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A veterinary blog for pet lovers, vet voyeurs and the medically curious...
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A corollary to yesterday's post: Today’s teeny-tiny, six-week old teacup pup was a perfect example of what we vets love to hate: people who spend a thousand-plus bucks on a pup and another $300 on a glorified duffel bag to sling it around in, then get all hot and bothered about the price of pet healthcare.
Even worse is when the pet is so ill that nothing short of a lengthy hospital stay is going to make a difference—but all the cash has been used up on pretty collars and fancy food bowls. Why is it that the first stop after the pet shop is…the pet shop?
I get asked all the time about the price of my dog. People assume I’ve spent thousands on this new puppy. Sure I have…on his healthcare (he’s was a “free,” cleft-palate puppy). But all they can grasp is the up-front expense of a French bulldog or a teacup Maltese. They seldom calculate the major expenses that come with any dog—food, healthcare, training, etcetera. All they see is the price tag on the proverbial puppy in the window.
What’s worse, they have the gall to pour their anger out onto our reception desk when they’re told the price of an office visit or provided an estimate for a hospital stay after their new puppy’s been found to have pneumonia, severe dehydration or some congenital abnormality.
“Have you contacted the breeder? The pet store? The shelter?” Usually not. They’re in love and they don’t want to go back to the point of origin—for obvious reasons. Instead, they’re convinced we’re the bad guys lying in wait for their personal tragedy to unfold—not the ones here to pick up the pieces when their bad decisions and poor planning intersect.
One of the most annoying aspects of being a vet is the ignorance of others. Take the example of yesterday’s client: She tells you how much she loves her dog and how she’d do anything in the world for him—but gets all indignant over the price of a high-end procedure she wants for her pet. Sure, she has other, less expensive alternatives, but she demands you come down on your price because he deserves “the best.”
Well, “the best” has a price tag. And “love” is just not enough to pay for it.
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Did you always want to be a vet or vet technician? Thinking about it? Working on it? Need some Help?
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"The greatness of a nation can be judged by the way its animals are treated."
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- Mohandas Gandhi
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And it is sooo true--the "free" pets are the most expensive! I never once complained about the medical costs of any of my cats (and with an acromegalic, a CRF and a diebetes insipidus.. vet bills are inevitable) because, they are still cheaper than human doctors and you generally get more than 10 minutes with the vet. I think most times you also get more of a caring attitude--after all, a vet has two clients, one of which has opposable thumbs!
I've never understood the desire to own a trendy, must-have animal. I guess it goes along with having to have the latest craze in vehicles...having to have the best house in the best neighborhood...having to only get your bras at Victoria's Secret...;)
Cost of his medical bills - more than my car
3 1/2 more years together after fibrosarcoma diagnosis - priceless!!
Undescended testicle led to a neuter that back in 1991 would have cost about $30 had they both descended, but cost me $90 instead. Then there was the weird shiny lump he got on his head, then the several visits during seizures, plus standard well-dog visits, claw trimmings, occasional grooming to bring his unruly fur sort of into line... yeah, he wasn't cheap. Neither are my feline babies, nor will they ever be. And when I get the quote on a vet fee for some procedure the worst I've done is is flinch, and then say, "S/He's worth it."
It's pretty much the same response I have with my human kids and their doctor's bills.
Roxie's cost was $150. We traveled across three states to get her and get back home with her: $100 in gas. We stayed overnight in a pet friendly Super-8: $75. I had to buy her a traveling leash and collar: $4 (Target was having a sale). Immediately upon arriving home, we had her back legs shaved so that she didn't stink of the poop that was enmeshed in her mats: Free (they took pity on us at PetCo).
Roxie had worms, two almost concurrent bouts of gastroenterities AND kennel cough, all within four weeks of coming home. Cost? $750. My credit cards are still reeling.
Total amount for the first four weeks? Let's see. . .
$1079.
She gets regular face/feet trims and ear cleanings: $30 every month. $360 a year. I do most of the big grooming at home. I had to learn how, but I did it, and in fact, it's not that hard, particularly since she loves to lie in my lap and be clipped by scissors :)
Her food is $20/bag, which equals out to once every six weeks or so, but I get a $10 coupon because I work for the company. That saves something too.
Dog parks are free, but only if I go to the ones that don't require a dog license. And speaking of license, her yearly license is $10.
Luckily, I can go to a low-cost montly vaccinations clinic and avoid the $60 office visit charge. My vet approves of this plan. She also lets me get Frontline and HeartGard online, which saves at LEAST 80% of what my vet's office would charge me. I can get six months worth of HartGard for roughly $30 including shipping.
Oh, and I pay about $40 a month for pet insurance through the ASPCA. I have their emergency plan and their well-dog plan, just in case I ever *do* want to pay the $600 my vet charges for a routine dental cleaning (yes, with anathesia. Which I will never do because my mother is a dental hygenist and she scales my dog's teeth for me, drug-free. The dogs are trained to lie down quietly and let her work).
