Veterinary care really should be budgeted also before getting a pet. Studies show that the average cost of owning a dog is $12,000 to $18,000 over the dog’s lifetime… EXCLUDING veterinary care.
Veterinarians spend the same money on their education as your MD, and graduate with the same average debt ~$160,000. The American Medical Association is worried about the future of human doctors when an MD salary ”only” starts at $160,000 annually. A new graduate DVM starts at about $70,000. That veterinarian also had to learn about many species: dogs, cats, goats, chickens, horses, parrots, rabbits, cows, pigs, etc.
None of our patients can be asked to hold still, and require a second person to restrain them gently and safely.
We have to have on-site x-ray capability, laboratory, anesthesia/surgery, hospitalization, dentistry, and more.
Our medical teams have to have the equipment and training to safely anesthetize patients, and to respond to anesthetic emergencies.
We have to have training in x-ray safety and maintain not only the x-ray machine, but also the safety equipment (aprons, gloves, thyroid shields, dosimeters) and the x-ray computer system.
While it's not mounted into a chair, we have the same dental equipment as your dentist and must anesthetize (safely) every patient receiving dental care.
We must have on-site laboratory equipment for pre-anesthetic testing, as well as diagnostic testing for basic tests. More complete testing is sent to our reference laboratory. (btw, imagine if your MD would run a complete CBC, Chem 27, electrolytes, thyroid function, pro-BNP (cardiac screen), pancreatitis test, heartworm test, tick-borne disease test, intestinal parasite exam, and urinalysis… and only charge you $325. My MD isn’t even allowed to order all that.)
We have to be able to initiate treatment on our patients at the point of care. We don’t just suspect a problem, send them to another facility for lab tests, yet another for imaging, then to the hospital for treatment. We do that all in one place unless the complexity or special nature of a case requires a board-certified specialist. What convenience!
We provide therapeutic diets that help your pet avoid future recurrences of known problems, prescribed by a trained medical professional, and sold to you by a trained team. No sales spiffs to a store clerk incentivized to promote the brand of the week.
We are even trained to provide you a final bill at the end of the visit. We don’t get the luxury of billing specialists who can focus their time, scrutinizing each procedure to maximize the bill to the patient.
I love the pet owner who complains about (for example) the cost of x-rays. “But my x-rays last week only cost $10.” Yeah, your copay was $10. Your insurance premium of $650 monthly per person paid a lot more than that, so factor that in. “But I don’t pay my premium. It’s a paid benefit by my spouse’s employer.” Don’t you think you are still paying, because that is money that might have gone into a paycheck?
Remember also the human nurses who earn $30–60/hour (RN), vs the veterinary nurse who also has a degree, maintains a professional license, has annual required continuing education (often not employer-paid), and makes $18-25/hour with fewer benefits.
Fortunately, most of our clients do appreciate what we do. They trust us with their furry family members, as do their children, and even their grandchildren. Those of us in veterinary medicine (doctors or not) form bonds with our clients and our patients. Even to the end, it is an honor to be trusted to help their families over many years.