Advice re vet bills

mrssalvator

I am here on behalf of my sister in law, we are looking for some advice regarding an op her dog needed and she is disputing the cost so was hoping someone could advice her on what she can do about it.

her small papillon dog damaged her leg and was obviously in a lot of pain, she contacted the vet who checked her out and told her the leg was broken and they needed 500 up front before operating. She couldn't afford this and obviously upset went home with the dog and with some pain relief. She quickly rallied round selling some of her items and managed to raise 275 they agreed to treat the dog if she paid that amount upfront. They told her to take her dog to the local surgery and the vet would take the dog through to the larger surgery as he was going that way.

Over the next few days she contacted some dog charities hoping for some help and to her relief some agreed to help. In total 3 charities sent 325 to the vet in part payment for the op.

The vet contacted her and told her she could pick her dog up from the larger surgery last Sunday. She was all ready to collect the dog when they phoned again and told her they were going to keep her another night and on the evening they would bring her down to the local surgery for collection.

On the Monday when she collected her dog she was given one heck of a hefty bill. Included in the itemised bill was

Collection and return costs of 15 each way, which she is disputing as he offered to bring her back with no mention of it been at a cost to her.

2.47 per tin of hills dog food which they charged her 5 times for baring in mind the dog is half the size of a cat for he five nights.

They have also charged her for everything from cotton buds to numerous rolls of tape

2 consultations for the first day when she first took it and then again when she took it back.

All the theatre equipment including gowns, masks Ect

The reason she was kept in 5 nights was because they had to order the plates in.

She has been charged 85 and 63 per plate even though she only has one plate.

She's not disputing everything above but obviously just wants to know if this is all usual practice.

She then paid another 200 upon collecting her dog. So after her 475 and the 325 from charities the remaining balance is 922. Does that sound like a reasonable cost for the pinning of a dogs leg?

Sister in law has offered to pay the remaining costs at 100 per week to which the vet told her that's not enough. She's a single unemployed parent and even people in employment would describe 400 a month as a pretty decent amount.

She understands the vet has to make a profit but has just had a very rude and not very good experience with the vets and has nothing else to compare with. So any advice would be greatly appriciated.

Our advice to others reading is get some insurance!

Thanks in advance.

moggymutt

We paid ~£500 for one cat, but £3,600 for another. There can be a huge difference in the time the op takes.

trolleyrun

A friend of mine had a dog who needed surgery to fix a cruciate ligament in a hind leg. Bill was around £900 and no plates needed. Vet didn't insist on any money up front though, and told my friend to pay when she could. I find it very odd that a vet would insist on money up front for an animal that has a broken leg and is in serious pain. That doesn't sound like a good vet to me. I probably would've sourced another vet if at all possible.

Undervalued

trolleyrun wrote: »

I find it very odd that a vet would insist on money up front for an animal that has a broken leg and is in serious pain. That doesn't sound like a good vet to me.

Really?

So where do you draw the line? They have substantial business overheads and staff to pay. Or do you feel any vet (or doctor come to that) should treat the patient regardless of whether they will ever get paid?

Whoop

Was the vets a corporate chain by any chance?

mrssalvator

I dont think so but I am not sure I would recognise a chain vet anyway

trolleyrun

Undervalued wrote: »

Really?

So where do you draw the line? They have substantial business overheads and staff to pay. Or do you feel any vet (or doctor come to that) should treat the patient regardless of whether they will ever get paid?

I think the highest priority should be to avoid any further pain and suffering for the animal. Any decent vet should be able to do a quick estimate and let the owner know how much the treatment should be. That way, the owner wouldn't have a huge surprise bill, but can also make an informed decision regarding treatment.

In regards to my friend, I paid the bill and she paid me back when she could. Her dog actually needed 2 further surgeries, and both times the vet only charged for the anaesthetist, as the first surgeries didn't quite work (it was a complicated injury). My vet is brilliant though, and I'm very lucky to have him looking after my dog. He's not interested in huge profits. He showed me how to deal with Pipsqueak's teeth instead of saying he had to do it. Saved me a fortune!

The only time a vet should be reluctant to do any treatment without pre-payment would be if there's a history of non-payment for treatment. However, if the treatment is critical, the animal should still be treated to avoid suffering.

Shoshannah

trolleyrun wrote: »

I find it very odd that a vet would insist on money up front for an animal that has a broken leg and is in serious pain. That doesn't sound like a good vet to me. I probably would've sourced another vet if at all possible.

Telling everyone they can pay later is a good way to build up a nice list of bad debtors.

In an emergency situation, vets are required to provide first aid, pain relief and euthanasia without payment. Anything else is at their discretion.

SeduLOUs

It horrifies me that a dog was allowed to suffer overnight unnecessarily when this could have easily been avoided by getting insurance. If you can't afford unexpected vet bills and can't be bothered to insure, don't have pets.

sheramber

Itis quite normal to chrge for everything from a bandage to medication to overnight stays etc.

Basically everything used for the treatment. There os no NHS for animals.

Does the bill she has received show a deduction for the amounts already paid?

payment plans are at the discretion of the vet practice. There is no requirement for a vet to offer one.

Payment upfront may be asked for if the client is not known to the vet and threfore has no history with them.

Would you do a grand's worth of work for someone who had walked on off the street, when they had said they couldn't pay?

If it is not the head vet or the practice manager she has been dealing with she could approach them to arrange payment.

out of interest what will they do if she just pays that amount each week?

Shoshannah

sheramber wrote: »

Would you do a grand's worth of work for someone who had walked on off the street, when they had said they couldn't pay?

Interesting concept. It's remarkable how many people seem to expect as much.