Why is it that people are unwilling to pay for proper veterinary care?

Question

Now, I have to ask this because far too often I see people say/write things about how veterinarians are trying to rob them for money, and overcharge them for animal care.

Personally, I'm a pre-veterinary major and my choosing to get into this field, had absolutely nothing to do with money. I want to help animals, to the best of my ability. I also realize that pricing is mostly if not partially funded towards medical needs for the hospital/clinic itself.

Your opinions, thoughts, views on the matter?

Answer 1

Sometimes it's not a matter of being unwilling.
There is the perception veterinarians push to require things that is not in the best interests of the owners or the animal. Example - the vet that said he'd give a one year rabies shot so that people HAD to bring the animal in once a year. Could be preventative but with alternatives out there maybe not.
More than that is the refusal to look at an animal without payment in full...and not knowing how much that payment will be. A few years ago I ran into that - had an animal with problems - two vets would not look at him without money in hand and a diagnosis over the phone they said it'd be at least $200-300. Third vet did and it was NOT what was diagnosed (which the owner said it wasn't). Bill was far less than that.

Things like rabies vaccination and hearing other vets say there's no difference between 1 year and 3 year and some will last 5 years (antibodies still effective)...yet a push that three year vaccinations aren't good enough.

There are just too many cases of vets telling someone their animal needs a $300, $500 operation when the reality is a $40 treatment was all that is needed. If an animal NEEDS it that's one thing - but if not then vets are just lining their own pockets and, worse, putting the animal through surgery and treatments they don't really NEED.

Answer 2

I guess it all depends on what is concidered the "proper" vet care. I will give you a story....we adopted a dog 2 years ago, he was tested positive for heartworm...the vet suggested all the typical treatments for it but couldnt guarantee anything since the treatment could actually kill the dog instead of help the dog plus it was going to be a long painful process to help get the worms under control. We were told that the severity of the worms he was not expected to live for another 3 months.
Well after doing some research I refused treatment ( or the "proper vet care" why should I pay hundreds of dollars to make my dog suffer when the treatment could potentially kill him anyhow.....so off to do more research, found another treatment that wasnt as harmful & was recommended by a lot of the best top dog breeders....so we figured what did we have to loose...the vet told us he wouldnt live for 3 more months anyhow...we would rather have him at home and comfortable while we tried our own treatment vs doing all that the vet suggested...... We did the treatment for a year and a half and just had the dog retested....guess what...he is perfectly healthy....the vet couldnt believe it was the same dog and wanted to know what we did to cure it we told them, they couldnt believe it.....so my point is, not all the time is the "proper vet care" the correct or ethical treatment we want for our pets.

Some vets are just out to make money as well. We have 2 vets & one is out of an old house but a very good vet & he charges $7 for a shot....if we go to our other vet that operates out of a million dollar facility charges $25 for the same shot.....

Answer 3

The fact is- there are good vets, and there are bad vets, it's really personal choice. I myself could not live without my pets, but finding the vet for me took some searching.

I realise that pets need care, just like people, but for me it is the fear of the unknown. You really don't know how much you're going to have to pay, and it's scary if you only have so much money to pay for care.

It's also sooo easy for people to say "My vet ripped me off!" without knowing the price of medicine, or the hourly rate of the staff, the costs of running the business, etc... In most cases, Vets are there because they love animals and want to save their lives and protect them, and are not making more than a measley wage. Think about the years of education that is required, and the cost of that.

For me, I don't blame the vets for the high prices, but it doesn't change the fact that pets are an expensive luxury at times.

Answer 4

Much like many oft he things going on in society today people are not willing to take responsibility for anything. It is never their fault they have done nothing wrong ever.
They have pets but take no responsibility for them their care or their training or their well being.
People consider pets as disposable. If something does not work they will just dump it and get a new puppy or kitty and do it all over again.
Good luck being vet. You will love working with the animals I think it will be the people you have to learn to deal with. The animals are always the easy part.

Answer 5

more people should become educated in the pet insuracne that covers routine exams and many other things that might crop up..this way paying a small amount for the insuracne will help decrease the sticker shock when something happens to a pet...most people think nothing will ever happen to their pet..but liek humans things do happen and its not cheap..i belive there should be more education before people get a pet in this area with realistic costs when something may go wrong....

on the flip side....most vets will not accept any kind of a payment plan..they will refuse to treat your pet without the money first..most things that happen to a pet are sudden and unplanned and some people find it hard to shell out 500 bucks for something they werent prepared for...i think vets should be more open to working with people and they will find they will have more customers by being compassionite then money hungry..

Answer 6

I think you'll find a lot of people take a dog/cat for the sake of having a pet. They only think short-term, can't seem to understand that pets will need to see the Vet! From innoculations to anything else! I'm not a Vet but a dog psychologist (Canine behaviourist) and am always amazed at the number of people who take on dogs simply because they decide they really like one breed, or rescue a dog because it looks cute, without any further thought on the matter.

When my OES had her puppies, i really worried about what would happen to them so wrote out contracts for each owner, stating that they had to prove they had taken pet insurance before collecting the puppies. I did it to ensure that my puppies would be taken good care of, not left to suffer if they became ill because new owners might rather 'save money' than take proper care of my puppies, ie: Take them to the Vet,

Vets always have an array of leaflets (pet insurance companies) there is nothing easier than picking up a plan and paying
monthly.

I personally have met 2 vets i disagreed with, felt they were overcharging me (! of them wasn't gentle enough for my dogs) before finding THE Vet who takes great care of my dogs, and who is such a terrific professional that i couldn't care less if he charges me a bit more than others (Only about 10 euros each time) Simply because he is worth the money! My dogs love him as he loves them, and taking them to see him is not an ordeal but a social visit (For my dogs and i) so that makes him a super Vet to me and he's welcome to the extra money because he deserves it!!!

Answer 7

I have no problems with my vet, yes the prices can be too costly, I don't bring my cats in every year for a checkup or vaccine, they're indoor cats so I don't need toworry about rabies, they are healthy and clean and I only take them when they get sick otherwise I'll save my money. Hey I don't go to the doctor for checkups either

Answer 8

this shows that people don't see animals as equal to them. So not willing to spend alot on them, especially when cost of medical care for animals is higher than our own medical care. However, I have a pet cat and I'm willing to spend any amount without complain on her because I see her as part of me..

Answer 9

some people just like having pets, but don't realize that if something goes wrong, they're gonna have to pay up...just like having kids, animals cost alot of money...

Answer 10

I don't have an answer for you.
When you graduate, do your best to educate the public about the responsibilities of pet ownership.

Good luck in your studies :)