Is this Vet bill very expensive or am I just out of touch?

Antibiotics are very expensive, no NHS for animals ?

About what I'd expect these days. The antibiotics would be charged for plus a standard appointment fee then VAT.

That sounds about average to me. Most vets have a basic consultation fee which can vary between times of day, then charge for any treatment and medications on top. they do tend to be expensive but vets are not regulated on what they can charge. However, once you have the prescription you can often buy medication a lot cheaper on line.
It may also be worthwhile to ask around among pet owning friends for recommendations for vets.

Yes the NHS protects humans from the cost of medication.

I needed antibiotics when in America and just the medication cost me nearly that much!

Unfortunately that does sound about right. You've got the initial consultation fee plus the cost of any medication, and I've had similar bills. It's not cheap being a pet owner these days, especially if you need to go to the vet for even the slightest thing.

Sounds pretty fair, to me.

Yes sounds right. We lost our cat late last year and she had weekly injections from the vet. They were about the same - usually cats are a little less than dogs. We did get some back from insurance as it was ongoing care. You would have to pay first but keep receipt and if poor dog needs ongoing care then your son might be able to claim some back.
Hope he/she is better soon.

Thanks for your replies. I absolutely love my daughter and son’s 2 dogs and enjoy walking them and having them for the occasional weekend etc. But I’m glad I’m not responsible for their upkeep!

I paid £40 for one worming tablet!

Having a pet is a very expensive hobby these days unfortunately. DS has a little cat that's recently started to suffer with age related kidney problems. They already pay £65 a month for pet insurance (which is more than they pay for car insurance on 2 vehicles) but they have to pay the first 25% of any vetinary treatment and drugs so it's a huge monthly outlay. My friend has just paid £2,300 for her dog's vet's bill because it ate a tennis ball and needed an operation to extract it.

Vets bills are astronomical. One way my daughter reduces cost is not to buy medication from the vets. She asks for the prescription and gets it on-line. Last example, an eye cream prescribed for her dog would have cost £39 at the vets and she bought the identical cream on-line for £6. Quite a mark up. Anyone without pet insurance these days is taking a huge gamble.

I paid £40 for one worming tablet!

Yikes, that was expensive!

Agree with blueberryl regarding getting pets prescriptions on line. One of my dogs is on regular medication, to buy from my vet costs me nearly £90 per month, from a reputable on line supplier I pay £40. I also pay £23 for the vet to write a prescription for 6 months. I know vets have a lot of expenses but it worries me that some animals may suffer because their owners cannot afford treatment. Pet insurance has rocketed with extra clauses added making it harder to claim

Vet bills are very expensive, and the cost of drugs pets require is often the extortionate part of the bill. It can be quite interesting the difference in charges from one vet to another, so often worth asking friends which vet they use, and what costs are like. Some of these drug/drops/creams can be purchased cheaper online.

Vets bills are astronomical. One way my daughter reduces cost is not to buy medication from the vets. She asks for the prescription and gets it on-line. Last example, an eye cream prescribed for her dog would have cost £39 at the vets and she bought the identical cream on-line for £6. Quite a mark up. Anyone without pet insurance these days is taking a huge gamble

Will the vets willingly hand over the prescriptions Sarnia? I wish I’d thought of that today. Having said that the dog has an uncomfortable itchy ear and it might take a few days to receive an online delivery. Definitely something to consider in the future though.

That’s about right, in fact slightly cheaper than my vets for similar (consultation plus one weeks worth of antibiotics).

I don’t pay to insure any of my dogs, never have.

I just have a ‘float’ of about three thousand in an account earmarked Vet account.

Only once was it emptied by one illness by one dog. That was a broken leg that did not heal and had to be amputated after months of veterinary interventions.

I’m of the attitude that I know my dogs will cost me big money at some point in their lives.

Yes I also ‘buy’ the prescription from my vet to buy online, works for some things but not all. An urgent medication that the animal needed to take straight away for example.

Our vet charges about £12 to hand over a prescription. This will include up to three repeats on one prescription (if appropriate).

I must add that my hounds never go without vet intervention where necessary.

One of my dogs ( no longer with me ?) had to have eye drops £25 at vets …£5 at Boots chemist , guess where I bought them ?

Sounds about right to me.
Eyes are one thing I wouldn't want to take any chances with.

As soon as you walk across the surgery threshold it costs at least £30 probably more. I have 3 dogs. Two are insured and my old one no longer is as the monthly cost for her was huge. Another thing to remember is that vets are now mostly owned in the UK by one of the four huge business conglomerates which bought out local veterinary practices. If you are lucky and still able to find a local community vet not yet bought out then the fees are normally less. Vets themselves are mostly employees and not on huge salaries. They are also given “encouragement” to push certain things by their companies. Do your research folk - it may save you a fortune.

A friends dog was involved in a minor accident in a farm yard and the vet bill was £. 8,000.

Pharmacists are not allowed to sell human medication for animal use - so don’t tell them. My dog has to take anti-histamine all the time, I just buy them without comment about their use. My OH can’t go and buy them as the pharmacist knows he takes something different for his allergy.

Barring accidents, there's a lot can be done at home for minor ailments. Many home remedies I use have translated well on my pets. All gentle, all effective. I have learned this the hard way ££££££££££

Too many vets practices now depend on pet insurance customers and so their bills often reflect what the insurance companies will pay out. My mum was quoted £700 (before even examine them)to remove her dogs bad tooth from one vet my own vet - a genuinely independent practice- ended up doing it for a fraction of the cost.