Vet bill rant........

Vickijay

Vickijay

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Hi,

Just thought I would get this off my chest on here!!!

I just got a bill through from my vets for fixing a uterine infection in one of my mares as she wasnt taking after being AI'd.

In fairness he did come out 4 times. Altho the first time he was there for about 15 mins, to scan and swab. The other times he arrived, hand/tube up, antibiotics in, hand out, DONE, literally there for about 3-4 mins (at a push)

So how much was the bill.................... over £700
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thats £25.90 per min!!!
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(I know its not really as its a visit fee each time but hey lol)

Bloody horses. There rant over!!! Has anyone else had stuff like this? The least my mare could do now is be pregnant lol.... Thats next Thursdays scan excitment...

Vicki x
 
I dont know that they would off as she wasnt ill with it, just unable to get pregnant
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She had been on loan to a stud who basically buggered about and were useless so I got her back, altho she is insured again now, she wasnt with them so I have to pay it as they have to wait 30 days which would of put breeding this season out of the question!
Sods law
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I personally thing that the Vet bills have got out of hand big style but not only for horses but especially for dogs and cats. I have recently moved from a practice who's first question is always "is he/she insured" - why do they ask that? Problem is its the daft horse owner whom is suffering. Ok the vets are getting the dosh - and boy round here they certainly know how to charge - but the poor insurance companies are coughing up and yep guess who pays for that.

The problem is that vets do not understand that they are currently killing the goose that lays the golden egg and in another couple of years no one will be insured and many owners will only call the vets out as a last resort. Whislt I am on my rant I personally think that this yearly flu injection is beyond a joke. We are starting to see a lot of older horses having huge reactions each time they are injected. Three horses on my yard were seriously ill two years ago and now have to be "pre injected" before being "routinely" injected.
 
It is a joke, I wouldnt mind if it really was for something but you think its just a joke.

We must all be mugs, I know I certainly am!

I hope shes pregnant more than anything, Im not convinced tho
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It would just be the way this year is going

x
 
I wish insurance companies had "nominated vets" so when your pony gets a deep but not life threatening cut they allow you to go and collect some antibiotics and some gel and some bute rather than come out and either:-

A) charge you £125 for 7 satches of antibiotics and washing the cut out with hibi scrub or
B) say the kick is so close to a major joint that if an immediate x ray is not taken - you may loose the horse
C) the horse is going to die unless it goes to the equine clinic and has an immediate blood transfusion.
D) An antibiotic injection and bute and then repeat visits over the bank holiday weekend for wound cleaning and more anitbiotic injections

I know all of the above are true as they have happened either to me or to a friend within the last 12 months
 
That does seem very steep, we are farmers so have vet out often for one thing or another. Our vets charge £20 call out fee (any time day or night) we live 5 miles from practice. And thereafter £70 per hour (they changed this recently, so you are charged by time). Obviously drugs / scanning / xrays and the like all charged on top of this. We are in SW Scotland and I do think it is much cheaper up here than for those of you further down south.
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and to add to gingerwitch

an out of ours call out to change a dressing
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, even though i had a pre booked appointment (a week before) for during the day, as they forgot
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why they couldnt have just given me the things i needed to change the dressing is completely beyond me
 
lol @ Gingerwitch

How true! I took my spotty baby to Liphook as she had puffy legs and shes only a yearling. She was there with the vet 5 mins, 2 lots of antibiotics and sent home. That cost me £300 as he had given her some very pricey antibiotics that were £140 for 6 tiny tubes! She had a virus and was far less puffy the next day. When I questioned it when I got the bill the vet said it was a normal treatment for horses that had had a colic op-- SHE DIDNT HAVE COLIC LET ALONE A OPERATION FOR IT
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My horses have it in for me at the mo, my event horse sliced the back of his fetlock off going XC, spotty dottie had a virus and tragic cant get pregnant BLODDY HORSES
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I just received a vet bill for 2 call outs both times exactly the same treatment consiting of sedation, shockwave treatment x 4 and 2 joint injections, same vet £58 more expensive on one day than the other day and the home shockwave treatment was 1/3rd of the price that i paid when he was in hospital work that one out!!!!!!!
 
my last collection of vets bills has just topped the £500 mark only to find that really there doesn't appear to be much wrong with my horse. from one vet we thought blood test results were awful so booked him in for scoping to be told by another vet doing scoping that blood results were borderline, not quite right but nothing really. we also recently removed vet fees from his insurance cos he's got so many exclusions it didn't seem worth the extra money plus there was a £500 excess on it
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Do you use the same vets every time for breeding???

