Discussion
Had a trip to vets on friday to get meds for dog's conjunctivitis she successfully caught from another dog she is bessies with also known to have developed the problem a few days prior.
£70 later, we are left with a tiny tiny tube of ointment prescribed by the vet. my pal in spain says buying animal meds OTC is a regular occurrence out there and wondered if this really was true?
£70 later, we are left with a tiny tiny tube of ointment prescribed by the vet. my pal in spain says buying animal meds OTC is a regular occurrence out there and wondered if this really was true?
Well vet care is a lot cheaper in Spain/Portugal. To give an example, to get my dog checked to return to the UK from Portugal including tablets cost me 18 Eur. It was £140 in the UK for the "outward" check... But the real kicker? Last week I got two dogs penn hip scored - £300 each (which was a fair bit cheaper than the nearest cheapest at over £400 per dog) - a friend in Portugal pays 35 Eur.. She can basically get an entire litter scored for a bit less than we pay for one dog !! So I suspect they are happier to purchase more meds from the vets in any event.....
Whats the meds? it'll be too late now but I run a dog shelter in Portugal and can tell you for comparison what it would cost me if you're curious.
Though if you didn't know what was wrong with the dog or what meds you needed you're going to have to pay the vet to tell you (I assume that £70 included a consult?)
Though if you didn't know what was wrong with the dog or what meds you needed you're going to have to pay the vet to tell you (I assume that £70 included a consult?)
When my elderly elkhound needed meds, he was prescribed Tramadol. I asked the vet what the difference between veterinary Tramadol and human Tramadol was and she said it was identical, just twice or thrice the price.
It might be worth establishing whether the conjunctivitis meds are the same for both species, too. IIRC, you are not tied to your vet to fill a veterinary prescription. I think there are vet pharmacies on t'interweb.
It might be worth establishing whether the conjunctivitis meds are the same for both species, too. IIRC, you are not tied to your vet to fill a veterinary prescription. I think there are vet pharmacies on t'interweb.
otolith said:
I think the NHS distorts people's perception of what medical care costs.
I think its more that he's lumping in a vet consult with the medicine price. And the vet costs out here are significantly lower. I can get a badly broken leg patched up for a few hundred. Or a large dog sterilised for 60 euros.
If you don't need the vet to tell you what you need, and you don't need a prescription. or you can get a prescription without an actual consult, its all quite easy/cheap. We've got stuff like Valiums, strong painkillers etc on hand. Tramadols and things like that.
Edited by Algarve on Sunday 27th October 21:22
otolith said:
As for prices in Portugal - average income adjusted for local prices (PPP) is about half the UK. Lower wage economy.
Car dealerships need to get that memo 
I reckon you could easily find an example of a low paid job and a normal run of the mill car that was comparible in both countries, with the Portuguese one costing 10x as many hours worked to buy it.
otolith said:
I think the NHS distorts people's perception of what medical care costs.
otolith said:
More of a general comment on how British people react to veterinary costs than specific to this case, but yeah, I assume that there’s a consultation in that too.
As for prices in Portugal - average income adjusted for local prices (PPP) is about half the UK. Lower wage economy.
Agreed.As for prices in Portugal - average income adjusted for local prices (PPP) is about half the UK. Lower wage economy.
The second point applies in the UK, too. When I lived in a more affluent area of England, vet consultations and treatments were more expensive than they are in the more rural area of Wales where I live now.
Edited by moorx on Sunday 27th October 21:46
Algarve said:
otolith said:
As for prices in Portugal - average income adjusted for local prices (PPP) is about half the UK. Lower wage economy.
Car dealerships need to get that memo I reckon you could easily find an example of a low paid job and a normal run of the mill car that was comparible in both countries, with the Portuguese one costing 10x as many hours worked to buy it.
Two links that might be useful:
https://www.365vet.co.uk/blog/understanding-veteri... - explains the law and the untying of filling prescriptions from vets in 2005
https://www.petdrugsonline.co.uk/prescriptions?p=1 - one of a number of online pharmacies.
It is worth thinking, though, of the likelihood that, if online pharmacies become more widely used, vet consultation fees will have to go up to make up for the lost bunce they make from the meds...Not all vets can retire to the Bahamas on the money they make
https://www.365vet.co.uk/blog/understanding-veteri... - explains the law and the untying of filling prescriptions from vets in 2005
https://www.petdrugsonline.co.uk/prescriptions?p=1 - one of a number of online pharmacies.
It is worth thinking, though, of the likelihood that, if online pharmacies become more widely used, vet consultation fees will have to go up to make up for the lost bunce they make from the meds...Not all vets can retire to the Bahamas on the money they make
psi310398 said:
Two links that might be useful:
https://www.365vet.co.uk/blog/understanding-veteri... - explains the law and the untying of filling prescriptions from vets in 2005
https://www.petdrugsonline.co.uk/prescriptions?p=1 - one of a number of online pharmacies.
