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Holiday 2025

Letter from the Pet-itor: New Year’s edition

There’s a lot to celebrate as we approach 2026
Picture of By Nationwide
By Nationwide

Can you hear the first notes of Auld Lang Syne ringing in your head already? This year disappeared faster than a bowl of kibble at a doggy dinner party. Here at the Holiday Companion, we’re hitting pause to reflect on all the ways our members wowed us in 2025, and to celebrate some ways we made protecting your pets even better for the year to come.

Our appreciation 

No reflection on this past year is complete without first acknowledging how much our members mean to everyone at Nationwide.

We truly appreciate the trust you put in us to protect your pets. Every year, we receive millions of individual claims and reimburse billions of dollars (yes, with a “b”!) to help pet families cover their eligible veterinary expenses.

More than 1 million pets are protected by Nationwide, which is why we’re still the longest-lived pet insurance provider. And we look forward to keeping it that way for many years to come.

An exciting year of winners

All our members are winners, but some lucky pet families walked away with prizes in 2025.

Our annual Wacky Pet Names contest was held between April 15-19. The wackiest pet names of 2025 included:

  • American Cheese, a mixed-breed dog who was lured away from danger with a cheesy treat.
  • Wendy’s 4 for $4, a domestic shorthair cat with a fast-food name that doesn’t cut corners.
  • Ferret Bueller, a ferret named after an ‘80s classic who knows how to twist and shout.

Next, there was the Hambone Award®, our annual contest to honor the strangest, most unique pet insurance claim of the year. The winner of the bronze Hambone trophy for 2025 was Ziya, a matador Malinois living in California who faced down a bullying bull to protect his family (you can read Ziya’s amazing story of bravery here).

Other winners from throughout the year include:

  • Charlie, who won 2 tickets to the 2025 NFL kick-off for his pet parents in our Boop in the Bayou photo contest.
  • 5 pets who won a Star Wars themed pet portrait in our Laugh It Up Furball photo contest.
  • 3 pet families who received a photo shoot with award-winning pet photographer Diane Lewis in our Picture Paw-fect Pet Protection Sweepstakes.

The calendar is changing, but it’s not too late to win big in 2025!

Our Tails and Touchdowns Super Bowl Contest is live, offering a chance to win 2 tickets to Super Bowl LIX. Go to petinsurance.com/sb26 to enter.

You can also grab great holiday pet gifts as part of our annual Deck the Paws contest!

Follow us on social media @NationwidePet and be sure to log into your account at my.petinsurance.com and opt into receiving special promotion update emails.

Doing more for members 

In 2025, Nationwide also expanded our pet insurance offerings to make getting coverage for pet families more flexible. Many new pet parents and existing members adding a new pet to their household (with discounts!) can now access plans with more customization than ever before to ensure that every pet gets the level of coverage they need.

In the spirit of giving back, Nationwide offered 2,200 free microchips to new members and delivered 2,000 pet disaster prep kits to members in flood-prone areas.

Nationwide also gave out over 100,000 SnootLootSM points to members, which can be redeemed for cool pet and human rewards on the Friends and Family portal (collecting your own points is easy—just send a e-card to your loved ones about pet insurance!).1

Our most paw-pular member features in action 

2025 was a big year for members saving more by using the features that come standard with every policy:

  • In total, members received discounts on more than 55,000 pet prescriptions fulfilled through Nationwide PetRxExpress®. Members using this feature averaged more than $100 in savings each this year alone.
  • More than 10,000 pet parents visited a Vetco clinic at Petco and received 10% off their pet's care just for being a Nationwide pet insurance member.
  • Thousands of members saved time and money using the Nationwide VetHelpline® app, which makes pet health experts available via telehealth 24 hours a day, seven days a week.2 Access to this service is included with every Nationwide pet insurance policy. Members can download the app for free from the App Store or Google Play.

