Andisa Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 (edited) Threads about desexing costs seem to come up a lot, but I generally don't take much notice. I have only desexed a few dogs over the years and have just booked Lizzy (4 yo Pug ~7-8kgs) to be spayed tomorrow getting her ready for her new home. I was expecting the cost to be around $200 - $250 but was pleased to be told it will be only $167. Sounds more than reasonable to me - especially for a Pug. Fingers crossed for Lizzy tomorrow. I know I paid more than this over 6 yrs ago for a small male fluffy to be desexed. Edited July 24, 2011 by Andisa Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MinPin Owner Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 Interesting. I just got my kelpie spayed and the cost was $320. I thought it was quite expensive compared with previous dogs. She is 2 yrs old but not on heat or anything. Same cost at the vets in the next town when I rang up to ask. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jrm88 Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 (edited) I think people should stop focusing on cost so much. A clinic who does it cheap may not have a nurse to monitor anaesthetic, may not routinely give pain relief, may not monitor blood pressure (yet still give an NSAID which could cause kidney damage) and lastly, may compromise your animals health to save money. They also might be a wonderful clinic who somehow provides best medicine at a hugely reduced cost but often you do get what you pay for so I hope people take that into consideration Edit: Not saying that I dont understand people are cost concious, but cheapest isnt always best Edited July 24, 2011 by jrm88 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andisa Posted July 24, 2011 Author Share Posted July 24, 2011 I think people should stop focusing on cost so much. A clinic who does it cheap may not have a nurse to monitor anaesthetic, may not routinely give pain relief, may not monitor blood pressure (yet still give an NSAID which could cause kidney damage) and lastly, may compromise your animals health to save money. They also might be a wonderful clinic who somehow provides best medicine at a hugely reduced cost but often you do get what you pay for so I hope people take that into consideration I didn't say what Vets but will now - WoofPurNay in Narre Warren SE Vic. I have been going to them for many years, before they built their new animal hospital. I also use another vet who is out of my way and far from cheap for all breeding related matters. Anyone who knows me also knows that I have had some massive vet bills in the past. I would have had her spayed sooner but frankly hate the thought of sedating a Pug, I know a few people who have lost pugs during surgery - Lizzy has already had an em c section and that was an awful feeling. I just hope she copes well with her spay. Not sure really why I started this thread other than I was surprised that the cost is much less than what I was expecting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jrm88 Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 I think people should stop focusing on cost so much. A clinic who does it cheap may not have a nurse to monitor anaesthetic, may not routinely give pain relief, may not monitor blood pressure (yet still give an NSAID which could cause kidney damage) and lastly, may compromise your animals health to save money. They also might be a wonderful clinic who somehow provides best medicine at a hugely reduced cost but often you do get what you pay for so I hope people take that into consideration I didn't say what Vets but will now - WoofPurNay in Narre Warren SE Vic. I have been going to them for many years, before they built their new animal hospital. I also use another vet who is out of my way and far from cheap for all breeding related matters. Anyone who knows me also knows that I have had some massive vet bills in the past. I would have had her spayed sooner but frankly hate the thought of sedating a Pug, I know a few people who have lost pugs during surgery - Lizzy has already had an em c section and that was an awful feeling. I just hope she copes well with her spay. Not sure really why I started this thread other than I was surprised that the cost is much less than what I was expecting. I know who they are, and Im also surprised they are that cheap as I would expect them to practice good medicine from what I have heard about them. I guess as a client it is very hard to know what questions to ask to find out what standard your vet practices (and it would differ depending on individual opinion) I guess being such a huge vet clinic they can probably subsidise their desexing costs to make it cheaper due to earning their money from other procedures. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Staff'n'Toller Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 Going by other threads, you will probably find that that is their base price, and you will be offered fluids, bloods, take home pain relief etc. When you arrive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andisa Posted July 24, 2011 Author Share Posted July 24, 2011 Going by other threads, you will probably find that that is their base price, and you will be offered fluids, bloods, take home pain relief etc. When you arrive. Yes, I was thinking about that a few mins ago, will find out tomorrow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rebanne Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 low costs does not automatically mean they are cutting corners or compromising the animals heatlh. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbo Baggins Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 Andisa probably size of dog. When ringing around for desexing a white shepherd the question asked is weight. The bigger the dog the bigger the cost. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jr_inoz Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 could also mean that, if she is a valued client and breeder, that the price is cheaper for her. