To think my vets is a bit of a rip off ........

[showtime7]

9 year old cat just taken to vets for annual injection. Whilst there, vet tells me he looks very healthy etc but there is a slight red mark above one tooth at the back of his mouth which will need cleaning etc. He says that this has to be done under anaethetic and he recommends blood tests done too - total cost £350.

I'm a little surprised that it is quite as much as this; I also want to mention that I took him along to the same vet practice 3 weeks ago ( I have a kitten and 9 year old cat seemed grumpy so wanted him checked over whilst kitten had first jabs). It was a different vet who also said he seemed very healthy. He said he had some plaque which he proceeded to scrape off and that was that.

Opinions please is £350 alot? Do bloods really need to be taken from a healthy cat? I admit that I could see that his gum looked red in a very small area above one tooth and would obviously get this done if it needed to be done but I don't want to be ripped off!

Yes it’s £35 for spaying here to and £15 for chipping or £5 for both if your on means tested benefits through a cat’s protection scheme.

A 2nd opinion would be a lot cheaper. I had argument with vets last summer; different vets examined same cat & didn't even raise the supposed urgent issues.

Hi have you had a look at the red mark? Our cat had what looked like a red mark where the gum met the tooth. It got bigger and she went off her food so off she went to the vets.... The red was the pulp from inside her tooth coming out (her tooth was disintegrating or something) and it needed removing as she was in pain. A year later it happened to the same tooth on the opposite side of her mouth.

It was about £250 each time and insurance won't cover anything tooth related. That was a set fee for all dental work needed no matter how many teeth were removed or cleaned.

Is it possible the same for your cat and not just a case of needing cleaning?

Vets have to study for 6 years to qualify and all of them could have been doctors instead if they were chasing money. It's a personal decision whether you want to spend this money on your cat, personally I probably wouldn't. It is true as someone else said that lots of vets practices have been bought up by private equity companies, the actual vets aren't paid very well at all.

Presumably though the cost of meds amd equipment and even staff (outside of london) remains the same. So the variance in quotes is just profit. Not for the vet but for whichever company owns the practice?

Our horse vet charges a lot less than my small animal vet. A bottle of metacam for a guinea pig cost twice that for a (stronger) bottle for a pony. It cost me £75 last week to have a guinea pig pts. And I took him home with afterwards. With my usual vet it would have just cost the consultation fee of £25. It's only because they have a 'book in and take a seat policy'and I knew what would happen I went to a vet that could book us a slot so I could minimise the stress.

Our local horse vets vary so massively too. Have seen people pay twice what I would for the same treatment.

It isn't the vets fault. It's greedy companies profiteering that is the problem.

They would be pre-op bloods - having them done for us diagnosed renal failure which meant our beloved dog wouldn’t have woken up from the anaesthetic. They’re recommended any time there’s a GA involved I think.

Presumably though the cost of meds amd equipment and even staff (outside of london) remains the same. So the variance in quotes is just profit. Not for the vet but for whichever company owns the practice?

Not necessarily, rent for premises vary wildly across the UK, cities being much more expensive. Some vets will use poorly paid unqualified nurses instead of highly experienced qualified ones, some will have adequate staffing levels others skeletal staff. Lots of practices can't get the staff they need and will be paying through the roof for locums. Some will have better more modern equipment than others etc etc.

For £350 I’d want a new cat.

I saw this posted on Facebook recently. I think it helps to explain what can seem excessive charges.

“Earlier in the week a fellow facebooker shared a comment about wanting an NHS for pets, being willing to pay a bit extra in tax and NI to avoid “f-ing rip off vets fees” and it made me realise that despite the massive audience figures for programmes like Supervet, most people have no clue about the reality of day to day general practice. So I thought I’d share a few things for those that think we should work for free because we love animals. The Veterinary Profession has one of the highest suicide rates, depression and substance abuse rates of professions in the UK. Most new graduates leave university after 5years of study with anything between 50-100k of debt. Most vets earn significantly less than their equivalent qualified doctor or dentist. Most vets work a minimum 11-12 hr day, 5-7 days a week in addition to night duties and on calls, where they can be dealing with serious life threatening illness and injuries alongside the emergency flea treatment required at 2am by someone who has just come back from the pub. Most nurses spend three years of their life working full time, including overnight duties on top of a 40plus hour week, and attend college and study for some of the most scrutinised examinations in the country, completing assignments, practicals and recording training logs and having little or no life outside of their job and training for little more than minimum wage. At least 50% of practice income is spent on the salary and drug bill. Veterinary practices are not allowed by law to prescribe cheaper generic or human drugs if there is a licensed veterinary product. Most of the rest of the income is spent on utility bills, mortgage or rent, insurance, continuous learning for all staff which is mandatory, complying with health and safety regulations, maintenance of equipment and purchase of equipment to provide a better service and of course VAT. Of course some vets earn a decent wage, may even own their own practice after 20plus years working for others but they still work hard, long hours in support of their patients, their staff and their clients, missing parents evenings, school concerts and family events because of a last minute emergency operation that can not wait, and they do this without complaint because this is the profession that they chose. Veterinary Nurses, just like human nurses, are not “failed” or “in training” vets. Nor are they “just a nurse”. They are highly qualified individuals who keep your pets alive during their surgery, monitor and care for them during recovery, soothe them when they are in pain or distress, hold you when you are upset, rejoice with you over a successful outcome and put up with your abuse when things don’t go according to plan. Most clients who bond with their practice are thoughtful and appreciative of the fact that- unlike the nhs- you can get an appointment the same day, your pet can have blood tests and X-rays with results reported back to you in less than 24hrs, that surgery can be scheduled when needed and at your convenience without a 3-6mth waiting list, that if you need to see a vet at the weekend or out of hours you will not have a 3-12 hr wait in the local walk in or A&E. The front line staff of the NHS are amazing and I know many who work in that field, but my profession is also amazing and I don’t see why I should have to apologise for the fact that I expect to earn a reasonable salary for my 30yrs experience in order to provide my family with a decent standard of living. Yes it costs money to see a vet and to receive treatment for your pet but it was your choice to bring an animal into your family and it’s your responsibility to provide proper care. Sharing your home with a pet is a privilege and not a right! I will now step back for the onslaught “

