Vets say they are under pressure to bring in more income per pet.

There was something on tv the other day, countryfile I think, about excessive use of pet flea powder which then comes off pet fur and is poisoning wildlife birds and other creatures when the fluff is used for nests,
It is recommended not to use flea powder unless the pet actually has fleas and then carefully

This is not surprising. I expect these companies are, in many cases, American owned. Every pet (like every person, medically, to the American mind) is a client. If you sell them a medication and it doesn't work, you just sell them another. The last thing you want (from their point of view) is to make a "patient" better. That way you loose a lucrative client.

Since our local practice was taken over we never seem to see the same vet twice. Anything needing investigation seems to lead to the need to be referred to another of their practices for heart checks and blood tests. We always refuse to put our boy through these invasive procedures and so far so good.

It doesn't matter if you go to an independent vet or a
large company you won't see a poor vet !
It's money what counts to them all . I am fed up of vets always asking if I need any worm or flea treatments .
Why would you give a dog/cat medication when it doesn't have any problems ? Because it brings in more money for the vet.

The vets need to unionise! These ‘working practices’ sound cruel and unrealistic. There is strength in numbers. They could stick together to reshape their terms and conditions.

Perhaps they are already? I’m just surmising but shocked at how the big boys and bean counters seem to now have a monopoly here.

FriedGreenTomatoes2

Why do independent veterinarians allow themselves to be bought out? If they resisted, pet owners would have more choice. Word would get round and their businesses would boom.

What do you expect them to do?

My vet is 74. He had bowel cancer a few years ago and needed to reduce his workload and sold 2 of his 3 practices and no independent vet wanted to take over so the big companies snapped them up. He only (officially) works a couple of days a week (although he often comes in for emergencies on non working days).

My dd works for a smaller independent veterinary clinic chain and they interviewed recently for new vets and had loads of applicants from the big venture capital owned chains like Evidensia etc. Some were in really bad MH and even broke down in tears describing their working conditions - the expectation of bringing in a certain amount of money and being under cctv surveillance to check they have no downtime, even criticised for taking a 5 minute break after a difficult case.

Things seemed to change when people started taking out pet insurance. I had to have one of my cats pts because I knew I couldn’t afford the escalating bill and the vet said if I was insured there wouldn’t have been a problem. But he was a Burmese that are notoriously bad patients and I honestly felt that the vet was keeping him alive when the prognosis wasn’t good. When I was first married we were very hard up but vets bills never seemed to cripple us, and our dog and cats were often at the vets.

My vet practice is independent but has no out of hours cover so when a pet is ill or injured over a weekend we have to go 15 miles to a big animal hospital where every cost is double what our local vet charges. I knew that from comparing invoices. They also take your bank details before touching your pet.
People love their pets and daren’t say no when being told they need to pay huge unnecessary fees.

Our local vet hospital was bought out by a corporate company, and the prices have indeed risen, as well as many unnecessary (in my view) tests.

But I do see the reason why many vets have sold their clinics. Instead of being a business owner, in charge of managing staff, building, payroll, etc., the new corporation either pays them a salary, or they are part owners that get salary plus a percentage of the profits. The corporation can make the investment in updated equipment, which can be a hardship for smaller clinics. The corporation hires staff and pays them, as well as does all the bookkeeping. It's much easier for younger vets starting out to get a job a a clinic, rather than them needing to invest in a clinic themselves.

I miss the old way of things, and I think now we have to go to the clinic with our pets knowing that we could be up-sold procedures, food, flea prevention, etc. Kind of like going to a mechanic, do a bit of research before you go.

It’s up to owners how much they spend and whether life should be extended. There are two big dogs in my area who struggle to walk. One is on wheeled trolly with its back legs protected with leather over legs and feet as it can’t move them, they’re dragged as it moves forward on front legs with wheeled support pulled along
I’d eat my hat if the vets haven’t talked about the pain they suffer but owners refuse to euthanise
Awful

I’m glad to have had my wonderful independent vets for nearly 35 years. The three partners are my age, 68-69, and I dread the day any one of them bows out.

Not just dogs, horses too, vets put just as much effort into customer care as they do animal care, a neighbour of ours had 2 aged terriers, vet was very dedicated treating them, both died within 6 months, amassing a bill of over £2000 for each.

Cold fish David49. Of course vets need to ‘make money’. They train over years. They’re surgeons as well as skilled in diagnosing and treating complex health problems. The companies that bought individual practices out are driving costs because they’re all about profit. I’ve always lived with dogs, never had an experience where my vet didn’t care about my dogs (the sensitive care extends to the humans in my experience )

David49

The pet owners apply human emotions to their pets demanding ever more complex treatment, some paying more for pet insurance than their car insurance.

