Operation quote
Discussion
Antony Moxey said:
Wait, are you genuinely considering having a pet put to sleep rather than paying for an operation?
No. I'm most likely going to see how the antibiotics and anti-inflammatory's go and i'll get another couple of quotes.Edited by Antony Moxey on Saturday 25th May 09:57
I'm not inclined to chase small lumps and bumps in an older dog at £1000 a pop though. I'm almost certain that isn't in the dogs best interest either.
Edited by ChocolateFrog on Saturday 25th May 19:07
ucb said:
That quote doesn't surpise me at all.
Healthcare costs are enormous regardless of the procedure. Lots of fixed costs to cover regardless of the duration of the operation.
Get more quotes.
They'll do a large dog castration for a third of that.Healthcare costs are enormous regardless of the procedure. Lots of fixed costs to cover regardless of the duration of the operation.
Get more quotes.
Having seen both ops quite a few times, I don't think they're vastly different in time or skill. Blood vessels in the b
ks are likely to be significantly bigger than what is almost certainly a fatty lump in his leg.Edited by ChocolateFrog on Saturday 25th May 19:08
Han Solo said:
Had a similar op on one of our Frenchies about 2 years ago, it was £350, to remove a small (5p) lump on his leg.
Never bothered with insurance, iirc it was £200-250 a month for both dogs, just kept the money to one side.
IIRC the testing afterwards was extra, around £150-200.
I was thinking £600 (Without histology) leaves plenty of fat on the bone without feeling like you've been reemed for the privilege.Never bothered with insurance, iirc it was £200-250 a month for both dogs, just kept the money to one side.
IIRC the testing afterwards was extra, around £150-200.
Hi there,
I'm a vet who works up in the North East. I'll apologise for the lengthy reply, but I hope it helps.
In regards to the quote it's difficult to say what's reasonable, I've worked in a variety of different clinics and the prices have varied hugely depending upon if they're part of a corporate or independently owned as well as a multitude of other factors. Geography does play a big role too unfortunately, even 20 miles can make a big difference! I often see second opinions for things like this where I work currently - we tend to be less expensive than most other places locally, certainly we would be cheaper than your quote but our over heads/staffing costs may vary considerably from your current vets.
It's also worth considering the qualifications of your vet - any vet can take a lump off, but if they have a surgical certificate or are a specialist they will charge more for their expertise.
In terms of the quote itself, the suture material charged seems a bit over the top - 1 maybe 2 packs for ligating vessels, closing the subcutaneous layer and then closing the skin usually suffices, but it's difficult to comment from a photo maybe they feel there is more to it and the extra material is warranted.
Histology is always optional - it'll tell you what the mass is in terms of it being benign/malignant and if they've got it all away or not. If you don't care about that sort of thing (which isn't right or wrong, just personal preference), request they remove it from the quote. If you want a little bit more information before making that decision request that they perform a fine needle aspirate, they're not always conclusive but if they're happy to look at the sample in house (if not you can send it off to the lab but this will be more costly) and are fairly confident in their interpretation you can often get a reasonable idea of what the growth is and whether or not surgery is even necessary.
What I always say to clients and what I'll say to you too is shop around - you're under no obligation to go with a quote given, you may find a lower cost alternative elsewhere or a service you prefer.
In regards to castrates - most practices offer routine neutering at a reduced price so you can't use it to judge the price of other surgical procedures. This is done to ensure people get their pets neutered/can afford to do so, but also as a loss leader to get people into the clinic/on the books in most places. For example, a bh spay if charged in terms of actual time and skill taken would be cost prohibitive to most people so no one would get it done.
Hope that helps,
DRMoor
I'm a vet who works up in the North East. I'll apologise for the lengthy reply, but I hope it helps.
In regards to the quote it's difficult to say what's reasonable, I've worked in a variety of different clinics and the prices have varied hugely depending upon if they're part of a corporate or independently owned as well as a multitude of other factors. Geography does play a big role too unfortunately, even 20 miles can make a big difference! I often see second opinions for things like this where I work currently - we tend to be less expensive than most other places locally, certainly we would be cheaper than your quote but our over heads/staffing costs may vary considerably from your current vets.
It's also worth considering the qualifications of your vet - any vet can take a lump off, but if they have a surgical certificate or are a specialist they will charge more for their expertise.
In terms of the quote itself, the suture material charged seems a bit over the top - 1 maybe 2 packs for ligating vessels, closing the subcutaneous layer and then closing the skin usually suffices, but it's difficult to comment from a photo maybe they feel there is more to it and the extra material is warranted.
