$600 does seem a bit steep, but I’m in the Midwest, so… I think when we had Delilah done at a year we were quoted $400 from our normal vet. We ended up using a previous vet that offered to do it for $120. This was on a 50lb or so Boxer.
In the northeast I had an over $400 quote to get my dog neutered, he’s a poodle mix and small. That was steep and we went to another clinic in town. 1st vet is know for being pricey but they have great customer service. The other guy is a good vet but has terrible people skills… we ended up going back to the $$$ vet just because he was very rude to DH one day.
[QUOTE=Tom King;8213347]
I think our vet gets 80 for spaying, and 60 for neutering, and he’s never lost one, I’ve never known of one not to have an easy recovery. We have puppy owners drive four or five hours back rather than spend 600 where they are.
He has over 40 years of experience. No more expensive vet practice is better in any way.
Southside Va. PM me if interested.[/QUOTE]
If “some” vets can do it for $60 to $80 …how can another rationalize charging $600 to $800. That is crazy IMO!! Lets get more animals spayed and neutered at “reasonable” costs!! I just got an young adult cattle dog neutered for $75…the going rate in our area. I’d fall over if a vet quoted hundreds of $$!! Back a day or two ago…our horse vet would do farm/tom cats for $10!! With proper meds!! All survived JUST FINE!!
[QUOTE=chism;8213564]
Anyone from the Northeast care to chime in? None of the prices listed so far come close to what I was quoted (around $600). I have a good relationship with my vet, am very happy with the care. I feel that it’s the right thing to have him do it since I already inquired and booked my pre-surgical appt, but I may not be able to eat this month.[/QUOTE]
I am sorry but that is way too much for a routine thing like spaying and they wonder why shelters are full 
I paid $230+I had a $90 rebate from shelter. I thought that was too much also. When I picked up my dog she was groggy and had pee all over herself. I felt kinda vindicated when she barfed & pooped on the floor as I was paying the bill.
I later found out another vet close would have done it for the voucher cost alone because she wanted people to be able to afford to actually do it and keep pet overpopulation under control.
I would look for a low cost spay/ neuter clinic if there is one close. Just cancel well ahead of time if you find one.
ETA: I was in Minnesota then.
The last dog spay I had done cost about $500 at my regular vet. I was shocked at the cost, as the most previous one had been about 10 yrs ago for under $200. In the end, I was extremely glad I used the usual vet, as there were some complications, which were treated FOR FREE. I don’t think the local low cost place would have done that, but I could be wrong.
[QUOTE=hoopoe;8213608]
what an interesting world view
OP If over monitoring you pet before and during surgery is important , then go with it.
There are plenty of low cost clinics who can do a fast safe and competent job for you. The advent of the pre-op blood, EKG, fluid ,blood pressure monitoring yadda yadda yadda comes as a means to generate income.
Is it needed? well I worked in vet clinical for 20 years and I would say not really.
Unless your dog has some underlying issue, the surgical safety is only as good as the technician monitoring them. If you are lucky they have had formal training, if you are real lucky they know what all the monitoring equipment means and how to respond to correct things when it goes poorly
I am sure you can find a reputable low cost service in your area
You can also decline all the extra pre and surgical monitoring at many places. If they wont let you, take it elsewhere.[/QUOTE]
hoopoe - So are you the client that refuses any pre-anesthetic bloodwork/IVF for your pet and then blames the vet when something goes wrong under anesthesia?
[QUOTE=crosscreeksh;8213980]
If “some” vets can do it for $60 to $80 …how can another rationalize charging $600 to $800. That is crazy IMO!! Lets get more animals spayed and neutered at “reasonable” costs!! I just got an young adult cattle dog neutered for $75…the going rate in our area. I’d fall over if a vet quoted hundreds of $$!! Back a day or two ago…our horse vet would do farm/tom cats for $10!! With proper meds!! All survived JUST FINE!![/QUOTE]
High quality suture material alone costs just under $40 for a dog spay. If some veterinarians are willing to do surgery massively below cost does not mean that the rest of us should be vilified for charging a more reasonable rate for our skills. If the comparable surgery in a human goes for 30k, $500 seems awfully reasonable (and still more than I charge). There are some older veterinarians who no longer have student debt, a practice loan, or updated equipment. I have vastly more equipment in my office than my GP. Her start up practice cost her well under 100k, mine is cheap by veterinary standards at just under $500k. Spaying and neutering is an anticipated part of pet ownership. And since the only rich veterinarians I know come from inherited wealth, what is being charged in any given area is what is needed to cover costs of running the business and provide something resembling a reasonable standard of living for the veterinarian working well over forty hours a week in most cases.
