Vets, bills and anger

Likening it to car garages - I lost my 'locking wheel nut' key so had to take it to a garage to have them changed.

£20 to change a wheel - managed to hagle the total labour to £50 by shouting and being generally abusive...They wanted to get rid of me in the end.

*******s - that's worse than the fecking vets - only took 5 mins too.

Also consultations are generally about 20 minutes, or at least that's what they 'timetable' for each - to allow for diagnosis/check-up etc and writing up of notes (which my vet actually reads, unlike my GP )...

... so even though your's was a short visit, if you look at 3 per hour that only makes an hourly rate of £66 - which makes it sound alot more reasonable doesn't it?

One of my dogs got bit by another dog a few weeks ago & ripped a whole in her side, the guy who owned the other dog said he would obviously pay the bill, i had to pick him off the floor when i gave him a bill for £400 for 45 minutes operating time.

Another thing is whenever we go to the vets the first thing they say is are they insured, i know for a fact if you say yes other extra's get added to the bill that don't always get used.

I remember as a kid our family having dogs & none of them were ever wormed, vaccinated or had flea drops, only time they went to a vet was if they got ill, one of our old dogs got knocked down by a car & busted his rear hip, vet just said leave it & he'll grow a gristle joint, we did & three months later he was back to jumping 5 foot fences, nowadays they'd put a pin & plate in, weekly check ups & present you with a bill for a grand or so.

Originally Posted by G

My mum and dads German Shepard is forever in the Vets.

He has a really bad skin infection so he HAS to be left on steroids. But the vet wont prescribe repeat priscription, he has to see the dog every 2 weeks or so at full 'consultation' cost.

Rediculous really, its worth it to see Jake happy and not in agony though.

Built like a body builder now though lol he's huge.

I work in a vets and the minimum you can see the vet is once every six months, and that's after the new directive, so your vet is milking it I'd say.

Originally Posted by CoolGirl

by comparison, does anyone know the list price for a private human consultation of similar duration?

I was recently charged £250 for a 15 minute consultation with a neurologist, at a Bupa hospital.

[21QUEST]

Simply put, a lot of vets are robbing bar stewards. The best vets are those with 'old time/school heads' on them......still some of them around



Ben

I work in a vets, and to be honest, I would have thought after spending that much money they should have charged a return consult fee, which is less than the initial(often longer) consult fee. Part of the problem we face is that we are used to the NHS, and subsidies, whereas veterinary medicine is full cost.

Also, programmes like pet rescue etc show the wonderful things that can be done, but never the acutal payment or cost. It's also a balancing act - if the client can't afford specific things, then it's a different approach needed, often not the most appropriate but cheaper, or our vets phone round trying to get drug samples from reps.

One thing I would say is that you should ask for a breakdown - vets should be upfront about the costs involved, just like every other business, so don't be afrid to ask, and go elsewhere if you are not happy. A good vet should listen and take on board your concerns. Also, speak to the receptionist - they are often very helpful regarding cost, or payment plans if needed.

They got you over a barrel-they know that most people will spend whatever it takes to try and get a loved pet back to health, but due to the majority of people not having a scooby doo about animal husbandry the bills are very rarely questioned-I was just over three and a half grand for kemo treatment for Storm but it didn't work for him and i had to let him go-i was glad i had insurance and all my dogs are insured to the hilt even the moggie too-but the quality of service from some vets leave alot to be desired.
husky

i go to a brilliant vet he is one of the old school ,doesn't get on well with people but he is great with the animals ,had to take the dog down to have a growth removed £65 pounds for the op then when i took him for the check up he only charged £6
i dunno how he maks it pay

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