Vet costs

[logicalgal]

I just got a bill from the vet.........$175.00 Canadian (Im in Alberta). I own a healthy 21 year old Arab gelding.......last week he was laying down when I got home from work, and refused to eat or drink.......so I walked him for about an hour........(thought it might be "colic") and waited for a visit from the vet (10 minutes away), and of course while waiting for the vet, the old horse passed some gas.......the young vet arrived,and with my assistance nervously gave my horse a quick listen for those tummy rumbles, gave him a quick shot for his pain....of course the old horse took off like a rocket when I put him into his paddock......and he's been fine since, thank you.......so I ask you.....is this price a bit outlandish? Opinions please?

 

[D.R. Cattle]

Doesn't sound too far out of whack depending on where you live. Not many cattle around here, so the only large animal vet in the area does horses only. Most of her clientelle are people that have more money than brains. She would probably charge me 100 or better to do what you explained. This is exactly the reason I quit calling unless it's just hopeless any other way. You ought to flush him out anyway with bran and mineral oil. Sounds like compaction starting to set in. Another good approach is to trade him for a Kawasaki. I own horses and have all my life, but my love leans farther towards gasoline power every day. Horses can definitely be a blasted nuisance.

 

[dun]

The local horse vet charged a guy 500 bucks to sew up a little cut in the horses lower leg, he took the horse to the vet. The neigbor had the cow vet out, had to pull a huge calf with a puller, got kicked twice. Spent an hour working over the calf with mouth to mouth and chest compressions before he finally gave up. 9 pm on a holiday Cost 50 bucks.

dun

I just got a bill from the vet.........$175.00 Canadian (Im in Alberta). I own a healthy 21 year old Arab gelding.......last week he was laying down when I got home from work, and refused to eat or drink.......so I walked him for about an hour........(thought it might be "colic") and waited for a visit from the vet (10 minutes away), and of course while waiting for the vet, the old horse passed some gas.......the young vet arrived,and with my assistance nervously gave my horse a quick listen for those tummy rumbles, gave him a quick shot for his pain....of course the old horse took off like a rocket when I put him into his paddock......and he's been fine since, thank you.......so I ask you.....is this price a bit outlandish? Opinions please?

 

[Anonymous]

Well...welcome to Equine World! Think there are 3 types of Vets: Small animal, large animal, and horse. Some Vets possibly think that horse people have an unlimited supply of $$. And, of course, if one is living in an "upscale" region where horses are considered "expensive pets" (like Poodle dogs), well, the price probably goes up.

In our area, we have 2 basic Vets that work with us. One for routine horse and cattle stuff; other for more specialized horse stuff. For example, we recently had our 6 horses blood drawn for coggins testing: $179. total. Other example, had one of our horses Ultrasound for pregnancy check (we delivered her to vet)...charge was $35. We do all of our routine vaccinations and pay very reasonable amounts for vaccines. Another example, our Vet charges about $19.50 for a Health Certificate on a cattle unit. We only pay about $30. for an onsite Vet visit for "Service Call" portion of charge--Vet is about 10 minutes away (about twice that much if Vet comes after hours, on Sunday or holiday).

However, that $175. one of the posters paid for a very minor Vet visit and injection was "legalized extortion" in my book.

Of course, we are in a rural area and "Farm & Ranch" Vets are much more reasonable in charges than those Metropolitan and Small Acreage type Vets that sip white wine and go to the opera on weekends...lol.

 

[D.R. Cattle]

Yep...that pretty sums it up!

 

[dun]

Would that be the "Grand Old Opery"

dun

go to the opera on weekends...lol.

 

[jcarkie]

i think it is very high but depends on where you are. next time ask what he charges before he comes out. and if possible shop around.dont wait for an emergency do it ahead of time and know who to call. i have a very good vet who is reasonable and listens. if i take them to him it is very cheap.

 

[eric]

that may be part of the problem....was this an "after hours" call. I know we charge time and a 1/2 after 4 pm for my work..I supposed the vets would also, as they probably like their time off as much as we do! But cattle calls do seem pretty cheap, at least to me. I was gonna take my cow in for a pregnancy check, and he was gonna charge me a whoppin' 10 bucks. He would of came to me for another 20 if I had had a chute to hold her in. That seems pretty reasonable to me!

I think it's kinda hard to get an estimate before hand since the vet never knows what he's getting into. But you should be able to get a guesstimate,
how much is housecall gonna be, how much per hr after that, will he diagnose and then sell you the meds you need..etc. Didnt you get a copy of the bill before he left, as that would of been the time to discuss it with him?

 

[jfont]

Sounds high, but it all depends on the vet.
When my vet was just starting out he'd come to my house and not charge me a road call because it was on his way home. Now that his buisness has grown he started charging, but tries to scedual the visit for the latter part of the afternoon.(so he can catch it on his way home)
Well at least I got a break for a little while.

 

[Perry]

What would $175.00 Canadian dollars be in US $$$. If it is close to $175.00 US Dollars I believe its high.

 

[Craig-TX]

When it comes to expensive hobbies, one horse is worse than three boats.

Craig-TX

 

[D.R. Cattle]

No way. I've had plenty of boats (living on the Atlantic Ocean). Boats are the most expensive hobbies I've ever seen other than maybe airplanes.

 

[Craig-TX]

No way. I've had plenty of boats (living on the Atlantic Ocean). Boats are the most expensive hobbies I've ever seen other than maybe airplanes.

I’ll have to admit that you probably forgot last night more than I’ll ever know about salt water.

Craig-TX

 

[dun]

The definition of a boat is "A hole in the water into which you throw money".

I have several of those myself

dun

No way. I've had plenty of boats (living on the Atlantic Ocean). Boats are the most expensive hobbies I've ever seen other than maybe airplanes.

 

[D.R. Cattle]

I ran an offshore charter boat back in the early 90's during Summer seasons. I did it out of pure fun, never made a darn dime. I decided I'd rather focus on my cattle, then go to the ocean when I want to, not because I had to. But I have to admit, catching huge delicious fish is fun. So is spearfishing for big groupers or snappers and grabbing a few lobster for dinner.

 

[eric]

I always heard the two best days of a boat owners life: the day he buys it and the day he sells it! I live less than a mile from the lake and can't remember ever not having a boat every since I was little, just like a truck. I cant remember when I bought a car for myself to drive, had to be right out of high school, had pickups every since, the the wife has had SUV's since we've been married! Heck, we bought my daughter a Mustang a couple yrs ago, and man, does that thing sit low, I can barely get in and out of that thing, could'nt imagine driving one everyday!

 

[D.R. Cattle]

Yeah I've heard all they sayings about boats. Truth is they are just like anything else. If you like them go for it. For some it's ATV's, others horses, etc.etc.