It is worth thinking, though, of the likelihood that, if online pharmacies become more widely used, vet consultation fees will have to go up to make up for the lost bunce they make from the meds...Not all vets can retire to the Bahamas on the money they make
If that happens you could go one further if you're confident you know what you're doing. Just bypass the vet completely and use an Indian pharmacy that will ship to you with no prescription https://www.365vet.co.uk/blog/understanding-veteri... - explains the law and the untying of filling prescriptions from vets in 2005
https://www.petdrugsonline.co.uk/prescriptions?p=1 - one of a number of online pharmacies.
It is worth thinking, though, of the likelihood that, if online pharmacies become more widely used, vet consultation fees will have to go up to make up for the lost bunce they make from the meds...Not all vets can retire to the Bahamas on the money they make
Vets consultation fees and medication charges have gone silly, and I think the underlying cause is that most people now have some level of insurance cover. It has become like the US healthcare system, where the charges bear no relation to the costs.
There are a lot of veterinary medications which are prescription only in the UK for seemingly no good reason, but are freely available far cheaper over the counter in almost every other country.
I can understand vets and medications costing more here than in eastern Europe for example, but not by as much as the disparity is now. A friend of mine is originally from Lithuania and they have a lovely young Cane Corso cross who unfortunately developed joint problems in both her back legs. The local specialist veterinary hospital quoted £5k for the operation for each leg. Instead they drove home to Lithuania for a 3 weeks break last Christmas, and the vet in Lithuania charged £800 for the operations including aftercare. Did a great job too by the looks of it. So where does the extra £9200 come from in the UK?
I use Seresto collars with my dogs to prevent fleas and ticks. In the UK they're prescription only, and vets sell them for £45 ish. You can buy them from online pharmacies for under £20, but then have to visit your vet every time and pay for a prescription.... for a product your dog is extremely unlikely to have a reaction to, and which in many cases they'd have used before. The same product is available over the counter in almost every other country in the world, at less than half the price.
Sorry for the rant. When you have huge dogs the medication costs escalate quite quickly :-)
There are a lot of veterinary medications which are prescription only in the UK for seemingly no good reason, but are freely available far cheaper over the counter in almost every other country.
I can understand vets and medications costing more here than in eastern Europe for example, but not by as much as the disparity is now. A friend of mine is originally from Lithuania and they have a lovely young Cane Corso cross who unfortunately developed joint problems in both her back legs. The local specialist veterinary hospital quoted £5k for the operation for each leg. Instead they drove home to Lithuania for a 3 weeks break last Christmas, and the vet in Lithuania charged £800 for the operations including aftercare. Did a great job too by the looks of it. So where does the extra £9200 come from in the UK?
I use Seresto collars with my dogs to prevent fleas and ticks. In the UK they're prescription only, and vets sell them for £45 ish. You can buy them from online pharmacies for under £20, but then have to visit your vet every time and pay for a prescription.... for a product your dog is extremely unlikely to have a reaction to, and which in many cases they'd have used before. The same product is available over the counter in almost every other country in the world, at less than half the price.
Sorry for the rant. When you have huge dogs the medication costs escalate quite quickly :-)
spookly said:
I use Seresto collars with my dogs to prevent fleas and ticks. In the UK they're prescription only, and vets sell them for £45 ish. You can buy them from online pharmacies for under £20, but then have to visit your vet every time and pay for a prescription.... for a product your dog is extremely unlikely to have a reaction to, and which in many cases they'd have used before. The same product is available over the counter in almost every other country in the world, at less than half the price.
We use the collars on over 40 dogs, I buy them in bulk from wherever I can get them cheapest at the time, I think the last lot were about 20 euros each. Needing a prescription for a flea collar is ridiculous.
Our old Lab has been on a daily dose of Metacam for his OCD for many years.
The price is sizeable from the vets, less so online but a prescription is needed. The Vet has been great for him throughout his life, and I understand how the income is supplemented by Meds, but I wish I could source the repetitive meds for less !
The price is sizeable from the vets, less so online but a prescription is needed. The Vet has been great for him throughout his life, and I understand how the income is supplemented by Meds, but I wish I could source the repetitive meds for less !
Prices can vary massively. Their is a vet that's a chain and for some teeth to be removed, £750 but possibly more once they are in. Went to
A family run local vet, that's about 1 mile from the chain/company one. Exact same and £200. Crazy.
You can also haggle. I simply said I couldnt afford £80 per month for eye medication for life. Suddenly they have an alternative that's 20. Strange that.
A family run local vet, that's about 1 mile from the chain/company one. Exact same and £200. Crazy.
You can also haggle. I simply said I couldnt afford £80 per month for eye medication for life. Suddenly they have an alternative that's 20. Strange that.
Our Labradoodle has lots of stomach issues..... last time he was in the vets for the weekend we got the bill which was around £1k. £140 of that bill was for Omeprozole... 30mg a day for 7 days. This isn't even licensed for animals and was being used off-license at which point the Receptionist said it would be even more if it was licensed???
As it happens 30mg of Omeprozole daily should cost pence and not pounds, and if they said they were going to give him omeprozole he could have had some of mine!!!
As it happens 30mg of Omeprozole daily should cost pence and not pounds, and if they said they were going to give him omeprozole he could have had some of mine!!!
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