They are considerably lower than those of your MD, yet your veterinarian has the same educational debt while earning less than half what he or she would make in human medicine. Likewise, veterinary staff typically earn less than half what they would with similar education, experience, and training in human medicine.

Veterinary equipment and supply costs are often higher than for human medicine, especially as we are able to amortize the cost over fewer patients.

We are able to offer more services than ever before to help sick and injured animals. Some of these services require board-certified Veterinary Specialists. We have specialists in behavior, cardiology, dentistry, internal medicine, surgery, oncology, ophthalmology, pathology, toxicology, anesthesia, pharmacology, dermatology, microbiology, nutrition, preventive medicine, radiology, zoology, sports medicine/rehab, emergency/critical care, and reproductive medicine. We use equipment such as ultrasound, MRI, CT, nuclear medicine, radiation, and more, just as in human medicine. We have genetic testing.

What we lack is a healthy pet insurance ecosystem, where everyone contributes a small amount monthly to protect the insured patients from the rare huge veterinary bills. You as the pet owner feel the pain every time you have to open your wallet because most people do not budget for non-routine veterinary care. You also cannot budget for an illness that can cost thousands of dollars or more.

Are veterinary fees too high? No. They are a bargain, as services typically are half of the cost in human medicine… often using the exact same equipment. Are the fees too high for YOU? Maybe. In that case, as you are paying out of pocket, it is your obligation to open that discussion with your veterinarian. In an ideal world, cost is no object, and we can provide more services and achieve better outcomes. Unfortunately, that is rarely the case, and we have to have open communication with you to make sure we are providing the best veterinary care that you can afford for your pet today.

It always baffles me that people expect an MD to earn $200,000 or more after graduating from medical school with $200,000 in debt, but resent the veterinarian who makes $80,000 after graduating from veterinary school with $200,000 in debt.

When veterinarians are making incomes comparable to an MD, and are able to pay their staff wages that reflect their education, training, and experience, THEN we can discuss veterinary fees. Until then, the fees aren’t high enough, nor is your perception of their value.