If we didn't have the NHS in the uk I wonder how many people who compare vet care only on price would pick the cheapest medical care for themselves.

YANBU. I agree that vet costs are part of owning a pet - over the years I’ve had a diabetic cat and 1 rabbit with severe dental problems so the costs have added up, even with insurance. That being said, I don’t intend to get another pet in the near future because of the cost of vet bills. If what pp have said about the vets practices being owned by private companies then they need to be careful they are not pricing themselves out of the market. If no one takes animals to the vet then they will be out of a job!

Need a like button for that post fingersandthumbs. As a student nurse way back I did 100+ hour weeks for less than £3 per hour. No-one in the veterinary profession is in it for the money, no-one.

I always get pre op bloods done. For one of my cats it showed early kidney problens which not only meant we could deal with that early. But also that while he would normally have been given Metacam, he could no longer have that for any reason.

Re cost. Another of my cats had to have human antivirals for an eye ulcer that wouldn't clear up. Went to Boots to get them, over £50 for 4 tablets. I had to quarter them. The vet had looked up the cost and to get them the correct size would have been three times as much.

They’re not my words itsatravesty but they struck a chord with me when I saw it.

Many jobs have the requirement for dedication and training though. DH is a builder. He works weekends, early starts, late finishes. He does do life and death stuff. If a 3000 sqm wall fails, people can die if it falls on them. He has also trianed for 30 odd years. He also has continuous personal and professional training.

I trained as a mortgage and financial adviser. Same shit, different job.

Am not disputing that any vet or vet nurse works hard. And that they don't do a good job in the majority of cases. But DHs rates are set by what people are willing to pay. Same with lots of professions.

The difference with vet practices is that most people will pay what is asked, regardless of the cost because it is a much loved pet on the table, and because they trust their vet to have the pets best interest at heart.

More and more I think that some surgeries are driven by profit rather than what is right for that animal. More and more animals have insurance which the vets do take into consideration when advising treatment or tests.

That's why patients on the books equals profits to vets and why they operate emergency surgeries etc. And annual charges at loss leader prices for vacs/flea treatments/worming. Every time they get am animal in front of them it's an opportunity to upsell a treatment.

My vet has more stock atm than pets at home. Special foods, crates, toys, boredom cures, medicated shampoos, herbal calmers.

It's all very corporate nowadays.

Unfortunately you don’t know whether bloods are needed unless you have them done- ie you don’t know what you are missing unless you go looking. Vast majority of the time bloods are normal but sometimes can show abnormality that would be made worse by certain drugs including anaesthetic, or show a problem was Pre-existing so an owner can’t come back and complain was fine until had a procedure done. A bit on expensive side but not extortionate

Vets eh!? Nice work if you can get it... Most of them aren't even vegetarian let alone vegan, who'd trust their animals with them...?

I love my vets.

Small practice run by a married couple both who are fantastic.

They charge fair prices and will always explain the costs if you want them to.

I checked them out on company house and I can tell you now they don’t do it for the money!!

Seems reasonable. Although they are there to make a profit, it seems more expensive as due to the NHS we don't really know how much medical stuff actually costs.

They will always offer to do bloods when pet is under anaesthetic but I would only say do them if you have concerns on health. I've had dental work on two cats now and both times was suggested bloods. When questioned they couldn't really explain why so told them I didn't want them done.

I got annoyed with ours when I realised they were charging us for every consultation they performed when we had to keep going back as the wound wasn't healing from an operation they performed. I could understand if it was a new issue but to keep putting consult fees on top of the endless antibiotics after we'd already paid for the operation and they were the ones insisting we had to keep bringing her back weekly felt mean. they removed it once I said as much.

For the price of a consultation fee you could get a second opinion. The blood tests aren't essential, and they probably won't find anything, but if I was going to have a general anesthetic I'd want to know I didn't have an underlying condition that might lead to me dying on the operating table or a fatal disease that could be cured if treated early enough. I'd want the same for my pet. It's your choice.

I agree with those who say that the NHS means we have no concept of how expensive health care really is. If you look at stories of people in the USA dying through lack of health care, or having to crowd fund to pay medical bills, you understand how expensive it is and how lucky we are.

bloods are always a good idea as they get older.
they can indicate some illnesses early, before they your pet gets sick.
If they need medication you could always look it up online and get a prescription if it’s cheaper.

I'm a vet, and my 8-year-old cat never undergoes sedation or GA without bloodwork first. Costs me the same as it does every other pet owner.

I had an appointment for my elderly dog to see my vet at two o clock. The vet was forty minutes late because he was (in the words of the receptionist) out doing some shopping. Turns out my dog was healthy but I was charged £38 for him to take a hairball out of her mouth and he told me I could have done it myself. Asshole.