To think this vet bill is damn good value

[Caerulea]

Vets get a really hard time so was curious about ppls thoughts on this bill which seems really good value to me. Total is actually £626.83, I'd already paid £200 when I dropped him off this morning. We were going to pay in installments cos it is still money we don't have but it's our pet, it needs treatment. As it was my parents gifted it to us in a pay-it-forward way cos my grandparents once did the same for them. Bloody legends cos DH just got made redundant (merry fucking Christmas!)

Cat had got a severely swollen front leg from a fight (presumably), puncture wound right through. Vet thinks the other cat must have had a filthy mouth as first round of antibiotics didn't clear it, the swelling returned almost immediately all around the joint.

She wanted to x-ray to check for any bits of cat weaponry left in there & to give it a thorough flush which couldn't be done without sedation. No bits found but really messy inside & skin 'devitalised'. Sample sent off to test for any specific bacteria just in case.

First bill was £150 for examination, pain meds, antibiotics, flea & worm treatment.

Like I say - this seems like a good price to me?

Seems like a bargain, especially for the sedation if it included respiratory assistance and monitoring.

Hope your cat gets better soon

Yes, that's excellent. One of mine needed an X ray under sedation, blood sampling, antibiotics, urine sample - £1300.

Thank you, he's got a poltice on atm & needs to go back tomorrow to have that changed, I'm sure he'll be fine. Vet thinks he's been incredibly unlucky :(

Ooof!! I was dreading a bill like that. We really need to sort out insurance for him. Hope yours was OK after?

There are vets and there are vets - the independents seem better - a vet group charged us £800 to operate on a gerbil and £135 to put a gerbil to sleep.

With recent gerbil we found an independent who is much more reasonable.

I took my mum’s cat to her local vet for annual check up and vaccinations plus flea and worm treatment and it was about two thirds of what my vet would charge. I can only think it’s because her vets are a partner owned farm practice and mine is one of those corporate ones that only does small animals.

@maddening they are an independent, yes. Coastal Cornwall so their customers range from very poor, to super wealthy with a very large helping of farmers in between. Everyone there is just lovely, they genuinely care about the animals. Feel quite lucky tbh

It seems reasonable to me. I think because we have the NHS, people lose sight of what things can cost. And it is not like the actual vet is pocketing all that money.... it is being divvied out between all the staff, bills, equipment, building etc.

Where vets get expensive is when you buy medication through them. It is always cheaper online, even if you have to get a prescription.

I think all vets care about animals - they don’t go into for the money for sure.

Sadly he was diagnosed with kidney disease, he's costing me a fortune in renal food and meds and isn't likely to live more than about 3 years. Fortunately I have the funds to pay for it all and he's living his best life right now.

I know someone whose dog needs an MRI. Is costing £5k! They are insured, but still have to pay 20% in excess.

I briefly lived in a different country (EU) and paid €60 for examination, sedation, x-ray, steroids, medication. I did have to hold my dogs legs though while he had the xray which was weird.

Anyway my point is that the vet was uk trained and I just felt like €60 was so insulting for her especially knowing how expensive it is in the UK. I'm sure there's a middle ground between that and some of the prices mentioned in this thread and I think you're about there OP! Hope your cat recovers asap.

Yes, despite the regular criticism of Vet charges (sometimes justified), most are caring and don’t try to fleece us. My vet is very reasonably priced for the bigger stuff. I do wince at £80 pounds for a quick consultation and long acting antibiotics and an injection of a NSAID, but they have recently bought a new scanner, opened a second surgical room and they have fabulous staff. All that has to be paid for. My bitch is due to be spayed in February. They have quoted me £200 ish, including aftercare (painkillers, follow up check etc). I paid £130 23-years-ago at a different practice the last time I had a bitch spayed. Given that, I’m frankly amazed how low the quoted price is! My practice is a Vets4Pets, so part of one of the largest veterinary groups in the UK, but this lot operate a franchise model, so each practice is owned and operated by a local vet/vet’s partnership who manage everything themselves, including their prices.

Totally agree! I always think that about indie opticians - how the hell does £30 cover everything they do in a check-up?

@pointythings ah bugger :( my old cat made it to 23 with hateful kidneys before we did the kindest thing for her. The cost of that food is killer!

Ooh I'm in Cornwall OP, what's your vet practice? I've got my ear to the ground for a new one after our excellent one was sold to one of the big chains. The vets are still excellent but I can see the policies are heading the other way.

Friend's dog had emergency op, 2 ops in fact as first one failed. Knocked out their insurance, £7k in one hit.

Particularly in case any vets are reading, my experiences over the years has been that, with a single exception, they’re all wonderful people and I’m forever grateful for the care they’ve given us. Their knowledge is extraordinarily broad and deep. I’m very aware of the long hours and financial pressures and I’ve never thought that I’ve been overcharged.

@TotHappy haha I'll send you a DM :)

I find I get charged far less for my uninsurable geriatric cat than I do for my fully insured mog - I'm always steeling myself for a shock, but so far it's been a silent 'Is that it? Have you forgotten something (like a couple of zeroes on the end)?'

My pets, over many decades have never been insured, with the exception of my young Weimaraner who is all legs and just a bit crazy on a walk, so prone to injury. I won’t insurer her as she matures and settles down. I have never had a bill anything close to those quoted for their insured pets. This includes my ‘bionic’ Standard Poodle, who over her 13 years had several surgery, including an out of hours emergency surgery for bloat and gastric torsion, followed by 4 days of intensive care, two of which were over the weekend!

Wow
My dog slipped a disc I got all medication a sling a harness, a mri, an operation and a followup appointment for 6000£ with 100 excess
Why so expensive?

My daugher is an independent vet. They are MUCH better value than a corporate. She charges half the price that her friend working at a corporate does for a dental.