Dog vet bill costs

Greebo said:
You do realise how much a MRI scanner costs dont you? Anything from £150k to £1.1 million depending on the model.

How many scans at £1,000 each do you think you need to get your £1.1 million investment back? Plus there is still support staff time and cost.
Click to expand...

Hardly any normal veterinary practices will have their own scanner, I think Liverpool Veterinary Hospital has one, probably other specialist animal hospitals. I use a huge practice with a multi million pound turnover and it doesn't pay them to have their own scanner, instead an articulated truck comes on set weeks and is shared by other practices. They just put three phase power on tap outside and book animals in on the relevant days.

Over £200 is a bit strong to spay a bitch though, animal sanctuaries ("dogs homes"), always neuter dogs and cats before re-homing and I think they pay about £60 for a bitch and £40 for a dog. Obviously castrating a dog is faster and less invasive than neutering a bitch. Plus they do them in bulk, so to speak. Last bitch I had spayed cost about £110 from memory.
 
cheesyboy said:
commercial nature doesn't allow for some of the honesty that might be needed.
Click to expand...


Our vet is very honest and always puts the animal before us when discussing things telling us the outcomes and the likely effects.

Sometimes it isn't nice to hear that the kindest option is to put the animal to sleep, but at the end of the day that is part of ownership.
 
Chris Wilson said:
Hardly any normal veterinary practices will have their own scanner, I think Liverpool Veterinary Hospital has one, probably other specialist animal hospitals. I use a huge practice with a multi million pound turnover and it doesn't pay them to have their own scanner, instead an articulated truck comes on set weeks and is shared by other practices. They just put three phase power on tap outside and book animals in on the relevant days.
Click to expand...

All true but the issue was that vets are charging £1000 a scan when all they have to do "is push a button". I was defending that charge by pointing out how much these machines cost. Even if the practice doesn't own one and subcontracts it out, they are going to be charged a packet.

MRI are few and far between because of their ridiculous cost. There are more than you think though with a handful in each county now (The North West has at least two more in addition to Liverpool's) but I see Shropshire is served by a mobile one that visits each vet every 4 weeks. Cost is £1,150 per scan.
 
Last edited:
kindai said:
Our vet is very honest and always puts the animal before us when discussing things telling us the outcomes and the likely effects.

Sometimes it isn't nice to hear that the kindest option is to put the animal to sleep, but at the end of the day that is part of ownership.
Click to expand...

My GF is the same. She quite often asks the client if they are pursuing further treatment because they don't want to lose their companion rather than its the best thing for the pet. Afterall some treatment can mean months of pain and suffering and the animal doesn't understand why.
 
Pet plan have always been brilliant for me.

couple of £ more than others but so far not one denied request for all sorts of crap, The vet's a total champ too
 
kindai said:
Lifetime - You will have an amount each year you can claim for, be it repeat illness, or ongoing care. As long as you keep renewing the policy. So lets say, broken leg, and rehab costs you 10k in bills. With 10k being the yearly cap. Next year when you renew, you can spend again that 10k (some policy reduce the subsequent year payouts) on further rehab or other things which may need treating due to complications from the accident.
Click to expand...

I'm guessing you need to renew with your existing provider and thus held ransom to their premiums?
 
My wife used to work for PPV which did a pet plan, they got bought out by Denplan but i think it's a great service and well worth it for the sake of a tenner a month.
 
Well I feel a lot more satisfied now, after reading everyone else's crazy vet bills.

I would've paid it either way, thread was purely to get other folks experiences. :p
 
TwsT said:
Pet plan have always been brilliant for me.

couple of £ more than others but so far not one denied request for all sorts of crap, The vet's a total champ too
Click to expand...

This, i do not know why anybody would use anybody but PetPlan. A bit more expensive £49 a month for both cats but you get more.

One of our cats has just had surgery on his knee which cost £1097 including the X-rays surgery consultation and meds. The vets put the claim in and PetPlan paid up. He will need further surgery this year which will be covered as he is covered for life.

Also they specifically state the premiums will not go up because of the claim.
 
My parents are having their 13 year old Border Collie treated for a hip problem. They've forked out £70 for anti-inflammatory drugs, they're looking at £250 for an X-ray, and potentially thousands if a hip replacement is required!
 
One of our cats had a hernia recently that caused him a lot of pain. The surgery was carried out by the emergency vet and all in it was 800 quid or so, luckily he's insured!
 
I like the Kiwi approach to vets bills. If the bill is more than a new dog then they shoot the old one and get a new one. Suprisingly cheap for most common things in NZ!
 
FoxEye said:
Maybe the many, many, many bad reviews, experiences and articles indexed by Google?
Click to expand...

You can find bad reviews about any company. I have had no problems with Pet Plan but did not leave a positive feedback like many others who only feedback for the bad.

Most bad feedback is also down to customer error.
 
Vanquish-Storm said:
You can find bad reviews about any company. I have had no problems with Pet Plan but did not leave a positive feedback like many others who only feedback for the bad.

Most bad feedback is also down to customer error.
Click to expand...

You can verify it in their terms and conditions tho.

Most of the complaints come from expecting things to be covered, but if you look in the small print of PetPlan insurance, you start to see how many different ways they can not pay out.

Let's be honest, how many of us read the small print of our insurance contracts? If you do then great - most people won't.

PetPlan are expensive, and give the *impression* that their cover is comprehensive. But many people have found out otherwise. Yes, any of them could have read the small print, but that's human nature.
 
Buy pet insurance. And the cost seems more than reasonable, considering the investments vets make in their own education, and practise owners make in property, equipment, business etcetc..
 
FoxEye said:
You can verify it in their terms and conditions tho.

Most of the complaints come from expecting things to be covered, but if you look in the small print of PetPlan insurance, you start to see how many different ways they can not pay out.

Let's be honest, how many of us read the small print of our insurance contracts? If you do then great - most people won't.

PetPlan are expensive, and give the *impression* that their cover is comprehensive. But many people have found out otherwise. Yes, any of them could have read the small print, but that's human nature.
Click to expand...

Are you saying a cheaper insurance company would offer more?
 
That price sounds like a bargain. My lab had a lump removed from the skin on his side on the Thursday between Xmas and New Year. Turns out its a mass cell tumour, low - medium risk.

That was an eye watering £501.90 and I get consultations for free and a 25% discount on medicines ... well not quite free, i already pay a monthly amount to the vets that covers them.
 
£95 today for another consultation, 2 injections and some pills. Kerching.
I think it just seems extortionate because we don't see the true price of healthcare with the NHS being free at the point of use.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom