My mongrel dog worth twice as much as my house

My mongrel dog worth twice as much as my house

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Discussion

FiF

43,960 posts

250 months

Saturday 22nd April 2017
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OK I'll have a guess.

Newly qualified 30 ish
With experience low 40s
Senior partner, dunno, it all depends, I guess 60+?

I understand where the OP is coming from though, it costs roughly the same to insure the nearly 3 year old Golden Retriever as both the house and the car together. To be fair we do live in low risk/ low crime area, at least based on last year's premiums, with max earned NCD. That's jinxed it now!

jmsgld

1,010 posts

175 months

Saturday 22nd April 2017
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How about Docs / Dentists etc?

bexVN

14,682 posts

210 months

Saturday 22nd April 2017
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jmsgld said:
I'm a small animal locum based in Dorset, I know exactly how much I make... I was more interested in what the general public thought and particularly in relation to similarly qualified professionals as you have asked. I qualified in 2008.
I was fairly certain you were a vet but I must be thinking of another poster because you have been qualified for longer than the poster I was thinking of! Nice area to locum in smile

FiF

43,960 posts

250 months

Saturday 22nd April 2017
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Guessing again, junior doctors low to mid 20s, after that more than vets, consultants a lot more.

Dentists more than vets all up the line.

To be fair both these are probably available with a quick Google, just CBA, interested to see if my guesses are anywhere near for the vets anyway.

Willy Nilly

12,511 posts

166 months

Saturday 22nd April 2017
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bexVN said:
How many Pistonheaders on here own McClarens or similar?
Do they get such a hard time for being able to afford them?? Not that I have ever seen a vet drive a McClaren to work!

Sadly vet s have been extremely selfish and embraced modern technology including MRI'S, Digital radiography, cat scanners, in house laboratory equipment etc etc etc. This tends to cost a huge amount of money.

Edited by bexVN on Wednesday 19th April 20:12
There is a reason that vets don't get near the farm visits they used to and reasonable rates aren't it. You're too expensive now as is demonstrated by the high insurance premiums for pets, which puts me off getting another dawg.

Trabi601

4,865 posts

94 months

Saturday 22nd April 2017
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Houses don't often go a bit mental and bite the faces off young children.

That's one of the reasons why dog premiums are so high.

jmsgld

1,010 posts

175 months

Sunday 23rd April 2017
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Starting salary for a new grad vet is around £25k working around 45h a week + often on call.
Median salary is around £31k
An experienced vet working full time should be 37-50 or so.

The money is pretty rubbish really considering how stressful the job can be, how many hours you put in, and how long and expensive the training is. That was our choice and is fine. The idea that vets are money grabbing and heartless is so far off the mark and so frequently encountered that it does become rather annoying.

I had a painter / decorator in recently, he wasn't even very good and still took home more money than the vast majority of vets despite working far fewer hours...

Smiler.

11,752 posts

229 months

Sunday 23rd April 2017
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jmsgld said:
I'm a small animal locum based in Dorset, I know exactly how much I make... I was more interested in what the general public thought and particularly in relation to similarly qualified professionals as you have asked. I qualified in 2008.
I had to read that thrice........... biggrin

Thevet

1,787 posts

232 months

Sunday 23rd April 2017
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jmsgld said:
Starting salary for a new grad vet is around £25k working around 45h a week + often on call.
Median salary is around £31k
An experienced vet working full time should be 37-50 or so.

The money is pretty rubbish really considering how stressful the job can be, how many hours you put in, and how long and expensive the training is. That was our choice and is fine. The idea that vets are money grabbing and heartless is so far off the mark and so frequently encountered that it does become rather annoying.

I had a painter / decorator in recently, he wasn't even very good and still took home more money than the vast majority of vets despite working far fewer hours...
The figures above are ball park, but so many younger vets do not even contemplate on call hours that it shouldn't be included in the equation. That is from the point of view of someone who has done a 1 in 3 rota on call for 30 years! However, salaries are not astonishing by any stretch of the imagination, forget the years training, joe public does not care about that. Vet work is still viewed as though it should have an element of charity in it, not as though it is a business, it's my weekend off but I have still spent a few hours both days helping my clients and their animals. Those that don't want to pay the going rate should either not have animals or should go to the cheaper vet down the road who does not offer a better quality. We get it all the time with 2 local vets, one of whom is a well known drunkard (RCVS please do something) and the other who doesn't have great facilities or qualified nurses. So, you chose, if you don't have confidence in your vet, please vote with your feet rather than computer fingers.
I think I am too old for this and so should buy a mclaren to retire in.

joshcowin

6,775 posts

175 months

Tuesday 25th April 2017
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Interesting one this!

