To think that the vet chain that charges £1800 to keep your dog in overnight on a drip is ripping caring dog owners off?

[FizzAfterSix]

A week ago my poor little 8-year-old dog vomited a few times, refused to eat all day and that evening began emitting bloody diarrhoea. I called the nearest emergency vet in a panic (I thought he was haemorrhaging!) and asked if I should bring him in.

The vet took some details and told me it would cost £1.800 to keep him in overnight. I was all set to bring him in but when she took my details she discovered I was registered to the wrong surgery. I then called another emergency vet who was brilliant and explained that these symptoms were not an emergency and that I should call back in the morning which I duly did.

The diarrhoea and vomiting had stopped so the vet suggested that I syphon chicken broth into his mouth regularly and make sure he was drinking water.

2 days later he still wouldn’t eat so I took him to the emergency Medivets, who I had originally consulted on the phone, on Saturday morning. They took an x-ray (which didn’t show up anything) and prescribed some antibiotics. They charged £450.

It’s 3 days later. My dog hasn’t eaten for a week now and is subsisting on chicken broth and a digestive probiotic support gel I am squirting into his mouth once a day. He's drinking water.

The vets don’t have anything else to offer me. I’m worried that they have fobbed me off with antibiotics which aren’t doing anything and which maybe supressing my dog’s appetite. How can it be reasonable to charge £1,800 (one thousand 800 pounds) for an overnight stay, especially in these awful times with so many people suffering financial meltdown?

I’m so depressed that small local vets have been taken over by these horrible greedy amorphous chains who care more about the bottom line than animals they are treating. Has pet insurance given them license to overcharge? And more pressingly, how can I tempt my dog to eat?

Also because some practices are doing things to a higher standard

In my experience, the cheaper practises are much better and much more efficient. They're also much less likely to charge you for unnecessary check ups and medications!

Our dog was v ill on Friday morning, i took him to the vet, he had anti sickness vac and was given antibiotics. He deteriorated in the day and was admitted for 24 hours, i picked him up on Saturday afternoon, he'd been on a drip, iv antibiotics and had blood tests. He was discharged with steroids and further antibiotics the total cost was just over £400 so yours seems v expensive to me.

It's interesting being a vet at the moment

We're simultaneously money-grabbing bastards and at the same time have no regard for animal welfare because we're refusing to operate normal services (and therefore losing money) in an attempt to protect our staff and the public from coronavirus.

I suspect most of the folk complaining on here have no idea what it costs to run a 24hour medical service and aren't interested in understanding it. Particularly posters like @anotherlittlechicken who simply wants to dismiss the rationale for charging without attempting to understand it.

However on a different note OP you need to seek veterinary treatment for your dog.

*Another tired argument people come up with to justify extortionate vet bills.

You need to try a LOT harder than that.*

This is code for 'I don't have an answer'

I think a lot of the charges are not down to the vet, but to the outside services eg lab costs. When one of my cats was ill they told me it would be £500 for blood tests to confirm what the problem was. The same cat had needed a full body scan and minor op, that was £600 (15 years ago, heaven knows what it would cost now). The first thing they do these days is ask if you're insured.

Don't discuss cost and the owner is shocked by the figure when they get to the front desk, discuss costs openly and the owner is appalled by your money-grabbing attitude, how dare you put finances before the welfare of the pet. Can't win with that one.

Vets charge a fair price for the work they do. Drugs are expensive, drips are expensive, time spent monitoring an animal (especially overnight) is expensive.
There is price (and quality of care) variation across practices because some work to the highest standard possible and some do just what is needed at that moment. Just like there's price variation between Asda and Waitrose, but you're not up in arms about that.

“Vets are scammers” ?? I’m actually disgusted by some of your attitudes. Do you have any idea how much medical care costs?? How much it costs to run a veterinary clinic? The drugs bills? The equipment? Do you know much the average vet earns? The hours they work?? How high the suicide rate is for vets?? They are highly educated, underpaid and undervalued. Pets are a luxury not a right, get good pet insurance and be thankful vets are still out there caring for your pets even in the middle of a global pandemic.

Those who think a vet consultation and treatment is expensive, you should see how much they charge for human private health care! The actual cost of appointments and tests is shielded from us when we use the NHS.

OP, please seek another opinion for your dog.

Wow. My vet charges around €80 for an overnight stay for my cat on a drip. I'm not comparing my cats condition to your dog, but £1,800 seems very high. I've called my vet on a Sunday, been seen at the surgery and only been charged €40 for this, including medication.

