I just got a quote from my vet to spay my puppy and it was a gut check. So, I wanted to ask around and see what some of the common prices were these days when going through your regular vet. My quote was around 1K. I thought spaying was the responsible thing to do…but I can see that price dissuading a lot of people!
Google spay/neuter assistance near you. Not all of them require a low income, but some may require you do it at the facility/vet they specify. When I got mine spayed two years ago, I didn’t qualify for free spaying, but did qualify for a reduced cost spay at a particular vet’s office that works with this county humane society. It’s a good vet, so I didn’t hesitate. I can’t remember exactly how much it cost, but I’m thinking in the $300 range (included pain meds, trazadone, and follow-up visit).
That sounds in line with what you should expect to pay for the anesthesia, procedure, aftercare, medication, etc for a large breed dog in a HCOL area. A lot of practices here are requiring blood tests before anesthesia which also drives the costs up.
It was in the $600-800 range pre-COVID to spay a large dog at my vet practice. I’m sure it’s gone up since.
My regular vet practice quoted me $365 per spay for the pregnant feral cat I trapped in March and her kittens. I ended up shopping around as well. Since these were kittens from a feral cat, I qualified for a low-cost spaying that did TNR / feral spays only. See if there are options near you but be prepared for some sticker shock – spaying is much more complicated than neutering and it is expensive these days.
$1K seems awful high to me, but it’s been years since I’ve had a dog spayed. Is she a big dog?
9 pound small breed puppy in January, including optional additional blood work and an umbilical hernia repair, roughly $300. Not a particularly low or high cost area.
24 hour stay at the clinic. She was not in heat (I’ve heard that costs more).
ETA: this was NOT a low-cost spay/neuter clinic, but the local, long-established independent practice a couple of miles away, where I’ve been going for years. Of course it included pain management, medications, etc.
They love her there, by the way, and the feeling is mutual. It does my heart good to see her wiggling with joy when a tech comes out to take her, and giving kisses while the tech loves on her.
I’d expect about a grand with pre op bloodwork, intra op fluids and monitoring, and post op pain meds (in my high cost of living area.)
You can do a spay at a low cost clinic without all of those things, though, for a lot less $$. Risk is higher, and major abdominal surgery without post op pain management may be kind of … cruel. But lots of people certainly go that route.
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I was recently quoted $500 for pre op blood work, extra monitor stuff during procedure, normal spay (not in heat or pregnant) and post op pain meds for a 51 lbs 5 year old Mal that’s already completely up to date with all vet administered vaxx.
I was told a few lbs heavier would increase price, as would needing vaxx of course
Simkie is right. The low cost spay/neuter clinics are just the procedure only. No observation, no IV or medication and no post op pain management protocol.
One of the kittens I took to the TNR low cost spay/neuter clinic got very ill post surgery. It took her over a month to return to normal. It was extremely hard on her, and it was hard to watch and not feel guilty for our hand in it. Luckily our vet gave us some stuff to help her. I will never go that route again, though I am grateful these clinics exist. Frankly, I think we very nearly lost her and we’re so lucky she pulled through.
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I can’t recall off the top of my head exactly what it cost to get my latest female kitty spayed, but it was in the $225 - $250 range, including her stay, and her first set of shots.
If my vet ever quoted me $1,000 for a spay, I’d have kittens myself!
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Thanks. I’m planning this about 3 months out thinking I’d be ahead of the game knowing places are getting booked up. Evidently 3 months isn’t even far enough in advance. I was planning to have it done at 10 months and I really don’t want to let her go longer than that. A co-worker thinks she paid 800 about a yr ago and I live in a HCOL location, a bit more than where she lives. Oh my, I think I may have to suck it up, it’s important. …My parents live in a cheaper area, maybe I’ll ask them to get a quote from their vet, ha and then have my poor old mom watch her for a week. I’m a nice grown adult daughter like that 
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That sounds like a good plan to me! I cannot imagine paying $1000 for a routine spay. My fabulous vet is 299. That includes everything.
Just had a small dog done for $400 with bloodwork and IV’s, brought her home that night.
There is a low-cost spay/neuter clinic here call C-Snip. They do cats for $50 and dogs for $115. That includes only that service; shots, microchipping, etc. is additional.
I got an abandoned kitten done last fall and am planning to trap a stray cat (who visits my porch daily—I put food out for it) to have it done. They MAY be other stray cats visiting the ‘food bank’, but it’s one at a time here.
We had our mini poodle spayed at a little over 1 yr old. She was roughly 10 lbs. our vet quoted 650.
The shelter I foster for includes altering with all their kittens at 4-5 months old. They use a mobile vet clinic. Spayed both my kittens, I paid extra for pain meds. They quoted around 200 to spay our dog. I asked our foster coordinator if she’d trust them with her personal pets, and she had. So I went with them.
It is an assembly line, more or less. They spayed and she was home in about 2 hrs. Everything went great. I had them neuter my Maine coon, 1/3 of the price, no problems. They are about 1/3 the cost for teeth cleaning too.
Had there been issues, I’d have had to go to emergency vet and saved nothing. But even if regular vet had spayed, issues would cost more. I’m always nervous, but luckily everyone has been fine. It’s a routine surgery, until it’s not.
Might be worth checking into a mobile vet. Just research the heck out of them
I did end up calling my parents vet, located in a more rural area. $239 TOTAL. I asked if she was sure that was total and she said it’d only be more if the dog also needed vaccinations. It’s worth the gas money and 2 hr drive each way.
My parents fully trust that vet and have been going there for years. Our first dog that went there used to run the clinic when my parents were out of town. I once walked in to find only one person at the reception desk, no one else around–yep, it was my dog. We both did a double take. --Smartest dog I’ve ever met.
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@AllSport, please confirm that the cheaper price includes pain meds and such. Everything does not mean the same thing to all vet practices.
Glad you found a better price.
I believe I was quoted $400 something to neuter a cat a couple of years back, so though it seems crazy the $1000 did not seem totally out of line to me.
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Yes, that’s why I called directly. They claim it included everything and I had her double check on that. I’ll still believe it when I see it though. Either way, even it if didn’t include the rest it’s still cheaper than the base price from my vet: 239 vs 439. And my parents will be happy for the visit so it’s a win win. My dog may not agree.
It sounds like you have a solution you’re happy with, but it’s awfully tough to compare vet to vet without really getting into the nitty gritty. Like, how is anesthesia being induced? Ketamine is cheap but propofol generally causes fewer post op issues & is easier in recovery. What all is being monitored while the dog is under, and is there a tech dedicated to that monitoring? Etc etc.
There’s just SUCH a wide range of care that can be offered with a spay, and it’s usually not at all transparent what “everything” includes.
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I do realize that. This isn’t a “new” vet. My parents have gone there for years. My mom and I have medical and animal health backgrounds, etc. Long story short, we’re both ridiculously picky and on top of it. We also have a meet and greet scheduled prior as well. …And yes, I also hate ketamine. I don’t keep even keep it in stock at work anymore.
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In that case, you might want to confirm how anesthesia is being induced, because ketamine is still commonly used, especially by older vets. I always ask.
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