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RuralPug Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 Andisa probably size of dog. When ringing around for desexing a white shepherd the question asked is weight. The bigger the dog the bigger the cost. Yes true for amounts of anaesthetic drugs etc. but for the brachy breeds the type of anaesthesia and the need for a qualified assistant at the anaesthesia station is also very important. I bet I know one vet who is going to get a big detailed grilling tomorrow before a precious pug is handed over!!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andisa Posted July 24, 2011 Author Share Posted July 24, 2011 Andisa probably size of dog. When ringing around for desexing a white shepherd the question asked is weight. The bigger the dog the bigger the cost. Yes true for amounts of anaesthetic drugs etc. but for the brachy breeds the type of anaesthesia and the need for a qualified assistant at the anaesthesia station is also very important. I bet I know one vet who is going to get a big detailed grilling tomorrow before a precious pug is handed over!!!!! All vet who handle one of my dogs gets a grilling regardless of breed. The last time I had a bitch spayed was Abby. I felt sorry for the poor bugger who not only got grilled on how I expected her to be handled but I was watching from the viewing area too . Now add that to how I will be with a Pug :D . Imagine what I was like when I had to leave Lizzy with the Emergency Clinic for an em c section - maybe that was why the bill was soooo big.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andisa Posted July 24, 2011 Author Share Posted July 24, 2011 could also mean that, if she is a valued client and breeder, that the price is cheaper for her. No - it would not have made any difference for me, it would be on their books what I go in for and some things are related to procedures that have been done elsewhere, so no loyalty to one vet clinic. Depends on what needs to be done. And Pink was injured at the pool when she was only 5 months old, I certainly could have been more polite than what I was they were very good about it and did xrays for no cost to me to make sure that she was fine. They might have some "interesting" notes on my acct details Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
puglvr Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 This cost could be because July is desexing month and some vets are offering half price desexing. I just had Jack desexed and it was $99 straight castration + Fluids + extra pain relief . Which our vets sort of consider to be standard anyway especially for pugs. There was also a small extra cost for extractiong the wayward testicle. All up I think it was $189. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluefairy Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 Hi Andisa, When I had Zoe done it only cost me $187, so close to your price. I did have the extra fluids and the take home pain relieve too. This is standard cost for any dog, cats are cheaper by about $20-$30. Oh and it was a while ago so not during the July Desexing Month. Our rural vet clinic has 2 practices, one in a main town 120km away and one near me about 40kms away. They are absolutely brilliant with Pugs. A friend had a Pug she took to another vet clinic (who I will never go to again), and her Pug came home gasping, her breathing sounded funny and she had a croaky voice for several days....it was frightening to hear. When Zoe came home she was fine, just like any of my other dogs. I will always take a Pug to them, they know what they are doing. BF Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dancinbcs Posted July 25, 2011 Share Posted July 25, 2011 low costs does not automatically mean they are cutting corners or compromising the animals heatlh. Absolutely. Some vets with a large client base prefer to keep costs down to a minimum to encourage owners to seek treatments early rather than later so the animals are easier to treat. Also overheads depending on where the vet is located are one of the biggest cost factors. I use one of the very best vets Sydney, who are used by many breeders and their prices are about half what the average "pet vet" 20km closer to the centre of Sydney charges. Real estate being rented or purchased determines a lot of what a vet needs to charge to cover costs. Advertising is also expensive and if a vet needs to advertise that has to be factored in. My vets have more than enough clients to keep them and the team of vets who work for them busy all the time without advertising. My vets do not cut corners or compromise health. They do not offer a "side order" of options and use the safest anaesthetics on all patients but my last spey 2 years ago was only $170 for an 8 year old 20kg dog. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elise+Hudson Posted July 25, 2011 Share Posted July 25, 2011 You will find a lot of vets will keep the costs of spey and castrate as low as possible to try and encourage people to desex their pets. If you compare this surgery to a similar abdominal surgical procedure the fee is usually very low in comparison. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andisa Posted July 25, 2011 Author Share Posted July 25, 2011 Everything went well, she is home and much brighter than I was expecting. I did get the pain meds and have her ears cleaned, swabbed and got cream for an ear infection. She has an enlarged teat, not related to breeding (only bred twice and raised 6 pups). She had a skin allergy early in the yr and made a mess of the teat scratching it, they asked if I wanted the teat removed. I spoke with her new owners and told them that while it is fine now it "may" change later on but they were happy to leave it alone for now and deal with it in future if needed. Vet was happy to leave it alone since it has been improving on it's own, just suggested removal to make her look better (+ $ ;) ). So all up it was just under $250 - I am still very happy with that, especially since she came trotting out of the surgery as if nothing has happened. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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