More fun up ahead

Looking forward to 2026, our Nationwide pet insurance team is exploring more ways to enhance our member experience.

In addition to new features and pet family perks, we’ve lined up a whole slate of informative articles, fun contests and all your favorite annual celebrations, plus a few surprises along the way. Stay tuned!

Happy holidays, happy new year and thank you from all your friends at Nationwide.

[1] Program not available in Maine or Washington. See official rules.
[2] Except where prohibited by state law. VetHelpline is not a substitute for a visit to your primary veterinarian.

Add-a-pet

When covering two or three pets, you can receive a 5% discount. When covering four or more pet, you can save 10% on your base premium. Visit the member portal to get a quote on a new pet. Enroll a new pet
Add-a-pet

Take advantage of your multi-pet discount when you add a pet to your policy. When covering two or three pets, you can receive a 5% discount. When covering four or more pets, you'll save 10% on your base premium. Visit the member portal to add a pet. 

Enroll a new pet
Add-a-pet

Take advantage of your multi-pet discount when you add a pet to your policy. When covering two or three pets, you can receive a 5% discount. When covering four or more pets, you'll save 10% on your base premium. Visit the member portal to add a pet. 

Enroll a new pet
Add-a-pet

Take advantage of your multi-pet discount when you add a pet to your policy. When covering two or three pets, you can receive a 5% discount. When covering four or more pets, you'll save 10% on your base premium. Visit the member portal to add a pet. 

Enroll a new pet
Add-a-pet

Take advantage of your multi-pet discount when you add a pet to your policy. When covering two or three pets, you can receive a 5% discount. When covering four or more pets, you'll save 10% on your base premium. Visit the member portal to add a pet. 

Enroll a new pet
Add-a-pet

Take advantage of your multi-pet discount when you add a pet to your policy. When covering two or three pets, you can receive a 5% discount. When covering four or more pets, you'll save 10% on your base premium. Visit the member portal to add a pet. 

Enroll a new pet
Add-a-pet

Take advantage of your multi-pet discount when you add a pet to your policy. When covering two or three pets, you can receive a 5% discount. When covering four or more pets, you'll save 10% on your base premium. Visit the member portal to add a pet. 

Enroll a new pet
Add-a-pet

Take advantage of your multi-pet discount when you add a pet to your policy. When covering two or three pets, you can receive a 5% discount. When covering four or more pets, you'll save 10% on your base premium. Visit the member portal to add a pet. 

Enroll a new pet
Add-a-pet

Take advantage of your multi-pet discount when you add a pet to your policy. When covering two or three pets, you can receive a 5% discount. When covering four or more pets, you'll save 10% on your base premium. Visit the member portal to add a pet. 

Enroll a new pet
Add-a-pet

Take advantage of your multi-pet discount when you add a pet to your policy. When covering two or three pets, you can receive a 5% discount. When covering four or more pets, you'll save 10% on your base premium. Visit the member portal to add a pet. 

Enroll a new pet
Add-a-pet

Take advantage of your multi-pet discount when you add a pet to your policy. When covering two or three pets, you can receive a 5% discount. When covering four or more pets, you'll save 10% on your base premium. Visit the member portal to add a pet. 

Enroll a new pet
Add-a-pet

Take advantage of your multi-pet discount when you add a pet to your policy. When covering two or three pets, you can receive a 5% discount. When covering four or more pets, you'll save 10% on your base premium. Visit the member portal to add a pet. 

Enroll a new pet
Add-a-pet

Take advantage of your multi-pet discount when you add a pet to your policy. When covering two or three pets, you can receive a 5% discount. When covering four or more pets, you'll save 10% on your base premium. Visit the member portal to add a pet. 

Enroll a new pet
Add-a-pet

Take advantage of your multi-pet discount when you add a pet to your policy. When covering two or three pets, you can receive a 5% discount. When covering four or more pets, you'll save 10% on your base premium. Visit the member portal to add a pet. 

Enroll a new pet
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