Originally posted by AuldNick
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Vets bills? rant
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Originally posted by Nikkii was up till 4am on friday night saving a dog's life who had a twisted stomach and would have died without immediate attention. i had to call my boss in for help with the op and 2 nurses to help look after the animal. we then had it in ICU on constant ECG and blood pressure monitoring all night, with me watching it constantly until 4am, then the nurse taking over for the rest of the night - she was not left alone all night. apart from having to cover the cost of the specialised equipment etc that we use and paying for the skills of the surgeons, you have to then pay us for spending half our night up with the dog - surely that deserves a fairly decent amount of money? i dont get any time off the next day to make up for it, and personally dont receive a penny more for doing it either. i am salaried, so whether i stay up all night or not doesn't make a difference to my wage. i could also have buggered off to bed after the op finished at 1am, but i chose to stay and constantly monitor this critically ill animal because i care - i certainly dont get any thanks for it from my boss in terms of money or just praise for doing a good job. When people then moan about the cost, it really makes me wonder why I bother. Should just have gone home to bed, told them their dog would probably die and got myself some sleep.
with regards to whether it was owned by someone insured or old and on a pension, it makes no difference to what it costs us - we are a business and cannot cut the costs just because an OAP owns the animal. we charge the same no matter whether the animal is insured or not. all the horse vets i've worked for have been in huge amounts of debts due to their clients not paying up because they bill in arrears. small animal vets normally dont have this problem because they ask for payment at the time, but why should we go into debt to fund doing work for people that cant afford it. insurance isn't expensive so if you know you cant afford a huge bill (which personally there's no way i could), then you get the animal insured. my horse costs me £12 a month for insurance and the dog is even less - it hardly breaks the bank. I really isn't up to private businesses to fund vet treatment - if the government feels certain people should get cheap/free vet treatment then they need to fund it. otherwise if you cant afford to pay when it goes wrong, then should you have an animal? by keeping an animal you have a responsibility to be able to look after it in sickness and health. i dont believe any of you have actually ever looked at the finances of a vet practice and realised how much the overheads are. according to the vet business magazine, your average vet has to bring in £250,000 of fees per year for the boss to be able to start making a profit, once their salary and all other overheads have been accounted for - i found this staggering, but it's what they say.
and those who moan about not being able to get repeat prescriptions, it's nothing to do with us wanting more money - the law says we cannot prescribe anything unless we've seen the animal in the last 6 months - nothing to do with us - the government made that law - we just have to abide by it. we do special offers for people on long term medication, but i quite often suggest to people that they explore the internet for cheaper prices and i will happily write prescriptions for anyone who wants to go down this route.
Our emergency vet is open 24 hours so I presume the staff work on shifts. So why should an out of hours consultation be £98 when not out of hours is £24.
How can it be out of hours when its open 24/7 ?
I dont think even you Nikki can defend that one. I do not mind paying for something as long as the cost is reasonable This particular instance was in my opinion not reasonable.
As for your mention on dog insurance I think you will be hard pushed to find a decent one for less than £24 per month in fact the kennel clubs insurance (which is good cover) cost around£35 per month per dog. considering the fact I have 6 this does not come to a small amount of money.
I also was not complaining about the vet nurses nor indeed the vet but was complaining about prices I was charged which I consider unreasonable, I know how much a paper bib cost and dont expect to be over charged for it.Trust your Hound.
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Originally posted by TaliesinsWhat a coincidence 'Gastric Torsion' is in laymans terms a 'Twisted Stomach'
Our emergency vet is open 24 hours so I presume the staff work on shifts. So why should an out of hours consultation be £98 when not out of hours is £24.
How can it be out of hours when its open 24/7 ?
I dont think even you Nikki can defend that one. I do not mind paying for something as long as the cost is reasonable This particular instance was in my opinion not reasonable.
As for your mention on dog insurance I think you will be hard pushed to find a decent one for less than £24 per month in fact the kennel clubs insurance (which is good cover) cost around£35 per month per dog. considering the fact I have 6 this does not come to a small amount of money.
I also was not complaining about the vet nurses nor indeed the vet but was complaining about prices I was charged which I consider unreasonable, I know how much a paper bib cost and dont expect to be over charged for it.
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Originally posted by Nikkii dont know how your vet works, but we do 24 hour cover but aren't actually here 24/7. i work all day and am then on call at night - i dont actually come in unless i get called so that counts as out of hours. generally even those centres who do have vets on site all night awake and working will still charge extra because they pay the vets and nurses a lot more to work nights so have to cover those costs. i cant account for any other vets charges other than where i work, but i'm about to send my GDV (gastric dilation and volvulus, gastric torsion, twisted stomach - whatever you like) home this afternoon and her bill is now over £2000 with the intensive care she received over the weekend. When you break down all the charges i dont see any of them as unreasonable, they just add up. Medical care just isn't cheap, whether for humans or animals.
