Veterinarians: Show me the money

[BeckyKnapp]

Letter to Ed:

Why is it a crime for someone to beat an animal or starve it and end up with a fine and or jail time when vets will send a pet home to die if you can't pay for expensive treatments?

A friend of mine has a very sick dog that may die and took it the vet. They ran tests and X-rays and said it had gotten into some type of toxic plant outside.

My friend didn't have quite the amount that was required to treat the animal and was going to take care of the rest of the bill the next day. What did the vet do? Sent the animal home deathly sick because they would not care for it overnight. If it dies, it dies. Seems to me this is a crime.

Vets have the place and medicine to treat animals, but if you don't have $2,000 in your pocket, they can't help you and tell you to take your pet home in pain and sickness.

Is this humane?

It's all about money. Let me ask vets: When you were in veterinary school, were you thinking about saving and helping animals or how much your salaries were going to be each year?

Dee Borges|Erie

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I agree with you, Dee; there are low-cost vets or clinics in Erie -- which is very odd. Every other (progressive) city I've ever lived in, there were vet services for people on fixed budgets (elderly) or low-income. In one city, PetSmart, in conjunction with local vets, provided clinic services once a month, where people could bring their animals to be seen by a vet at a very minimal fee. Other places, local vets volunteered their services to run a "low-cost" vet clinic, where they would rotate their services at a small clinic in one of the local shelters, set up specifically to be a "vet's office." And lastly, the Humane Society in many cities run "economy vet services" at their locations.
There is NO PLACE in Erie to get affordable veterinary care ... and I know people will say: if you can't afford a pet, don't get one. I know a LOT of people who have pets that they care for and love very much -- many of them pets adopted from local shelters who wouldn't have a chance if these people hadn't adopted them -- and they DO afford the shots, tags and other expenses for their pets; it's tough, though, when your animal gets SICK. It can run you $200 JUST for a vet visit and some antibiotis or medication.
There are some semi-solutions, though:
(a) Buy pet medications online. My favorite (online and in print) is Jeffers Pet. They've got everything and prices are reasonable (and you don't have to spend $30 for an office visit);
(b) The A.N.N.A. Shelter offers affordable spay/neuter services at its Wellness Clinic, although it does not offer vet care for sick animals.
(c) In my opinion, the best vet in this area, hands-down, is Dr. Amy Keith in North East. She's WONDERFUL. Her services are very affordable and she is more than willing to work out payments pet owners can afford -- and more than anything, she is absolutely, 100% committed to the animals. Can't SAY enough good things about Dr. Keith. She treats EVERY four-legged patient like it's her own -- with kindness, compassion, dignity and respect. If you're looking for a vet that truly, truly cares about animals -- she's your girl.

[BeckyKnapp]

First sentence should read, there are NO low-cost vets or clinics in Erie. Sorry about the omission.

[mary p-]

You can buy pet health care insurance....it's a good investment....

[Bob Oppenheimer]

veterinarians are just money hungry weasels who weren't smart enough to be osteopaths or dentists.

[mary p-]

A couple of years ago in our town, the local vet was charged with spiking her boyfriend's drinks with dog medicine....she said he was abusive, and it calmed him down....that is really sick, but also funny. She has since lost her license, (no wonder)....I think it would have been wiser to just have gotten rid of the boyfriend. Just goes to show you that education isn't always criteria to judge someone's mental state. I never took my dog there, but I knew her on an informal level...a real looney tune....

[Mrs_D]

A vetenarian spent time in school and has student loans just like a regular doctor. What do you want them to do- offer sercives for free?? If you went to Walmart and told the cashier that you would have money tomorrow and asked if you could leave an IOU beacuse you really needed the food, what kind of a response do you think you would get?

Pets are a huge responsibility. When you adopt a pet from a shelter, the first thing they explain to you is that you need to be sure that you can afford to care for the pet. That includes emergency care. If you can't dole out a few hundred bucks to save the dog you call a beloved pet, then don't bring the dog into your house in the first place. Get yourself a goldfish instead.

[BeckyKnapp]

Mrs_D wrote:

A vetenarian spent time in school and has student loans just like a regular doctor. What do you want them to do- offer sercives for free?? If you went to Walmart and told the cashier that you would have money tomorrow and asked if you could leave an IOU beacuse you really needed the food, what kind of a response do you think you would get?
Pets are a huge responsibility. When you adopt a pet from a shelter, the first thing they explain to you is that you need to be sure that you can afford to care for the pet. That includes emergency care. If you can't dole out a few hundred bucks to save the dog you call a beloved pet, then don't bring the dog into your house in the first place. Get yourself a goldfish instead.

