Thank goodness for pet insurance

[T.C.]

On Friday, our youngest cat (who is about 15 months old) went missing. He is not a cat that is inclined to leave the garden as last time something spooked him big time and he did not leave the house for about a week, but, from time to time since then he has been known to go for a wander.

Anyway, despite calling him (he is one of those cats that comes when called) and having a search of the area just in case he had been hit by a car or got himself trapped somewhere, there was no trace, and so we had to wait and let nature take its course.

Saturday morning we get up, and lo and behold, little un is back home. He seemed all OK as he was lying down, but as soon as we put some food down for him so he could eat, it was obvious there was a problem as he could not weight bear on his right rear leg.

So off to the vets (and to be fair our local vet is very good), and several X-Rays later, confirmed that his leg was not just broken it was a snapped fib and tib and dislocated and displaced as well. 2 options, surgery with a specialist or amputation.

So, the specialist it was, and off we set for Godalming. 2 hour drive there (bear in mind we had already been at our local vets for 3 hours), and then a further 2 hours whilst they did all the checks and examinations and confirmed that given the seriousness of the break they would operate that same day.

So a 2 hour drive home again leaving him there for his surgery. Sunday morning got the call to day that surgery was successful and that not only did they have to deal with the breaks, but also major ligament damage resulting in ligament being taken from his knee and grafted into his ankle as well.

Got back to the surgeon on Sunday, and to see this little ball of fur with most of hos right side all shaved, but then this metal cage fixed and pinned to his right leg was pitiful. Plus of course he has to wear a buster collar until the stitches come out, although we have taken it off when he feeds and he does not appear to be making any attempt to play with his stitches.

Anyway, £2500 later we got him back all patched up and repaired, and now he is confined for 6 weeks.

Anyway, the moral of this story is, thank goodness for Pet insurance. £99 excess is a small price to pay in comparison.

[robbier6]

so sad to hear T.C. but glad to hear he is safe, well and making a full recovery...give him a big fuss from me

[BikerGran]

So glad to hear you got him fixed up!

[fatboy]

The post title says it all.
If vet treatment requires something a little more than routine, big bills will soon follow.
A lot of people slate vets charges, it takes 2 years longer to qualify as a vet than it does to qualify as a doctor, then the cost of all the kit they need ect.
Glad He's fixed TC, give him a little chin scratch from me !

[T.C.]

The post title says it all.
If vet treatment requires something a little more than routine, big bills will soon follow.
A lot of people slate vets charges, it takes 2 years longer to qualify as a vet than it does to qualify as a doctor, then the cost of all the kit they need ect.
Glad He's fixed TC, give him a little chin scratch from me !

On the odd occasion I have needed to use a Doctor, I have often thought I might be better off going to the vet myself.

You tell the Doctor your symptoms and they still cannot diagnose the problem (My father in law who had a collapsed lung and terminal cancer to be told he had a muscle strain, or telling us that my daughter was just "Off colour" when she actually had viral and bacterial meningitis - But these are separate stories) but take an animal to the vet, and despite the fact that the animals cannot speak, 99% of the time the vets are spot on with their diagnosis and treatment.

Apart from which, as a profession they seem a dammed sight more caring as well.

He does need any encouragement for a skin scratch. The number of people who just happened to be passing by and have popped in with some cat treats.

He is actually 18 months old but the size of a 6 month old (and he won't get any bigger), but with all the R & R he has to had plus all the treats he is being brought, in 6 weeks time he will be a little pot bellied fattie

[HisNibbs]

Just to confirm that despite what might appear catastrophic fractures a full recovery is very much a possibility.

My dog was hit by a car going around 70mph our side our house. A rear leg was smashed but with specialist treatment involving external carbon fiber frames and multiple pins through the skin to retain the bones, you wouldn't know it had happened. Tesco's share price may have dropped a notch as a result, but their pet insurance service was excellent.

[Willopotomas]

Sorry to hear about your puddy pat bud. One of our feline fur ball managed to come a cropper yesterday. Trip to the vet said it was nothing too serious, so paid the £35 for the consultation and some pills (for the cat..lol). I can highly recommend 'Your Vets' if you have one close by. Very professional, very friendly and certainly nowhere near as expensive as some independent places.

Hope kitteh is back to full fitness soon. Maow..

[T.C.]

Sorry to hear about your puddy pat bud. One of our feline fur ball managed to come a cropper yesterday. Trip to the vet said it was nothing too serious, so paid the £35 for the consultation and some pills (for the cat..lol). I can highly recommend 'Your Vets' if you have one close by. Very professional, very friendly and certainly nowhere near as expensive as some independent places.

Hope kitteh is back to full fitness soon. Maow..

We are fortunate in that we have a vets practice called EasyPets. Like your experience, very professional and caring.

