UGH!!! What's Your Rant?

[strandinthewind]

^^^

It could have been a money thing for her. The last ER visit we did (the 7 month old Cary Grant swallowed a rock ) was almost $3,000. It would have been at the absolute most < $500 and more like $150 at the regular vet. I am not saying that was the case in your deal, but that does happen. So, maybe that was why she was insisting on seeing you all.

[jannieC]

Originally Posted by strandinthewind

^^^

It could have been a money thing for her. The last ER visit we did (the 7 month old Cary Grant swallowed a rock ) was almost $3,000. It would have been at the absolute most < $500 and more like $150 at the regular vet. I am not saying that was the case in your deal, but that does happen. So, maybe that was why she was insisting on seeing you all.

I imagine that woman may have been forced to wait until the last minute due to exorbitant vet fees. I had a receptionist at a vet's office once tell me that if I didn't have any money, I shouldn't have a cat. :| This was when I balked at their outrageous office fee when my cat was injured. I don't think there's a whole lot of sympathy coming from vets (or their staff) in general. Not sure why- is it a crappy field to work in? Anyway- my cat is fed and fixed; I think I take pretty good care of her. And fortunately I have a vet who is bare bones- *not* a money making man at all. His office looks like it's from the '70s (clean, but a tad outdated) and he NEVER does anything unnecessarily. Plus an office visit is only $20. He's a great guy and his staff is awesome.

My rant? Pain. I just got out of the hospital with a spontaneous collapsed lung (spent a week there- almost died a few times) and the pain is unrelenting. I am making my way through graduate school and my internship in a fog of pain. Gets old quick.

[sara1998]

Originally Posted by jannieC

I imagine that woman may have been forced to wait until the last minute due to exorbitant vet fees. I had a receptionist at a vet's office once tell me that if I didn't have any money, I shouldn't have a cat. :| This was when I balked at their outrageous office fee when my cat was injured. I don't think there's a whole lot of sympathy coming from vets (or their staff) in general. Not sure why- is it a crappy field to work in? Anyway- my cat is fed and fixed; I think I take pretty good care of her. And fortunately I have a vet who is bare bones- *not* a money making man at all. His office looks like it's from the '70s (clean, but a tad outdated) and he NEVER does anything unnecessarily. Plus an office visit is only $20. He's a great guy and his staff is awesome.

My rant? Pain. I just got out of the hospital with a spontaneous collapsed lung (spent a week there- almost died a few times) and the pain is unrelenting. I am making my way through graduate school and my internship in a fog of pain. Gets old quick.

UGH. Janet, are you serious? I'm so sorry honey. I hope you're feeling better soon. I complain about taking one class a semester, but I don't see how you do it full time... You'll get through it. Life is tough but you're tougher.

[strandinthewind]

Originally Posted by jannieC

I imagine that woman may have been forced to wait until the last minute due to exorbitant vet fees. I had a receptionist at a vet's office once tell me that if I didn't have any money, I shouldn't have a cat. :| This was when I balked at their outrageous office fee when my cat was injured. I don't think there's a whole lot of sympathy coming from vets (or their staff) in general. Not sure why- is it a crappy field to work in? Anyway- my cat is fed and fixed; I think I take pretty good care of her. And fortunately I have a vet who is bare bones- *not* a money making man at all. His office looks like it's from the '70s (clean, but a tad outdated) and he NEVER does anything unnecessarily. Plus an office visit is only $20. He's a great guy and his staff is awesome.

My rant? Pain. I just got out of the hospital with a spontaneous collapsed lung (spent a week there- almost died a few times) and the pain is unrelenting. I am making my way through graduate school and my internship in a fog of pain. Gets old quick.

OUCH!!! Sorry to hear about your lung! Get well soon!

As for the prices vets charge - they want to make a living like everyone else. So, I do not fault them for that. But, there are differences in prices and they can be staggering. So, assuming the same level of care, you should go for the less expensive one. We just had Wynee da Pooh fixed. The local vet wanted to charge over $500 for the procedure. They justified this by detailing how they use a special laser and regulate the pain and other medication to make it less traumatic. The vet about 30 miles from here charged $120 total. They use essentially the same equipment, but do not do the staggard levels of meds to bring them out of the surgery. IMO, the staggaring does not really mater that much because the dog is terrified no matter what you do and they are going to hurt no matter what you do. But, to each their own. And, again, I do not know the specifics of Vicky's deal, so I am not commenting on that.