You are SUCH a nasty woman, and you don't even make sense in your CONSTANT QUEST to find SOMEBODY to put down and diss .... because YOU are so much "better" than everybody else. LMFAO!
I'll bet your neighbors can't stand you ... in fact, I'd expand that, and say that probably ANYBODY who has the misfortune to have you cast a shadow on their life gets SO SICK of your uppity attitude, they could throw up.
You NEVER have a positive word about anybody or anything ... do you??? You're soooo superior to everyone and everything!
I am SURE that most people who own pets love them and care for them to the best of their ability. Not EVERYONE has unlimited funds like YOU apparently do, though, Miss High and Mighty ... and those animals who are "adopted from a shelter" and go home with somebody who DOESN'T have a million bucks to spend on exorbitant vet bills probably still feel VERY lucky to have a home and kindness and someone who loves them ... when the ALTERNATIVE for many of them was EUTHANIZATION. I'll bet those dogs and cats are DAMN GLAD to have the best "good life" a loving owner is able to give them.
And I HARDLY think comparing a doctor or dentist or vet to WALMART is a very good analogy on your part.(Are you nuts??) When you go to the ER and your visit is $1,500, MOST of the time they don't expect you to come in with the cash ON you ... they send you a bill, or allow you to make a partial payment and make payments on the balance ... or you MAkE payment arrangements so you can be provided with the LIFE-SAVING care you need. That's not QUITE the same as "going to Walmart," goof.
And everybody knows that vets have gone to school and have bills. Then how IS it that veterinarians like Amy Keith, who, in my opinion, is the best vet within 100-mile radius of Erie, can make payment arrangements, offer pet owners "charity options," and/or various and sundry ways to cut the cost of her services (instead of running six tests or procedures on an animal that would cost the owner $2,000, she advises the ONE or TWO tests that she feels pretty sure, based on the animal's symptoms, are the RIGHT tests to diagnose for certain what is wrong with the pet ... and work UP from there, if need be).
BECAUSE she looks out for both the animal AND the owner, I think she's the best vet around here.
How many pets do YOU have, by the way?
What's your average annual cost for those pets?

[Themis]

BeckyKnapp wrote:

<quoted text>
You are SUCH a nasty woman, and you don't even make sense in your CONSTANT QUEST to find SOMEBODY to put down and diss .... because YOU are so much "better" than everybody else. LMFAO!
I'll bet your neighbors can't stand you ... in fact, I'd expand that, and say that probably ANYBODY who has the misfortune to have you cast a shadow on their life gets SO SICK of your uppity attitude, they could throw up.
You NEVER have a positive word about anybody or anything ... do you??? You're soooo superior to everyone and everything!
I am SURE that most people who own pets love them and care for them to the best of their ability. Not EVERYONE has unlimited funds like YOU apparently do, though, Miss High and Mighty ... and those animals who are "adopted from a shelter" and go home with somebody who DOESN'T have a million bucks to spend on exorbitant vet bills probably still feel VERY lucky to have a home and kindness and someone who loves them ... when the ALTERNATIVE for many of them was EUTHANIZATION. I'll bet those dogs and cats are DAMN GLAD to have the best "good life" a loving owner is able to give them.
And I HARDLY think comparing a doctor or dentist or vet to WALMART is a very good analogy on your part.(Are you nuts??) When you go to the ER and your visit is $1,500, MOST of the time they don't expect you to come in with the cash ON you ... they send you a bill, or allow you to make a partial payment and make payments on the balance ... or you MAkE payment arrangements so you can be provided with the LIFE-SAVING care you need. That's not QUITE the same as "going to Walmart," goof.
And everybody knows that vets have gone to school and have bills. Then how IS it that veterinarians like Amy Keith, who, in my opinion, is the best vet within 100-mile radius of Erie, can make payment arrangements, offer pet owners "charity options," and/or various and sundry ways to cut the cost of her services (instead of running six tests or procedures on an animal that would cost the owner $2,000, she advises the ONE or TWO tests that she feels pretty sure, based on the animal's symptoms, are the RIGHT tests to diagnose for certain what is wrong with the pet ... and work UP from there, if need be).
BECAUSE she looks out for both the animal AND the owner, I think she's the best vet around here.
How many pets do YOU have, by the way?
What's your average annual cost for those pets?

Sounds like you need a little PCP, there Beckster!!

