can help lower your pet insurance premium.
Waiting periods
Your waiting period is the time from when you take out a pet insurance policy to when you can start claiming. A pet insurance policy can have different applicable waiting periods. For instance, you might only have to wait a couple of days before you can make a claim for dental treatments for accidental injuries, while dental illnesses might not be eligible until you’ve had your policy for a month.
What are some signs and symptoms that my pet has dental issues?
Your pet could have dental issues if you notice unpleasant changes in their mouth, like bad breath, yellowed teeth or loose or broken teeth, or changes in their behaviour, like dropping food while eating, or lacking an appetite or being unwilling to eat.
Signs and symptoms can vary between pets and dental conditions, but you might want to schedule a vet appointment if you notice any of the following:
- bad breath
- yellow or brown teeth
- drooling (or more drooling if you have a drooly dog breed)
- red, inflamed or bleeding gums
- mouth or tongue ulcers
- loss of appetite or unwillingness to eat (they might even sit in front of their bowl but not eat or eat more slowly than usual)
- eating more messily, like dropping food while eating, or favouring one side of their mouth
- loose, broken or infected teeth.
As your pet gets older, you might need to look out for these symptoms more as cats and dogs are more likely to have dental problems the older they are.
How can I look after my pet’s dental health?
You can look after your pet’s dental needs by brushing their teeth at home, giving your pet dental chews and taking them to the vet regularly for an annual health check, including a professional dental check-up.
Brushing your pet’s teeth
If your pet is comfortable with it, you can use specially designed pet toothbrushes and toothpastes to brush their teeth. This preventive care helps to reduce plaque build-up and the likelihood of dental issues, just like brushing our own teeth does! It can take some time, practice and patience to get your pet used to having their teeth brushed, so starting when they’re young can make things a little easier.
Giving your pet dental chews
Pet dental chews and treats can help scrape plaque off your pet’s teeth as they enjoy a little snack. This can be a convenient way to reward your pet, as well as look after their teeth. It can also be an option for pets who aren’t keen on having their teeth brushed.
Visit the vet annually
A dental check-up forms part of a pet’s recommended annual vet check. At this appointment, the vet will look at your pet’s teeth, gums and mouth to see if there are any obvious signs, symptoms or issues. They’ll likely also ask you questions about your pet’s recent behaviour to understand if further investigation is needed. And don’t forget, this annual check-up is also a chance for you to ask any questions you have about your pet’s dental health and overall wellbeing.
iSelect does not offer a comparison service for Pet insurance policies at this time.
Any advice provided by iSelect on this website is of a general nature and does not take into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. You need to consider the appropriateness of any information or general advice we give you, having regard to your personal situation, before acting on our advice or purchasing any policy. You should consider iSelect’s Financial Services Guide which provides information about our services and your rights as a client of iSelect.