Is she trying to dupe me or has heartworm treatment really gone up that drastically?
Answer
CK:
Vets can vary greatly in price. I live in Chicago and had one vet quote me almost $5000 for a procedure for my cat and the next day found a vet that charged $1900. After, I called around and found no one charging close to $5000.
Also, most areas have low cost vet clinics. Or like others have said, find a vet that works on a payment plan. This may be hard though if they're not your regular vet. Care credit is also an option. Either way, I would do whatever you can to treat the dog. It is a shame to put him down for something very treatable.
Jack:
All health costs have gone up, and that drives up veterinary costs as
well. Drug costs for pets have skyrocketed. Doxycycline for example
was dirt cheap - you could dose a cat with it for under $15, and it's
now over $40. You can go and get a price and second opinion from anther
vet.
You are likely to find that the costs are similar in your area.
The vet is pretty much correct though, although that's blunt. You
either treat the dog, allow it to die, or euthanize it. Get that second
opinion, and then apply for Care Credit.
The vet office will help you
and you have 6 months to pay interest free. Vets do not take payment
plans any more unless you are a long-established client with a solid
payment history.
Daitro:
Many
vets will work with you to set up a payment plan, because you're
willing to pay and care for your pet, and have come seeking veterinary
care which is more than some people ever do, and some vets know this.
Heartworm treatment (along with many other things) can be very expensive, and it depends on the size of the dog as well as their age and the stage of the disease. Heartworm is frequently fatal, and the treatment is a toxic poison that can also be fatal.
I've seen heartworm treatment pricing anywhere from $500 for small dogs in the early stages, to $1,900 for larger dogs (also early stage). The increased cost for your dog may be due to size, age, or the disease having progressed to the point where the dog may die soon without treatment.
Again, many veterinarians offer monthly payment plans and will basically give you a contract stating that you owe them and will pay a certain minimum price every month, sometimes with a deadline for it to be paid in full, and sometimes with no deadline.
You can try other vets, but I think your veterinarian may have taken issue with you because your dog may have severe heartworm, and may be nearing later stages of the disease, and needs care right now. If you look for another vet, look for one that can do a payment plan (if you've already discussed that with your current vet and they declined).
Many dogs survive heartworm (normally strays taken from the street who are treated quickly), so I hope you won't have your dog euthanized without trying, or that you won't let your dog die a painful lingering death from heartworm disease.
Heartworm treatment (along with many other things) can be very expensive, and it depends on the size of the dog as well as their age and the stage of the disease. Heartworm is frequently fatal, and the treatment is a toxic poison that can also be fatal.
I've seen heartworm treatment pricing anywhere from $500 for small dogs in the early stages, to $1,900 for larger dogs (also early stage). The increased cost for your dog may be due to size, age, or the disease having progressed to the point where the dog may die soon without treatment.
Again, many veterinarians offer monthly payment plans and will basically give you a contract stating that you owe them and will pay a certain minimum price every month, sometimes with a deadline for it to be paid in full, and sometimes with no deadline.
You can try other vets, but I think your veterinarian may have taken issue with you because your dog may have severe heartworm, and may be nearing later stages of the disease, and needs care right now. If you look for another vet, look for one that can do a payment plan (if you've already discussed that with your current vet and they declined).
Many dogs survive heartworm (normally strays taken from the street who are treated quickly), so I hope you won't have your dog euthanized without trying, or that you won't let your dog die a painful lingering death from heartworm disease.
Marissa:
My friend just had to do treatments on her dogs and it goes by how much
the dog weighs. Her huge Saint Bernards treatment was about $800-900. I
honestly think you should check out another vet or ask where you had
adopted her if they have any recommendations that they know would be a
good place to go since they probably deal with that often. There's still
hope for your dog, find an actual reasonable and caring vet, don't let
him down.!
Lakelady:
Your vet needs to go in the BAD VET notices on craigslist. $3000,00 for
heartworm is outrageous, even now. If you'd had a desireable breed of
dog the greedy so-and-so would have offered to 'adopt' it. I wouldn't
take a stuffed animal to that vet and I spend approximately 7 grand on
my vets annually. Shop around, find a different vet, an older, more
experienced and established one that will take payments and explain what
you have and that you are willing to spend it on your dog and make
payments on the rest. A heartworm treatment takes time. You won't need
all the money overnight. Now get at your keyboard and yelp and
craigslist that vet out of business. She doesn't deserve the title.
Jane:
1. You need to be talking to whomever adopted a sick dog out to you, if you got him/her from a shelter or a rescue group. Even if the dog came from an individual, you may have legal recourse because they implied that the dog was healthy by lack of disclosure of this illness.
2. To get recommendations for local vets, clinics or hospitals who may may charge less for treatment, use social media. Search Facebook for your city's name, and join any general chat groups where you can ask your question. If you are already a member of Nextdoor, there's no better place to ask such a question! If you are not, go to Nextdoor.com, type in your address, and odds are good that it will tell you the name of your Nextdoor neighborhood. Nextdoor is a free, private site for your neighborhood (and usually many nearby neighborhoods) to interact, so you should get some great responses. For example, I have learned from these two sites that there are at least two vet practices in the area who have low cost services.
Khan:
Find another vet. Telling you to just put the dog down if you cannot
afford her is not only unprofessional, but a blatant attempt to
manipulate you into paying more for treatment than you should be paying.
If your vet did not give you a clear understanding of why this will
cost you ~3,000 instead of 600, but still insists that is what it will
cost and essentially tells you to destroy the animal or pay up, find a
new vet. Your vet needs to be transparent in their reasoning and
pricing, and yours currently is not.
Daniel:
Regardless of how costs have gone up or if this vet's services are considerable more expensive than others, you should never own a pet if you can't afford veterinary costs.
You should have done the proper research, and be prepared for the required expenses.
She is right however, because of your severe lack of funds, you must put your dog down in order to avoid him suffering until it perishes.
Knight:
Preventing heart worms is so easy and not at all expensive. Why people don't treat their pets is beyond me.
She's not the only vet available, costs vary from vet to vet, area to area, start looking for another vet.
The treatment is not cheap so keep that in mind, it is also very taxing on the dog, so weigh all your options, the dogs quality of life, and prognosis, then put your feelings aside and do what is best for the dog.