On Saturday, they spent over 2.5 hours with him. They did the examination and consultation, took several X-Rays, gave pain medication and antibiotics, allowed us to use their computer to get our insurance details, allowed us to use their phone, made us a cup of tea, then emailed the X-Rays to the specialist, then phoned to make sure they had been received, then had a long chat with the specialist, and then called us as a polite follow up when we got home on Saturday night. Total bill - £113

A neighbour had a similar thing with her cat last year but used a different vet, and the bill was over £500 and they did not get (apparently) anywhere near the care and attention we did.

They have even said that rather than go all the way back to Godalming after 10 days to have the initial stitches out, they will do it free of charge as part of their ongoing after care treatment. They don't have to, (although the cost will not be that much) but the gesture is appreciated.

It puts it into perspective though. When our 2 other cats were castrated, it cost over £120 each. When little un was done, they did it for £26 and I bet they still made a profit. Now people from far and wide come to this practice, and although it would be easy to assume that as their business builds up the attention to detail and care would drop, in fact quite the contrary.

I think that they are working on the basis that by offering a good service at a fair price, they are taking business away from the other practices and use the analogy that 2 50p pieces is better than 1 x £1 on the basis that people are returning, and so they make as much money because they have a the customer base that allows them to keep prices down but still make a good profit.

I know that the 2 other vets practices in our area are feeling the pinch, so maybe it will force them to drop their prices, but there quality of care is still not a patch on the new practice, which I say is new, but has actually been open for about two and a half years now.

[Aladinsaneuk]

Good care means you do not need to advertise

[fatboy]

Good care means you do not need to advertise

Exactly !
The vet I use now was reccommended by a friend, that was reccommended by a friend ect. Not surprisingly all of my mates now use the same vet.
I think there are only 2 independant vets in this city, the rest were bought up by what is now a 'super' practice, with super prices.
When it comes to any kind of care,you cannot beat compassion

[BikerGran]

Unfortunately there are only two vets in our little town and their rates are pretty much the same - horrendous!

I'd have a look at how much they charge in the Vet section at Pets at Home in Poole but it would mean subjecting our nervous cats to a longer car journey so it's pay up and smile for us - we've never had insurance and as both cats are over 7 years old, it's too late to start.

[robbier6]

Hey T.C

how's the little fella coming along?

[T.C.]

Hey T.C

how's the little fella coming along?

He is slowly mending but being a cat very frustrated that he is not allowed out of the cage as he is not even allowed to wander around indoors.

Stitches in his thigh came out without problems, but still another 3 weeks before the metal work comes off his broken leg, (New Years Eve in fact).

What was a pleasant surprise was that rather than trek all the way to Godalming for the stitches to be taken out, we decided we would go to our normal vet (those that treated him in the first place), thinking it would be cheaper to pay the £25 or whatever than making a 4 hour round trip.

Stitches came out no problem, went to pay and they said "Oh No, nothing to pay, we regard that as ongoing treatment" We would have been quite happy to pay, but to be told that was a pleasant surprise and restores a little faith in that it shows that not every business is out there to rook you for every penny they can get out of you.

What he really misses is being able to jump onto a lap for a fuss when he wants, so we have made a conscious effort to take him out for about 30 minutes several times a day and this seems to pacify him.

As an aside, Insurance paid out within 5 days which I have to say was also a pleasant surprise. Credit Card now paid back

[lazarus]

I guess I must be the only one who thinks that spending £2500 of anyone's money on a cat or a dog is wrong. Leaving aside the cost of a replacement animal which is far less than that sum, the money could have saved the lives of several children in Africa. Is a cat worth more than human beings?

Now I'm not having a poke at TC in writing this - many many other brits would have done exactly the same thing for their moggy including, by the look of it, most people on this forum. But surely there is something wrong with our human values in western europe if we think an animal, any animal, is worth this much yet wqe let kids starve.

A farmer wouldnt think of it. Nor would we have taken a cat to the vet when I grew up - surplus kittens ( no one paid for the family cat to be "done") - were put in a sack with a house brick and into the canal.

To repeat I am not criticising or pointing a finger at TC - this is a national problem IMO of excessive sentimentality and a weird system of values.

[T.C.]

I guess I must be the only one who thinks that spending £2500 of anyone's money on a cat or a dog is wrong. Leaving aside the cost of a replacement animal which is far less than that sum, the money could have saved the lives of several children in Africa. Is a cat worth more than human beings?

I know you are not having a pop.

But then I have issues with all the money we mare asked and we give to Africa. If we were asked to donate condoms, I would have no problem, but given the corrupt nature of the Governments that run these countries where a lot of aid money finds its way onto corrupt officials pockets, and the fact that despite the poverty, the citizens of these countries still have the inclination and energy to reproduce, sorry, my little cat (according to my family )will get my money every single time.

I feel sorry for the kids brought into the world in these countries, but I am fed up of being told that we need to help them when they and their Governments do nothing to help themselves.

You can bet your bottom dollar if the shoe was on the other foot, these countries would tell us to f@ck off!!!