Vets are in business to make money, so are insurance companies and drug suppliers. How some owners can afford 2 or 3 dogs I have no idea, not just vet and food etc but the cost of buying the dog, £2, 3, even 5000.

I can only assume you don’t have a dog or understand how much they mean to us and what joy and companionship they bring to our lives?

My vets was taken over some years ago. I’m lucky in having one vet I always book with, unless emergency. She’s so good, great vet skills, fantastic surgeon, patient and kind with my dogs but also with me. The first time I was at the surgery after mr I died, she hugged me and was so kind. She’s operated on three of my dogs, treated two for cancer and came to the house to help my poor little 6 year old spaniel cross to sleep after an inoperable tumour was found.
Yes bills and insurance costs make my eyes water.

Took my dog to the vet a couple of weeks ago about a lump on her back leg. Diagnosed as a hystocytoma. Discussed the possibility of investigations, vet said she could do a biopsy to confirm but thought this would be a unnecessary expense. If the lump hadn't decreased or even disappeared within the next couple of weeks to go back. The surgery is part of a nationwide group, but there is no push to spend. Form what I've read so far I'm very lucky. The lump has almost vanished.

escaped (and David49) my two dogs are my biggest regular outgoing. Two training groups each week, half a day for the big lad to run with other dogs under careful supervision of my trainer. They’re immunised, fed the best diet available and if I go away, the board with one of my trainer friends, home from home.
As escaped explained, her dogs are her hobby, exercise and family. Other than the dogs, I’m a cheap date

How some owners can afford 2 or 3 dogs I have no idea, not just vet and food etc but the cost of buying the dog, £2, 3, even 5000.

Thats a bit unfair. Yes, my dogs cost the figures you quote, I have just paid £600+ to take them on holiday. I pay £100 a month in insurance, plus food and other essentials. They are my hobby, my exercise, my family.

I heard the discussion about the pressure the IVC puts on vets to bring in as much money as possible on the Today programme this morning. It was quite shocking.

Yes David, suicide rate for vets has always been higher than average & that was/is thought to be because the means are always at hand.
It is sad that dog-owning is out of reach for many ordinary families these days. Growing up can be tough & personally when I was a teenager, my animals got me through the tough times. People care, but they judge too. Pets just care.

The pet owners apply human emotions to their pets demanding ever more complex treatment, some paying more for pet insurance than their car insurance.

Vets are in business to make money, so are insurance companies and drug suppliers. How some owners can afford 2 or 3 dogs I have no idea, not just vet and food etc but the cost of buying the dog, £2, 3, even 5000.

“The suicide rates for vets is at an all time high.”

Suicide rates correlate to having the means to do it, Farmers Doctors, Vets are high on the list.

Many veterinary practices have been taken over by big companies which are more interested in profit than animal welfare or the wellbeing of the veterinary staff.

One firm in particular, IVC Evidensia (IVC), is owned by Norwegian property mogul Christian Sinding.
His chain's UK revenues soared from £834million in 2020 to £1.2billion in 2022 as pet owners face progressively unaffordable bills.

Support independent vets if you can.

Thoughts on Vets. My dog needed an operation for teeth removal and they dis/de? aggregated the cost and asked me If I wanted to pay for fluid support for his kidneys throughout ( whaaaat !!!!).You would operate WITHOUT supporting his kidneys ????? I nearly fainted( and I have literally never fainted).
They were otherwise competent vets to be fair.
We had the most wonderful local vet when my beloved late dog died. Sympathetic but professional when he had to give us the hard advice.
Re aggression toward medical staff. I broke my wrist and had to have it "pulled" and then plastered. I was so frightened of the impending pain ( no need the anaesthetic kicked in ) I was nearly sick.The staff were so great( I told them so in no uncertain terms I was so grateful they all knew their job and did it). The A and E doctor said it was easier to work when someone was not being rude and abusive. True story. Horrendous , no???

buffyfly9

We are very fortunate to have a privately owned vet practice, lovely vets and staff and a very caring attitude. Our previous vet practice was bought out by one of the conglomerates and the fees went up. We also were told that our cat needed teeth cleaning and an operation slot was available the next day for £400, let's get her booked in !. We declined as I could see no evidence of decay or pain and being 13 an anaesthetic would be traumatic and unnecessary. We also noted that the new out of hours provider was over an hour away from where we lived, imagine the trauma of an animal in pain having to endure that. We were so lucky to find a new vet and our lovely pet was cared for there until she was 20 years old and no, she didn't need her teeth to be operated on (second opinion).

My out of hours vet is miles away but I can use another local one. I would assume that small practices struggle to buy drugs at a reasonable price. What is annoying is that I needed something for my dog that was quite cheap from vet med direct but prescription only. And my vet charges @ £50 to write out a prescription. I also realised that they had prescribed two items that shouldn’t be used together and when I pointed it out to them they reimbursed me.