Took Dog to Vet - UPDATE PAGE 3 GRAPHIC PIC

[Birch Run Farm]

For Pete's Sake! Cuterebra are so easy to deal with. They bother us people much more than the unfortunate pet. Suffocate them, once they are dead extract them carefully with some tweezers.

Yeah, they are gross but not a huge expense to rid. Some, not all, vets are in it for the money and have found a niche with unfortunate Urban folk who don't know any better.

I do all my immunizations, wormings, basic medical, etc... sans Rabies since most (maybe all) states require you to pay a vet to verify your dog was indeed vaccinated. My dog gets a physical yearly as she is a working animal here. True emergencies do get professional attention.

Please recognize this is my opinion and I hold no harm to those who wish to go much further... I would not devote income to a beloved pet diagnosed with cancer. I would make sure they were comfortable and happy (no surgeries, no chemo) and when that point runs out then it is time to humanely euthanize.

 

[Chickie'sMoma]

i just paid $520 to get my 15 year old cat's teeth cleaned, 2 canines and a molar pulled.

same thing here with every time you have a slight issue you mention to them they want the animal brought in to 'check' them.

 

[TipsyDog]

Chickie'sMoma :

i just paid $520 to get my 15 year old cat's teeth cleaned, 2 canines and a molar pulled.

 

[fowltemptress]

My grandfather had to board his horse at the vet's stable for a couple of nights for some treatment or another. While it was there the horse managed to get his hoof stuck in a loose board, and during its panic the horse ripped his hoof clean off. Of course, it had to be put down after that. My grandfather was ticked, but he's the type that knows things happen and didn't lose his temper. That was until he started getting the bills for the boarding of his horse, and the cost of having it put down!

It wasn't until he threatened to take them to court that they stopped hounding him for the money. Needless to say, he's got a new vet. I know there has to be plenty of great vets out there . . . I've experienced 2 wonderful ones . . . but I think a lot of them ought to step back for a minute and think about whether what they're doing is something they should be proud of. Of course, part of the problem is the people who take their animals to these vets . . . the vets are charging what people are willing to pay, and if that means Miss Molly Millionaire is willing to shell out $800 so that Fifi can have sparkling white teeth, well, there's not much hope for Mandy Middle-class or Paulina Poor.

 

[thebritt]

Put it this way - If your kid wants to make lots of $$$$, and has compassion for critters - vet school is the way to go! Think of all the free/discounted pet care you'd recieve...That being said - I feel your pain. $2000 for a broken elbow on a chihuahua/doxie, $1000 for a hip surgery on an aussieX, and I'm looking at $2500 for knee sx on a Pyr. Not to mention the $500+ for teeth on the ChiX and $350+ for teeth for the "free" rescued Pom.
Fortunately, my daughter works at the same vet I did for 3 1/2 yrs when she was wee. Now we get discounts on some of our critters. Too bad she doesn't want to be a vet!

But I understand. Not that many vets last very long. It's not the pets, but the owners that can be difficult. Since many people go into the field because they love animals and science, and end up dealing with people who are difficult ("My cat won't take pills", My dog hates...yadda, yadda, yadda.....)As for the fees - I TOTALLY agree.
But consider this: My daughter hurt her ankle in soccer. She couldn't walk, and all the parents are like "take her to the ER right away!".. So, not wanting to be a "bad parent", we go. At the time, my back was ka-put. Useless. Couldn't carry her, so a wheel chair was necessary. She was X-rayed. Results inconclusive, but she could POSSIBLY have a fracture on the growth plate...not sure, should see a specialist. They couldn't do anything that day due to swelling, so they put ice on it ($14), and wrapped it with 2 ace bandages ($48 EACH). Also sent us home with a "reuseable" ice pack - a piece of water-proof material in a tube shape where you fill w/ice and clip off the ends - $28.
Oh- the "wheel chair entry was $40 (ER level something), and the crutches to get out? Well, I asked the technition how much crutches were, and he figured around $40, so I'm like "Yea, put it on my tab" (We are uninsured). Turns out, they cost $180!!!!!!!!! If I had taken the time to THINK (had I known), I would have bought Ace bandages at the local pharmacy ($6 each), and gone to the thrift store on the way TO the hospital and paid $4 for the crutches! What an idiot!

HOWEVER, LET ME BE CLEAR - MY DAUGHTER WAS TAKEN CARE OF (Not broken; twisted ankle,as it turned out - $2200).

 

[piecemaker]

I love my vet. She is the best. Her thinking is if people are more able to afford vet care the more animals will get it. She still uses a lot of the "old" remedies. Took our horse in the other day for a cut on his neck. It was about 12 inches long. Had about 25 stitches on the outside don't know how many on the inside. For the stitches. Rabies tetanus and bute (pain killer) was $167
Those that have a lot of dogs or big dogs ask your vet about using Ivermectum for dogs. It is what we use for our 3 little dogs. Kills heart worms and just about any other "bug" your dog gets. It cost me less than $20 a year for my 3 dogs. Takes care of anything that bites your dog like I said I love my vet

Piecemaker.

 

[Chickie'sMoma]

mark up on medical supplies is a rip off. they get it for next to nothing, but seem to say it is worth the high costs because it is convieniently there at the place and time you need it!

my mom had something like that happen about 3 years ago when she broke her ankle and the surgery wound wouldn't heal properly after getting the cast off. she went to a specialist and they gave her some extra gauze and a pack of those long q-tips to help clean it out at home after they took care of it in their office-the visit took 15 minutes of actually seeing the doc and a nurse, with an hour wait just to get into the room. when she saw the billed amount to her insurance she squeeked! they charged almost $400 to the insurance for just the supplies! the 15 minutes was the cheep part-$250.

 

[fowltemptress]

Those grubs are pretty cool looking. I'd always wondered what warbles were.

 

[Judy]

My vet discounts all my fees because he knows all my animals are rescues. The most I've paid him was somewhere around $300 when he tried, surgically, to save a cat who had been shot by a neighbor. It did not work, and in retrospect, I regretted the decision to try, but I don't blame him for that.

When we were chatting recently about the current economic downturn, he said that his business had fallen off about 50%, but what was really rough for him was that his costs had also increased about 50% during the same time frame.

 

[Cara]

On a positive note it looks like they did a nice job with the surgery. Our ex-vet sent my Bloodhound home looking like a sock monkey after she was spayed