View Full Version : Vet Fees
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
Stryder5
15-05-2021, 09:12
Signed
mad-moon
15-05-2021, 09:36
Yep, it is absolute greed..They know fine well, that you will do almost anything for your beloved pet and best friend. One of my daughters paid £860 for an operation on one of her cats, which she was told, had to stay at the vet for 2 days, after the op...for observation...when She rang to go and collect him, they said he had to stay in an extra night and slapped another £140 on her bill....
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51179267617_7724bcfae2_b.jpg
This is Ben., coming home from the vet..The daughter says his brother Jerry., had missed him...:lol:
Petition signed..these obscene charges have to be slashed, by at least 50%.
Filterlab
15-05-2021, 10:49
Cheaper to buy a new pet.
signed - they have animal owners by the balls
signed - they have animal owners by the balls
Thanks a lot. The more that sign and share it, the more chance we have.
Filterlab
15-05-2021, 11:22
Signed too. It seems like a good idea, and lots of older folk have only their pet/s as company, and generally not much cash.
DiveDeepDog
15-05-2021, 12:36
Everything in money orientated, last time I was at the vets an obviously well kept Shepard was brought in with broken back leg, the conversation was all about can the bill be paid, rather than the welfare of the dog. The dog wasn't looked at and I've wondered ever since what became of it...
In ordinary times the rescue centers are full of ill and broken dogs as owners just can't afford the vet bills.
Patrick Dixon
15-05-2021, 17:12
It's become like the US healthcare system where it is run for the benefit of the Insurance Companies and the Practitioners rather than the animals.
The Practices are all staffed with young vets who are taught to up-sell all the time. The first question is often 'Are you Insured?' because if you are there are all kinds of pointless or speculative treatments they can offer. As treatment costs go up, so do premiums and vet's profits. They then use fear to sell insurance to pet owners.
As someone with 2 horses, 3 dogs (although one has been missing for over a year now) and 6 cats we are our own insurers. When they ask me 'Are you Insured?' I just say 'No, we are doing it for love'.
.................
As someone with 2 horses, 3 dogs (although one has been missing for over a year now) and 6 cats we are our own insurers. When they ask me 'Are you Insured?' I just say 'No, we are doing it for love'.
I don't know whether you have checked, but over eighty dogs have been recovered from a travellers site in Ipswich and lots haven't been claimed yet - it is thought that they could be from all over the country and no one is sure how long they have been stolen
https://metro.co.uk/2021/04/19/gallery-of-stolen-dogs-in-suffolk-released-to-try-to-find-their-owners-14435532/
I wish there was a like button so I could registered my thanks for your posts. We have now sailed over 200 signatures and I will be giving it seven days before I write to my MP. Someone has to act.
mad-moon
16-05-2021, 00:02
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
How is Blue Geoff??..Is she OK ?
How is Blue Geoff??..Is she OK ?Yes - a liile arthritis and tendon mineralisation. She's 30kg of pure athlete who sprints, leaps, twists and turns so she has hurt herself a little but nothing major.
Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk
My previous Staffie had, what looked like, the start of arthritis - Tesco glucosamine for dogs (pet food aisle), was very reasonable price and seemed to be very effective, only problem was finding ways to stop her spitting the pill out (ended up crushing it in to her food)
There seems to be a similar problem in human medicine, namely an inability to diagnose anything without the use of expensive high tech machinery. My wife is convinced that doctors (and presumably vets too having read this) in days gone by could pretty well diagnose you from your gait, pallor, eyes, tongue and a brief physical examination. It seems we have gone backwards instead of forwards in regards to care despite technology.
£920 to be told your dog has a little arthritis doesn’t seem right.
Filterlab
16-05-2021, 09:31
There seems to be a similar problem in human medicine, namely an inability to diagnose anything without the use of expensive high tech machinery.
Having seen the latest tech look inside and 3D model my son's heart, and having found a hole in it and watched a piece of tissue make it's way across his ventricle and seal that hole over several months, I think I rather trust advanced, modern technology in healthcare.
There's some ingenious devices out there that see far more than the colour of someone's tongue.
Having seen the latest tech look inside and 3D model my son's heart, and having found a hole in it and watched a piece of tissue make it's way across his ventricle and seal that hole over several months, I think I rather trust advanced, modern technology in healthcare.
There's some ingenious devices out there that see far more than the colour of someone's tongue.
Of course Rob, the equipment is fantastic and life saving and to be applauded. I was thinking of simpler everyday conditions that should be within a doctor’s remit to diagnose. A lot of folk are suffering unnecessarily for years from stuff that should be spotted straight away and dealt with quickly.
There are direct parallels with pet care. It doesn’t seem unreasonable to me to get a diagnosis of a little arthritis for a lot less than £900.
Hope your son’s OK, worrying time.
Of course Rob, the equipment is fantastic and life saving and to be applauded. I was thinking of simpler everyday conditions that should be within a doctor’s remit to diagnose. A lot of folk are suffering unnecessarily for years from stuff that should be spotted straight away and dealt with quickly.
There are direct parallels with pet care. It doesn’t seem unreasonable to me to get a diagnosis of a little arthritis for a lot less than £900.
Hope your son’s OK, worrying time.
Much of that is due to several factors. The more we know about medicine the less a gp knows. and another biggie is that if a gp misdiagnoses, for whatever reason the will be sued in this blame culture world we live in
Filterlab
16-05-2021, 11:00
Exactly that. Why risk it for the simple stuff? Plus there's a lot more that's known in general now than years back, with more discovered each day. Much better to rely on state of the art tech that's completely objective, than a hunch based on experience. With the tools it makes issues much more findable - and earlier, which is also a benefit.
A client of mine is a retired ophthalmologist. His forte was lens replacement surgery. A colleague of his invented a laser based machine that could remove as little as three microns of tissue from the retina without disturbing the lens or cornea. Try doing that with a scalpel!
Patrick Dixon
16-05-2021, 14:08
I don't know whether you have checked, but over eighty dogs have been recovered from a travellers site in Ipswich and lots haven't been claimed yet - it is thought that they could be from all over the country and no one is sure how long they have been stolen
https://metro.co.uk/2021/04/19/gallery-of-stolen-dogs-in-suffolk-released-to-try-to-find-their-owners-14435532/
Thanks. Yes we keep tabs on all the Border Terriers that are found and there is a lot of 'chat' on facebook. She is microchipped, so hopefully that will help at some point.
have had two borders. both great dogs..
Letter to MP:
In your constituency, and across the nation, independent vet practices are being bought out by national chains and by venture capitalists. Though the name above the door may remain, this is having a dramatic effect on vet fees and pet insurance costs, with many families deciding that they cannot afford to have their pet treated, or plunging themselves into debt to do the right thing. As a nation of animal lovers, it cannot be right that there is no regulatory body supervising the industry with a code of practice regarding fees and charges.
A short time ago, I began a petition, the link to which is below:
http://chng.it/BqrQFx7L
On a personal note, I recently was charged more than £900 for an X-ray and anti-inflammatory medication for my dog by MediVet, in Aigburth, a charge that the vet apologised for, informing me that her company set the fee but that the same treatment, in Spain, would have been approximately £100. MediVet has taken over several independent practices in the South Liverpool area but maintains the existing signage for the formerly independent businesses. Similarly, the cost of my pet insurance has risen by 600% in the last four years as an inevitable cost of the soaring vet fees, though there are also allegations of collusion between vet practice and insurers emerging. A number of people have since approached me with specific examples in their area.
Since starting the petition, the issue has been raised in the national press:
Calls for inquiry as equity vultures snap up vets amid rising bills and welfare fears | Daily Mail Online
Vets charge three times as much as online chemists for pet remedies | News | The Sunday Times (thetimes.co.uk)
I would be very grateful if you could raise this as an urgent matter where the nation appears to be falling victim to unregulated big business and I am happy to discuss the issue further or provide additional support.
Best regards,
I might be a bit late to the party Geoff, but I signed it anyway.
My Border has just been in for a growth/lump removal operation in his groin.
So he had to be put asleep for the operation, the growth was removed and sent to the lab for analysis (came back clear of cancer luckily) Rio was put on Metacam and antibiotics for two week
plus a follow up consultation two weeks after the operation, total cost just under £600
So I guess not all Vets are robbing buggers.
Andy
I might be a bit late to the party Geoff, but I signed it anyway.
My Border has just been in for a growth/lump removal operation in his groin.
So he had to be put asleep for the operation, the growth was removed and sent to the lab for analysis (came back clear of cancer luckily) Rio was put on Metacam and antibiotics for two week
plus a follow up consultation two weeks after the operation, total cost just under £600
So I guess not all Vets are robbing buggers.
Andy
Indeed, which is why there needs to be some regulation. In my area, pretty much all of the independent practices have been swallowed up, creating a localised monopoly. The fees in each practice are matched and vastly inflated on what they were.
Puppy stung on lip by a bee, my word it swelled up. Now I have been stung for £230 for out of hours consultation and antihistamine injection :eek:
At least we will get some back from insurance and can relax.
Powered by vBulletin® Version 4.2.3 Copyright © 2026 vBulletin Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved.