To think the vet practice is in it for the money?

[QuietTiger]

Long story short, our cat had to go to the Emergency Vet last night (Sunday). His usual vet uses an "out of hours emergency service" which covers most of the various vets practices out of hours in our city. When I initially rang up on the phone, I was told by the vet nurse that "The out of hours fee is £70 before examination and treatment". Not a problem for us, the situation was urgent enough that my cat needed to see a vet and we have the money available (although my DH did mutter something about fecking cat always costing money, bastard vets ripping people off... ).

Whilst I was waiting to see the vet, a lady was there with her dog who was very sick - she'd had an emergency spay last week, spent £500 at her own vet and the dog had an infection and was bleeding internally. She was quoted £205 for treatment, the vets were also planning on keeping the dog overnight. The vet wanted a £200 deposit for treatment. BUT, because the lady only had £100 until tuesday when she got paid (and she was distraught by this time, because it was literally life or death), the vet was refusing to treat the dog apart from making it comfortable. The lady asked if she could pay the remainder this morning when she collected the dog, the vet was adamant that she had to leave a £200 deposit. He offered the PTS option (but it still would have cost £160!)

AIBU to think that the vet was being money grabbing and only had finances in the forefront of his mind? I was particularly livid because the vet insisted on discussing this in the waiting room in front of me and 2 other people, instead of giving the lady the curtosey of discussing her financial afairs and dog treatment in private. I appreciate that the vets concern was that the owner wouldn't collect the dog or pay for the cost of treatment, but surely their job is to relieve suffering and give emergency treatment? If you didn't care about your pet, you wouldn't be taking it to an emergceny vet at 9pm on a Sunday night, surely?

QT

Well my weekends on call are very like the ones above. The thing that strikes me about the original story is that most emergency out of hours clinics are part of large companies and imposes restrictions on their staff regarding payments.
There are those of us out there who do their own out hours, allow people to pay by installment (sometimes over several years) and do not make owners feel guilty if they can't afford / don't want the expensive all singing all dancing treatment plan.
However, before I even eat I have to clear £40,000 a month through my doors to pay the VAT, my drug bill and my staff, only after that do I eat. Yes I drive a big 4 wheel drive car so I can get through the floods and snow to you when you can't get out.
Whilst the coporate practices often offer the cheapest vaccines etc. they often don't offer the all round service.
Off my soap box now. but the vet could do with some communication skills training.

thevetswife we can safely say that it wasn't your husband who was dealing with this poor woman then? I think most of us here agree that most vets are absolutely brilliant but this one does seem a bit greedy and unrealistic tbh. There are bound to be people who cannot stump up that amount of ready cash on a Sunday evening and , honestly, whose going to hand over £100 and then abandon their dog? I know that if I were in this situation I wouldn't have been able to pay there and then. I regularly put money into a savings account for just this kind of emergency but would not be able to get it out of the atm, I'd have to wait for the bank to be open on Monday morning and take out the cash.

Lovesdogsandcats I do not know who the little monsters were, but I do wish I had tried harder to find out. They were in school uniform, and it was lunchtime. i should have gone back the next day with the police. But, when I saw it happening I was overcome with anger, and my vision was blurry. Literally 'seeing red'. I seriously doubt I would have recognised them again. I kind of strode in and grabbed the cat.

It was just awful. The vet, bless him was so shocked. I stayed with the cat while he put it to sleep and we (and the vet nurse) were all in tears. It was dreadful.

EW that was different, you couldn't pay at all then? Not quite the same as being in the frustrating position of just needing 24hours to get the money together to help a much loved pet?

thelibster - it wasn't different in the pain
and desperation I felt, so bog off to be honest with the nit picking - she couldn't pay / I couldn't pay - the 24 hours was actually if you read ''the tuesday'' when she got paid - what I was and am still saying was dont blame the vet.

except for being rude

EW If you read she then asked if she could pay the remainder this morning, when she collected the dog. Maybe, in the meantime, she'd thought of someone she knew who would probably be willing and able to make her a 24 hour loan until payday? Who knows? The difference is you couldn't pay and she couldn't pay right there and then. Imho that is not nit-picking it's quite a big difference, but I will refrain from reciprocating your rudeness.

I remember paying £275 on a Sunday for our cat to have an abscess lanced. We paid it, but we didn't "have" it, it was very tight for a few months after that. After that I always just did minor stuff like that myself.

That was in London though, the vets here (NI) are the best, our hamster recently had to have an operation (yes, only a hamster, waste of money, yada yada) and treatment for mange, he didn't charge for consultations or keeping him overnight, just for the actual op and medicines - £30 all in, not bad! Tiddles isn't insured though, we are very bad hamster owners.

Clear and present, it must have been horrific , don't feel bad though because you helped the cat at the end when it mattered, and with hindsight it is easy to say 'I wish I'd done'...etc

those little shites have parents, wonder what they would think?