[QUOTE=crosscreeksh;8213980]
If “some” vets can do it for $60 to $80 …how can another rationalize charging $600 to $800. That is crazy IMO!! Lets get more animals spayed and neutered at “reasonable” costs!! I just got an young adult cattle dog neutered for $75…the going rate in our area. I’d fall over if a vet quoted hundreds of $$!! Back a day or two ago…our horse vet would do farm/tom cats for $10!! With proper meds!! All survived JUST FINE!![/QUOTE]
Actually, I hold myself to a higher standard than my patients just surviving their surgeries “just fine” as being the marker of success. Having done spays for $200+ with IV fluids, BP monitoring, pre-/intra- and post-op pain meds AND having done the exact same surgeries at a low cost clinic without fluids, pain meds, etc., I can tell you that the aforementioned pets act like they feel much better and recover much more quickly. If you are taking a beloved pet in for surgery, don’t fool yourself into thinking that you are getting the same quality of care at a low cost clinic. If you recognize the difference, and understand the risks and possible consequences, then a low cost clinic may be a great option (I wouldn’t do it if I didn’t think so). However, I basically do the low cost surgeries as volunteer work, as the money I make those days barely covers my gas. There is NO WAY we could afford to do our regular surgeries for those costs without increasing prices for everything else (which is what is happening at most practices as they drop prices on certain services to match vaccine clinics, etc.) As it is, I barely make enough to afford to keep my kid in daycare. In the end, the money to pay for the staff and supplies/overhead has to come from somewhere whether that is donations (in the case of non-profit clinics), government subsidies, or the client. Also remember that if your pet has a complication after surgery such as a seroma or incisional problem, most low cost clinics are not set up to provide any follow-up, whereas I’ve answered questions via text or phone for worried clients of ours on the weekends, etc.
In our area, spaying a medium-large dog seems to run anywhere from $350-$1000. Some clinics do the procedure at cost because they don’t want their clients to put off having the spay because of money worries. I am not convinced that the $350 clinic provides less monitoring than the $1000 clinic. Both clinics have good reputations. I admit that I would be tempted to delay if we used a clinic that charged $1000.
[QUOTE=sockmonkey;8213817]
I wouldn’t call good veterinary medicine “over monitoring.” I had an associate just the other day do a “routine” declaw on a 4 month old kitten. No pre-surgical blood work. Anesthesia went great. Woke up from anesthesia. But then suddenly died. Could doing blood work have clued her in that something was brewing? Possibly.
I was scheduled to spay a Schnauzer puppy. Did pre-op blood work. Very elevated liver values. Turned out to have a liver shunt. Very easily could have not woken up from anesthesia. She looked perfectly happy.
I could go on for days as I’ve been doing this for 15 years. As far as vets go, there’s no such thing as over-monitoring. We always want to hear that beep-beep as we do surgery. We always want someone standing there in case that beep-beep stops so they can get the lidocaine or atropine in fast. If that were your dog, so would you. Stuff happens, even to what looks like a perfectly healthy puppy.
Are we in this to make money? Of course. Do you want to make money at your job? Of course. We have a business to run. Staff to pay. Inventory to buy, rent to pay, etc. But we don’t jack up prices just because. We are practicing GOOD MEDICINE.
It’s okay that people go to the spay/neuter clinic. But when you pet gets sick (not from their work, that’s not what I’m saying) you will come to us because they don’t do that. The one near us doesn’t even do a pyometra or a C-section. They just don’t know how. They don’t know how to do a small mass removal. They don’t know how. We will see you then.[/QUOTE]
YES!!! :yes: As my boss likes to say, would you go around shopping for the best price for your mother’s hysterectomy?!?!? Spaying is routine in that it is done all the time, but it is still abdominal surgery. It carries lots of risks.
For younger animals, our spays run around $340, and neuters around $250. We do pre-anesthetic blood work, IV catheter, all are intubated and put on gas even the cat neuters. Monitoring includes EKG, pulse oximeter, and indirect blood pressure. All animals get IV fluids during the procedure. They are monitored after anesthesia to make sure waking up goes smoothly. Truthfully, I don’t think we are over montioring. I would love to have a capnography and a few other bells and whistles.
I just did a cat neuter today and everything went great. It was great to hear the beep beeping and be able to look at the monitor if I heard anything change to see what was going on. Even for a less than 10 minute procedure, its nice to know that my patient is doing well.
