Lola's 1 year vet visit. This bill is insane!

2851 Views 39 Replies 21 Participants Last post by Cassius-Pup, Apr 28, 2008

Alicia

Discussion Starter · Apr 24, 2008

Took Lo for her 1 year check-up last night!

21 - 40 of 40 Posts

owenowlsnest

· #21 · Apr 24, 2008

Those prices are standard here with most of the vets in a City with a population of 90,000. They also add on a $6.00 charge for doing the shot itself. Give them the Fax number to send in the script to PetMeds or whomever. I don't know the expiration date on this stuff, but if it's out a couple years buy a large quantity. It may be cheaper. You can do titers next time shots are due, but they run about $60.00 just to have that done. I think it's Petco here who does the vaccines much cheaper.

Ann WI

grumpee

· #22 · Apr 24, 2008

Just a tip for those that do not know this. Banfield in the Petsmart stores will match any online price for the heartworm and flea meds. We do this everytime we need it.

We have insurance through Banfield and it has saved us $$$ anytime we have needed it.

HannaBanana

· #23 · Apr 24, 2008

Did they put her on a three year shot/rabies program?

Barbs2Ks

· #24 · Apr 24, 2008

I would buy the meds online too. Last year the vet tech tried to tell me that places online get outdated products and there is not guarantee which is not true. I can save $30 on the price that the vet charges for Heartworm. This year they told me that had an online store (lost so many people to online stores for heartworm so decided to find a company to do it for them) and to do some comparisons on prices. They were only $3 more then fosters so I went ahead and ordered from them. I got Interceptor Heartworm 12 pack for $76.99.

For flea and tick just shop around, try to find places that offer free shipping. Sometimes local stores will have a sale or special deal.

Boxer_Love

· #25 · Apr 24, 2008

Soccergk1987\";p=\"114077 said:
Jessica...

im from indiana and that sounds right... my vet for dungy is here in kentucky cuz i go to school here and that is the same price too... idk if prices are that drastically different in the east

I am one East Coast....but never have paid almost 500 dollars for a yearly. I guess it all depends where you live, and the vet you have.

samsonsmom

· #26 · Apr 24, 2008

Wow Alicia, I would have fainted at that...Definitely get your flea stuff online, I use k9 advantix and I am paying half that from Dr Fosters...Heartguard, I use Ivermectin, so the cost is for the bottle for 3 yrs, like $40.00..I would really have questioned the Lyme vaccine, but mine only get the "core" vaccines now..With Flick he'll get all of them til he's 2....My little jaunt to the vet last week with Samson was $230, but $125 of that was for the Adequan so I really can't complain...Be pushy, ask questions and don't be afraid to say no either if you don't agree

sharonL

· #27 · Apr 24, 2008

Alright Alicia...it is certainly true that vet prices are different in certain areas than in others....and I hate to say "you got taken" on some of your charges, but honestly I was sitting with my mouth hanging open :-(.....Let me do the breakdown on what I charge for the same things and see the difference.....One there is no reason for vets to breakout each vaccine, but they do this so that they can charge more and it has become pretty standard....I think it really stinks that they charge you an office call when they are doing shots because you certainly should not have to pay for both. They should not vaccinate without an exam anyway.....This is one thing that aggrivates me about veterinary prices...

Dont get me wrong, it is a business and a living for those who choose to do it and I have bills to pay just like everyone else....but at some point you price yourself so high that people cant afford to take care of their pets and in the long run if I ever get to where money is more important then I will be leaving this field and opening a greenhouse/nursery

But.....

Annual Examination and Vaccinations (which includes exam.... fecal float/smear check.... Vrab "which are all 3 year vac's now"...... DHPP/DHLPP/DHLPPC "depending on dog and owner request.

Annual w/Vaccs $45.00
Bordetella (if requested) $15.00
Lyme (if requested) $15.00
Heartworm 3 way $35.00
Heartgard Brown $33.00
Advantix 6 months $66.00

$209.00

You probably did not need the Bordetella vaccination or the Lyme....Probably did not need the heartworm test IF you stay on Heartgard year round...but it is not a bad thing....Their prices for med's are high and I agree that I would return the for a refund or print out a price from Fosters or somewhere else and take it in asking for a refund or price match....If they say no get your money back....they should do refunds for unopened boxes!!!!!

That is crazy!

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Kalyn

· #28 · Apr 25, 2008

OMG.. $54.00 for a fecal test. That's crazy...
My vet only does the boosters every three years. You can find info on-line supporting the lower freq. There's NO reason to pay higher prices for the preventive meds either. I'm all for getting a new vet!

