vets fees

Murphybear

baser999 said:

Our old cat is nearly 17 and suffers with renal issues and we can no longer get insurance cover for him, so every routine check-up can be expensive; we just take a deep intake of breath and pay up. As for any medication, unless it’s immediate, we order this on line which proves way cheaper than buying from the vet, even taking account of their fee for the prescription.
I don’t begrudge the vets fees as much as I do the vast uplift on their medication costs. We pay around half of what the vet’s looking to charge us 

Are you feeding your cat renal cat food?  Our old cat was diagnosed with renal problems when she was 18.  It’s very common in cats that age.  The vet said she needed to go on a suitable renal diet.  She recommended Hills and Royal Canin.  She said we should get it online as the surgery couldn’t get it for us at the online price.  I bought it from Amazon as I don’t pay postage as I have an account with them.

Squeaky went on for another 2 years, the special food made a lot of difference.  I knew when her time had come, I’ve had a lot of cats. 20 is a good age 

UKTigerlily

Murphybear said:

baser999 said:

Our old cat is nearly 17 and suffers with renal issues and we can no longer get insurance cover for him, so every routine check-up can be expensive; we just take a deep intake of breath and pay up. As for any medication, unless it’s immediate, we order this on line which proves way cheaper than buying from the vet, even taking account of their fee for the prescription.
I don’t begrudge the vets fees as much as I do the vast uplift on their medication costs. We pay around half of what the vet’s looking to charge us 

Are you feeding your cat renal cat food?  Our old cat was diagnosed with renal problems when she was 18.  It’s very common in cats that age.  The vet said she needed to go on a suitable renal diet.  She recommended Hills and Royal Canin.  She said we should get it online as the surgery couldn’t get it for us at the online price.  I bought it from Amazon as I don’t pay postage as I have an account with them.

Squeaky went on for another 2 years, the special food made a lot of difference.  I knew when her time had come, I’ve had a lot of cats. 20 is a good age 

Renal food is amazing. My previous cat had CKD and refused to eat any of it, but she made 18 so I wasn't as concerned, only that she had quality of life. My current cat was diagnosed Stage 2 CKD at 6yrs old (now 7) and renal food started. Her next check showed borderline stage 1, and now it doesn't show at all in blood tests. I am not a fan of the brand (RC) but it's always available, she never tires of it and seems to enjoy it, it's affordable and it's done wonders. Of course, it will progress but very happy for now

Katiehound

I do think that some vets are coining it now

Took my boy to have his pet passport signed. and stamped
The vet watched me give the dog his worming tablet (brought with me)
Priced as a consultation
£50 for no expertise required ,which I think is a price hike since March when at least he had had a booster.
That is surely a rip off but I suspect the other 2 vets in town will charge something similar.

I really don't mind paying for expertise & experience but this time none needed

marcia_

 Vets fees are ridiculous but my gripe is the pet funeral parlour. I lost my cat last week 😭 and opted for cremation and ashes back. I was told by the vet it was £80 but after it was done the parlour wanted £288 and I had to pay of course. 

SensibleSarah

marcia_ said:

 Vets fees are ridiculous but my gripe is the pet funeral parlour. I lost my cat last week 😭 and opted for cremation and ashes back. I was told by the vet it was £80 but after it was done the parlour wanted £288 and I had to pay of course. 

Sorry for your loss! 
I've sadly lost a few oldie pets recently (3 cats and a dog since early 2020) so I've had a close acquaintance with vet fees and cremation costs etc. I think the cheapest option that involved a cremation (not getting ashes back) was about £120 for a cat, so I'm not surprised that yours cost more than £80 including returned ashes, but it seems very unfair that you were quoted one price and then asked to pay significantly more. Did the vet just recommend that parlour and leave you to make the arrangements yourself? Or did the vet arrange things? 

I know that with mine, I paid the vet there and then on the day for the PTS costs plus the cremation stuff - but seems that this was different for you and you had to pay the parlour seperately? It's horrible to be hit with unexpected costs when you're already grieving. I'd definitely be speaking to the vet if this was me to tell them about your experience. If they are giving customers inaccurate information about these costs then they need to change the way they're doing it. 

mr_stripey

if you don't want to pay vet fees, then don't own an animal. 

(I realize for a few people an animal might be essential - not sure if people have to pay for vet care for guide dogs for example) 

marcia_

mr_stripey said:

if you don't want to pay vet fees, then don't own an animal. 

(I realize for a few people an animal might be essential - not sure if people have to pay for vet care for guide dogs for example) 

 Who said we dont want to pay? 🙄
We are allowed to complain and chat about ridiculous prices