Vets in this area (SE) I would of thought earn £40k + , £30k if newly qualified

However I am entrusting the welfare and potential life of an animal i view as a family member with this person! I have found they will also offer very specific advice regarding my pets health and general well being. I value this and am happy to pay for it!

Go and see a doctor privately and see where £1000 gets you!

I know what doctors (experienced consultants) earn, and can potentially earn and the disparity between them and vets is huge!!
Junior doctors also earn well and if they are prepared to put the work in can earn £50per/hr as overtime. Just to be clear they work hard!

Am I correct in thinking that a vet will earn more from dealing with domestic animals than farm/commercial animals?

Thevet

1,787 posts

232 months

Tuesday 25th April 2017
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joshcowin said:
Interesting one this!

Vets in this area (SE) I would of thought earn £40k + , £30k if newly qualified

However I am entrusting the welfare and potential life of an animal i view as a family member with this person! I have found they will also offer very specific advice regarding my pets health and general well being. I value this and am happy to pay for it!

Go and see a doctor privately and see where £1000 gets you!

I know what doctors (experienced consultants) earn, and can potentially earn and the disparity between them and vets is huge!!
Junior doctors also earn well and if they are prepared to put the work in can earn £50per/hr as overtime. Just to be clear they work hard!

Am I correct in thinking that a vet will earn more from dealing with domestic animals than farm/commercial animals?
Yes small animal work is more financially rewarding than farm animal work usually, depends upon area and work type. I am involved predominantly in dairy work and it is more "all year round" than beef or sheep, and is higher input/output as well. However, compared to a small animal practice in a town environment, we cannot compare with their yields. I charge £100/hour for my work but bear in mind that a good chunk of my day is spent driving between farms. Surgical work amongst SA vets is often over £500/hr but includes a nurse or two plus majorly expensive kit. I still don't charge anywhere near what local legal pals do.

jmsgld

1,010 posts

175 months

Tuesday 25th April 2017
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The point of my comments was to illustrate that vets are neither money grabbing nor expensive. There will always be a certain amount of charity in veterinary work because at the end of the day a large part of the reason we do it is because we see value in helping animals. Most vets will regularly lose money on some work because they can't bear the alternative.
The idea that we are expensive / money grabbing is so far from the truth, but yet such a widely held belief, it gets a little annoying sometimes.

Genuinely, if we wanted to earn a lot of money we would do something else, simple as that...

Mobile Chicane

20,740 posts

211 months

Wednesday 26th April 2017
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I don't begrudge a penny of what my vet charges, however I do object to paying vast fortunes to insurance companies.

We decided not to bother with insurance for our cats, and spend what we would have paid out in premiums on the best quality food.

ehonda

1,483 posts

204 months

Wednesday 26th April 2017
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Mobile Chicane said:
....

We decided not to bother with insurance for our cats, and spend what we would have paid out in premiums on the best quality food.
We do this too, also occasionally I treat the cat to something nice just to say thanks wink

I have 2 dogs and one cat and there's no way I'm spending 1500 quid a year on pet insurance, that's mad.

bexVN

14,682 posts

210 months

Wednesday 26th April 2017
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ehonda said:
Mobile Chicane said:
....

We decided not to bother with insurance for our cats, and spend what we would have paid out in premiums on the best quality food.
We do this too, also occasionally I treat the cat to something nice just to say thanks wink

I have 2 dogs and one cat and there's no way I'm spending 1500 quid a year on pet insurance, that's mad.
I always say if you have the funds to not have to worry if an unexpected situation arises then you probably don't need to worry about insurance. For me even though I work in a vets insurance is a must for me. It gives me peace of mind and so far has worked in my favour!

garythesign

2,056 posts

87 months

Wednesday 26th April 2017
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A previous vet of ours insures his dogs

His thinking was that if ever his dogs needed specialist care outside his expertise this would be covered.

