How much does your vet charge for taking a blood sample?

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Jsye

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I've had to have my gelding tested for cushings (came back positive) and was pretty gobsmacked when i got my bill - £30 for taking a blood sample with lab fees to follow!! (I've still not had the bill for these yet)

Is this normal? What price does everyone else pay for blood samples? Only because I'll have to get another done to check if the prascend is having the desired effect on his ACTH levels (his were measured at 96)

They also charged me £30 examination fee to feel his digital pulses and use hoof testers *grumbles*

Thanks
 
I think I paid pretty much the same as you. Around £30 for examination and £20 for sending the bloods off and interpretation of the results. The actual lab work was free with the voucher.

If its makes you feel any better, I just paid nearly £70 for a young vet to feel digital pulses, use hoof testers, chuck a poultice and vet wrap at me and leave. Misdiagnosed site of an abscess which required a farrier to sort out for free.
 
£9.50 ish to take blood, lab fees for re-test which can't remember, plus £4 ish postage to send blood to lab plus callout fee.
 
I think i need to clarify the lab fees today with my vet then! I think £30 just to take blood is extortionate compared to the £9.50-£13 you've just posted- especially since the lab fee invoice is 'to follow'.

This was all done by a young vet too - you have to pay extra for the head vet (understandably).

Thanks everyone
 
The cushings bloods are taken into tube (a special tube but I believe that they are provided by the liphook lab)
then they need to be spun down in a centrifuge (i.e put into different mini tubes) then the plasma is taken out (using a pippete) put into another special tube. Then it must be sent off fairly quickly, I think the lab expect special delivery (£5.00 + postage cost) because it is special delivery it can't be put through the post box so someone must take it to the post office. SO there is quite a bit of work before it gets to the lab. Also there is a form to fill out.(although nurse wages!) Although I do think it is maybe a bit steep as exam charge too? But shows the background work!
 
Yeah it sounds like a lot of work doing the actual lab work but i've not been billed for the lab fees (yet) but i would expect them to be £30+ but not the actual taking of the blood sample.

Got my statement last night and they've charged me £6 per hoof for applying a frog support, would have done it my bloody self if i knew they'd charge me that!
 
lizness said:
The cushings bloods are taken into tube (a special tube but I believe that they are provided by the liphook lab)
then they need to be spun down in a centrifuge (i.e put into different mini tubes) then the plasma is taken out (using a pippete) put into another special tube. Then it must be sent off fairly quickly, I think the lab expect special delivery (£5.00 + postage cost) because it is special delivery it can't be put through the post box so someone must take it to the post office. SO there is quite a bit of work before it gets to the lab. Also there is a form to fill out.(although nurse wages!) Although I do think it is maybe a bit steep as exam charge too? But shows the background work!
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Jsye said:
Yeah it sounds like a lot of work doing the actual lab work but i've not been billed for the lab fees (yet) but i would expect them to be £30+ but not the actual taking of the blood sample.

Got my statement last night and they've charged me £6 per hoof for applying a frog support, would have done it my bloody self if i knew they'd charge me that!
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OP, re-read what Lizness actually said. That is the work your vet does at their practice BEFORE the bloods go to the lab. The £30 fee for taking the bloods covers everything from the equipment used for the test, the expertise in getting the blood, the processing of the blood (spining, separating and chilling as above) and completing the paperwork, postage and packing, receiving the results, interpreting the results, time on the phone to the experts at the lab if necessary to discuss the results and finally time on the phone to you explaining the results. There is at least half an hours' work there by a professional person with a hard-earned degree and ongoing professional training, PLUS the cost of consumables. They are a business and not a charity.
Why should professionals give you their time, expertise and materials for free?
 
OP, vets have bills to pay too. I really don't think £30 is bad at all, esp if this includes call out and travel time/ mileage. Vets don't work for free and I get really annoyed when people think they should do everything at rock bottom price. They are qualified medical professionals and you are paying for this.
 
Wow guys - lets calm down . I've not asked for their time or materials for free! I was just asking what prices everyone else paid since I will be having to get this done a lot now to monitor his levels (and i've never had to pay for a blood test before its new territory for me). And yes I was quite frankly shocked that I was charged £12 for literally 30 seconds of the vets time wrapping vet wrap around each hoof. Obviously I don't expect them to just throw vet wrap and soffban at me for free I'm not delusional i expect to pay for any materials they use on my horse.

I don't expect everything at rock bottom price but I'd like to keep costs down as much as possible! (I also have other bills to pay too!)

My bill totalled £70 for this visit (blood test only inc call out fee)
 
Jsye said:
I think £30 just to take blood is extortionate
Thanks everyone
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Jsye said:
Wow guys - lets calm down . I've not asked for their time or materials for free! I was just asking what prices everyone else paid since I will be having to get this done a lot now to monitor his levels (and i've never had to pay for a blood test before its new territory for me).
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You said it was extortionate, I was explaining just how much work went into that £30. You just saw them stick a needle in a vein and thought 'money for old rope' when in fact that is only a tiny part of what they are charging for.
 
My vet came out for a chat about what was going on with him, a general check up (basic pulse, breathing, chest listen etc - not a 'vetting') sent away one tube of blood plus call out fee.... £270! Taking the absolute p*** in my opinion.
 
Jsye said:
Wow guys - lets calm down . I've not asked for their time or materials for free! I was just asking what prices everyone else paid since I will be having to get this done a lot now to monitor his levels (and i've never had to pay for a blood test before its new territory for me). And yes I was quite frankly shocked that I was charged £12 for literally 30 seconds of the vets time wrapping vet wrap around each hoof. Obviously I don't expect them to just throw vet wrap and soffban at me for free I'm not delusional i expect to pay for any materials they use on my horse.

I don't expect everything at rock bottom price but I'd like to keep costs down as much as possible! (I also have other bills to pay too!)

My bill totalled £70 for this visit (blood test only inc call out fee)
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Do you know, my farrier came out to find the source of bens abscess the other day, he found it and opened it to drain in seconds. He charged me £10, I said, wow! Cheap at twice the price! He then told me he had done the same a couple of weeks before and the woman complained "£10 for a couple of seconds work :mad:". To which he replied, that yes, a couple of seconds work, plus the travel, plus the years and years learning exactly what to look for and how to treat it. I'm sorry, but sometimes attitudes like this niggle me. Yes, you may be paying a little more than others, but the vets are allowed to set their own price, it's down to you who you chose to use but you asked them to do a job, they did it and well, you should pay without quibble IMO. Down here, the variation between what one practice and another charges is quite amazing, but they are totally within their rights to charge what they want. If they had done a poor job, I'd be taking an issue with that, but not for charging you their going rate for a job you asked them to do
 
I had my son's old loan pony blood tested (cushings too) and examined last year and it cost about £178.

I did query their charge for the visit though as under 5miles from their base is £12 but they had charged me the £30. I actually went and drove it myself and it was 4.8miles so I did get the reduction. :)

Hope you get your horse sorted out.
 
£90 to come out, take bloods and run them to test for liver enzymes and a call back later that day with the results. Given the struggle it is to get bloods out of her i don't begrudge the money! Im surprised they didn't add "danger money" on the invoice :p
 
Queenbee said:
Do you know, my farrier came out to find the source of bens abscess the other day, he found it and opened it to drain in seconds. He charged me £10, I said, wow! Cheap at twice the price! He then told me he had done the same a couple of weeks before and the woman complained "£10 for a couple of seconds work :mad:". To which he replied, that yes, a couple of seconds work, plus the travel, plus the years and years learning exactly what to look for and how to treat it. I'm sorry, but sometimes attitudes like this niggle me. Yes, you may be paying a little more than others, but the vets are allowed to set their own price, it's down to you who you chose to use but you asked them to do a job, they did it and well, you should pay without quibble IMO. Down here, the variation between what one practice and another charges is quite amazing, but they are totally within their rights to charge what they want. If they had done a poor job, I'd be taking an issue with that, but not for charging you their going rate for a job you asked them to do
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I don't think the OP said they weren't intending to pay, they were just benchmarking their vets fees against the market wihch imo is perfectly reasonable especially as this might be a regular cost for her. Its true that vets can charge what they like but customers still have the right to ask questions.
 
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