[Gary]

I find it hard to call Dee a responsible pet owner. Like my vet says: dogs are like two year olds...they will get into everything and need to be supervised 24/7. In all that paperwork you get when you first get a dog is a sheet that lists plants that are toxic to animals. You can also find this information on the internet. I'm lucky to have a fenced in yard but there were things I had to pull when I got a dog. Dogs don't know any better so it's the owners job to watch out for them. Accidents DO happen. A responsible pet owner is ready for emergencies. She should have the phone numbers for her vet and the pet emergency center posted right next to her 911 sticker on her phone. She should also have a pet first aid kit. You must also have the cash. Pets are an expensive, on going investment. You have to set money aside for emergencies. Pet insurance is also a great suggestion. I don't really see where the vet did anything wrong. They provided the level of care that you could afford to give your pet. If you wanted a better level of care, you should have been ready.

[BeckyKnapp]

Gary wrote:

I find it hard to call Dee a responsible pet owner. Like my vet says: dogs are like two year olds...they will get into everything and need to be supervised 24/7. In all that paperwork you get when you first get a dog is a sheet that lists plants that are toxic to animals. You can also find this information on the internet. I'm lucky to have a fenced in yard but there were things I had to pull when I got a dog. Dogs don't know any better so it's the owners job to watch out for them. Accidents DO happen. A responsible pet owner is ready for emergencies. She should have the phone numbers for her vet and the pet emergency center posted right next to her 911 sticker on her phone. She should also have a pet first aid kit. You must also have the cash. Pets are an expensive, on going investment. You have to set money aside for emergencies. Pet insurance is also a great suggestion. I don't really see where the vet did anything wrong. They provided the level of care that you could afford to give your pet. If you wanted a better level of care, you should have been ready.

A month or so ago, we bought an AKC registered dachshund from a private owner who breeds his dogs and sells the puppies -- an expensive little dog, too, I might add!-- and we received NO "paperwork that listed toxic plants" or any other kind of paperwork, except his shot records. I've never bought a pet in my life that came with 'paperwork on toxic plants." Don't know where you're getting your dogs, but haven't ever seen that myself.

[Mrs_D]

BeckyKnapp wrote:

<quoted text>
You are SUCH a nasty woman, and you don't even make sense in your CONSTANT QUEST to find SOMEBODY to put down and diss .... because YOU are so much "better" than everybody else. LMFAO!
I'll bet your neighbors can't stand you ... in fact, I'd expand that, and say that probably ANYBODY who has the misfortune to have you cast a shadow on their life gets SO SICK of your uppity attitude, they could throw up.
You NEVER have a positive word about anybody or anything ... do you??? You're soooo superior to everyone and everything!
I am SURE that most people who own pets love them and care for them to the best of their ability. Not EVERYONE has unlimited funds like YOU apparently do, though, Miss High and Mighty ... and those animals who are "adopted from a shelter" and go home with somebody who DOESN'T have a million bucks to spend on exorbitant vet bills probably still feel VERY lucky to have a home and kindness and someone who loves them ... when the ALTERNATIVE for many of them was EUTHANIZATION. I'll bet those dogs and cats are DAMN GLAD to have the best "good life" a loving owner is able to give them.
And I HARDLY think comparing a doctor or dentist or vet to WALMART is a very good analogy on your part.(Are you nuts??) When you go to the ER and your visit is $1,500, MOST of the time they don't expect you to come in with the cash ON you ... they send you a bill, or allow you to make a partial payment and make payments on the balance ... or you MAkE payment arrangements so you can be provided with the LIFE-SAVING care you need. That's not QUITE the same as "going to Walmart," goof.
And everybody knows that vets have gone to school and have bills. Then how IS it that veterinarians like Amy Keith, who, in my opinion, is the best vet within 100-mile radius of Erie, can make payment arrangements, offer pet owners "charity options," and/or various and sundry ways to cut the cost of her services (instead of running six tests or procedures on an animal that would cost the owner $2,000, she advises the ONE or TWO tests that she feels pretty sure, based on the animal's symptoms, are the RIGHT tests to diagnose for certain what is wrong with the pet ... and work UP from there, if need be).
BECAUSE she looks out for both the animal AND the owner, I think she's the best vet around here.
How many pets do YOU have, by the way?
What's your average annual cost for those pets?

It seems like the more CAPITAL letter words you use, the less you have to intelligently add to a discussion. You can make ALL the stupid comments you want, I REALLY don't care.

I've owned a dog for only a couple of months now. In the last couple of weeks alone, I've spent over $500 to get emergency care for this dog. When I got him from the shelter, I understood that caring for a dog may get expensive. In addition to the vet bills, I have spent hundreds of dollars on food, toys, grooming, etc. Worth every penny. But that is the point- it is not unreasonable to expect that a pet such as a dog will cost you $$.

PS- The whole "you're a nasty woman, your neighbors probably hate you" blah, blah, blah is getting old. You need to come up with some new material.

