Vaccination cost - the drugs not the callout!

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I had my boy's annual booster done in January so got the bill today - callout was very very reasonable as it was a zone visit, but the drugs were £35.75+vat! That seems really expensive - do you pay that much for the drugs alone?
 

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I've just looked online and you can get it for £200 including VAT for 10 vials - so that is £20 including VAT for a vial.....hmmm....
 

be positive

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You would expect at least a 50% mark up on most drugs supplied by the vet, I pay £42 inc vat with no call out fee on a zone day, they expect payment on the day to save on sending out an invoice and I feel it is a good deal as they will be making very little by the time they have driven here, done a quick check on the heart, injected and signed the passport, they have to make something to pay for the fuel costs and time.
Having had a previous vet charge almost £50 on top of a liveries bill when he stayed an extra 15 mins having a coffee I appreciate my new vets who never rush and charge set call out fees, the next time that vet came he was not offered coffee and the bill was at the "normal" rate, we quickly learned not to keep him here chatting.
 

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I did wonder about their zone days but I guess they have to make their money somehow still - the vet was lovely with my boy now I think about it, so on reflection I shall pay up and shut up - it is worth it for the peace of mind of knowing they are on hand :)
 

Puzzled

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I got one of mine done when they had an offer on. No call out (it's always free on certain days) and pay for first jab get second free. Worked out at £34 for the first two injections.
 

SusieT

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and how do you expect your vet to make a living if they sell you the vials at cost price? You will of course have factored in the cost of the fridge to store the vials, the receptionist to makeyour appointment, the car the vet drove to see you?
 

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and how do you expect your vet to make a living if they sell you the vials at cost price? You will of course have factored in the cost of the fridge to store the vials, the receptionist to makeyour appointment, the car the vet drove to see you?

Well at least some of those costs should be incorporated into the call out fee I am charged (e.g the whole point of a call out fee is surely to cover vehicle costs as well as the vets time and expertise?) And quite frankly if I can buy the drugs for £20 a vial as Joe Public there is no way on earth that a large equine veterinary practice will pay anything like that. I was simply pointing out that they have put over an 100% mark up on the drugs compared to what I can get online, which in my opinion is excessive.
 

Jim bob

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For my horses its 35 for flu and tet and 48 for call out. but generally we have a few people for jabs at the same time so works out cheaper
 

BlairandAzria

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Lévrier;13163762 said:
Well at least some of those costs should be incorporated into the call out fee I am charged (e.g the whole point of a call out fee is surely to cover vehicle costs as well as the vets time and expertise?) And quite frankly if I can buy the drugs for £20 a vial as Joe Public there is no way on earth that a large equine veterinary practice will pay anything like that. I was simply pointing out that they have put over an 100% mark up on the drugs compared to what I can get online, which in my opinion is excessive.

As someone who has first hand experience of ordering vaccines for a vet practice they don't get a bulk discount , the ones that are part of a big chain might get it, but your bog standard small equine practice doesn't. Even things like wormers etc they often cannot get any cheaper than retail. You then have to factor in the skill needed to complete the procedure and expertise of a veterinary surgeon, insurance etc.
 

oldie48

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I have just paid £42.91 for a prequenza booster. I took the horse to the vets as they are quite near but the vet did do a quick health check at the same time but the charge was just for the drug.
 

ester

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and how do you expect your vet to make a living if they sell you the vials at cost price? You will of course have factored in the cost of the fridge to store the vials, the receptionist to makeyour appointment, the car the vet drove to see you?

they syringe, the needle, the vet to inject the drugs if that wasn't charged separately?
 

fatpiggy

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But a veterinary practice isn't a charity, at the end of the day it is a business that needs funds to set up, funds to run and funds to replace/improve. If you only charge the base unit, trade price you could never pay yourself a wage. My horse vets were great and actually advised me to buy the prescription drugs on line because they knew I could get it cheaper, and the controlled drugs they never added a penny to. That drug costs me £400 a month every month and they knew what a struggle it was for me as it was a chronic problem. My cat vets are great too. I usually seem to see the practice owner and in the past he has said, well we could keep her in and do x y and z tests on her, but she's an old cat so we'll just treat the symptoms and not worry about what is causing it. I love my vets!
 

applecart14

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Its like the ethanol fusion my horse had for his hocks. The actual injection of alcohol was about £1.15 but the 'injection technique', aseptic clean, xrays, interpretation of xrays, sedation, etc brought it up to £300. Still worth while though, not complaining :)

And our vet charges for 'aseptic injection technique' as well as the cost of the drugs. And 'interpretation of xrays' too. Not sure if this is standard with all vets or not.

