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Vet Fees

Let's get some logic here.

Let's assume that a one-man-band vet' has to make £150,000 PROFIT (beyond consumables) per year from the business to pay all overheads etc. and have a good wage out of it. That is near enough £80 per hour PROFIT. And that assumes no quiet periods!!
Get real folks.

How many practises have no nurse?
 
Vinny said:
Data or just internet rhubarb as usual?
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Research based on available data on vet fees in 2016.

I don't know if you have pets yourself, Vinny, but since I shared this, the scale of the problem has really come to light. Some vets are so embarrassed by what their owning companies are charging that they are even willing to share prescription information so that clients can buy products independently. We are talking, in some cases, of £70 being charged for painkillers that are freely available for less than £5. The vet that treated my dog told me, directly, that similar treatment in Spain was around £50. I was charged £920.
 
Vinny said:
Let's get some logic here.

Let's assume that a one-man-band vet' has to make £150,000 PROFIT (beyond consumables) per year from the business to pay all overheads etc. and have a good wage out of it. That is near enough £80 per hour PROFIT. And that assumes no quiet periods!!
Get real folks.

How many practises have no nurse?
Click to expand...


You are entitled to make your point, of course, but why would you be against a petition that seeks regulation in an industry?
 
oldius said:
This week, I have been charged £920 by my vet for an x-ray. The explanation I was offered was that Blue was a larger dog and that she needed hospitalisation. Now, both of those explanations don't ring true - she weighs 30kg so less than a Labrador, for example, and the hospitalisation meant just staying in the vet from morning until evening, as is normal for an x-ray. This led to me looking into the issue and finding that in the last five years, many practices have increased their fees by upto 5x. As a consequence, I started a petition for a regulatory body in the industry. If you also think this is an issue, I would be grateful if you would sign and share my petition:


http://chng.it/wk6gfTJxjL
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That is obviously rip-off, but you can start to imagine what our fellow Americans have to pay for human healthcare.
 
chartz said:
That is obviously rip-off, but you can start to imagine what our fellow Americans have to pay for human healthcare.
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I was thinking the same thing after we were stung by a vet sorting out a little cat that adopted us during lockdown along the lines of; Thank god for our precious NHS and oh never ever vote Tory.
 
Signed the petition. I agree with Phil, and you're right Geoff, there definitely needs to be some oversight and regulation in how veterinary practices operate wrt costs.

John
 
It is by no means a coincidence that a significant number of vets practices are being bought by business people and being run with the vets as employees rather than the traditional partnerships.
 
My dog has pancreatitis.
The vet gave me a very expensive prescription for lansoprazole to help when she has an attack.
I questioned the vet about the lansoprazole and she assured me it is the same as the human version.
So now my dog shares my lansoprazole when needed, which I get free because I’m an old codger.
Pre covid we used to take the dog with us every year to France for a couple of months at least.
We “saved up” any minor issues she had for when we were there because French vets fees and meds are so much cheaper than in the UK.
 
oldius said:
You are entitled to make your point, of course, but why would you be against a petition that seeks regulation in an industry?
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Reinventing the English language? Nice one.
You are though, living in Fantasyland with the petition.
Pets - I have kept everything from mice upwards, barring cats - nothing against indoor cats. I am 62 now and can't remember any time without, although there must have been spells.

I also think that you will find that you are talking abiut Vets For Pets? The chain.

The chain opened a branch within a mile of my friend's practise about 4-5 years ago and he had no concerns whatsoever. The practise was still busy well after it opened, and presumably still is.
 
oldius said:
Some vets are so embarrassed by what their owning companies are charging that they are even willing to share prescription information so that clients can buy products independently. We are talking, in some cases, of £70 being charged for painkillers that are freely available for less than £5.
Click to expand...

That’s the impression I get from the vet I use. They are good people and situated in an area where there is not a lot of money around. It is clear they care hugely for the animals and grasp that price-reaming will likely mean animals going untreated due to local poverty. As I stated above the fact they are cheap on some meds and just crazy expensive on others suggests a supply-chain lock-in, and they’ve all but admitted this (they were horrified and embarrassed by the Dexamethazone price, but said they had no alternative options). They are really decent people, I get on with them great and they love my cat. I don’t begrudge them a profit margin at all, I’d just far prefer to pay them for vet time, a prescription etc that they get themselves than see them massively overpay a supplier in some situations.
 
In the country where I live vets treat all sorts of animals, pets or farm animals.
They don’t sting their patient’s owners. They offer an invaluable service and what they charge is fair.
In cities it’s entirely different and the business is more lucrative.
 
There is always the PDSA - it irritates the **** out of me but I know people who have the money but never use anything else.
 
chartz said:
In cities it’s entirely different and the business is more lucrative.
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My friend could make no money at all with large animal practise, so he transferred all his customers to another practise. Farming is a business and if it isn't economic to treat something, it goes to the knacker.
The other practise specialises in all large animals and even has on-site stables in a paddock opposite the practise.
 
You need to write Monet with a capital M. :)
His gardens in Giverny are a great visit.
 
chartz said:
You need to write Monet with a capital M.
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Spotted that before you :)

For some reason, spell-check does not operate on my account - which would be a blessing for many I suepct as, before it disappeared, it with a serious PITA with US spellings.
 
Vinny said:
Reinventing the English language?
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Apropos language, it's PRACTICE for a noun and PRACTISE for a verb in British English. American English only has PRACTISE. Not sure why we complicate things, but there y'go.

Luckily (or not), we are pet free for the first time for decades and luckier still, have only had one serious pet bill when our father cat developed an infection on his neck which spread to his body and stank the place out. This about 10 years ago and required operation, skin grafts, aftercare and 'hospitalisation' for a couple of days. This was around £400 which seemed a lot at the time.

I suppose veterinary services is comparable to private medical care for us. Staff need similarly intensive training plus premises etc, albeit on a smaller scale, usually. When you compare knee, hip or whatever operation privately, you're looking at upper hundreds to many thousands of pounds. Because it's for pets (and farm animals), this should equate with considerably lower costs, but maybe this perception is wrong.

Whether vet. services have either formed a cartel or have suddenly had far greater demand that supply because of Covid, I've no idea, but reading this above posts will probably confirm our view of the death last year of our last cat of many in 45 years. Further chooks are a possibility but not for the living room !
 
Bob McC said:
My dog has pancreatitis.
The vet gave me a very expensive prescription for lansoprazole to help when she has an attack.
I questioned the vet about the lansoprazole and she assured me it is the same as the human version.
So now my dog shares my lansoprazole when needed, which I get free because I’m an old codger.
Pre covid we used to take the dog with us every year to France for a couple of months at least.
We “saved up” any minor issues she had for when we were there because French vets fees and meds are so much cheaper than in the UK.
Click to expand...
Many of the medicines we humans can buy in the chemist are the same as those used to treat pets, provided of course you know how to administer the correct doses. My old retired vet friend was very helpful on this score.
 
We were paying way too much at our local vet.
Made a few phone calls and brought the price down substantially.
Tried one dog at the best sounding one for a year. Excellent service
Swapped then all over
Been with them a couple of years now and they are still the best vet I have used over 40 years

Booster and check up for all 6 in a couple of weeks. Hopefully same sort of price as last year
 
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