ChloeAndBrodisMa

· #29 · Apr 25, 2008

Holy crap Alicia! That's about what I pay when I take Chloe in for check ups with her cardiologist! but that's to have an ultrasound and some other stuff done..I have never paid anything close to that for a annual checkup..that's insane! YAY for Lola's clean bill of health tho but sucks you had to pay out the bum.

Alicia

Discussion Starter · #30 · Apr 25, 2008

$209.00......ummm Sharon will you be my vet??? PLEASE!

I had a feeling I got taken to the cleaners. I haven't opened the Heartguard or Advantix yet so I'll try returning them tonight and shop around. I'm so distraught now. My family has used this vet for years, but their prices keep going up and up. They just moved into a new fancy building so I have a feeling we're paying for that! My dad called the MSPCA and ran down the entire bill with them, they also agreed that it was ridiculous and way over priced.

I was reading the Dr. Fosters catalog and it said I needed a prescription for meds, do I have to obtain that from my vet or will they take care of it? I would save so much ordering it.

Ugh, between this and my poison ivy it's been one miserable week.

Alicia

Discussion Starter · #31 · Apr 25, 2008

HannaBanana\";p=\"114138 said:
Did they put her on a three year shot/rabies program?

They said the rabies was three year, not sure about the others.

Alicia

Discussion Starter · #32 · Apr 25, 2008

brown274\";p=\"114046 said:
What Insurance do you guys have?I have been thinking of getting it.

I have VPI. It actually worked out pretty well last year with Lola being so sick when she was little. This year I decided to cancell her well care core, which covers shots and meds....it would only cover one of each shot per year and one pack of meds per year. So I decided I didn't need that since she'd only go to the vet once a year from now on and the cost to keep it at the time was high......now I realize that I should have kept it! I still have emergency coverage.

samsonsmom

· #33 · Apr 25, 2008

For the Advantix, no Alicia, you don't need a prescription, I order mine there all the time...Heartguard yes, but maybe if you print a copy of the item and take it to your vet, they may sell it to you for the price online

Boxer_Love

· #34 · Apr 25, 2008

Alicia\";p=\"114379 said:
[quote="brown274\";p=\"114046":1w0au3l3]What Insurance do you guys have?I have been thinking of getting it.

I have VPI.

sharonL

· #35 · Apr 25, 2008

I would be your vet anytime....and with the price you paid you could have drove down or flown here and it probably would have still been cheaper

.....Fancy buildings and equipment= higher prices for sure

Atticus

· #36 · Apr 26, 2008

Change vets! S/he is pushing vaccines because it's the only way s/he knows to maintain a steady income stream. The kicker is that a lot of vaccines actually CAUSE illness... which is doubly beneficial for the vet because they charge you once for making the dog sick, then again for curing him/her!

I have a friend who has been a vet tech for over twenty years and he hasn't vaccinated his OWN dogs for years. He agrees with me that vets push vaccines purely to insure a steady income. He thinks vets need to focus more on dental care (cleaning, specifically) to shore up their income stream. I plan to frustrate them further by feeding my dog a raw diet with plenty of raw bones that clean their teeth naturally.

Signed,

Atticus' Mom: The Anti-Vet

Zhanna

· #37 · Apr 26, 2008

That's just nuts!
I just dug out the receipt from Henry's annual. It was $170!
I get the flea/tick stuff from petco, it's $20 less than the vet.

PigDog

· #38 · Apr 28, 2008

I couldn't tell you what the going rate is.

We take ours to the vet:

1. If there's something wrong

2. For vaccinations we can't give ourselves.

$456 is about 1 1/2 weeks take home pay for me. We don't do "check-ups" for ourselves ('cause the price is also ridiculous) so doing one for 3 dogs and 2 cats would be downright silly. Heck, my wife didn't even get her shots growing up!

Mario

memy

· #39 · Apr 28, 2008

I go to an old country vet and all you pay for is what ever he usees shots fecal test and I think last year for Taxi & Charlie both was around $65. I am telling you nothing fancy there its 1st come 1st sever and have had to wait as lond 3 hrs but the money saved is worth it for me being a single mom. Alicia, I would have died Marissa dr bills aren't that high and She is a Human! well sometimes she is :roll:

Cassius-Pup

· #40 · Apr 28, 2008

If you are going to a vet within the city it is usually bad, Boston is overpriced for everything. I'm up towards the N. Shore and I think I paid $45 for an examination (I didn't need any shots as he'd had them all at the MSPCA before we adopted him) and an extra $15 for a fecal test. I was told that the $45 is standard and that they will just add on cost of vaccinations for any you get. I did however sign up for ASPCA pet insurance and they cover yearly exams and vaccines with the plan I picked. I did the math and it looks like if you deduct what you pay for a yearly and vaccines the more expensive plan ends up costing as much as the basic plan but now I space my vet payments over the year and get higher yearly and 'per incident' coverage for accidents and illness.

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