The Washington Post sent out undercover shoppers to look at veterinary price quotes and found huge differences that seem to be entirely uncorrelated with quality. To make sure comparisons were equal, each veterinary practice was given detailed information about what services had to be included in the prices (for example, anesthetic, pre-surgical exam, blood work, etc.)
The spaying of a seven-month-old, 25-pound dog ranged from a low of $235 to a high of $1,210, with an average cost of $575.
Neutering a six-month-old, 30-pound dog ranged from a low of $237 to a high of $1,089 with an average cost of $555.
Lab analysis of a dog’s stool for worms ranged from $10 to $75 with an average cost of $43. For the record, a dog can be wormed for about $1.50 and no test is needed, and there is no harm done if there are no worms. Will a vet tell you this? Not in a million years.
Routine teeth cleaning of a six-year-old, 65-pound dog ranged from a low of $265 to a high of $1,074 with an average cost of $596. Is teeth cleaning of a 65-pound dog actually necessary? Again, don't look for a veterinarian to tell you it isn't; they invented this new business just as the every-year vaccine scam was being exposed.
Equally important, you want a vet who informs you about lower-cost care alternatives and doesn’t perform more procedures than necessary. Unfortunately, our survey question on “helping keep pet’s medical costs down” received the lowest survey scores. Many commented that vets not only failed to consider and discuss lower-cost treatment alternatives, but also pushed costly treatments of little value to the pet and owner.
Yep. Fencing out simple truths and cheaper remedies is a core business plan in the veterinary world. So too is fraud -- an idea sold to the veterinary trade by the same folks who convinced your doctor that upcoding, bill-padding, and medically unnecessary tests and treatments was the on-ramp to a second home.
A core part of almost every veterinary office is "concern trolling" by the receptionist or "vet tech" who has been told that this a core part of her job. Be aware and beware!
For those interested in containing veterinary costs, see How to Go To the Vet. More links below.
Related Links:
** Veterinary Trades Say It's Time to Rip-off the Rubes
** Vet Pricing Has Nothing To Do With Care
** "Well Patient" Visits Can Be Dangerous for Your Dog
** Vaccines for Less
** A Quick Guide to Common Canine Diseases
** The Billion Dollar Heartworm Scam
** Low Cost All-Worm Treatment
** Lyme Disease: Hard to Catch and Easy to Halt
** Cruciate Ligament Injuries in Dogs
** Grifting: The New Veterinary Stock in Trade
** Vet Pricing Has Nothing To Do With Care
** "Well Patient" Visits Can Be Dangerous for Your Dog
** Vaccines for Less
** A Quick Guide to Common Canine Diseases
** The Billion Dollar Heartworm Scam
** Low Cost All-Worm Treatment
** Lyme Disease: Hard to Catch and Easy to Halt
** Cruciate Ligament Injuries in Dogs
** Grifting: The New Veterinary Stock in Trade
** The Billion Dollar Vaccine Scam
** Rimadyl: Relief From a Swollen Wallet
** SuperGlue to Close Wounds
** Antibiotics for Less Without a Prescription
** Saving Big Money With a Ball Point Pen
** Bitter Pills and Veterinary Care
** Health Care Basics for Working Terriers and Other Dogs
** Is Your Veterinarian Clean? Don't Count On It.
** Year Round Dosing for Big Veterinary Profits
I have to laugh when the pet foolish nutrition experts claim over and over that "vets don't know anything about animal nutrition and what they do know was taught them by Hills." And "Vets sell expensive 'prescription' food because they make a lot of money from it." Of course the mark up on Rx diets is rather small and in the vet's defense, some of them are quite effective and why send someone with a sick dog away if they can leave with the right food?
ReplyDeleteThe biggest scam in veterinary medicine has to be blood and urine testing. The mark ups are whatever the traffic will bear. The vet can recommend needless tests because they are "harmless" and guilt you into accepting "gold standard" diagnostics. It costs the practice *nothing*. Any tech can draw blood or urine. Plus all of the work is usually done by an outside lab, primarily Antech, which is owned by VCA Veterinary Hospitals, a recently acquired division of Mars, who apart from being the largest pet food company in the world is one of the US' largest privately held companies, hence opaque. Of course Antech's "wholesale" price for testing probably varies very little from practice to practice; the prices the vet charges have no basis in reality.
This inflation of fees for blood tests is particularly hard on owners with elderly animals, who may be elderly themselves with limited means. Routine blood testing is helpful for senior pets and needs to be done semi-annually in some cases. For a senior well-pet check up to be padded with $200-300 in blood and urine tests is sinful.
As an aside, for years I have used the local Humane Society of New York clinic because they do not mark up routine tests. I have found that every middle aged animal I've had eventually needs a dental cleaning under anesthesia since they eat commercial food. Over the years the cost of this cleaning at a for-profit vet has risen to ~$800-1000. Until recently the HS was only charging $150 for the procedure for everything but extractions and painkillers. But clients were complaining about the extra cost for extractions and refusing to pay so now the price is $300, which includes *everything*. You must pay in advance and the wait is now 2-3 months for an appointment.
I don't' know which is worse: greedy vets or ignorant clients.
Vets do ok with food because they are selling dependency. Not only is it a weekly or monthly profit with repeat business, it’s a chance to upsell new services, tests, etc.
DeleteDo you know why human doctors are not alllowed to sell medicines and food? Because it’s bad medecine and an obvious conflict of interest.
Also, vets generally DON’T know anything about nutrition. Most have never seen a dog in proper weight and have NOT taken a nutrition course past the promo paid for by a dog food company. As a matter of fact, NO dog food has ever been shown to be better for the average pet than any other.