Thanks everyone for your replies. I’d like to add that I live in a part of the country where everything is expensive… so I don’t think the super low cost rates listed by some of the posters are the norm here, even for subsidized clinics.
Edit - just did a search on a local low cost clinic web page. Quote on web site was $250 for dogs over 40 lbs, and says dogs over 60 lbs (which my dog is) are “full price”, but it doesn’t say what full price is.
[QUOTE=chism;8214383]
Thanks everyone for your replies. I’d like to add that I live in a part of the country where everything is expensive… so I don’t think the super low cost rates listed by some of the posters are the norm here, even for subsidized clinics.[/QUOTE]
The ASPCA’s low cost mobile spay/neuter clinic is (last I checked) $125 in NYC. That’s about as low as it goes around here.
[QUOTE=french fry;8214389]
The ASPCA’s low cost mobile spay/neuter clinic is (last I checked) $125 in NYC. That’s about as low as it goes around here.[/QUOTE]
What does one do if their animal has complications after they take it home?
[QUOTE=chism;8214390]
What does one do if their animal has complications after they take it home?[/QUOTE]
I assume go to a regular practice or a vet hospital if needed. I’ve never done it myself; was just looking into options for a run of strays a few months ago.
[QUOTE=chism;8214390]
What does one do if their animal has complications after they take it home?[/QUOTE]
They call their “normal” vet as one did last week at my practice. They ended up not bringing in the dog, so I guess she was fine.
[QUOTE=Beethoven;8214394]
They call their “normal” vet as one did last week at my practice. They ended up not bringing in the dog, so I guess she was fine.[/QUOTE]
I would feel like a POS if I went to a low cost clinic, and then had to call my normal vet. It’s would be like getting caught cheating. lol
Anecdotally, the dogs/cats at most rescues I volunteer for get the “down and dirty” ASPCA spays/neuters (not via mobile clinic but still) and the number of complications is super low.
FWIW, I called every vet practice I could think of just yesterday when I was trying to get a stray kitten looked at and not a single one would even waive (or discount!) the visit fee. Had I ended up with the kitten I would have certainly used the mobile clinic for the eventual neuter. Possible complications from the procedure were still better than life as a stray…
(To be clear, the kitten was going to be rehomed - I can’t adopt another.)
I will never understand why people think that vets should waive fees for anything. Just because you found or rescued an animal does not mean we should do our job for free. We still have to pay our staff, our bills, light our lights, pay student loans. We don’t get to go to the grocery store and say to them, “if you really loved produce, you would give me that head of lettuce for free. Obviously you don’t really care about your job. You’re just in it for money.” You who is charging me $2.90 a gallon for gas, I just spayed a rescue dog for free, so I should get my gas for free. It doesn’t work like that. I don’t get free stuff, so why should anyone else. Do you realize how ridiculous that sounds? “I’m sorry head tech, I can’t pay you because we do cheap spays and everyone wants free exams for kittens they ‘found’. Maybe next week I can pay you.”
I’m sorry to be the one to break the news, but veterinary medicine is a business like any other. Yes, we love animals. Yes, we want to help you and your animals. If we really, really could, we would do it for free. But the sad reality is we can’t. You have to take on that burden yourself when you take on an animal. If you can’t afford the life long financial care of your pet, you should reconsider taking him on.
Part of the reason that veterinarians are suiciding so frequently recently is the empathy burnout and guilt from people who are demanding free/discounted services. It isn’t fair to put this on us. We are trying to provide the best medicine for your animals and for you given your financial constraints. It’s not an easy job.
I think you missed the part where it wasn’t my pet? It was a stray. A stray I was not able to keep but was trying to help and was willing to pay for services for.
Having seen numerous veterinary practices waive the visit fee for adopted animals from various rescues, I didn’t think my request (not demand) was majorly out of line. I feel absolutely no shame that I explained upfront that I was trying to get a stray kitten looked at to see if it was just lethargic and wormy or if it was sick with something that would mandate euthanasia and asked if there was any kind of discount for strays or if they knew of any resources as the rescues are all full.
I wasn’t villainizing the vet practices that wouldn’t waive the visit fee, I was simply trying to provide context for the need for a service like a low cost clinic. Because otherwise my option is to leave the strays on the street where I found them.
(And I do in fact do my job for free when I can help a worthy cause or organization, so you’ve lost me there, too.)
We see a LOT of post op spays gone wrong… mostly acute kidney failure because patients were either given pain meds without adequate blood pressure or hydration during the spay, or because of pre existing conditions.
So, saying monitoring blood pressure is for “money” is ridiculous. And any well educated technician should know what to do when blood pressure does become low.