I do thank God for vets and often ask if they're sure about the price, (I'm from London, and I remember how expensive it was there), but they never charge more.

I was thinking of moving back to the UK next year, but with 3 cats I think I'm better off staying where I am.

Hope you get to the bottom of your dog's problem.

These threads always descend into 'vets are rip off merchants' etc etc. They don't see the vet staying back 2 or 3 hours late to write up their notes from the day that they have not had time to do. They don't see the vet sobbing with stress in the back room because the have so many difficult cases and not enough time to provide the care they want. They don't see people working through their breaks and lunches because there just aren't enough hours in the day. Vets don't get paid a huge salary believe it or not, lots of them struggle for money the same as other people. We don't make a lot of money on drugs AT ALL, the mark up is tiny.
We are trying to stay open in the middle of a pandemic with vastly reduced staff, not enough people to man the phone lines, putting ourselves at risk. Yet we still have people phoning us demanding their pet be seen for a booster and complaining that their pet needs an emergency appointment for itchy skin, and upon enquiring when the problem started, to be told, about a year ago! The rudeness we have had to deal with the past couple of weeks has been staggering.
Sorry to derail your thread OP.
How is your wee dog today? Has he eaten anything yet?

Thank you everybody for all your comments and concern.

It has now been one week since my dog ate so I took him back to the vets today and the vet on duty was wonderful.

He did another x-ray just be sure that nothing had changed and that there was no obstruction. He did a blood test, which didn't show up anything untoward. He took Squeaky off the original antibiotics which weren't working (didn't know you could do that), and started him again on ones that were hopefully more suitable and contained an anti nausea treatment. he also suggested tempting him with a different array of foods, not just chicken which was what I was trying.

I brought Squeaky home and he ate half a venison sausage, hallujah! I felt like I'd won the lottery! He had his usual chicken broth - this really is a useful tip as it can be gently siphoned in with a small syringe and contains so much goodness. I wonder if he would have kept going without it given that this is the only nourishment he has had all week. He has some electrolyte powders which have to be reconstituted with water and syphoned in as he probably won't drink them otherwise.

I don't begrudge vets earning a good living at all. But the emergency vets quoted 1,800 for a night on a drip (anything else was extra), they wanted me to bring him in but it transpired this wasn't necessary. There are a lot of very negative reviews on GlassDoor from people who work for Medivets, accusing them of putting profit before pets. But in an emergency you go wherever you can. Generally I have been very happy with my usual vets, but at 10pm at night, you have no choice.

I've had many dogs over the years and work with various rescues so do have experience. Fortunately I've never had to ring an out of hours vet, so thankfully this isn't a regular occurrence.

I'm hoping that now he has had a snack the floodgates have been opened. I am wondering if I hadn't charged around taking him to vets and consulting them on the phone if the outcome wouldn't have been exactly the same though.... anyway, hoping we have crossed a bridge.

Everyone in the UK and the NHS is TOTALLY deluded and delusionary about what modern high tech medicine and, by extension, veterinary care really costs. Because the NHS is 'free' to use when necessary and most people don''t often need it, they miss seeing the really big guns turned on to save lives. The NHS costs a huge amount to keep going, even at a feeble level.

I have a friend, who has been in an induced coma for weeks in France for a heart/asthma crisis. He has had stents and an emergency valve surgery to repair the worst of the damage and has now been sent for rehab and physio for a month, and will then leave with intructions to regain a degree of health, before they attempt the major surgery he needs.

In the UK and the NHS, I do not think the health care would have bothered with him at all. He would be dead.

So, while I am sorry to hear the sad story about your dog (and I have a very medically costly one of my own), everyone who has a pet needs to understand that vets are essentially private medicine. A lot can be done, but at your expense. There comes a point when you have to say I can't afford this. And don't buy pet medical insurance. Save the same money in an ISA.

I think it's quite likely the placebo effect of homeopathy works by proxy on the owners.
I do sometimes wonder what 'memory' tap water holds, especially London water...

@IngMing I use private medicine myself so I'm aware of the cost. Touch wood, I rarely need a doctor though do spend a fortune on dentistry, for which i don't begrudge a penny. I also don't bother with pet insurance, or indeed any insurance unless it is a legal requirement. But sadly my dog costs much more than I do! The moral of my story is to be careful of large chains and build good relationships with a recommended reasonably local vet that you can trust. But in the middle of the night you have to take your chances.

