I staggered out of my local vets this week in disbelief at the bill for medicine for my beloved greyhound, Meg.
How can it be possible treatment for a condition that would have cost a human under £10 be priced at ten times as much just because the patient has four legs and not two?
The high price of vets bills has been the subject of many a suspicious conversation by animal lovers. These feelings of injustice are worsened by the emotional nature of these bills.
Pet owners increasingly feel that vets have us over a barrel. They know most of us will do anything in our power if our pet becomes sick, and set their prices accordingly, is the general view.
A dog’s life: The soaring price of vet bills is one of the areas being examined by the Competition and Markets Authority, the UK competition watchdog
Vets bills are, in a way, a tax on compassion, but without any of the public scrutiny that other forms of tax have.
At least, until now.
The rising cost of vet bills made national news last week when the competition watchdog announced they could actually be overpaying for treatment, and that it is set to launch a full investigation.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said veterinary practices can overcharge, that large vet groups may be stifling competition and that consumers are not given enough information to help them pick the right treatments for their beloved animals.
Now, I have every sympathy for vets as individuals, who I am sure are feeling the pinch of inflation the same as everyone else, and so some rise in prices is to be expected.
They do a tough job to a high standard and deserve far better than the regular abuse they get from pet owners.
Instead, my criticism is of the often murky world vets operate in, where confusing and steep pricing structures seem to be the norm rather than the exception.
Meg was at the vets as she had mild conjunctivitis, causing her some discomfort.
If a human gets conjunctivitis, antibiotic eye drops cost £6-10 and typically do not require a prescription, so treatment is easy and cheap to get.
But when conjunctivitis strikes the creature on the other end of the lead, that bill somehow gets inflated tenfold – to £100.
This bill included £17 for a drop of coloured dye, meant to help spot any dirt or foreign bodies in her eye.
This didn’t work, but did temporarily end up dying her nose a fetching shade of neon green as the dye worked its way down her sinuses.
Why the long face?: Pet owners feel glum about the high cost of treating their beloved animals – including me for my wonderful greyhound Meg
The other parts of the bill were £55 for 15 minutes of the vet’s time and £26 for 10ml of antibiotic eye drops, which required a prescription.
Indeed, many pet owners have told me they regularly swap animal treatments for their cheaper human equivalents in a bid to save money, although I have to say that is not a gamble I feel qualified to take when my pet’s health is at stake.
Another example of massively inflated bills by vets is tooth cleaning.
Meg has the common greyhound problem of plaque on her teeth, a legacy of the poor diets and lack of care many of the breed face in their racing careers. Greyhound owners keep this plaque at bay by regular tooth brushing.
But Meg sees my attempts at dentistry as a torturous affront to her dignity, and responds by spitting out the toothpaste and enthusiastically chewing the toothbrush and – accidentally – my fingers too.
As such I take Meg to a professional dog groomer, who does a more competent scale and polish for the princely sum of £20, and I do what I can in the mean time.
But at Meg’s vet, that same scale and polish costs £300.
Dog tired: Pet owners feel a sense of dread at the high prices charged by many vets
Again, I find it mystifying how a dental treatment that would cost a human £70 to get done privately, and can be done for £20 elsewhere, soars in value to £300 when the treatment takes place within the walls of a veterinary practice.
If there is a good reason for all this, it is lost on me.
As I left, the vet commented on how fit and healthy my dog is. I was half expecting her to add an extra tenner onto my bill for the compliment.
If a third example were needed, the cost of getting flea and wormer is astronomically more expensive when done through a vet.
Meg’s flea and worm tablets cost £80 every three months if ordered through a vet’s practice.
But this drops to £40 – exactly half – when I get a £20 prescription from the vet then use it to order the exact same medication online.
This sort of pricing difference really does make you question the mark-up that vets are making on these medications.
Online pet pharmacists, admittedly, have a simpler business model and fewer overheads than a full veterinary practice.
But presumably they are still able to make a profit when selling medication, even when they do so at half the price the vets do.
So either many vets are overcharging, or their fees are actually fair and they are just not explaining themselves properly – and pet owners don’t know where else to go. Either is a bad outcome for consumers, and the industry’s pricing practices clearly need reform.
I hope that the CMA investigation finally sheds light into an extremely murky area indeed.
Until that day comes, pet owners should question everything when it comes to high vets bills, and enquire if they can get the same treatment cheaper elsewhere.
This post first appeared on Dailymail.co.uk
