What was your biggest ever vet bill?

[muffin]

Hi everyone, I was just wondering what people's biggest ever vet bill has been. Some of the US members have had astronomical ones, and I was wondering what people have needed to have done in the UK and how much it cost. I want to rescue more piggies when I move into a bigger house, but I need to make sure I always have funds, or at least a credit limit to cover the greatest possible vet bill.

1) If you could tell me what the bill was for and the total amount, including aftercare vet visits, medications etc,
2) and also how old each of your pigs are and how much you reckon you've spent on each one in total, and for what if you have enough time to include that info.

Thanks so much everyone.

[fourbwabbys]

I'm in the US, but thought I'd add.

I decided to do an alternate treatment, but this was my vet's first choice:
Surgery for toe that was split in half, but still connected. I don't remember exactly what everything was but He had Sulfatrim (antibiotic), Metacam (Pain meds), Anesthesia, bandaging, visit cost. All for about $350.

I had to pay about $125 for the alternate treatment. Which was bandaging, Sulfatrim, visit cost.

Trixie- has not been to the vet yet, will be going next week for a swollen foot. I'll update after his visit.

Spaz- Allergies, thought it was a URI. About $40 for Baytril if needed. (Originally $80, but the emergency vet gave us 1/2 price since she was a guinea pig.)

Jane- has not been to vet. Will need to go soon for a lump if it does not go away soon.

Eddie- $10 at humane shelter for new pet check up

All together, since March 2004, $175.

[Rachy1412]

Ohh this is going to be a tricky one! Most of these will be estimates I'm afraid. The most I have ever spent at one time is £200. That was for an operation to remove a fatty lump. Here is the all the prices:

• Domitor injection-£5.47
• Ketamine Injection- £6.28
• Remove tumour- £52.88
• Vicryl W9826-£5.43
• Baytril injection-£4.75
• Metacam injection- £4.80
• Histopathology Finn-£53.45
• Baytril-£5.88
• Metacam 10ml-£9.15
• General anaesthesia- £23.50

The consultation itself was roughly £24, I had to go back for a check up but that was with the nurse which is free. The after care cost me a bit BUT that was because after the operation she was rejected from the group, I had to make an entire new cage.

Biscuit- Last year was a bad year for Biccy. She had a total of £80 on vet costs. She had conjunctivitis which was a pain to get rid off and she got mites. She passed away in October 2005 though.

Flame- £100 on two cases of joint infections. That included consultation fees of 2x£24 and 2x£15. Baytril and Metacam of about 2x£10. About 2 weeks ago he had a chest infection which probably also cost us £100. That included 3x£24, baytril, metacam and steroids.

Elvis- Elvis only cost me £27.27 on an abscess on his cheek. That include £10.53 for the consultation, £4.75 for baytril and £11.99 for examination under the microscope.

I've had two neutering done as well. Spencer's cost about £60 and Brownie's was probably well over £150. That included the neutering, baytrill, metacam, 10's of vet consultations and lots of science recovery stuff. The aftercare was very expensive too with the science recovery stuff and lots of fruit and veg to tempt him to eat!



In about two years I have spent atleast £1000 on the pigs and rabbits for vet care. Smartie, Rolo, Presley and Smartie have yet to go the vet. *Touch wood*

[daftscotslass]

£80 - X-rays, spay, immediate aftercare. Bracken died 4 days later anyway - blah.

[Jennicat]

I've only had to take two in for more than a routine checkup.

Gizmo - had bordetella
Initial checkup, critical care, probiotiocs and ABs: ~$112
Followup check, and more ABs: ~$50 (they've got a reduced followup rate)
Snot culture, more ABs: ~$80
Snot culture came back, different ABs: ~$30
Another round of ABs: $30

Hobo - Tescticular Tumor
GI Stasis treatment (handfeeding at the vet, B12 shot, Reglan, more Critical Care, checkup) $100
X-ray and Urinalysis (was in pain while peeing, though he had a bladder stone): $100
Neuter: $75
Three rounds of antibiotics: $45 total

[TipiDancer]

Going to the vet for treatments and such costs so much! My piggy is 7 moths old and has not yet needed to go to the vet... Other than a semi-annual checkup.

[muffin]

Thanks guys. I know it really varies from pig to pig and from treatment to treatment, especially if a combination of problems arise. Thanks so much for all your input, I really appreciate it.

[sgprescue]

My biggest ever bill was for Silver and Diamond. First they both had bladder stones, only 1 was xrayed though which was around £40, then they developed a rare urinary infection. One had to have an emergency late night op which in total cost just under £300 including call out, then they both had to be hospitalised and put on Diazapam because they were in such pain, that cost around £20 including drugs, then there was 2 urine swabs that had to be sent off, dont know exact cost of them as they were just added to my bill but probably around £40. I already had all the other meds for them but if I had needed to get them seperatly they would have cost around £20 in total. So altogether thats roughly £420 but it may well have been more than that and that is with my 15% discount and no charges for consults etc as I am a rescue. Hate to think what that would have cost a normal member of the public
Had a pig that needed an emergency c-section on Tuesday which cost just under £150.
A lot of money but the most important thing is they are all alive and well

