Insane Veterinarian bills

97prizm said:
I take it birds (parrots) are expensive as from what I can tell most vets are dog/cat oriented.
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I was lucky to find an avian vet who also owns parrots herself, both of mine talk all day and today would cost a min of 5K each as non talking little ones, a yearly check up is about $400 ea. To me they are priceless, one is sitting here right now looking at the screen.
 
When money was very tight, we got our cat spayed at a farm vet. Not the best bikini line scar but she did ok and the cost half what the pet vets wanted. When money wasn't tight, our 18 year old dog had a stroke. One side of her body went out on her. We took her to the all night vet at 2am. They tried to persuade us to wait until 8am and have the neurological vet run some brain scans. Um, we love her lots but she's 18 years old and it's time to euthanize her. They definitely don't have the highest ethical principles.
 
gfh77665 said:
Everybody moans about inflation but Vet costs are just crazy. Took our 15 year old dog to the vet for annual check up and vaxxs. Found a small growth between the toes on hind foot. Vet tells us "its probably nothing but defintely needs to be removed". Agreed to do this. Vet works on computer terminal for over 5 min. and presents us a bill for $1575. What?

Vet tells us to do the removal it requires whole body ultrasound, whole body X-rays, extensive blood work, lab fees, sedation, canine EKG, and on and on and on. Whole body? It was itemized 3/4 of a page. Even charged $35 for a small tube of ointment. It turns out its just neosporin. Here is the kicker, this very week I had a malignant skin cancer removed in dermatologists office. I gestured to the bandage on my arm and told the vet about it. I told her it cost me less than this "really nothing" removal on my dogs foot. She smiled and told me "yes, but we know you want the best care for your pet".

I do give my pets great care, always have, but this is a racket. Its pricing people out of pet ownership, or pricing people out of pet care. I am not interested in pet health insurance.
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Proliferation of pet insurance driving up prices?
 
Another pet item that has gone way up in price in the last 4 years is pet food. The 30 lb. bag of dog food that I paid $30 for in 2020 is now $48. I've seen some brands that are $80 for 30 pounds. The can food that I add to this dry food was $1 a can and now it's $2. Sadly, I'm sure many dogs were abandoned because of this.
 
Small animal is crazy expensive. Large animal like cattle and horses are pricey but much better bang for your buck.

We do and have always done a pile of business with vets. In fact we are great family friends with three local ones. Yes, they can make good money but they earn it. First off, the cost of a building, specialized equipment, staff, vehicles, the crazy on call hours, dealing people (their stories are almost as crazy as my people stories) all coupled in with the cost of the education. They don't make enough for what I see them do.

Of our three vet friends, each does a pile of on call and each suffers from serious burnout. I know first hand the damage that on call/call outs can cause so it's hard to see others suffer through.
 
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wavinwayne said:
I have Nationwide pet insurance for my Shih Tzu. It has a $250 deductible and reimburses me for 70% of vet expenses after that. Thankfully my Lucy hasn't needed any major vet care other than regular shots and flea/tick preventative.

The groomer, though? Geez, I might have to take out a loan...
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The proliferation of pet insurance has done a lot too drive up vet bills.
 
Most Vet out fits have been bought up by a huge crooked nationalized bunch, I forget the name. Not many small vet places anymore.
And you gotta love how with the big covid mess they would not let you in with your animal. That would kill a small dog that panics if you leave it, especially one that was given up for adoption at age 3. Most of them can not be trusted. I know a person that will not have a dog or a cat any more, because of all the bad experiences they had with vets.
 
Exhaustgases said:
Most Vet out fits have been bought up by a huge crooked nationalized bunch, I forget the name. Not many small vet places anymore.
And you gotta love how with the big covid mess they would not let you in with your animal. That would kill a small dog that panics if you leave it, especially one that was given up for adoption at age 3. Most of them can not be trusted. I know a person that will not have a dog or a cat any more, because of all the bad experiences they had with vets.
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My local vet was just bought by some corporate consolidator, all the good employees quit. They won’t be getting my business.
 
gfh77665 said:
Everybody moans about inflation but Vet costs are just crazy. Took our 15 year old dog to the vet for annual check up and vaxxs. Found a small growth between the toes on hind foot. Vet tells us "its probably nothing but defintely needs to be removed". Agreed to do this. Vet works on computer terminal for over 5 min. and presents us a bill for $1575. What?

Vet tells us to do the removal it requires whole body ultrasound, whole body X-rays, extensive blood work, lab fees, sedation, canine EKG, and on and on and on. Whole body? It was itemized 3/4 of a page. Even charged $35 for a small tube of ointment. It turns out its just neosporin. Here is the kicker, this very week I had a malignant skin cancer removed in dermatologists office. I gestured to the bandage on my arm and told the vet about it. I told her it cost me less than this "really nothing" removal on my dogs foot. She smiled and told me "yes, but we know you want the best care for your pet".

I do give my pets great care, always have, but this is a racket. Its pricing people out of pet ownership, or pricing people out of pet care. I am not interested in pet health insurance.
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We love our pets and unfortunately today’s vets’ offices bank on that at every opportunity. Our Yorkie (11 yrs) has had more procedures, lab work, scans, X-rays, and medications than me and my wife combined. We are in our mid sixties. Is that really allowing a dog (or cat) to live a quality life? No! They become a science experiment and a source of revenue for these greedy vets.
 
BMWTurboDzl said:
Proliferation of pet insurance driving up prices?
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Big companies and private equity firms are buying vet offices as well. They keep the name out front the same so it gives the appearance of small office. They adjust the prices to be more expensive and suggest extra sevices. This is per my long time vet in the ATL area.

I think this is part of it as well.
 
drtyler said:
Big companies and private equity firms are buying vet offices as well. They keep the name out front the same so it gives the appearance of small office. They adjust the prices to be more expensive and suggest extra sevices. This is per my long time vet in the ATL area.

I think this is part of it as well.
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Yep and some are also the providers of the pet insurance so the get paid twice. Mars Inc is one company. I think they own the VCA clinics and Banfield hospital.

Edit:
https://stateline.org/2024/03/29/vets-fret-as-private-equity-snaps-up-clinics-pet-care-companies/

https://marsveterinary.com/#:~:text...s a,advancement of the veterinary profession.
 
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Lots of reasons vet bills have gone up. It's harder to find and keep good staff, school is more $, WAY more demand for visits as pet ownership went thru the roof since the pandemic and also preventative care has made pets live longer. (the vets my family uses are there way more hours than they were 5 years ago) Owners lifestyles also play in, as more dogs are having human caused issues (like obesity, diabetes, etc.) Of course the chain vet/greed issue can come into play, but so do owners who ask for treatment for ailments that would have historically been a cause for euthanasia.
There are no simple answers.
As a pet owners, we are responsible. Sometimes doing the right thing causes a pain in your wallet. Sometime the right thing causes a pain in your heart.
It's part of the agreement when you bring them home.
 
Pablo said:
Try vet bills in Kodiak AK. Most folks just don't bother, even routine checks. Sad state of vet service. It's not like Kodiak has 6 people and a horse.
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Well if they can charge $1100-1500 to remove a small lump in the lower 48, why would they leave? I think their needs to be a "remote region" placements in some medical field schools, for people from there, that want to commit to going back for 5 years. Have a seperate pool of applicants for those places, especially for something like a vet.
 
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