To think vets charge too much **title edited by MNHQ on OP's request**

[Looobyloo]

I took my 10 yr old cat to the vets earlier for a check up as she has seemed a little lethargic. Vet examines her and says she has a little arthritis in her hip and needs these tablets, one a day. I ask how much, she says £9 a tablet! Everyday for the next, however long she lives. £63 a week!

She gives me a free sample and says if they work she'll give me a prescription So I can get them online. I checked online, 49p a tablet.

We don't have insurance as we've never been able to get her to the vets for injections etc as she's very stroppy (she attacked the vet today)

I know people say don't have an animal if you can't afford and we do have a private cat fund where we put £60 a month into. But even then £63 a week! I'd be torn if it was life and death as much as I hate to admit to it.

Are vets just taking the piss nowadays?

Winsome you actually can get antibiotic eye drops from Boots, they are exactly the same ones that humans use Chloramphicol,
Without a prescription

And the pharmacist still has to satisfy themselves that OTC chloramphenicol is being supplied in accordance with its Marketing Authorisation. So, they would be breaking the law to supply it for a cat, hamster, llama or whatever. Winsomelosesome is correct.

I think what is really clear from this thread is that a lot of people have no idea how tightly controlled veterinary medicines are or how much it costs vet practices to act as pharmacies. And that’s fair enough, why would they?

However it then seems that rather than asking questions, or researching why vets have to adhere to extremely strict legislation, or giving us the benefit of the doubt, many people instead assume it’s because we’re out to fleece owners and line our own pockets.

That’s a shame.

And also interesting that VNs aren’t seen as part of the same ‘system’ even when in many practices it’s VNs who do a lot of the flea, worm, food, and other ‘additional product’ sales....

Public perception is an interesting thing.

Interesting how quite a few people are saying a 10 minute consultation plus a prescription can cost a certain amount and it’s apparently a rip off. I do wonder if it’s because they have no idea how much human medicine and consultations cost. A private consultant will charge in the region of £150+ for a 15 minute consultation, private GP around £70 for 15 minutes. That’s no medicine or dressings or any treatment, you’re “just” paying for their time, expertise and opinion.

Spinnaret Winsome may be correct in what she says, but i have bought it for my cat, how does the pharmacy know it's for a pet?
Whatever it is for you CAN buy it over the counter
Although not at Boots

You can indeed buy chloramphenicol eye ointment over the counter for yourself, but not for your pet. As others have said, the pharmacist will not sell it to you if you say it is for an animal (if they are following the regulations properly). Similarly, it's entirely legal for CBD oil to be sold online for human use, but if you want to buy it for your dog you will need a veterinary prescription before a pharmacy can sell it to you for that purpose.

I don't care if you get a prescription or buy a medicine from my practice. I don't mind whether you vaccinate your dog with L4 or L2 or neither (we stock both and I would be quite willing to just vaccinate against the other diseases and not leptospirosis if someone asked me to, which they never have). I'm not paid commission and it makes no difference to my income what products I sell you. I just want to do the best I can for animals that are brought to me for help, as do most other vets out there. I could say a lot more, but I don't think I will.

Sympathy to all the other vets and VNs on the thread - public perception is indeed an interesting thing!

Vets train for 7 years and get into huge amounts of debt. Sounds like your vet was doing you a favour by offering a prescription. My vets do the same they can’t get the drugs as cheaply as the big animal pharmacy’s can as they are not buying in bulk so they do me a prescription. I do not own a cat but a horse with many issues so I know vet bills are painful but my vet is an important member of my team to keep madam thriving and I never forget that. Vets are not in it for the money trust me, it’s a very stressful job and the suicide rates are vet highs I give them a break.

When they charge £200 to scan your cat's kidney for 2 mins I'm inclined to agree when you compare it to £80 for a private baby scan done by a consultant who looks at every part of the foetus.. I think you'll find the hospital equipment is provided free of charge to staff.

And an ultrasound scanner being used day in/day out will pay for itself far quicker than one being used 3 or 4 times a week. And the pregnant lady won’t need 3 people to do it to help hold her in position.

May I recommend animal friends insurance. https://www.animalfriends.co.uk/?gclsrc=aw.ds&gclid=Cj0KCQjwnLrBRD4ARIsAFEQFKsoDrFtJYg1gIqvuSsmBoq7BLiAEDE3qzHRA-FjwV4aGe15OtSX9hYaAn1REALww_wcB

They take on older pets as well and all profits go to animal charities. They pay up and we've used them for years. They even challenged our vet once over the extortionate price of one of the drugs they had billed for,

@Calledyoulastnightfromglasgow as @Veterinari said they stick to l2 because of a lower risk in the area, and it’s a big thing for a practice to upgrade every dog in the practice (all will need a primary course again).
Also, regarding your friend’s dog, it takes 3 weeks after the second vaccination to get full immunity so they wouldn’t have been covered a week after vaccination.
All vaccines have risks and it’s up to me to present you the options and recommend what I believe is best for your animal. You ultimately make the decision for your pet. And as trained medical professionals it is our job to look at the evidence and not anecdotes.
Besides, we’d make far more money from a case of Lepto or parvo than we do vaccinating the animal against it.
And I feel if we weren’t using it and then a bunch of dogs died of the strains covered in the L4 vaccine and then the public found out we had the option to use it and weren’t using it then they’d be equally up in arms.

Other people have put it better and I’m not going to change your mind. But I just want you to realise that vets are people all the same that are on the whole motivated by their love of animals.

So many of my fellow classmates have left the profession because of things like this and some have suffered serious mental health problems. It’s not a mantra- it’s not hard to have respect for others and treat them decently even if you don’t agree with them.

@princessTiasmum also you may be able to get chloramphenicol in the chemist. As others have said it’s illegal. Also the difference is a human can talk to a chemist about how their eye feels etc. A dog can’t. That’s why we have to examine it properly eg check for ulcers because inappropriate/delayed treatment could have serious consequences. And while it might be fine most of the time, in my opinion it’s not worth it for the time that it’s not.

Only used it for a problem the cat previously had, and i know my chemist uses it for her horses and other animals

lightlypoached i have used animal friends too, for all my pets and they have always paid up, no problems at all

@lightlypoached thanks for the recommendation. I've just insured my two younger cats with them, the fact they give profits to animal charities was the decider.

My older cats can't be insured as she has preexisting medical conditions so we'll also keep up with the cat fund.

I realise vets have overheads and medicines to pay for etc, but i don't understand why the consultation fees are so high,
I had to take one of my cats yesterday and was shocked that the consultation fee was £38-50, including vat,i thought vat was only added to goods,
I can understand why some people are worried about taking their pets,it is expensive before you get to see the vet