I don't think there is a right and wrong answer to pet insurance.

It's very personal

Glasgowrob

3,232 posts

120 months

Wednesday 26th April 2017
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similar story here,

Wifes new Kuga £200 a year FC to insure.

Our French bulldog, £600 a year That said for just over a tenner a week i'd rather keep her insured, some of the potential vet bills are eyewatering. that said if push came to shove cars toys and houses would all go before our dog went without.

otolith

55,899 posts

203 months

Wednesday 26th April 2017
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Gandahar said:
So when is a mongrel worth £1.87 on WeBuyAnyDog.com more expensive to insure than a something worth half a million quid?
When you don't want a policy which writes your dog off if it incurs a veterinary bill in excess of £1.87.

Frenchda

1,317 posts

232 months

Wednesday 26th April 2017
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My insurance bill per dog is circa £500 x 3.
Last year we lost a dog after 18 months of kidney failure bills - total over the period circa £13,000! Also got my purchase price back!

I view it as a running expense, I certainly get more pleasure out of my mutts than I do my toys.


[i]An old woman took a very limp dog into a vet's office. As she placed her pet on the table, the vet pulled out his stethoscope and listened to the dog's chest. After a moment or two, the vet shook his head sadly and said, "I'm so sorry, but Fido has passed away." The distressed owner wailed, "Are you sure? I mean, you
haven't done any testing on him or anything. He might just be in a coma or something."

The vet rolled his eyes, shrugged, turned and left the room, returning a few moments later with a beautiful black Labrador. As the dog's owner looked on in amazement, the dog stood on his hind legs, put his front paws on the examination table and sniffed the dead mutt from top to bottom. He then looked at the vet with sad eyes and shook his head.

The vet patted the dog and took it out, but returned a few moments later with a cat. The cat jumped up and also sniffed delicately at the ex-dog. The cat sat back, shook its head, meowed and ran out of the room.

The vet looked at the woman and said, "I'm sorry, but as I said, your dog is definitely 100% certifiably ... dead." He then turned to his computer terminal, hit a few keys and produced a bill which he handed to the old lady.

The parrot's owner, still in shock, took the bill. "£500!," she cried, "£500 just to tell me that my dog is dead!?" The vet shrugged. "If you'd taken my word for it the bill would only have been £20, but what with the Lab report and the Cat scan..."[/i]

SeeFive

8,280 posts

232 months

Thursday 27th April 2017
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Mr Tom said:
Really! You actually think that... I earn an ok wage, I'm salaried. However when you start working out an hourly rate it's bloody awful. I average around 50 hours a week, up to 80-90 if I do the weekend. Quite often I work for less that minimum wage. I could leave and work for a drug company etc and earn a better wage, however I enjoy helping animals and owners.

I don't see you moaning at GPs who earn £75k plus for a 5 day week.

I would love to know how much people think vets earn. Also at the end of the day it's a business not a charity. Veterinary is one of the worst business for the % of profit for turnover. Drugs are expensive, equipment is expensive and you need a lot of staff to ensure the safety to your animals.

There are very few rich vets.

Cheers, Tom
Well try cutting down on your habit then wink

But seriously, if drugs are expensive to vets, just imagine how expensive they feel to the general public that do not take their animal's prescription away to buy them from the Internet.

Our late moggy's thyroid tabs that she needed in her late years were under half the price on the Internet compared to the retail cost at the vets. Exact same product... if the vets are not making a huge markup, one has to wonder how the other suppliers make money - given that the online supplier does not benefit from other professional services profit to top up their product margin, and I am sure someone will point out premises overheads, but seriously what are the overheads associated with a drug cabinet wink

Whilst I respect the skill and expertise the vets have, the commitment and the up front training of the individuals etc, and would not begrudge them a decent salary for the service delivered, the apparent mark up on drugs at the practice is something that really grates with me. Especially (Daily Mail time) for the sad case of the stereotypical less tech savvy little old lady with a bunch of elderly cats surviving on her meagre state pension who won't know how to reduce their pet health costs by going online.