Vet in Belfast!

lezlie25

do you relise that all vets in northrtn ireland run aclosed shop, they buy from i company of which they are shareholders. they where investigated 4 years ago by stormont but yet again money talked. nowhere else in the world isa monopoly allowed but here in good old n.i. a lepto vaccine costing a vet about 2 pounds, goes into your dog or cat and costs you at least 24 pounds, and you thought mps wages where scandalous

SuperMum2008

Ive used Earlswood, Karl Smyth and Gortlands over the last 15 years + with 3 cats. Found all very friendly, professional and caring. however the costs have varied hugely. Gortlands has been the cheapest for me, but still as good a level of care and service.

hnisc

Archibald's was insane... operating on an ironing board and paying with whiskey and /or cigerattes!

AlwaysWorking

hnisc wrote: »

Archibald's was insane... !

I would have to agree. I took my cat there and he told me she needed put down. When I asked if I could take her home so the family could say goodbye to her, he reluctantly agreed and told me I was being very cruel. I left in floods of tears and a woman in the waiting room followed me out and told me to get a second opinion as her friend had did this when he wanted to put her dog down. So I took the cat to a vets in Belfast and after a couple of days on a drip she was fine and lived happily for another few years.

I think he was grand for injections but nothing more serious.

Honkycat

I can recommend City Vets on the Ravenhill Road. I've used them recently and got a really nice vet called Martin Boyd. Their slogan is "making Veterinary treatment affordable" and that's what they do. I recon they charge about half what Earlswood do (I went there for years).

bettybelle

I can vouch for City Vets too, I have been taking my dog there for a few years now, always reasonably priced plus they gave us a free 6 month check up as well.

10rapid

As a vet working in Northern Ireland, I must disagree with the above point made by Lezlie25. There is one main veterinary supplier in NI but neither I, nor anyone I know in the profession is a shareholder. I think it was set up many years ago by vets and they may have vets on their board but that's it. As for your quote about the Lepto vaccines, I think you fail to appreciate that the final fee paid for a vaccine includes:
-the vaccine itself (which costs more than £2 and includes more than Lepto btw)
-the fridge to store it in,
-the debts incurred by the vet who spent five years in college learning how to do his job,
-the phone bill, electricity, professional fees etc,
-the wages for the receptionist who took your call, the nurse who held your dog and the cleaner who cleaned up afterwards.
-the clinical examination given to the dog by the vet etc etc...


When you consider that according to the Daily Mail, your doctor was getting 7 quid for administering a flu vaccine, paid for by the government and on top of his £100k salary, I think the prices most vets charge in NI are very reasonable.

By the way, in the spirit of MSE forums, I'd be happy to answer any pet related problems other MSE users might have! FOC!!!

vets_are_robbers25

hi i happened to work in the same central warehouse where all ni vets buy there supplies, if you are a vet in ni you buy from one supplier only. if the vet who prevoiusly posted saying he knows of a closed shop and he buys outside of it, then he is not a vet, if he is a vet he should get himself on the board, i hear an extra £60000 per year is on offer, as long as you are not femail, as the currant manager cannot stant the opposite sex

vets_are_robbers25

dont be a female vet, just look at board members, 60000 per year each for 12 meetings how many females, not under this manager/asslicker

vets_are_robbers25

mr archibald was tricked out of bussiness by a vet clinic in lisburn, not to far from himself, due to charging sensible prices, there was no reason but greed, he always had the animals interest at heart, not your purse or your wallet, there is another fellow in lisburn i would recommend, advance vets, laws yard, moira road, lisburn, very nice chap better than overchargers beside texaco garage in lisburn