Rather than hijacking the other thread on the differences in vet fees around the country I thought it best to start a new topic.

The differences are quite considerable and my own feeling is that there should be some regulation in the prices vets are allowed to charge. My own Vet isn't the most expensive in this area (I've only been here 8 months) although at just over £40 for an initial consultation is certainly not cheap! I know another vet in the area charges a whopping £47!

Others are stating initial consults at around the £20 mark. How can there be such a vast difference? I appreciate that some vets will have more up to date equipment and be larger practices with more employees etc but an initial consultation is just that, an initial consultation.

Is insurance having an effect on vet charges?

What are other's thoughts on this?

It's not just equipment and more or less staff, it's the area, as either rent or mortgage for premises will vary so much. Hence why some insurance companies charge more if you live in certain areas. If it was regulated I bet for a lot of us costs would go up.

I live in one of the most deprived areas in the UK.   Property prices, Rent and mortgages are nothing like in the Cotswolds, London etc.

And yet we have some of the highest charges for Vet bills.

Initial consult varies wildly, but the local Budget vet has average consult  charges at around the £30 mark,  Vaccs vary but 4 years ago I was being quoted around £80 by most vets, I went to the budget vet and got it done at about £50 - it will have changed now.

However, a c-section will invariably cost you upwards of £1000 regardless of timing.

Whilst a 2am emergency c-section in Carmarthen (high property prices, rents, rates etc.) will cost a couple of hundred pounds - know someone who paid this in the last year.

I can remember vets bills from before the existence of insurances and - yes they rose very quickly afterwards - shockingly so, whilst property, rent morgage prices at the time remained stable.

I recently moved from prime commuter belt country (Hertfordshire), close to the A1 and 20 mins by train to London. House prices were high. My vet there was considered one of the most expensive in the area yet initial consult was below £30.

I moved to Norfolk, where property prices were a lot lower yet I'm finding vet fees ridiculously high. WHY?

I wonder if it is also to do with the number of clients? A smaller practice with a lower rent may need to have slightly higher prices as they are not as busy.

I do think there can be a lot of greed though, regardless of rent and staff ratio's and the larger companies seem to be the worst.

The practice I was with in Hertfordshire are comparable in size and staff numbers to my new practice in Norfolk and have a similar set up. However the prices in Norfolk are much more...

> my own feeling is that there should be some regulation in the prices vets

You can't - vets are a commercial business not a charity or part of a government department. You can't tell a hairdresser what to charge :) We are not forced to own a dog (pet) and do so at our own risk :)

I think vets are much more a business now, rather than a service.  Every time I go down there is pressure for 'add ons'. 

My 10 year old spayed Dobe has gradually become incontinent,  I thought it would be relatively simple thing to get medication for this but not so.  I had to pay for 3 separate blood tests (£60+each) to rule out Cushings Disease first, plus 3 urine samples (£16 each).  The tests have highlighted nothing but he wants more done because it, 'might be interesting'.  The other vet at the practice doesn't think she shows the right symptoms.

They also get as much money as they can from prescriptions, my girl is also on Soloxine but I had to stop getting it from them due to their inability to order either the right dose or remember to order it at all. I now pay £15 for a written prescription which has not once been done when I go to pick it up. The first time they gave it for 3 months supply (the usual order) but they didn't put any repeats on.  When I next went back I asked for 2 repeats he did but then reduced the amount by two thirds. 

If I ever need more than one medication at once they are unable to put them both on the same prescription, they have to be done separately at £15 each. Even advocate, I need 3 different sizes but they can't be put together, I have to pay £45.  They used to be a goods vets 5 years ago but now I just feel like a cash cow.

BTW, I do realise they are entitled to make a living, it's just that they have changed so much since I have been with them.

> it's just that they have changed so much since I have been with them

But a lot of people's expectations have changed :) When I was a child, vets were pretty basic and had few medicines. For serious conditions, pets were routinely euthanized as there was no treatment. A lot of people now expect (and even demand) the best available treatment for their pets - so they pay for it. They expect their vet to have modern equipment, staff on duty at night etc etc etc - it costs money. Why should a vet who has studied for at least 5 years at university and has the equivalent qualifications of a barrister, NHS consultant etc not expect to earn the same sort of money ?? 

> Why should a vet who has studied for at least 5 years at university and has the equivalent qualifications of a barrister, NHS consultant etc not expect to earn the same sort of money ??

I do agree to some extent, but why the vast differences throughout the country? They've all done the same study, got the same qualifications etc, yet for some reason some feel it's OK to charge nearly £50 for a consultation yet others charge only £20. That smacks of money grabbers.

Those of us with pets HAVE to use the service they provide, we have no other alternative.

> Those of us with pets HAVE to use the service they provide, we have no other alternative

Yes - but you don't have to have a pet :)

>  to charge nearly £50 for a consultation yet others charge only £20

It may be that they charge less for medicines and other services. Each vet sets their own charges so they will recoup their costs in different ways.

> Why should a vet who has studied for at least 5 years at university and has the equivalent qualifications of a barrister, NHS consultant etc not expect to earn the same sort of money ?? 

I wouldn't have such an issue with the money if I got the service.

I haven't had a hassle free prescription for over a year and a half and am requested to provide a urine sample every time I need a new prescription for the incontinence, that's £31 before I even order the medication. 