As for sympathy soming from vets, we have been very lucky in that regard. I think that many vets see so much human stupidity and disregard that they get fed up. I think they should avoid that position, but some of the things I have seen experienced breeders do makes me see how that could happen. I mean when I look at a breed like the Doberman's, I get sick when I see them. Irresponsible breeders have purposely bred to obtain such small hips that the bitches cannot give live births and walking is hindered, all in the name of winning some stupid show because that is what some idiot judge likes. Cockers are another example - that breed is supposed to be a working and hunting dog that can go in the water. Do they look like that now - IMO no. SO, I see where vets come from, but I agree that a higher road is always better, esp. when educating a pet owner (as opposed to a prof.) always in the better way IMO.

[Miss Vicky]

You guys are talking about exorbitant vet fees and sympathizing with this woman, but realize that the extreme emaciation of this dog would have taken many days - even a week or more - to happen. It's not like this was a hit by car or other acute emergency. The dog had been like this for a long while and she waited, not just the many days it took for the dog to get that way, but until after we were closed to do anything about it. If she had shown up during business hours, we would have seen her and the doctor may have even been willing to work out some kind of payment plan.

And about those fees (gosh, we're just robbers, aren't we?) trust me, my clinic doesn't make much money. I've seen the bank account statements, I do the end of day processing and deposits, and I also do the inventory receiving. Oh, and despite the fact that we have an in-house lab (trust me, many vets don't), a high quality ultrasound machine, xray, and other monitoring and diagnostic equipment and offer many of the types of orthopedic surgeries that other vets refer to a specialist, our standard office visit fee for a dog or cat is $28.00, and that's after our recent price increase.

[strandinthewind]

^^^

It really saddens me to see the condition people will let their animals - who depend solely on them - get to.

[skcin]

If you can't afford veterinary care for a pet, then don't get one. And if something happens where your situation changes (you lose your job, etc.) and you can no longer care for them financially, then find them another good home. It's the right thing to do for your pet.

[strandinthewind]

Originally Posted by skcin

If you can't afford veterinary care for a pet, then don't get one. And if something happens where your situation changes (you lose your job, etc.) and you can no longer care for them financially, then find them another good home. It's the right thing to do for your pet.

I'd add that letting your fingers do the walking and checking prices at five or six different vets likely will let you find one you could afford. Also, if you speak to the vet and explain your situation, they may give you a discount. So, there are options.

[skcin]

Originally Posted by strandinthewind

I'd add that letting your fingers do the walking and checking prices at five or six different vets likely will let you find one you could afford. Also, if you speak to the vet and explain your situation, they may give you a discount. So, there are options.

Oh, absolutely. My vet is 20 miles away, but we like him & he's much cheaper than the one 2 miles down the road from us.

Also, lots of places run low cost vaccination & routine checkup clinics. There is simply no excuse not to provide basic vet care for a pet.

[danax6]

Originally Posted by skcin

If you can't afford veterinary care for a pet, then don't get one. And if something happens where your situation changes (you lose your job, etc.) and you can no longer care for them financially, then find them another good home. It's the right thing to do for your pet.

I have no money whatsoever right now, but I still took Charlie in to get his shot today. Effin' 36 bucks.

That's my rant.

[skcin]

Originally Posted by trackaghost

Yeah, that's easy for you to say that when you're not in that situation.

Sure it is, Sharon. But I would hope that I could be mature & unselfish enough to be able to make the right choice if ever I became financially unable to care for my pets properly. I would have to find them someone who could.

Animals DEPEND on their owners. If you can't handle it financially, then don't get a pet. I love animals - LOVE them. But if I couldn't afford them, I would NOT have any. No doubt.

[Sarah]

True, but I can't imagine giving up my dog.. like you said somewhere up above. It'd break her heart just as much as it would mine.

