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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

The price of a kind heart

29 replies

pinkpaws · 21/10/2014 17:15

There has been a little stray cat visiting are home for a number of months now.Being the animal lovers that we are we have been feeding him. This little cat is sweet and wanted a home we where reluctant to let it move in as we have has already have a cat and dog of our own. But we did as i say fee him recently we noticed he had developed a skin condition which got worse and worse . I Rang my local vet this morning who both my own animals are with and explained this little cat was a stray and not really mine but it needed help. He said to bring it in long story short i was shocked and applaud to find he had charged me £50.00 for the treatment £25.00 of which was his consultation fee . I mean really are vets not ment to be there to care for most vulnerable animals. The cost of the drugs is one thing but a consultation fee . Has anyone else come across this I would be keen to know thanks.

OP posts:

OwlinaTree · 21/10/2014 17:18

You should have taken it to the PDSA.

PumpkinSizedMammaries · 21/10/2014 17:20

Vets aren't a charity. They have running costs etc. There are charities which will provide free treatment for stray animals but it's U to expect a vet to.

pregnantpause · 21/10/2014 17:21

You did a kind and generous thing and karma will hit the vet. I understand that they can't take in all waifs and strays but there are agencies who would have taken the puss who the vet could have recommended. If he intended to charge he should have warned you- not just said bring in the puss- implying he cared more for the creatures health than the buck in his pocket.

ArkhamOffett · 21/10/2014 17:22

But who was the vet going to charge? Perhaps he thought you would be keeping the kitten?

I'd ask the vet to give the details of the nearest Cat Rescue that uses them and officially sign the kitten over to them if you're not keeping him.

It was lovely of you to get him treated btw

scarletforya · 21/10/2014 17:22

Why would it be free? The vet needs to pay his bills too and pay for his time etc

notagainffffffffs · 21/10/2014 17:24

It was very kind of you. Our vet treats strays for free, they refer is back to pdsa and then they pay half. They are the loveliest vets ever.
Buy yourself a euro millions tickst tonight, maybe karma will get your 50 quid back to you ;)

londonrach · 21/10/2014 17:24

You should have signed to cat over as the vet isnt a charity and would have charged you. However what you have done is a lovely thing

LittleprincessinGOLDrocks · 21/10/2014 17:26

It was good of you to get help for the cat, but you should have asked before committing to treatment whether it would be free. The vet probably assumed you knew his fee and were happy to pay it.

Original poster

pinkpaws · 21/10/2014 17:27

I did try PDSA vet but you have to be in receiving housing benefit which i am not i know vets are not charities but i still think to charge the consultation fee was ridiculous when he knew the cat was not mine.Smacks of the wrong thing to me.

OP posts:

ArkhamOffett · 21/10/2014 17:30

Could it have been a misunderstanding? If I were a vet and was told "I've a stray cat needs looking at, it's not ours but we've been feeding it and looking out for it" I'd see that as more of a potted history and background than the intention not to pay for any treatment.

gobbynorthernbird · 21/10/2014 17:31

Instead of having the cat picked up by a charity to be rehomed, you're feeding it and taking it to the vet. You have, essentially, adopted it as an 'outside' cat, therefore you are responsible for the vet bills. Either get it collected by a rehoming charity, or continue to pay the bills including getting it neutered ASAP.

SistersOfPercy · 21/10/2014 17:32

When you took the cat in you became responsible for him.

That aside, are you 100% certain he was a stray? Cats will move where the food is.

MrsQueen · 21/10/2014 17:34

If vets provided free treatment in those circumstances, anybody could say the cat is a stray, not really theirs, and demand free treatment.

You told the vet that a cat needed treatment, you know his normal fees as you already use him, and he charged his normal rates.

Yabu.

Dinnaeknowshitfromclay · 21/10/2014 17:36

I am a Veterinary Nurse. If you don't pay, the Vet can't pay me. If I don't get paid, I won't go there. If I'm not there, you can't have your cat spayed, treated in an emergency or treated if it is ill. It is a basic business model. If the Vet gets bitten by karma as a PP said he or she will probably treat themselves have to have treatment for the bites with drugs and care that cost money!! RSPCA or Cats Protection League (assuming you are in the UK) would have been you first port of call.

WorraLiberty · 21/10/2014 17:40

Why didn't you discuss how much it was going to cost you beforehand?

I'm sure if the vet though for a second that you expected a freebie, they would have contacted the RSPCA or the cats protection league.

ILovePud · 21/10/2014 17:40

You did a lovely thing helping the cat, feel good about that and don't let the incident with the vet taint it. I don't think the vet was being unreasonable charging but it sounds like neither of you was very clear in communicating your expectations.

Original poster

pinkpaws · 21/10/2014 17:58

Thank you for all your various points of view . Think i like the suggestion of loto ticket tonight you never know lol. However i did try to give the cat to cats protection but they said they where full and encouraged me to keep feeding it. I dont regret taking the cat .My point was and remains that a consultation fee under these circumstances was lacking in compassion . The cat has been spayed but not by me. Looks like i got myself a second cat. thanks folks .

OP posts:

londonrach · 21/10/2014 18:01

Your new friend has got himself a lovely forever home. Enjoy him op and buy that lottery ticket x

lovecat · 21/10/2014 18:06

I spent £75 on a stray cat many years ago, he was allergic to fleas (and covered in them) and needed antibiotics administering four times a day. We did it for him but I will admit to a mental sharp intake of breath and a 'he's not even MY cat!' when handing the money over... (and we didn't even get to keep him, our cats hated the poor bugger so we gave him to a no-kill rescue in the prime of health and they found a nice home for him!).

You've done a lovely thing - and you get to have a new kitty! :)

Shallishanti · 21/10/2014 18:06

actually, you were expecting the vet to have a kind heart and to bear the price of that...

19lottie82 · 21/10/2014 18:12

A vets is a business. He has to earn a living, pay his overheads and pay his staff. YABU, sorry. You could have taken the cat to the cats protection league or similar.

ArkhamOffett · 21/10/2014 18:42

Aaaah, hope he settles in well with your other cat and dog.

I can see your pov. Our vets will treat wild animals without charging the person who brings them in, customer or not.

Notmeagain1 · 21/10/2014 19:07

Ah, You did a very nice thing for the poor little kitty and now he has a nice loving home. Congratulations on your new addition. And do buy the lotto ticket, you may just win. Karma and all.

OwlinaTree · 21/10/2014 19:08

I didn't know that about the PDSA. I guess the vet thought you knew what you were getting into. Was kind to pay it tho.

Booboostoo · 21/10/2014 20:09

It's a tough one as you want the vet to pay what you were unwilling to pay. Cats sometimes adopt humans and not the other way round so I'd say you now have two cats.

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