Anyone else notice how much pet costs have risen?

[firefly_ris]

We see a rural vet who has somehow kept their office visit and vaccination costs steady -- but the Simparica Trio my dogs are on year round went up. Food went up. My current dogs are both little which is a blessing because I keep thinking about if my old dogs were still alive and what food and med prices for them would be now (they were 50lbs and 100lbs -- my current dogs are 9lbs and 17lbs!). My old dogs were on a raw diet, I was a member of a raw feeding co-op and got great deals on cases of various things I needed; I'd never be able to do it now.

 

[john7994]

We actually use a mobile vet (they make house calls) and we find it’s cheaper than going to a brick and mortar practice - she handles all the labs, the regular maintenance and helps coordinate other stuff needed outside of the ordinary visits.

Separately, we are fortunate to live between two major and highly rated Veterinarian schools which will perform surgery’s at a much reduced cost. We had a cat with a very aggressive and rare salivary gland cancer and the cost for the operation was 15% of what our regular vet referral would have charged and even our vet said - the school was better equipped with an equivalent highly-skilled vet to perform the procedure.

 

[BrianL]

We actually use a mobile vet (they make house calls) and we find it’s cheaper than going to a brick and mortar practice - she handles all the labs, the regular maintenance and helps coordinate other stuff needed outside of the ordinary visits.

Separately, we are fortunate to live between two major and highly rated Veterinarian schools which will perform surgery’s at a much reduced cost. We had a cat with a very aggressive and rare salivary gland cancer and the cost for the operation was 15% of what our regular vet referral would have charged and even our vet said - the school was better equipped with an equivalent highly-skilled vet to perform the procedure.

The vet schools are great. My mom had a cat with a pretty rare cancer, so she took her down to Auburn for some treatments. It wasn't cheap, but I am very sure that the treatments extended that cat's life by years. It did eventually come back but by that time the cat was much older and no extraordinary measures were taken. Still, she had a great quality of life after treatment up until close to the end.

 

[Moliphino]

Last summer I had my 5 year old dog's teeth cleaned ($1100 now 10 years later). They asked via a consent form if I wanted to have nails done while under. I said yes. No mention of a fee but I guess I should have assumed. I was charged $62 for the Dremel nail service. Holy cow. Now this is a different bet but I'm sure they all do this now.

Yikes! I only paid $57 for rear dewclaw removal (done when she was already under for her spay).

 

[TiggerTrigger]

While veterinary fees have definitely gone up, I encourage everyone to do some benchmarking in your area. I liked (but didn't love) our vet and they were significantly more expensive than our old vets (switched with a move in 2017 and switched again after death of pet (cancer- couldn't handle going back) in 2019). It was starting to seem excessive...to the point that I felt it necessary to do some new digging and research. I switched to a new vet this past March (previously didn't consider due to their odd schedule) and our well visit was about $250 cheaper. Even her monthly meds (fleas/ticks/heartworm) were around $115 cheaper (for the same exact meds). The new vet even found a coupon for those meds and saved me an additional $50. Both vets were great with our dog, although the new vet did not try to sell us on any pricey extras like the old vet.

I know food has gotten more expensive. I want to say that I'm paying about $10 more per bag than I was a few years ago.

My daughter and I volunteered at a shelter in 2022 and I can't say that I felt a major uptick in abandoned animals, but it may also be that they will turn people away if they don't have space. I volunteered at a different shelter back in the early 2000s and they always felt fuller than this place, but I know they've also put limits on the number of animals they'll take in as well and their new facilities definitely don't feel as overcrowded as the old ones.

 

[Christine]

Yikes! I only paid $57 for rear dewclaw removal (done when she was already under for her spay).

Yeah, I was stunned. Lesson learned. This was my "new" vet after leaving my last "new" vet for having a revolving door of vets. I think I might need to try somewhere else now. It's a shame because I had the same vet for over 20 years but he retired and I'm struggling to find some stability with vets right now.

 

[Micca]

vet costs are crazy

This was my first thought too. Sure the food has become more expensive, but I'm always a bit surprised at how expensive the vet visits are. We had to have a surgical procedure done on one of the kittens we adopted, it was $3,000! I knew it was going to be expensive, but that's was around double what I expected.

 

[john7994]

The vet schools are great. My mom had a cat with a pretty rare cancer, so she took her down to Auburn for some treatments. It wasn't cheap, but I am very sure that the treatments extended that cat's life by years. It did eventually come back but by that time the cat was much older and no extraordinary measures were taken. Still, she had a great quality of life after treatment up until close to the end.

Yes they are - Auburn and University of Georgia (where we took our cat) are the two choices nearby. The people at UGA were absolutely amazing in helping with our cat’s situation, with great follow-up, and incredibly helpful staff. Never knew these were options prior to all of this - but they were super caring for not being “local”. Even one of the students, that happened to live closer, volunteered to stop in on the post operative Care visits.

 

[Suger Mag]

Yes!! Veterinary care has absolutely skyrocketed. It’s just insane.

