Should the vet charge me?

Question

I found out about a Bull Mastiff that was abandoned at a nearby vet's office. The girlfriend of my friend's brother took him to the vet to get his shots. When they called the girl to pick him up she wouldn't answer the phone. Hondo has been at the vet's office for two weeks (at $13 per day). My friend told me about Hondo since she knew we are wanting a Masiff. My boyfriend and I went to the vet today to see Hondo and maybe bring him home. We were told that Hondo came in the office to get his rabies shot and we'd be paying for that. We'd also have to pay for some other shot they gave him plus the 2 weeks worth of boarding The total came to $175. Supposedly, Hondo will be put to sleep very soon unless he gets a new home. Should we really have to pay someone elses bill? Can't they go after her for that money? Especially when they just want to get rid of the dog and we were willing to take him off their hands?

I do agree that the vet deserves to be paid for the services. I just wondered if it was right for them to charge me and not the "owner". We decided not to get the dog because 1: we didn't have the money 2: we found out he nipped at a little girl (we have to preschoolers) and 3: he attacked another dog in the park (we have a 4 mo old dog).

Answer 1

If I had client willing to take the dog I would take the board charges off and just charge them the vaccine services as an adoption fee.
If the dog has nipped at some kid(s) and another dog, (unless someone is willing to spend the time to rehab the dog), this behavior is only going to get worse.
Then let them put the dog down. I wouldn't want him around my kid and neither should anyone else. Now a kid-less and no other animal household and is always going to stay that way, willing to keep the dog restrained at all times and see to it that the dog is retrained and properely disaplined, then yes adopt the dog to someone like that.

Answer 2

Most definetley the bill should be paid ~ the dog was basically abandoned by its owner so now the dog is up for adoption!

I agree the owner should pay for the service but apparently the owner did not want the dog as the dog has not been claimed.

In any adoption, there are adoption fee's etc and some can be very high depending on the condition/age and medical need at time of rescue ~ and if you really think about it, your not paying for someone else bill b/c the service endured would be incurred at some point if you decide to take the dog home ~ You have to realize a Bull Mastiff is a large dog and $13.00 a day for boarding is really not that bad considering room, board, food etc....

Answer 3

The clinic here would charge you for the shots and tags, but probably not pad it with room and board. And if the clinic knew the dog bit then he would be destroyed without question and wouldn't ever be offered to the public.
I can't imagine the vet actually putting him down though. We would do our very best to give him to someone or a rescue unless he really does bite and present a danger. And often if it is a bill that we can't find someone to cover we "foster" animals. That just means they actually belong to the clinic, but someone else is caring for them. That doesn't work with dogs because of rabies laws, but it happens all the time with cats. It just means we don't want them and can't find someone to cover the bill.
$175 is cheap though. You would never get a mastiff from a shelter that cheap. Your vet is being reasonable.

Answer 4

Technically they can charge you whatever they want. It all comes down to what you are willing to pay to get the dog. If they feel that they can find someone that is willing to pay the bill, then they are absolutely able to ask that as the fee for the dog. Rescues charge fees for their dogs to pay for vet care, why shouldn't the vet charge for the dog to cover his costs? Also, generally someone that is willing to pay for a dog is going to be the better owner that someone that just wants a free dog. For that reason, I would never give a dog away for free, even if I didn't need the money.
It all comes down to how bad you want the dog and whether you are willing to pay it or not but they are not in the wrong to ask for the fees to be paid by the new owner.

Answer 5

If you can't pay the $175, think of him needing surgery and you not being able to pay for that. One time, my dog got very sick in the middle of my family moving to Canada. We were in a place that was foreign to us, and we had to find an emergency vet and the sugery costed $5000. He had a twisted stomach, and the vet said that he would have died within the hour if we did not get him to the vet and under surgery right away. If you cannot pay for shots, don't even think about it.

Answer 6

If you went to a shelter or rescue you would have to pay a fee for the dog, they do not give them away for free and they want to find homes for the dogs they have. If you want the dog pay the fee and look at it this way, $175 is not a lot compared to what these dogs actually cost.
Technically, the original owner no longer owns the dog because she abandoned him. If he is aggressive it is best not to take him.

Answer 7

How do you figure it's not your bill?

It's gonna be your dog. Those vaccines are inside YOUR DOG.
YOUR DOG ate kennel food. Slept in a kennel (that needed to be washed after) and "took up space" a paying client might have needed.

You could probably negotiate on the boarding, but still, $175 is CHEAP for a Bull Mastiff.
Count your blessings!

Think of it like this: By paying that bill, you are making it possible for that vet to do this "rescue" again for another dog. If you don't pay, the vet will be less likely to help an animal in need next time.

Answer 8

I would think that is slightly unethical for the vet to charge you for boarding fees. The dog was not yours at the time she was being boarded. Most people sign a contract that they will pay any and all charges for care(which you did not). The vet should go after the original owner, but is probably to lazy(ie-doesn't want to spend the time and effort to get the money from the orig. owner), and it is easier/quicker to make you pay.

It sounds like the vet is being greedy, and willing to get the money from anyone, which is unfortunate for the animal. If they were looking out for the animals interest they would suck up the loss and find the dog a good home.

Answer 9

Well, yes, I do think you are responsible for the fees. Every time you get an animal from an organization you are responsible for the fees. If organizations handed out pets and vaccinations for free, they would all go out of business. Look at it this way: If you can't afford the $175 now, what would you do when he needs something major like surgery? How do you expect to pay for food and supplies? Pets are a costly investment.

Answer 10

Someone is going to have to pay this bill, OKAY? Vets don't work for free.

If you want the dog, pay for it ... a Bullmastiff for $175? Are you kidding? If you're willing to take on this dog and you have some knowledge about this breed ... $175 is a steal.