My vet does a zone visit, and if the day your area falls on this zone day then it is free travel I think. This is only for routine stuff though.
 

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i can appreciate the points put across - personally I would prefer that my vet detailed the 'other costs' separately if they wish to bill me for them rather than wrapping them up into the cost of the drugs
 

fatpiggy

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Lévrier;13167349 said:
i can appreciate the points put across - personally I would prefer that my vet detailed the 'other costs' separately if they wish to bill me for them rather than wrapping them up into the cost of the drugs

Well you could request it, but that will cost in terms of the practice secretary having to type them up separately or alter the print-out template in the computer. So more expense! And I'm not sure that they WISH to bill you for the items you are concerned about - I think you will find that they WILL bill you anyway and you have no choice but to pay them.
 

fatpiggy

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Lévrier;13163762 said:
Well at least some of those costs should be incorporated into the call out fee I am charged (e.g the whole point of a call out fee is surely to cover vehicle costs as well as the vets time and expertise?) And quite frankly if I can buy the drugs for £20 a vial as Joe Public there is no way on earth that a large equine veterinary practice will pay anything like that. I was simply pointing out that they have put over an 100% mark up on the drugs compared to what I can get online, which in my opinion is excessive.

You go into Asda and buy a bottle of wine for £5 and probably think that is a reasonable price. Except Asda will have paid the wholesaler £1 a bottle for that same stuff. Many shops run on a 400% mark up. And that is why they can afford 50% off prices - because they are still making a profit. Fact of life.
 

Lgd

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The online prices are way cheaper due to bulk buying power.
I get a prescription from my vet for my old girl's Danilon as I can get it cheaper than they do at trade price!
 

oldie48

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Mmmm but the cost would be the same. when I go into a shop and buy a dress i don't expect the shop to bill me with the price they have paid for the dress + their overhead costs for the shop, their staff, their advertising etc etc, they just give me the overall costs. TBH I don't think vets make a fortune, they have years of training, they work very long hours and equine vets have a very high risk of work related injury. I really don't begrudge paying my vet bills, it's part and parcel of horse ownership.
Lévrier;13167349 said:
i can appreciate the points put across - personally I would prefer that my vet detailed the 'other costs' separately if they wish to bill me for them rather than wrapping them up into the cost of the drugs
 

wench

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The vets I use for a zone call out is circa £45 for a vaccination, or the local vet you can walk to is cheaper.

I'd prefer to use the walk to vet but can't get the time off work so it's the more expensive option. Having said that, I don't complain about the vaccination being more expensive as it avoids their £70 call out fee
 

SuperH

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I paid £28 for two ponies to have the combined flu/tet booster in January (so £14 each). Not including call out. Our vet charges no mark up on any drugs. Then you pay £1.50 per minute for their time (I was billed for two minutes for jabbing them), plus call out.
 

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For the hours they work, for quite literally risking their own safety as a matter of normality to save our horses, for their comparatively low wages (based on hours, not sure some would even make minimum wage) and for the fact that they are not running charities, but professional businesses, I would never query a mark up like that.

I have contested a vet bill in the past, but over an extortionate charge for something that wasn't actually provided. Other than that, I'm happy to pay what's needed and I would never want it detailed. ..it doesn't make sense to create more work?

Thank goodness they exist, usually with good humor or wonderful compassion regardless of a 3pm call out.
 

AandK

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My horses jab done end of Nov was £32.47 +VAT (so £38.96 total - call out fee extra - no zone days in my area!), I am in the South East.
I have to be honest, I have never even thought how much the vaccine itself cost compared to what I pay. Vets do a great job in often challenging conditions so I don't begrudge paying them what they charge (even if it does seem a bit high sometimes!)
ETA: I would be happy to pay a bit extra for the jab if my practice did zone days (i.e. no call out charge)
 
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OldNag

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For the hours they work, for quite literally risking their own safety as a matter of normality to save our horses, for their comparatively low wages (based on hours, not sure some would even make minimum wage) and for the fact that they are not running charities, but professional businesses, I would never query a mark up like that.

I have contested a vet bill in the past, but over an extortionate charge for something that wasn't actually provided. Other than that, I'm happy to pay what's needed and I would never want it detailed. ..it doesn't make sense to create more work?

Thank goodness they exist, usually with good humor or wonderful compassion regardless of a 3pm call out.

Agree with this. I think my equine vets are pretty excellent value. I consider myself lucky that they are my locsl practice.

They seem to charge a lot less than my dog/cat practice, who don't have to drive all over to see their clients.
 
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