Dogs cost a lot of money. That's why I waited for almost 15 years after I left home for my situation to get stable enough so that I could give the dog what she needs.
The money thing is also why I haven't got a horse right now . . .
Mike is now 8-years old. He was found on the streets of Puerto Rico and flown to Florida. I adopted him from the Borward (County, FL) Humane Society when he was 10-weeks old. They charged $65 at the time for adoption, I gave them $150. Jokingly, I told people I got him to be Kirby's pet.
Kirby had good lines, healthy parents and has (I hope) a competent owner/pet parent. Mike was, and is, a hearty little rescue-mutt. Neither has even been overtly sick, other than the normal stuff all puppy/kids come down with. Both are certified animal therapy dogs. Both have red nylon collars, red nylon leashes, metal smooth-chain chokers, crates (if they want to use them or for when we travel), individual food bowls, communal water bowls, several red bandanas each and a plethora of tennis balls. We maintain a big box of dog cookies and big bags of (hopefully melamine-free) dog food. The boys, as they're known to their friends, visit the vet as needed or required. They get bathed at home and I also cut their nails - neither needs additional grooming.
Keeping them is not cheap. What I get back from them in return is cheap at twice the price.
Agadore, the standard poodle $450. Neutering with complications $600
vet bills, shots, etc etc etc lost count.
Beaner rescued pitbull free. HAHAHAHAHA neutered about $250
heartworm treatment $267 emergency vet the next night cause he fell out of bed and SEEMED to have a sprung leg $115 endless toys he has destroyed guestimate $100
Ya can't put a price on love.....
Just last week, a client rushed in with his diabetic cat that crashed. I dropped everything to treat her. It turned out the owner couldn't even pay for the consultation and when I discharged the cat a few hours later, he had the gall to accuse me of focusing on money matters. Next time a slap in the face will suffice.... Cost of treatment: $250.
I love my job because I get to see some really exciting cases and get to help people who are incredibly grateful for our help, but for every grateful client there is at least one more who will tell me that I am personally responsible for the suffering/death of their pet when they are told when they call that payment is required at the time of service. (Even better when they call on a Friday night to tell me that their dog/cat/whatever has had diarrhea/vomiting/painful injury for a week or more and it's all-of-a-sudden an emergency.) It took me some time to figure out how to handle those comments. As much as we all know that it's the owner's responsibility, those comments always manage to 'bite'.
I'm sure my dogs wonder sometimes why Mommy comes home from work and hugs them so much...
Ingrid: I used to be a vet receptionist (back in high school and college). I hated it. You get all the front-end grief and you get to hand them their bill, too. Ouch! It hurts to see people struggle to pay--I know. But that's why it's set up that way. If vets had to hand the bill over they'd cave half the time--discounts aplenty and no bonuses or raises for staff at the end of the year. That's how it was at our place until we changed our tactics and let the reception staff do the "dirty work". I don't envy you your job but I have LOTS of respect for you.
Having worked as a vet receptionist/emergency assistant, I know what it can be like when clients who obviously will never be able to pay arrive. Not even mentioning those who just don't want to pay. But in this case, I really believe that just basic care would have helped enough, and cost virtually nothing. The vets I've worked for have always cared enough for animals that in a case like this they would treat (a bit, enough...not the full surgery etc) - the way Melville vet acted sucked, IMHO....
MP
Plus--ever ask for payment for 2 hours straight (I did) after saving an asthmatic cat who came to the E.R. not breathing, only to have the woman, who said she couldn't pay over and over, pull out a credit card and pay when she saw a police officer coming into the waiting room (not for her, but she didn't know that.) The lyers and cheats and thieves are making it hard to be kind to the well-meaning people.
However, that also doesn't mean that I use the cheapest vet available. Quite frankly, it's because he's not very good. Do I go there for the occasional vaccination or deworming visit? Yup, because $50 is a lot better than $140 for the same routine service. That said, I'm the first in line at the $140 vet when I've got an issue that actually requires some skill.
What really gets me is the people I deal with on a daily basis who complain about the bill they received when their pet fell ill. I hear a lot of "can you believe they expect me to pay that?" and "they wouldn't even give me a discount!" The best is "I don't know how that vet can claim to love animals, and then refuse to treat my sick pet just because I can't afford the treatment!"
I am not a vet, but I do know the costs associated not only with becoming one, but also maintaining a practice (I used to manage a multi-vet clinic). As has been stated here many times before... why are vets the only professionals who are expected to work for free?? And then condemned when they refuse?
We operate a private rescue group, and share our home with four dogs and five cats of our own. Vet bills are a monthly expense in my house. But every single one of our furbabies was acquired with a full and complete knowledge of the funds (and work!) necessary to maintain their health and wellbeing.
The answer is simple... if you can't afford a pet, don't get one! And for mercy's sake, don't wait until the poor creature is deathly ill and then try to sign him over to me... we provide rescue services, not get-out-of-vet-bills-free cards.