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Yeah, as he is a special stud vet. Altho if she isnt pregnant now she will have to go somewhere else to be AI'd on this next cycle as she should come in when hes away and I wouldnt want to wait then PG her in again. She is sorted to go to the Pelion stud and its there vet thats coming to scan her on Thurs...
Hectic
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I can top all of that.....
Couple of months ago we had a nasty cough/nasal discharge doing the rounds My big lad gets it and boy does he get man flu (lol), pouring the ground and moaning, leaning up against the wall and rolling his eyes - even refused a carrot. So get vets out - to be fair they are there within an hour (9.30 am arrival) - well by some chance the vets hear one of the other horses in my block coughing. They are with same vets practice......so I end up paying for my vet to look at another persons horse ! To add insult to injury MY VET tells me he is taking swabs and bloods from MY HORSE so when others on the yard go down with it they will know what to perscribe. Thanks for that I thought
 
[ QUOTE ]
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Do you use the same vets every time for breeding???

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Yeah, as he is a special stud vet.

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How many mares do you breed a year??
 
I have another horror story... my old girl had some huge lumps just over 3 years ago. I thought they were infected fly bites as it was summer. They were weeping, and vets were convinced she had an allergy or had suddenly stared to suffer with sweet itch - she is 23 years old. She was diagnoesed a course of steriods ~(hate the things incase they bring on secondary laminitus) and anti histamine and antibiotics. She had to be stabled in the day and turned out at night, she was fully clipped, bathed in saltly warm water twice a day and had to have a boet rug. The condition did not improve and she was extreamly "tetchey" in the end I spent just over 1500 quid having tests done on her, bloods, skin scrapes, round punchings taken from her back etc - not insured by the way.

I waited for the cultures to grow and eventually after 3 weeks of chasing I got a phone call to tell me she had an allergy... no Sh!t sherlock but if I wanted to know what it was caused by I needed to pay for more tests.............!!!!

I moved yards, problem went away???? now was it anything to do with the standing stagnant water round the turn out field ??? but i know nothing as i am a (poor) mere mortal......
 
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How many mares do you breed a year??

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Just this one!

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Bugger, thought you may have a few, in which case I was going to suggest phoning them to say that your business will go elsewhere unless they sort the bills out.

Either way, I'd be saying no. The treatment (not the drugs) should have been part of your package....
 
The one thing i would love to know is why do vets charge you a call out fee and then an "investigation fee". I have no wish to call a vet out to my yard for the fun of it, and when he gets there say "oh i just wanted a call out". You could argue that if two or more share then the call out fee gets split- our vets had 6 horses to see one day -i know cos 3 of em were mine, and the other 3 were my pals horses. Guess what the vets did..... they sent 3 vets so we could each pay for half a call out.... wasnt that considerate of em.. cos they really did not want us to wait.... even though i was handling all of the appointments.
 
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Bugger, thought you may have a few, in which case I was going to suggest phoning them to say that your business will go elsewhere unless they sort the bills out.


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I know, that would of been a good thing, but with only 1 girlie you dont have much leverage.
I also had to have it fixed before I even decided to try this season with her so they got out of it being included in my AI package, oh well you live and learn. They did give me a good deal on my AI package tho which makes me feel slightly less bitter
 
I recently ended up on right side of vet bill when i called vet out to my horses massive sheath he wa at yard about 20 mins and left several butes to help with pain and swelling. I waited and waited for bill it never came and when routine vacs were done was sure they was gonna ask for it but got to look at computer and no record of it.some people may think its dishonest but they have had thousands off me in tests and more tests and repeat visits and physio sorry to go on but i really whooped when i saw i had had the visit for free
 
Do you reckon that when you phone up to book your appointment with the vets receptionist twhen she enters your name the screen turns various colours... Red = tight git wont pay for anything unless they really really have to - and forget the pts this one is off to the knackers....Yellow= could be swayed with a bit of pressure to pay for daft things and can persuade us to look after the cremation as well. Green= covered by insurance go get it upto £ 4 k.....AND THEN THE rolling screen with lemons dropping down and kerching sounds for us numptys who appear to have more money than sence where the old animals are concerned and keep saying "yes vet if you think that will help". I am defo the "lemons and kerching one" lol
 
i do agree vet bills are very high, but our horse vet is wonderful he always lets us pay big bills in instalments. Thank you Peter xxx Also i can ring him for advice during the day and he will talk me through stuff and is never in a hurry to get me off the phone , he does'nt charge for advice over the phone.
 
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