I took my 2 Rat Terriers (Age 8 and 10) to the Vet today for the annual checkup, shots and a bath. I picked them up with a $539.00 bill. They did all kind of Bloodwork and they said they had to do a Annual Blood Profile Gereatric on the 8 yr. old male dog. Is this expensive? Services include on both: Lyme Booster, Thyroid test, Rabies, DHLLP/C Booster, Heartworm test, Fecal Exam, and reg. Exams. They also did a Pre-Anesthesia Blood profile (on female dog). Your opinion is appreciated. Cost were Male dog: 342.30 and Female Dog 194.00.
2007-02-08 10:44:36 · 17 answers · asked by sheilakel 3 in Pets ➔ Dogs
Bloodwork is indeed expensive. Those are a hell of a lot of exams that were done., as well, and you also had shots, which are NOT cheap, and a bath. Do you realize how much time and energy needs to be spent on each dog to do all that? I am not surprised you had a high bill. You probaby also were chaged for a day of boarding. Keep in mind that not only do the vets handle your dog, but vet techs and assistants as well. Techs and assistants draw blood and bathe, the vet only does the checkup. So you're also paying all these people for their time.
I AM, however, surprised you did not insist on an estimate before hand. That way you can have them itemize the charges for you and you can more accurately assess your charges. Please, next time ask for an estimate before leaving your dogs at the vet's.
2007-02-08 10:51:29 · answer #1 · answered by lildi_32 3 · 0⤊ 4⤋
I think for what they did to the dog the price seems okay, if maybe a little high.
I question the necessity of these tests. When I take my dogs to get their annual, they will get booster shots, rabies, fecal test and heartworm check.
Anything else should have been approved by you before hand. Why are they running a pre anestetic blood test? Is your dog having sugery?. Same with the Thyroid t-4 test. Do you have reason to believe your dog has issues with it's thyroid.
It seems like you got taken advantage of here, sice most of these blood test are not included in a regular annual check-up.
Make sure you ask next time what all they are going to do and question the necessity of such expensive tests.
Bogus!
I
2007-02-08 19:03:48 · answer #2 · answered by thatswhattheytoldmelastnight 3 · 2⤊ 1⤋
It seems to me there is a bit of extra testing here unless the vet found an actual need for some of these. They are not all part of a normal checkup. If the vet was suspicious of something and he thought your dog needed extra testing they should have called you. Thyroid testing isn't part of an annual check and what was the reason for the blood profile? I don't know where you guys live but I would not be able to have animals if lived there. I just had a cat spayed and all shots for $85. Rabies is $6.00. Distemper and Parvo $12.00 (not a piece) Just an example. I read about really high vet costs on here all the time.I realize prices differ from area to area but I also know it costs the same to buy the vaccine wherever. I don't understand the difference in cost of basic neccesities . All large animal vaccines I just pick up from vet and give myself but bring the dogs and cats all to the vet. It cost $30 for an office call.
2007-02-08 19:08:58 · answer #3 · answered by Born2Bloom 4 · 1⤊ 2⤋
Did they do all these tests without your pre-approval or at least discussing these things with you or was it just done?
If it was just done I'd throw a fit in the office so everyone could hear me tell them what I think of their service.And I've done just that.I do not own a dog or cat so someone else can tell me what I'm paying for after they've done as they pleased with my property.I've switched vets for less.
But the damage is already done and tests are all out of the way and paid for so now you have no worries in switching vets if you choose to do so.From now on I think I'd ask for an itemized price list before anything was done and I'd bathe the dogs myself.There is a 3 yr.rabies vaccine that can be given.It's only a little more expensive than the one year shot and saves you in the long run.Heartworm testing is done every 2 yrs.if you keep your dogs on heartwormers.That also saves some on the tests and more importantly it saves the dog some discomfort.So then you only have to worry distemper/parvo and kennel cough yearly boosters.
2007-02-08 22:03:44 · answer #4 · answered by misbehavin165 5 · 1⤊ 1⤋
At my vet clinic:
Geriatric Bloodwork: $125
Adult Blood work (same as Pre-Anesthesia): $75
Exam: $20
Bath: $10
T-4 (thyroid test): $35
Lyme booster: $15
Rabies: $15
Heartworm test: $35
Fecal: $18
Distemper/Parvo booster: $22
Each price is per dog. Also, you should be able to ask your veterinarian for an itemized bill so that you know what cost what. Also, some vet clinics do a pre-anesthetic panel instead of a normal bloodwork because it just tests for a few problems instead of a full panel. It is cheaper, but it still checks for some of the big problems that older dogs have.
2007-02-08 18:55:03 · answer #5 · answered by iluvmyfrenchbulldogs 6 · 0⤊ 3⤋
Sounds like it was very reasonable considering all you had done. People often forget that the blood tests that are run on pets are the same as animals, these are not cheap and pets dont have insurance to cover them most of the time. You didnt say what exactly happened when you dropped the pets off, what kind of history you gave the doctors and what forms you signed. Many people (I'm not saying you) will drop off their pets with "do whatever you think they need" direction and then are suprised when the vets do. All of what they did is what the AAHA protocol would be. Most everything on there I would recommend for dogs of those ages, you didnt say where you lived but if your in a lymes prevalent area that may be why your vet recommended that.
By the way- a preanesthetic panel is just a name for a smaller bloodwork panel, one typically given to a younger pet. It checks just the basic overview of your pets organs, not as in depth as a geratric panel.
2007-02-08 19:50:32 · answer #6 · answered by cs 5 · 2⤊ 2⤋
Sounds about right. My dog went in two weeks ago to start meds for arthritis and the cost was about $454.00 for bloods, 2 medications and 2 injections and heartworm/lyme test. It is expensive, especially when pets reach the age of 7 or 8 years old. Be Well.
2007-02-08 19:47:41 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 2⤋
You have older dogs so they will want to check more things and it adds up. Next time ask them to give you an estimate of what the costs will be. Maybe they could space out the testing over a couple of months so you aren't hit with one big bill. Is the female dog going to have surgery or get her teeth cleaned and be put out for it? That would be the only reason they did the pre-anesthesia blood profile that I could see.
These costs are not out of line for vet charges in my experience.
2007-02-08 18:58:08 · answer #8 · answered by Hopeful girl 3 · 1⤊ 2⤋
It is a lot of money, but it is not unexpected - they ran a lot of tests. Geriatric check-ups are common starting at about age 8 and can add up.
Why the pre-anesthetic test on the female?
It may be good to ask them next time what tests they plan to run and why. At least you'll know what to expect.
2007-02-08 19:00:30 · answer #9 · answered by ? 7 · 0⤊ 2⤋
Kinda sounds like they had fun with you but I always go in to visit the vet with my dogs, I want to know what is being done to them as well as knowing why they are doing all of these tests, I would suggest that as owners we should be there for our pets. Atleast if you attempt to consult with them and they are not responsive maybe it is time for a new vet. Ours is great, and they do not do anything without explaining it. Hope this helps
2007-02-08 18:58:31 · answer #10 · answered by happykewlgirl7793 1 · 2⤊ 2⤋