Vets attitude to prescription note.

[MarcoPoloCX]

What's your vet's attitude to you getting a prescription note?
I was visiting the vets with my friend's dog. She was about to get a year's worth of Advocate and some other stuff from the vets when I mentioned that it would be much cheaper to get it online.
I know they need to cover the overheads but some of the stuff were 50%, 100% or double or more on the online prices.
He was reluctant in writing it and was dismissive about the online retailers even though they're properly licensed.
He was abrupt and left us at the reception without saying a word.

[BiteyShark]

That's good then Tim720 as I know my vets won't have to close like a lot of high street businesses.

[Nateismine]

Tim720
I would love to know how much profit vets make. Can you share the figures? My vets are lovely but they told me they are paid a similar amount to teachers and far less than doctors and dentists.

[BiteyShark]

Nateismine depending on the type of company I think you can find that information online. However, what a vet earns will be different to what a company earns and each company will be different depending on their services, overheads etc.

[Lonecatwithkitten]

For independent practices it can be tricky to ascertain true profitability as often the vets who owner the practice take no salary. So what appears to be be profit is actually part of a very experienced vets salary. If they are a partnership they have taken no salary and if they are a limited company probably only taken £12k salary.
For corporate practices if you are prepared to pay companies house you can access their accounts as they are PLC or limited companies. But as one of the biggest corporates the PAH group announced last week that they are closing 30 practices as they are not profitable. That gives you an indication that despite what Tim720 says all is not glossy in sector.

[LittleBLUEsmurfHouse]

Tim my understanding was also that salaried vets are on a lot less than drs, which considering what they do, seems somewhat unfair.

Also whilst yes I agree vet practices often charge insurance companies more, that doesn't mean they are charging more for uninsurable things like vaccination or for uninsured clients. Vets costs have risen with the higher expectations of clients wanting human standards of care. They have also risen as they have become large corporations with shareholders to pay.

Also I pay slightly more for routine things at my independent veterinary practice (the only one in my large town that is still truly independent) but when my dog required a tail amputation and I was paying for it myself it cost less than £350 including numerous post operative checks and meds as well as the operation itself. Other vets charge double, triple or quadruple that for the same op and post op care! I think my veterinary practice do rely on income from the routine stuff to help them afford to do surgery and post op care so cheaply.

I know a few vets chose not to profit on things like wormers and flea treatment but have astronomical charges for operations to make up for it. I prefer to pay my vets ever so slightly higher charges on wormer, flea treatment and vaccination to have more affordable care when I need it most.