Any vets here? Cost of sedation - Ridiculous

KxMx

I was with Pet Plan (she was pts in 2019), as she was over 7 (from memory) no costs directly associated with death including euthanasia were covered.
Her illness was covered in full and even with the excess and a 20% co pay (due to her being classed as an older cat) , they paid out 3k with no issues. 

MalMonroe

Last year we also lost our cat by vet. It cost us a lot because she'd been suddenly ill before that and there were Xrays and medications and sedation and anaesthesia over just two visits. Because we were, and are, still being extra cautious because of covid (my daughter is immuno-compromised) I had to take her to the vet on my own and I could barely understand what I was being told half the time because I was so distraught. I did have my wits about me to ask for the older person's discount (I'm on a pension) but I really don't think that we pensioners are any more likely to just pay up without question than anybody else. 

Everything about that time was just horrendous. I can and do still have a cry about it every now and then. The vets just didn't seem to be very understanding or caring. And the final bill was £900 for treatment, euthanasia, cremation and little box with her name on. And that was with the discount deducted and we didn't even have our lovely pet at the end of it all. Not all the costs were covered by insurance.

I know what it's like and you are obviously grieving. We lost a valued family member and so have you.

I wanted to complain to our vets because I felt they were insensitive and money-grabbing. I've recently been thinking again about complaining - almost a year later. I won't because the time for doing that has passed. But I do still feel that mistakes were made and the costs were exorbitant.

Later I started seeing articles about the rate of suicide among vets. And learning that there aren't many people wanting to train as vets now because the training takes so long - they have so many species to learn about. It's not an easy job and it's draining both physically and mentally. I didn't realise just how many vets - worldwide - had decided that their jobs made life worthless.

I'm not excusing anything but I do realise that it's not all fun and games for them and they do have to pay the prices they're charged for medications since there's no equivalent of the NHS for animals.

Just try to be kind to yourselves because you've suffered a great loss and many others, including me, know exactly how it feels. 

sheramber

A vet  chain introduces another level of costs. As well as the vet’s running costs and wages there is now another level of admin to be covered and a profit for another load of persons/ shareholders. 

I have been fortunate of always being able to use ani dependent practice which provided its own out of hours cover. 

Bonniepurple

It’s complicated.  It used to be that vets ran their own practices, either by themselves or with partner(s).  This cost the individuals money, and was hugely stressful.  My Dad owned a 3 vet practice (him, partner and assistant).  Twice a week and every third weekend he was on call, covering a wide area.  This impacted the whole family as we had to have someone at home during those times to answer emergency calls.

Two things changed this.  Firstly, people decided that they’d like to have a life outside of work.  Secondly, tuition fees and student loans came in.  People can’t afford to buy a house, let alone a share in a business.  That’s where the big firms came in.  Vets in their 50s and 60s wanted to sell and retire but couldn’t because the younger vets couldn’t afford it.  Big businesses came in and wanted a decent return on their investments.

I don’t know if what the OP was charged was right for the drugs, the time taken and the area.  I do know that they weren’t just paying for the drugs.  They were paying for time (vet in with OP to make the passing as gentle and unrushed as possible meant vet unable to see other clients), for the facilities, for liability insurance- the list goes on.

FWIW, I queried a bill from my vets a few years ago.  I was convinced I’d paid it - but I did say that I was more than happy to pay if I owed it.  It turned out that I had paid it, but because my husband had brought the dog in they hadn’t connected the two!  They were very apologetic.