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If you're worried about your pet's health, please speak to a vet or qualified professional.

Original poster

vets bill

53 replies

Babyroobs · 30/11/2017 23:33

had to take my 5 month old puppy to the vets again. He had swallowed something that was potentially quite harmful. The vet gave him something to induce vomiting and then something to stop further vomiting. we were there for about 40 mins and were charged almost £200 !! Can anyone who has had a similar experience confirm that this is a realistic price for this kind of treatment ? Yes I know I should sort insurance, just hadn't got around to it.

OP posts:
Original poster
Babyroobs · 30/11/2017 23:37

Just to add this was not an out of hours service.

OP posts:
Elphame · 30/11/2017 23:38

I was charged £80 for an emergency appt and an emetic injection for Elfpup when he helped himself to a grape off the vine. We were there about half an hour in total I think - were allowed to go once he'd stopped vomiting.

Wolfiefan · 30/11/2017 23:39

Get insurance. ASAP. We are up to about £500 for a paw dog keeps licking.
Last visit was £120 for a skin scrape, consult and antibiotics.
Make sure insurance is with a reputable company and is life cover.

Oops4 · 30/11/2017 23:42

Vet bills seems very and not always obvious where the high costs are. My cat had a mild sedative and an X-ray to rule out a leg break but didn't require any other treatment. Bill was nearly £400

Pup has just had surgery for tooth removal including full sedation, stitching and weeks worth of anti inflammatory and was about £170.

Original poster
Babyroobs · 30/11/2017 23:42

Elphame - It's crazy isn't it for one grape. Ours swallowed a whole sock earlier in the week and vomited the whole sock today. I know we are lucky that it didn't block his bowel or it would have meant major surgery. I can't get over how he could have a whole sock in is small tummy for a couple of days and just be eating and pooping normally?

OP posts:
Oops4 · 30/11/2017 23:42

Full anaesthetic, not sedation

Original poster
Babyroobs · 30/11/2017 23:44

I expressed my shock at the cost which was explained to me before the vet administered the drug to induce vomiting. He said it was a very expensive drug and he would have to waste the rest of it. I guess I'm just in shock that making a dog sick can cost £200?

OP posts:
PositivelyPERF · 30/11/2017 23:45

My wee Yorkie stole frozen chicken burgers and as he was allergic to the coating, I had to take him straight to the vets. They gave him an injection to induce vomiiting and kept him in for a few hours. That was around six years ago and cost £80.

My old vet advised me to build up savings in the credit union, for my eight cats and three dogs, as they pay out very quickly in the case of emergency vet treatment. He pointed out that you were throwing money at companies that will do their best to avoid paying out, but saving money with the CU means you're seeing exactly where your money goes.

AlpacaLypse · 30/11/2017 23:46

I'm afraid this sounds pretty normal. PetPlan are the biggest insurance company and are genuinely expert. Basic cover will do. The enhanced and super and extra and whatever else they might call it are usually glamourised shite.

If you exercise your dog off lead anywhere check for the third party. Most insurance does have it now, but not all. Third party liability will cover you for if your pupster accidentally causes a road accident etc.

Catfriend1978 · 30/11/2017 23:46

We took one of my cat on a Sunday to the vet. We thought something was really wrong with him...we were told he just a bit depressed = £90

BiteyShark · 01/12/2017 05:00

If you are planning on getting insurance you need to get it right now. Everything that you go to the vets for before the insurance kicks in (and there is usually a 2 week period at the start where they won't cover any illness) will be viewed as a preexisting condition and won't be covered in the future.
I have just had three weeks back and forth to my vets, the number of scans in double figures, multiple drugs, several days and nights of admissions and many examinations. The bill was just over £2000 which given the invoice I thought was good value and pet plan paid out with no hassle. By the way my dog is just over 1 year old and this was my first year of insurance having got him at 8 weeks old.

As for your question all vets vary. I think mine is good value for money as I saw the itemised list for the above illness (if that had been human private care it would have been many more thousands). An out of hours visit for my vets starts at £150 just for consultation and drugs on top are extra. Have you asked for an itemised bill, how much was the consultation compared to drugs etc. A visit to my vets in normal hours is around £30.