But, I'm a crazy dog lady who would starve myself before I'd let my dog starve, so...


I dunno. There's a huge difference in not being able to afford to take your pet to a regular visit and regular maintenance and not being able to afford exorbitant emergency fees. Some vets may be honest and charge fair prices, but many are not. It's a fact. I think my vet is a little bit on the more expensive side, but I like her and trust her with my dog. I don't like it when I buy supplies (like ear powder for instance) and then turn around see them for half the price at petsmart or wherever, but that's my fault for buying them at the vet's office, and it won't happen again. The only thing that really irks me, I guess, is how they push Science Diet food at x-times the price.

[DrummerDeanna]

Originally Posted by Sarah

True, but I can't imagine giving up my dog.. like you said somewhere up above. It'd break her heart just as much as it would mine.

But, I'm a crazy dog lady who would starve myself before I'd let my dog starve, so...


I dunno. There's a huge difference in not being able to afford to take your pet to a regular visit and regular maintenance and not being able to afford exorbitant emergency fees.

Yes. Exactly. I can't imagine giving up my moo head!!! But I also put myself in the crazy dog category.

[Miss Vicky]

Originally Posted by Sarah

I dunno. There's a huge difference in not being able to afford to take your pet to a regular visit and regular maintenance and not being able to afford exorbitant emergency fees. Some vets may be honest and charge fair prices, but many are not. It's a fact. I think my vet is a little bit on the more expensive side, but I like her and trust her with my dog. I don't like it when I buy supplies (like ear powder for instance) and then turn around see them for half the price at petsmart or wherever, but that's my fault for buying them at the vet's office, and it won't happen again. The only thing that really irks me, I guess, is how they push Science Diet food at x-times the price.

Have you ever asked your vet if they would be willing to match prices? The hospital where I work has a policy of matching the prices found on the internet or elsewhere (provided that the price is not below our cost) and will even ship the medication if convenience is the deciding factor between purchasing it with us or elsewhere. We'd rather make less profit on an item than none at all.

As for the pushing of the food - if you're talking about Prescription food, there's a huge difference between what is sold at vets and what is found in the stores and a reason why it is by prescription only. Also, when it comes to the prices you pay for regular pet food, there is a huge difference in quality between brands like Science Diet, Eukanuba, and Royal Canin versus other, lower cost, brands. People have it in their heads that it's all a money making scheme, but the fact of the matter is that if you feed higher quality foods, you're less likely to encounter problems like food allergies, urinary crystal formation, pancreatitis, and other food related issues.

That's not to say that there aren't veterinarians out there who care nothing for people (or animals, for that matter) and care only about money. I know this. I've worked with a few of them. So don't take me the wrong way. I'm not blindly defending the people in my field of work.

As for not being able to afford "exorbitant" emergency fees. Like I said, this wasn't something that just happened. She could easily have avoided those fees by simply showing up when we were open.

[jannieC]

Originally Posted by skcin

If you can't afford veterinary care for a pet, then don't get one. And if something happens where your situation changes (you lose your job, etc.) and you can no longer care for them financially, then find them another good home. It's the right thing to do for your pet.

I agree that people should not get pets if they can't afford them. I see a lot of that; people getting puppies or kittens because they're cute, and then they become a burden once the basic needs have to be met (neutering, shots, etc). That being said, I could not imagine giving up my cat or dog if my situation changed temporarily. That seems harsh and unrealistic to me.

In my case, I had an emergency situation that I was unprepared to deal with financially. So, I called around until I found someone I could work with (and while making those desperate phone calls, I spoke with the receptionist who made the comment about pet ownership). This was before I got our dog, when my cat was a kitten. And as I mentioned earlier, I totally lucked out with the vet I found. He is a LONG drive from our house, but not only is he inexpensive, he's a good man. I guess the moral of the story is if you have a pet, ask your vet how he/she handles emergency situations.

Vicky, I hope you don't ever think my rants on vets are ever a personal dig at you. They're not; my husband worked as a vet tech all through his 20s and really saw bad things. Perhaps it's just the area we live in.