Vets' fees

[MD5]

Do we think they are excessive? It made me cringe, some of the charges we paid when we had cats, but paid them, no matter what, to try to keep them well. It also made me wonder if we are being held to ransom for the love of our animals.

A couple of threads here demonstrate the concern people have regarding their fees, so are they really justified? I had a little bet with myself that no-one would offer professional advice when it was sought here. I don't mean to be derisory towards vets, but there have been times when I felt that I had been well and truly shafted, or was I using the wrong vet?

 

[grober]

vet charges - MoneySavingExpert.com Forums

 

[davidjpowell]

My brothers Vet charges £150 as a call out fee at a weekend (that's just call out consultation and treatment extra). I thought this was a bit steep for a drive to the office in a career where call outs are really part of the job.

 

[John]

I'm left with the impression I am paying too much for treatment.

I think it is rife. Everyone has to make a living, sure, but I also think people's good nature is being taken advantage of.

Sure you can shop around, but they are all at it.

Insurance premiums suddenly doubled for this insurance year for our cats - I doubt that was coincidence...

 

[Martyn_n]

It's a fact that to train as a vet you require better qualifications than you do to enter (human) medicine, I suppose there is more variety of anatomy to learn. Therefore I suppose you could argue that they deserve to be well paid.
Having said that, from my experience, all but one of the ones I've dealt with have been robbing b*"$!%ds.

 

[Deleted member 37751]

IIRC it takes a year or two longer to train as a vet than it does a doctor.

We've just had our Boxer neutered and it cost £96, which I don't think is too bad, all things considered.

 

[Martyn_n]

IIRC it takes a year or two longer to train as a vet than it does a doctor.

We've just had our Boxer neutered ...........which I don't think is too bad,

I bet the boxer disagrees!!

 

[Deleted member 37751]

I bet the boxer disagrees!!

Yes, it was a bit ruff on him.

 

[trapperjohn]

When it becomes time again for another dog. Vets fees and insurance for said mutt will have to be talked about between me and SWMBO. As a dog is for the whole of its life and dog ownership is not to be taken lightly nowadays methinks. To insure even a small dog would be around £2.500+ for the time it can be insured.

Is there something about once a dog reaches ten you cannot insure it any more?

 

[grober]

It certainly was perceived wisdom at one time that small animal practice = pets was a far more lucrative aspect of veterinary medicine than large domestic farm animal work. Farmers attitude to their animals were driven in the main by hard headed financial implications of treatment V the market value of the animal in comparison to the pets arena where sentiment was the predominant motivator for treatment. Charges were levelled accordingly. May sound harsh but laws of supply and demand?

 

[whitenemesis]

When it becomes time again for another dog. Vets fees and insurance for said mutt will have to be talked about between me and SWMBO. As a dog is for the whole of its life and dog ownership is not to be taken lightly nowadays methinks. To insure even a small dog would be around £2.500+ for the time it can be insured.

Is there something about once a dog reaches ten you cannot insure it any more?

PetPlan will insure a dog for it's lifetime.

Just be aware that pet insurance is not like car insurance. You must choose carefully and stick with an insuruer. Changing companies ends up with all sorts of exclusions and any pre-existing conditions etc will not be covered

 

[swannymere]

I think the Vet's have high weekend callout fees to put off 'frequent flyers' who panic about every little ailment.

 

[Spinal]

PetPlan will insure a dog for it's lifetime.

Just be aware that pet insurance is not like car insurance. You must choose carefully and stick with an insuruer. Changing companies ends up with all sorts of exclusions and any pre-existing conditions etc will not be covered

Problem with PetPlan (which I have) is that they charge a fortune! I'm paying £30-something a month for a 20-month old dog.

The only time he went to the vet (an obese lab fell on him, spraining his leg) he got away with £30 of anti-inflamatories... which I paid (£75 excess anyhow).

So maybe it really depends on your vet... I trust mine - and the only time I felt that I was paying "too much" was when we had Worf's blood sent off for analysis from the dept. of agriculture in order to get a passport. That fee wasn't my vet though, so I couldn't do much. Luckily, the rules have changed around European travel...

M.

 

[BTB 500]

It's correct that many insurers will not start a new policy for a dog over a certain age (8 - 10 years is common). If you are already insured with them then cover continues, but typically the premium and/or excess increases with age and the percentage of the claimed amount they pay out reduces. So beyond a certain age it makes little sense to renew. As mentioned in the other current thread our oldest two (ten and fifteen) only have third party liability cover, via Dogs Trust membership.

Regarding vet fees, don't be afraid to shop around as there is often significant variation on routine treatments. For other treatments it's quite common for the first question a vet asks to be whether you are insured or not ... infer from that what you will! But it's certainly true that there are many specialised treatments available nowadays that do cost plenty of money ... if people (or their insurers) are prepared to pay. In the past there were few specialist/referal practices - treatment was either done by the local vet or not at all.

 

[Aitch55]

IIRC I insured my dogs with Petplan who did pay out on the occasions I needed to claim very promptly. They do have a list of high risk breeds for which they charge an additional premium and the premiums increase as the dog gets older.

With regard to vets, just keep an eye on any new practices that open and how quickly they expand their business premises.

Why suddenly, do dogs need to be wormed every three months? If you feed them decent food and 'pick up' after them, you'll soon know if they have worms.

Why booster jabs every year with a cocktail of whatever?

Why the need for regular check ups? They see your dog for 10 minutes and suddenly know more about it than you, who live with it 24/7.

Why the need to anaesthetise dogs to x-ray them?

I won't have another dog while I live in my current area as, imo, there isn't a decent veterinary practice. Whilst I wanted the best treatment for my dogs, I refused to submit them to unnecessary jabs, drugs and treatments.

 

[BTB 500]

Why the need to anaesthetise dogs to x-ray them?

Some vets will X-ray under sedation only - we had ours hip-scored that way.

 

[wemorgan]

My parent's neighbour is a dairy farmer - he puts the various cats and dogs in front of the vet whenever he visits for the cattle. I think livestock vets are just expensive, rather than domestic animal vets who are very expensive. Farmers also know the harsh value of an animal so are less likely to have an open cheque book.

 

[trapperjohn]

Non farmers have pets. Farmers have beasts.

As you say its about heartstrings for family pet folk. And market value for farmers.

 

[Aitch55]

Some vets will X-ray under sedation only - we had ours hip-scored that way.

I took both of mine to Southampton to be hip scored because the place offered x-ray without anaeshetic. I later took one of them to Lincolnshire again for concsious x-ray. My dogs were particularly laid back in nature and very biddable. I can understand the need with a terrier and some other types though.

One of my dogs (he was 98 kgs) developed a lameness in his front leg. The local vet couldn't diagnose the problem without x-ray so I took him to a guy in Norfolk who's a holistic practioner. He ran his hands over him and announced that his shoulder was dislocated. Amazingly, he manipulated the shouder and in, what seemed like seconds, had it back in joint. The dog walked out with no lameness. I told the original vet who just didn't believe it.

If you find a good vet, they're worth their weight in gold. The rest, aren't worth the time of day imo and it's worth travelling to get the right treatment when needed. Emergencies are another thing and you need to bite the bullet.

 

[Harrythedog]

Last year our 8 month old dog ate a small packet of mouse poison one Saturday night. We phoned the vet who wanted to know the chemicals of the bait and quantity eaten and also £35 paid upfront by debit card. Money paid, she rang back a couple of minutes later and said the dog would have to eat a bucket full before he was in danger. Didn't mind the £35 but was annoyed at the "upfront" payment as both of our dogs are regularly seen by this vet.