These are my opinions and in No way am I saying Vets. Nurses or whatever are not doing a good job. BTW. Hope the dog you charged out at £2000 is OK.Last edited by Taliesins; 9 July 2007, 17:10.Trust your Hound.
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Originally posted by AuldNickVet nurse's.....? Are they the same 15 year old girls who mop up dog pee in the treatment room.
Most folk get too attatched to a pet nowadays and in some cases the animal would be better destroyed than left to suffer IE my business partner had a 15 year old black lab and as expected it's rear end lost all power to the extent it lay in it's own foul, five fukin times his wife took the dog to be destroyed and five fukin times she came back with another wonder cure which did naff all but make the dog suffer more 'till he took it to another vet and got the dog relief via the jab.
YES, she was ignoring fate, YES she loved the dog to the extent it didnt matter anymore if it was in constant pain, BUT shouldnt the vet tell the truth for the dogs sake instead of seing a daft sobbing woman with money to spend. IE animal first, owner second and PURSE last.
I used to go out with a vet nurse. She did 3yrs at Hartpury college reading Veterinary Science, then got a job at a local vets and did another 2 years training to become a Veterinary Nurse. They are highly skilled individuals. All this talk about Vets, what about them? Vets earn a decent wage for what they do. Vet Nurses are paid pittance. Her friend got a 1st class honors in a similar discipline and got a job working for Guide Dogs for the Deaf training the dogs. I think she was on something like £12,000PA, that's just sick!!!
I will say though that if you want to work with animals then you have to accept that the money is pants unless you are a Vet or own a practice. The same goes for Doctors, what are they on now, £60,000-£70,000 a year? These sort of jobs should be done by people who want to do the job because they love it, not because they want to earn lots of money. If that's what your after then become a Dentist, Dentists have a licence for daylight robbery!!Last edited by M35A2; 9 July 2007, 18:14.
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Originally posted by M35A2I used to go out with a vet nurse. She did 3yrs at Hartpury college reading Veterinary Science, then got a job at a local vets and did another 2 years training to become a Veterinary Nurse. They are highly skilled individuals. All this talk about Vets, what about them? Vets earn a decent wage for what they do. Vet Nurses are paid pittance. Her friend got a 1st class honors in a similar discipline and got a job working for Guide Dogs for the Deaf training the dogs. I think she was on something like £12,000PA, that's just sick!!!
I will say though that if you want to work with animals then you have to accept that the money is pants unless you are a Vet or own a practice. The same goes for Doctors, what are they on now, £60,000-£70,000 a year? These sort of jobs should be done by people who want to do the job because they love it, not because they want to earn lots of money. If that's what your after then become a Dentist, Dentists have a licence for daylight robbery!!
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Originally posted by Nikkihe's retired and cost £10 a week - hardly the same as a mortgage!
We have a horse, and just sold our pony, so I am aware of the costs.Rob
Still working for the man!
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Originally posted by plumb bobInsurance, vets bills, vaccinations, farrier, it all adds up, anyway I'm not having a dig, It was said tounge in cheek.
We have a horse, and just sold our pony, so I am aware of the costs.
oooooooh youOnly Toyota can get you out of shite
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Originally posted by plumb bobInsurance, vets bills, vaccinations, farrier, it all adds up, anyway I'm not having a dig, It was said tounge in cheek.
We have a horse, and just sold our pony, so I am aware of the costs.
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Vets are human, so imagine doctors fee's without the sh!tty NHS! Kinda brings it into perspective dinnit?
Had a naff all GP in today complaining my hourly rates were rather expensive @ £25 + VAT, this low life spent 5'ish years shaggin/drinkin his way through uni then spends his life writing lines and dishing out "golf weekend" pills!
My guys ARE time served and are hands on mechi's with instant access all for TWENTY FUKIN FIVE pounds an hour so stick that up yer big wide arse you lazy GP blood sucking git!
Feeling much better now....
BUT vets will hump you. Look it in the eyes and shoot it yersel! Every dog knows when it's time to go so just squeeze the trigger and shed some tears.
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Vet costs depending on the car you drive?
A few years ago, I saw an article on the local news - maybe it was in Cornwall? Anyway, a vets practice had started charging customers depending on the kind of car they drove. The owner of a brand new Volvo estate for instance, would incur a higher charge than the driver of a knackered old Mini.
I wonder what they would have made of an 11 year old 4x4?
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