This was my first thought too. Sure the food has become more expensive, but I'm always a bit surprised at how expensive the vet visits are. We had to have a surgical procedure done on one of the kittens we adopted, it was $3,000! I knew it was going to be expensive, but that's was around double what I expected.

While yes I think a lot of cost of everything is up... I also blame pet insurance. Just like human medical care has become a nightmare the more insurance gets into and controls the mix, we are seeing the same with pets. Just my bias as I hate hate hate insurance.

 

[dvcgirl67]

While yes I think a lot of cost of everything is up... I also blame pet insurance. Just like human medical care has become a nightmare the more insurance gets into and controls the mix, we are seeing the same with pets. Just my bias as I hate hate hate insurance.

Pet insurance may be playing some role, but the industry of pet care is being transformed (and not in a good way) by private equity firms buying up thousands of vet practices and clinics. This is especially the case with emergency/specialty care clinics. That type of care is becoming less affordable by the day it seems.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Yes!! Veterinary care has absolutely skyrocketed. It’s just insane.

Yes, vet costs are crazy. I think back to the early 90s. I had very little discretionary income, two little kids, and a brand new house. I had three dogs with one of them being geriatric. I somehow managed to keep up with all of their expenses, regular and extra trips to the vet, whatever food they needed. Granted, it was an added expense but I did it. Now, with much more discretionary income I can still well afford it but I am SHOCKED when I walk out of the vet. I can easily see how someone of much more modest means cannot afford it. It's a shame because I see the same thing--dogs being sent back to the shelter because the owners could no longer financially swing it.

I know prices just naturally go up, but vets have also been taken over (just like human medical practices) by corporations and there have been significant increases in routine vet visits and services.

So I remember probably back in 2013 I was having my dog's teeth cleaned. The cost was $500. When I picked my dog up they said "Oh we did her nails while she was under and we used the Dremel--just something we do as it's easy to have the tech do it and takes only a few minutes." No charge.

Last summer I had my 5 year old dog's teeth cleaned ($1100 now 10 years later). They asked via a consent form if I wanted to have nails done while under. I said yes. No mention of a fee but I guess I should have assumed. I was charged $62 for the Dremel nail service. Holy cow. Now this is a different bet but I'm sure they all do this now.

I’m so with you guys on this! Vet costs for us have skyrocketed, too! I used to bring my two German Shepherds for their physicals each spring and paid roughly $300. This past spring I paid almost $1500 for my current two, a Shepherd and a small terrier. The terrier is getting older and has started having skin issues. Every time I walk in the door it’s a minimum of $300-400. Yesterday I got hit with a $790 bill for some minor issues with both dogs.

I honestly don’t know how some families can afford veterinary care today, and feel that’s part of what’s going on with shelters filling up: affordability. Here on this Disney travel board I think most of us are probably fine. But for many, something has to give when people can’t pay their bills and feed their families, and unfortunately, these days, it’s often the pet.

 

[dvcgirl67]

I’m so with you guys on this! Vet costs for us have skyrocketed, too! I used to bring my two German Shepherds for their physicals each spring and paid roughly $300. This past spring I paid almost $1500 for my current two, a Shepherd and a small terrier. The terrier is getting older and has started having skin issues. Every time I walk in the door it’s a minimum of $300-400. Yesterday I got hit with a $790 bill for some minor issues with both dogs.

I honestly don’t know how some families can afford veterinary care today, and feel that’s part of what’s going on with shelters filling up: affordability. Here on this Disney travel board I think most of us are probably fine. But for many, something has to give when people can’t pay their bills and feed their families, and unfortunately, these days, it’s often the pet.

It’s insane! My miniature schnauzer has bladder stones. Two visits for x-rays, blood work, emergency fee, specialist fee….we’re at $2500…not counting special food to dissolve stones. And we’re not done.

 

[lifesavacation]

It would honestly be cheaper for me to fly to San Diego and drive to Tijuana with my dog for vet care. Her yearly dental care is hundreds of dollars and that’s without the cardiologist appointment they insist she have beforehand for a heart murmur.

 

[slo]

Yes
Yes
and
Yes

My DH wants another dog so bad, since we are currently dogless and I keep telling him the costs are just too much. When our Sophie passed last year, grooming was up to $55 and this was the basic package - I don’t pay that much to get my hair cut. Her vet care in her older years was very expensive. I can go on and on. We’ll get another dog one day, but not for awhile - with a kid in college and travel we want to do, a dog is just not in the budget right now.

 

[dvcgirl67]

It would honestly be cheaper for me to fly to San Diego and drive to Tijuana with my dog for vet care. Her yearly dental care is hundreds of dollars and that’s without the cardiologist appointment they insist she have beforehand for a heart murmur.