[humane]

BeckyKnapp wrote:

<quoted text>
A month or so ago, we bought an AKC registered dachshund from a private owner who breeds his dogs and sells the puppies -- an expensive little dog, too, I might add!--.

Did you watch as he performed these heinous acts?

[BeckyKnapp]

Mrs_D wrote:

<quoted text>
It seems like the more CAPITAL letter words you use, the less you have to intelligently add to a discussion. You can make ALL the stupid comments you want, I REALLY don't care.
I've owned a dog for only a couple of months now. In the last couple of weeks alone, I've spent over $500 to get emergency care for this dog. When I got him from the shelter, I understood that caring for a dog may get expensive. In addition to the vet bills, I have spent hundreds of dollars on food, toys, grooming, etc. Worth every penny. But that is the point- it is not unreasonable to expect that a pet such as a dog will cost you $$.
PS- The whole "you're a nasty woman, your neighbors probably hate you" blah, blah, blah is getting old. You need to come up with some new material.

The capital letters are to emphasize the words, as i would do if I were speaking out loud. I've had shelter dogs before, too -- my last (and very beloved dog that had o be put to sleep this summer) was a "beg-you-to-take-him-plea se!" dog from Ruth Thompson Carroll ... and he didn't "come with" $500 expenses out of the gate. I don't know what kind of dog you adopted, but I don't know a single soul who has gotten a shelter dog -- and almost all (I would emphasixe that 'all" with caps, but that would throw you, so I won't) of my friends do have shelter dogs -- that required them to spend $500 on the animal as soon as they walked it out of the shelter.
I think you really, really want to make yourself seem loftier than you probably are in real life, but go for it. I don't buy most of the BS you post anyway.
And as for "new material" ... I rarely respond to your comments because they're just more of the same old bashing and dissing and I have no interest in them ... so I think you're confusing me with the dozens of other people who tell you you're nasty. Which you are 9caps left out again on the "are')... but I don't find you interesting enough to care much that you're a nasty person. Let others assure you of that.

[BeckyKnapp]

And ... I still think comparing a shopping trip to Walmart to a $1,500 doctor bill is absolutely ridiculous. Very bad (and stupid0 analogy.

[Bob Oppenheimer]

will obama be taking over animal health care too ? the vets offices will be packed with skanky pit bulls and feral cats.

[Tenney from Penney]

Bob Oppenheimer wrote:

will obama be taking over animal health care too ? the vets offices will be packed with skanky pit bulls and feral cats.

Once in a blue moon you say something funny. This is one of those RARE occasions. LMAO

[Bob Oppenheimer]

Tenney from Penney wrote:

<quoted text>
Once in a blue moon you say something funny. This is one of those RARE occasions. LMAO

i do what i can with what i have...i try to offend everybody

[Gary]

BeckyKnapp wrote:

<quoted text>
A month or so ago, we bought an AKC registered dachshund from a private owner who breeds his dogs and sells the puppies -- an expensive little dog, too, I might add!-- and we received NO "paperwork that listed toxic plants" or any other kind of paperwork, except his shot records. I've never bought a pet in my life that came with 'paperwork on toxic plants." Don't know where you're getting your dogs, but haven't ever seen that myself.

Like I said...probably NOT a responsible pet owner. There should have been a lot of studying going on BEFORE the purchase. Most dog food websites have info. sections that review what to feed and not feed your new family memeber. AKC's website also has this information. I might suggest you find a better breeder next time. The one we got our new baby from not only gave us AKC papers but also a starter kit which contained several little booklets about dog ownership and care. There have also been a couple calls from him just to make sure everything was going ok. Either they guy we bought from is exceptional or maybe you bought from a puppy mill and not a real breeder.

[zippigurl]

well this is dee and I have to say thank you becky knapp for your constant writing to these complete idiots! First of all you did not get my letter at all mt friend was just short 68 dollars and her dog needed an i.v. over night and the vet said " no you will have to take your dog home" kinda like good luck with him!!! let me tell you Mrs.D, as you call yourself we all have cars to drive to work we need them, to get around but how many of us can shell out hundreds for a problem that happens! oops, I guess we should'nt have cars now. guess you will be taking the bus from now on since you are so responsible! How sad that you did'nt get the meaning of my letter.
Dee

[Mrs_D]

zippigurl wrote:

let me tell you Mrs.D, as you call yourself we all have cars to drive to work we need them, to get around but how many of us can shell out hundreds for a problem that happens! oops, I guess we should'nt have cars now. guess you will be taking the bus from now on since you are so responsible!
Dee

Well said- I agree 100%. If you can't afford the repairs, either upgrade to a brand new car or ride the city bus.