Greyhorses · 01/12/2017 06:40

The drug used to induce vomiting is expensive to order in and he is right in that it comes in one large glass vial that cannot be stored. It's standard practice to charge for the vial plus any medication to stop vomiting and then vet time.
I don't think the bill is that unusual to be honest.

BiteyShark · 01/12/2017 07:24

PositivelyPERF I have claimed in total over £2.5k on the first year and had no issues with payment so I think as always it depends on the company as to how good they pay out. Whilst some people get lucky and don't need the vets the problem with saving the premiums instead is that you are gambling that you won't need the vets until the animal is older because our premium the first year was less than £400 and even with the claim it has only gone up £15 (in total) for next year and who knows if we may end up claiming again as the vets says we may need more tests if the illness returns (fortunately I have a life cover).

OP if that bill was a surprise I really think you should get insurance ASAP.

blueskypink · 01/12/2017 07:51

We paid £100 ten years ago for our Labrador to have vomiting induced. I found her with a chewed up box of nurofen and couldn't be sure she hadn't swallowed some (she hadn't).

If you can't afford big, unexpected bills then you absolutely should have insurance. And, as others have said, the longer you leave it, the more exclusions you could have. Any concerns you've mentioned to the Vet could potentially lead to exclusions.

If you decide against insurance because you can afford to meet big bills then as a minimum you should have public liability insurance (in case your dog bites someone or causes an accident by running into the road etc). Membership of the Dogs Trust for £20 a year will give you this - and 24 hour access to a Vet helpline.

If you can afford to cover big Vet bills (eg £4K for a cruciate ligament repair - not an uncommon op) then you're in the tricky situation of having to decide whether you want to pay monthly premiums (which will creep up and up with age and after any claim) for something you may never need.

Our old girl's premiums started out quite small - they're now £124 pcm.

rockcakesrock · 01/12/2017 07:54

Can anyone recommend pet insurance and give advice on costs please

user1471542018 · 01/12/2017 07:58

Backing up what a poster above said...the drug for vomiting is extremely expensive and cannot be stored once opened, so you have to pay for the full vial. Add in a consult fee and anti vomiting meds after and £200 seems about right. Glad the dog is all right, they are a worry! Pet insurance is a very good idea.

blueskypink · 01/12/2017 08:03

Rock cakes - petplan seems to be the most widely recommended. If you go onto their website you can get a quote.

rockcakesrock · 01/12/2017 08:09

Don’t a lot of people complain that Pet Plan support puppy farms? I thought I read that on another thread.

BiteyShark · 01/12/2017 08:12

No idea rock but I have claimed four times this year with the last being the massive one and it is so easy. I fill a few things in on the form and hand it over to my vet. They do the detailed vet stuff and within a few weeks the money (bar any excess) is within my account. Obviously I can't compare them to others as that is the only company I use but my experience of them had been very good.

shoesaregood · 01/12/2017 08:31

Our whippet puppy managed to find a packet of ibuprofen yesterday and may have eaten some (hard to tell as I didn’t know how many had been in the packet originally). Took him straight to the vet who gave him an injection to induce vomiting and charged £68 - we were there for around 30 minutes I think. £200 seems like an awful lot for a service during core hours.

Bananarama12 · 01/12/2017 08:43

Sounds about right. You would be been charged for vet time too. Ask for the breakdown receipt.

jmscp2015 · 01/12/2017 08:45

Apometic, which is the drug I’m guessing was used is very expensive unfortunately Sad

pinkbraces · 01/12/2017 08:48

This happened to us last year, my dog ate a sock, vet charged us £50.

Regarding insurance - get the very best you can afford, we are with
M & S, we have the life cover and it has been worth it. My dog would not be with us without the insurance. In her 8 years she has had about £10,000 worth of treatment. M & S have been brilliant, no quibbling on any pay out. Our premium is now massive but its still worth it.

missbattenburg · 01/12/2017 08:57

4 month old puppy suspected of swallowing glass (!!!!). It cost me £279 for x-ray and ultrasound plus stomach emptying and sedation to cover all that (this was about 4 weeks ago). £200 sounds reasonable to me.

tampinfuminragin · 01/12/2017 09:01

I was £145 for my puppy to have his stomach pumped after he found an old bar of chocolate so your price isn't too far off. My pup was in from 11am - 5pm