Oh, I absolutely believe it. Our problem is that we have three dogs, the oldest two 9.5 and 12 have a *slew* of health issues. My miniature schnauzer now only sees an internal medicine doc because she has a serious autoimmune disease that requires steroids for the rest of her life....which lead to type one diabetes after about a year of those meds. My vet will no longer put her under for procedures like a good dental cleaning. So, had to have that done by the "dental vet", who also was not comfortable putting her under for the procedure on his own. So...to have my schnauzer's teeth cleaned we had the dental specialist and a dedicated vet anesthesiologist to monitor her. That procedure alone was $2,300....and that was two years ago. She needs it again, but can't do that until we get her bladder stones sorted out. With the price increases I've seen in the last two years there...I'd imagine it will be a few hundred more...at least.

My 12 year old Airedale has had epilepsy since she's one...so that's just constant meds and monitoring. She also had vestibular disease in 2021....that was two MRIs...to the tune of 10K. She has a heart murmur, so she needs an echo every 6-12 months depending on how she's doing. Just. Never. Ends.

We're lucky...we can afford their care, but we don't have children and make a nice living. We have pet insurance on the little one, a 5.5 year old miniature schnauzer, who so far....has no health issues. I never really "believed" in the expense of pet insurance before, but now will never have a pet without one. We've had three dogs before, and they all had health issues too, especially near the end of their lives. But even though we earn more now than we ever have, the prices we're seeing with vet care are just literally insane.

 

[Jennasis]

Try having to pay for a horse. I've got 7 and my annual vet costs are about the price of a new, very nice, car.

 

[WDWEPCOT]

Emergency care forget it if you can afford it awesome but it’s at least a 5 to 8 hour wait and they don’t care what your pet is going through you’re going to wait I had a pet almost died because of this - I went back home called and found another place about 50 miles away that would take my pet in the door right away and say my pets life
Food - my poor cat I can never get his litter it’s always sold out everywhere his food same it’s a constant battle trying to find his food he’ll only eat two foods one kind of wet and one kind of dry and I am always searching for it so if I find it I stock up and of course he only eats one of the most expensive ones there is but there’s nothing I can do about it that’s what he eats
My dog his food got recalled this week I hardly have any left and now I have to switch him over at the last minute so I had to go find a new dog food for him he is a sensitive system so I’m really nervous this is going to make him sick I found one brand that had the same flavor as his last which is beef everything else is chicken and he cannot have chicken so we’ll see how this goes
But the cost for the vet grooming food it’s all gone up and it’s all gone up drastically because it is an industry that they know people are pouring money into their pets marketing has gotten into it and they are making bank on it Google it you’ll see people buy gifts for their pets people spend hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of dollars on their pets they consider than family members I am not saying there’s anything wrong with this I am not saying that it’s wrong I am saying that the industry knows this is going on and they are utilizing it and because of this the cost is rising potentially this is why so many people who casually got a pet are abandoning their pets - my DD I had a rabbit for a time the place she got it they had over 100 that had been abandon people had gotten them and then gave them up they couldn’t get them adopted out it’s really sad
I used to work at a kennel years ago and I had to quit the day I had to load up 30 dogs to be taken to the vet to be put down was more than I could handle people with kennel their dogs to abandon them it’s truly sad
Are used to have two dogs two cats and I could afford it but I sure can’t do that these days it’s just way too expensive and it’s really sad my huge fan of dogs and they’re not here very long and it’s such a shame that it cost so much to have one but I will not cut corners when it comes to my pets I will cut corners for me first

 

[Tinkerbell58]

My GSD will be 12 years old in December and has pancreatitis. She's been on pancreatic enzyme powder since she was 4. My vet charges almost $300 for the powder, and it lasts a little more than a month. She is fed twice a day, and the powder is mixed with her food. I used to get the powder through chewy.com, but my vet will no longer approve prescriptions other than through them.

 

[Moliphino]

We've been going to the same vet practice for about 20 years now and their prices have stayed fairly reasonable, even though they are corporate owned (VCA). Definitely less expensive than the couple times I needed the emergency vet (why do they always get sick on Sundays when the regular vet is closed?).

 

[lifesavacation]

I’m so with you guys on this! Vet costs for us have skyrocketed, too! I used to bring my two German Shepherds for their physicals each spring and paid roughly $300. This past spring I paid almost $1500 for my current two, a Shepherd and a small terrier. The terrier is getting older and has started having skin issues. Every time I walk in the door it’s a minimum of $300-400. Yesterday I got hit with a $790 bill for some minor issues with both dogs.

I honestly don’t know how some families can afford veterinary care today, and feel that’s part of what’s going on with shelters filling up: affordability. Here on this Disney travel board I think most of us are probably fine. But for many, something has to give when people can’t pay their bills and feed their families, and unfortunately, these days, it’s often the pet.

For the first time ever, I opted to try and treat my pup at home first when I suspected she had a uti. I added it up with the exam, lab work, and meds and knew it would be $300+. So I used my chicken meds that I got at the feed store and it worked. I make a decent living, but anytime I go it’s at least $300, usually around $500. A yearly exam with the vet and shots and routine blood work would easily be $1000. It’s out of control.