I still think 1800 too much

I accepted the £700 it was for mine last time.

Once I traveled without travel insurance and forgot EHIC card, in Europe. £5000 for having DS spend 24hrs in hospital on a drip (rota virus)

That was an expensive mistake ! But brings home the cost of healthcare

Everyone in the UK and the NHS is TOTALLY deluded and delusionary about what modern high tech medicine and, by extension, veterinary care really costs.

That doesn't explain why some practises charge double or even triple what others' do for the same treatment, though, and I think that's what upsets people.

When you hear you've been charged triple what Jane in the next town has been charged for identical treatment it can sting a little!

@Ihaventgottimeforthis I've used homeopathy and herbal treatments on myself and dogs for minor complaints over 30 years, with generally good results. It's not a question of allopathic or holistic medicine: both can compliment the other.

With a serious complaint, such as my dog is enduring, I'm all for getting the right treatment from the vet. This can be backed up with good nutritional advice and supplements. The homeopathic vet gave invaluable advice but this was not at the expense of a conventional vet treatment; indeed the 2 homeopathic vets I use, Richard Allport and Birgit Alleymeyer are fully trained as conventional vets as well. In Germany, it's very common for vets to be trained in conventional as well as holistic methods.

I honestly don't know if my dog would be alive and in a reasonably stable state after not eating for over a week without her idea of siphoning nutritional chicken broth into him regularly. Chicken soup is not some wild crazy eccentric thing - it's been a popular treatment for thousands of years, and with good reason.

I don't actually care that people come on here to ask why their kid is vomiting blood etc, but honestly in your dogs case, IMO it needs to be seen by your regular vet - not a bunch of randoms on interweb sigh

Hope the dog improves soon.

@OldSpeclkledHen RTFT. He has been seen by my vet. That's not what this post was about. Sigh.

I honestly don't know if my dog would be alive and in a reasonably stable state after not eating for over a week without her idea of siphoning nutritional chicken broth into him regularly.

But that's not homeopathy - it's basic common sense to provide nutrition if you don't want your pet starving to death. And on the flip side that 'support' delayed you seeking further more effective vet treatment to address the cause of his gastritis.

I don't think the OP even knows what homeopathy is.

For no charge OP, here is a summary of homeopathy:
The 'theory' has three claims. The first is that like cures like, so if you want to treat the common cold you give more common cold, if you want to treat Ebola, you give more Ebola. The second is that the more substances are diluted, the more potent they are, so a drop of beer in the ocean is stronger beer than a pint of beer. The third is that water has a memory and can remember substances it has come into contact with. You couldn't make up a sillier idea if you tried.

Feeding chicken broth is neither homeopathy nor naturopathy nor any kind of voodoo-opathy. It's a common suggestion for getting someone to eat because if an animal or person do not eat you have a more basic problem. Of course if your dog has gastritis because of a food allergy, the chicken broth will do more harm than good, but unless you actually investigate the reason for the gastritis you will never know.

My old vet hated the chains - he said every animal coming in is a ‘unit’ and they make you try to sell as much stuff (whether necessary or not and whether you could get it more cheaply elsewhere or not) to each ‘unit’ as you possibly can.

He once half heartedly recommended some diet cat food for our admittedly somewhat fat cat (I hadn’t realised that neighbours were constantly feeding him a la Six Dinner Sid) but I declined, since a) he was a fussy bugger and it was bloody expensive, and b) I found the mere idea of diet cat food obscene.
He agreed - and eventually sold out to a chain anyway. 😱

@Veterinari consulting the holistic vet didn’t delay my visit to the normal vet. I wrote clearly in my OP that my dog exhibited symptoms at night, hence having to call the emergency vet who wanted to charge £1,800 for treatment that 4 other vets said was unnecessary. This was kind of the whole point of the thread which people have been voting on.

The next day I called the holistic/homeopathic vet who is trained in many other disciplines as well as conventional.

@BooboostwoI am well aware chicken soup isn’t homeopathy, lol. But I’m very grateful she advised this as in my experience, this isn’t something that regular vets prescribe.

There is really no need to be quite so patronising or quote your magazine article about homeopathy to me. I was aware that mentioning this would unleash the usual shrill claims that such complementary medicines are quackery but for minor complaints they have served me well for many years.
Interestingly, the Queen and the royal family are avid users of homeopathy and it hasn’t done them any harm.

Live and let live.