Cheryl
Sprowston guinea pig rescue

[Whit23ney]

okey dokey, let me preface this story by saying this was a couple of years ago, was our first pig, we got her from a petstore, and we knew absolutely nothing of any accuracy. I thoroughly believe we caused his death from our ignorance in caring for him properly. We kept him in a glass aquarium with cedar chips and fed him only pellets and every now and then some yogurt treats (cause that's what the petstore said he needed!) ALL WRONG WRONG WRONG!!!!
Anywho, as you can imagine, he got sick. We noticed him sneezing a lot and his eyes and nose were watery. We thought, we'll just give it a day or two and see if he gets better.....VERY WRONG! when he started acting lethargic (it was about 8 at night) I took him to the Emergency vet (who luckily had a vet experienced with guinea pigs) and he was diagnosed with Scurvy and Pneamonia. We spent over $600 that night for him to have an IV of antibiotics and stay the night in the hospital there for observation. We took him home the next night and got more antibiotics and some oxbow cavy stuff for sick pigs (it's like a powder you get wet and feed through a suringe) The next day he died. The vet had told me the truth about why he had gotten so sick. She said he needed good quality oxbow pellets, fresh fruits/veggies, and a more ventilated cage in order to thrive. She said the scurvy was caused by his diet, and that combined with his glass aquarium had made him suceptible to the pneamonia. We loved him sooo much. My daughter was devistated! We thought we were treating him so well. Fresh pellets and food every day. Cleaned the cage once a week. Held him all the time. We just didn't know any better and we caused his death. (Not to mention the over $600 spent) That's when I started doing more research online about gps. As soon as I found this site, our new piggies had a C&C cage and we kept learning from there. My daughter and I know now that Guinea Pigs need a lot more than what we were giving her previous cavy. It's a shame we had to learn the hard way. The worst thing is, I'm sure it's not that uncommon. R.I.P. Duncan # 1

[muffin]

Don't feel bad. I have my own similar story from when I was younger. At least we know how to look after our guineas now.

[fourbwabbys]

Just wanted to add another $35.50 to my other post for Trixie's vet visit.

[weaseldropping]

I don't even want to think about this - I am sure I am racking up something monumental with Offie right now....

Our worst ever was £837 for our last cat who had feline leukaemia, despite vaccination, and which could not save the cat. (About £50 of that was for the cremation fee, but he was put into a lovely polished wooden box with his name on a brass plaque, and it meant we didn't have to keep him in the freezer until the snow had cleared enough for a funeral, and which I still think was money well spent.)

Our current cat has £9 per month cat insurance and a £60 excess, but we still end up better off in an average year cos he is so accident prone!

[cavy-cool-crazy]

Charlie's had around £150 in Vet Bills since November. His actual surgery to remove the prolapsed tear gland in his eye was around £40. All the other costs were to do with his mystery leg issues which began only a day or after the surgery. That included 4 lots of medication (3 x Baytril courses and 1 bottle of Metacam), an x-ray, 4 or 5 consultations, and an extra anaesthetic (for the x-ray). Thank goodness he's back to normal now. He's even off his Metacam!

In the 3 1/2 years I've had him (4 years in July) I've had to pay maybe £350 in vets bills. He also had a neuter when he was 4 months old (£47 total), a couple of mite treatments, and an accident where he ripped his front toenail off.
Tuppy has only had 2 mite treatments since I got her in August 04, plus about 4 or 5 consultations. So maybe £60 in bills for her.
Lottie had 3 UTIs last year, each reoccurring every three months. Since we got her in June 05 we've had 1 mite treatment for her and all the meds and consults for the UTIs, so maybe £120 for her.
Jasmine has only been to the vet once since I got her in July 05. That was for a mite treatment. Total for her is a measly £10 - probably less.

[piggly wiggly]

For a piggie it was $120.00. He had a scratched cornea. But for an english mastiff our biggest bill was a little over $4000. She was going paralyzed in her hind legs and was dying of an unknown cause. We were trying to save her life, she was only 3. We ended up havig to put her down.

[mzmerize]

It's quite difficult to actually find a vet who specializes in guinea pigs to start with! I had to diagnose my own pigs and I dare say if I hadn't have checked the symptoms out online before attending the vet, he wouldn't have had a clue.

Initially I just told him the problems I was experiencing with Chip, he looked at me with a blank stare and hmmmmm'd! After I mentioned I thought it may be pneumonia he said ah yes, that's what I was concluding! ...Yea right! The consultation fee was £15 and the meds were £5 which is nothing really.

Three months later he had the same symptoms so I took him back and was given the same thing, with a comment from the vet ..."If he gets it again, I'd advise you to let nature take it's course" I was mortified, would you let a human with pneumonia go without meds? Would he have let a dog or cat go untreated even?! To leave him suffering in his cage with an illness which requires medical treatment would be like giving him a death sentence for Christ's sake!!!!

I'd hate to think that's how all small animals were treated in the UK though I am yet to find a vet who has specifically studied guinea pigs in my surrounding area.

Just be aware that you need to know where your nearest vet is who is capable of treating small animals with efficiency, not guess work!

[lynn's Cavies]

My guinea pig, Maggie, had a ceasaren section, and the cost was approximately $600. She lived another year, (she was already quite old when she had the c-section), unfortuanately, the baby did not survive. But she recovered very well.

[JarBax]

9touching wood), I have been lucky so far, and my most expensive vet visit was £32. which was charged on a Saturday where I rang up an hour earlier, as I thought Mary had mites...she was one of the healthiest pigs the vet had ever seen - and had no mites! It was worth the bill for my peace of mind!

I paid something similar when I first took Midge in - she was failing fast. I got antibiotics and something similar to critical care.