The urine has never had any blood or white cells but it's suggested we 'try again' every couple of weeks just to see. I even paid £100 a few months ago for a course of antibiotics in case she had an invisible infection that didn't show up in the urine and now it's being suggested we give her another course.  Why would they think she had an infection after 5 clear urine samples and a 2 week course of antibiotics? My GP would never be this 'thorough'.

So yes, they are entitled to earn good money. If they earn it by honestly providing the correct treatment for what is presented. It's all the extra repeat tests, 'just in case' she might succumb to something, that annoys me.

My GP would never be this 'thorough'.

On the other hand I can phone vet NOW 4pm and if they can't fit me in tomorrow it will definately be on Thurs................I went into  the GP surgery Tuesday last week  and the soonest I could get a routine appointment was Tuesday next week - ended up getting a 'sit and wait' appt  - ONLY took 1/2 a novel and 1 ½ hours to see Dr

> My GP would never be this 'thorough'.
>
> On the other hand I can phone vet NOW 4pm and if they can't fit me in tomorrow it will definately be on Thurs................I went into&nbsp; the GP surgery Tuesday last week&nbsp; and the soonest I could get a routine appointment was Tuesday next week - ended up getting a 'sit and wait' appt&nbsp; - ONLY took 1/2 a novel and 1 ½ hours to see Dr <img src="/images/eek.gif" alt="eek">

You have a very good point there! I should have realised that was the reason why, lol. 

I've just had my pap smear over a year late because when I booked last year I got pregnant in the 3 month wait for an appointment and they wonder why people don't go.

Could it be that in some areas there is a good choice of vets, so they are forced to keep the prices down to attract clients, but in rural areas ( like Norfolk ) you don't have so much choice unless you want to have a long drive, which in an emergency is not good, so they know you need them and charge as much as they can because you have very little choice of where to go.
I have the choice of two, one is expensive but good, the other does not have good reviews but is still expensive, so I suppose choice is non existent, and they know it.

> But a lot of people's expectations have changed :-) When I was a child, vets were pretty basic and had few medicines. For serious conditions, pets were routinely euthanized as there was no treatment. A lot of people now expect (and even demand) the best available treatment for their pets - so they pay for it. They expect their vet to have modern equipment, staff on duty at night etc etc etc - it costs money. Why should a vet who has studied for at least 5 years at university and has the equivalent qualifications of a barrister, NHS consultant etc not expect to earn the same sort of money

My expectations have definitely changed.  To be fair, I expect my vet to be god.  I currently have a bitch on vetmedin, fortekor, furosemide, epiphen and bromide.  Years ago I guess that she would just have been PTS.

Because I have a lot of dogs I do get to know everyone well, and one of the girls said to me that I would never believe how much my vet earned for all he puts in.  I wasn't surprised, I did know that his family usually went camping for their hols.  He is honestly one of the most dedicated people I know, and he certainly doesn't earn the sort of money that a NHS consultant makes. 

He realises that I won't compromise on vet  treatments for my dogs, and he will often try and save me a few bob.  I have a Chihuahua on antibiotics at the moment, and she will be on them for 3 weeks.  He has prescribed me the large dose tablets (I have loads of pill cutters) and she needs a quarter of a tablet twice a day.  He did this as it worked out cheaper for me.

While charges for consults are not cheap, I agree that Daisy is right - yes, I do expect modern equipment.  I do want in house testing and labs. I do want vet and nurse attendance during the night when I have a pet hospitalised.  I do expect them to phone me, however late at night, if there is any change in my dogs.  I use a large tier 3 accredited animal hospital and get the service I want.  You're right Daisy, I don't have to have pets, it's my choice.

I had a conversation with my vets the other day regarding the cost of getting a boy dog neutered (just out of curiosity I had rung 5 other local vets with similar set ups to my vet to see what they charged) - my vet was the dearest..
Now to some extent I agree with them, when they said that some vets where offering cheaper prices as a "loss leader"  as a way of gaining new clients.
I told them that I was very dismayed to see my practice being the dearest - the result was that as I have been with them for a number of years, they have decided to reduce the price of the op.
Very happy with that outcome.
 

Consultation fee at my vet is £17, c section about £200. I am not complaining.

They expect their vet to have modern equipment, staff on duty at night etc etc etc - it costs money.

I expect my vet to be able to provide a good service to make sure my dog is healthy and to be there for emergency illnesses or accident. However I expect to be referred if it is anything more than that and at this stage I expect to pay more for a specialist.
My vet should be like a GP able to cope with most ordinary things but anything more I would expect to be referred.
It seems our vets still charge more or less the same as the specialist that is trained specifically to be an expert an an area of medicine. I expect my vet to have a rough idea of all subjects but to hand over when it becomes more involved.

I would expect the specialist to charge more than the GP and not the same.

It's not even different areas round here for costs to vary.  Within a 20 mile radius the most local vet to me charges £37 for a consult AND same for a checkup.  My regular vet charges £30 first consult and £27 for checkups and just £9 to take bloods for progesterone testing and then I pay the lab £30 direct. Another local vet charges an astonishing £135 (inc consult and using a different lab) for the same. Why would i want to pay that instead of £39???