Histology is always optional - it'll tell you what the mass is in terms of it being benign/malignant and if they've got it all away or not. If you don't care about that sort of thing (which isn't right or wrong, just personal preference), request they remove it from the quote. If you want a little bit more information before making that decision request that they perform a fine needle aspirate, they're not always conclusive but if they're happy to look at the sample in house (if not you can send it off to the lab but this will be more costly) and are fairly confident in their interpretation you can often get a reasonable idea of what the growth is and whether or not surgery is even necessary.
What I always say to clients and what I'll say to you too is shop around - you're under no obligation to go with a quote given, you may find a lower cost alternative elsewhere or a service you prefer.
In regards to castrates - most practices offer routine neutering at a reduced price so you can't use it to judge the price of other surgical procedures. This is done to ensure people get their pets neutered/can afford to do so, but also as a loss leader to get people into the clinic/on the books in most places. For example, a b
h spay if charged in terms of actual time and skill taken would be cost prohibitive to most people so no one would get it done.Hope that helps,
DRMoor
The Vicryl is all suture material, I suspect pricing one of each size is an error, I would expect to use a single pack of 2-0 Vicryl for that, although may choose to use a second of a different size. They will only charge what they use.
Non-routine procedures such as lump removals will vary significantly in cost between practices, and in this instance I suspect that a second quote would be worth your while. I would look on google for a well reviewed local independent practice (ie not one of the big chains), they will certainly want to see the dog but may do a discounted pre-op consultation. They will want the history from your regular vet who will be happy to send it but will need your verbal / email consent.
Non-routine procedures such as lump removals will vary significantly in cost between practices, and in this instance I suspect that a second quote would be worth your while. I would look on google for a well reviewed local independent practice (ie not one of the big chains), they will certainly want to see the dog but may do a discounted pre-op consultation. They will want the history from your regular vet who will be happy to send it but will need your verbal / email consent.
Our Westie has had two ACL ops and both times the cost was mentioned as a bit of an afterthought. They weren't bothered by insurance or not (we could only claim a small amount for the first op and nothing for the second) and had a nice all inclusive price that they emailed to me after the initial consultation. Coincidentally the second op, almost exactly two years after the first, was exactly £1K more. In total, with x-rays, aftercare etc we have spent approx £11k on his back legs, but when it effects their quality of life, what are you going to do ?
I tend to find that vets' fees for operations and medication are in line with their standard consultation fee.
So I ask what the standard consultation fee is, and work from that.
I have just moved from £65 a consultation to £39.
National chains are there to do a good job and maximise profits for their shareholders.
Local vets are there to do a good job and make a living.
And if your pet is on medication for the rest of its life, ask for private prescriptons if you don't have insurance.
My vet just recently advised I changed my spaniel's anti-inflammatory away from Metacam to Onsior.
Good advice, and the dog is better on Onsior.
Cost from the vets was over £80 per month, from Pet Drugs Online £29.
Private prescription with 4 repeats was £18, so £4.50 a pop.
You do the maths.
So I ask what the standard consultation fee is, and work from that.
I have just moved from £65 a consultation to £39.
National chains are there to do a good job and maximise profits for their shareholders.
Local vets are there to do a good job and make a living.
And if your pet is on medication for the rest of its life, ask for private prescriptons if you don't have insurance.
My vet just recently advised I changed my spaniel's anti-inflammatory away from Metacam to Onsior.
Good advice, and the dog is better on Onsior.
Cost from the vets was over £80 per month, from Pet Drugs Online £29.
Private prescription with 4 repeats was £18, so £4.50 a pop.
You do the maths.
QBee said:
I tend to find that vets' fees for operations and medication are in line with their standard consultation fee.
So I ask what the standard consultation fee is, and work from that.
I have just moved from £65 a consultation to £39.
That doesn't tend to be the case, the corporate practices tend to be cheaper for the things that people ask the price of - vaccinations, consultations, neutering etc and then more expensive for the non-routine stuff that is more difficult to / less likely to be compared.So I ask what the standard consultation fee is, and work from that.
I have just moved from £65 a consultation to £39.
The independent practices tend to be more straightforward, they will compete to a certain degree on the above but generally are fairer with the non-routine.
This was more pronounced a few years ago but still relevant these days.
ETA ask for the all in price for a 30kg Labrador pyo surgery for an idea of their non routine costs
Edited by jmsgld on Wednesday 29th May 20:26
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