Why do emergency vets seem like crooks?

I'm sorry if this thread is in the wrong area, but why do emergency vets seem like crooks? Maybe a vet or vet tech can explain?

Unfortunately, my baby has pancreatitis and had to stay overnight at an emergency hospital because she was dehydrated from a lot of vomiting with bloody liquid yesterday morning. I am SO glad I took her in to the Banfield vet for a check-up because my cat is on a Banfield wellness plan. It turns out, my poor baby was in seriously poor health and I wouldn't have known without all the vomiting that I thought was a hairball since she did get a tiny hairball out. I thought the blood was from irritation of the stomach lining from vomiting like I'd read online, which the vet confirmed.

But my baby had a low temp, which I read is very serious, was hypothermic with a very low pulse, and lethargic.

I rushed her over to the emergency hospital like the Banfield vet said I had to do. Given her condition, I took her to a different emergency hospital because the last one she had been to could only run the tests, but not admit her, and I didn't want her home in such a poor condition in case she passed away.

The other emergency hospital admitted her and quickly gave her oxygen treatment in a chamber and was going to run tests, give her injections, IV fluids, and keep her overnight. The vet was very rude about that part and just said with attitude, "Well, I'm keeping her anyway." I was going to say, "yes," but I didn't even get a chance. She could have phrased it much better like, "We have to keep her overnight for treatment."

Sorry this post is so long, but it helps posting about the whole thing. I got presented with a long list of treatment items and tests. I was fine with all of them, except for the possible additional injections that totaled another almost $400. I was fine with the additional x-ray in the morning when I thought it was a stomach obstruction. When it turned out to be pancreatitis (worse), I called the hospital to say I did not want the additional x-ray of the same area. What's the point? Less than 24 hrs later, they wanted to run the same x-ray for another almost $400? They don't do this to humans and I know because for a full year, I had to get x-rays. First, every 2 weeks to see if my meds were working, then every 2 months. If the emergency vet wanted to run the x-ray a week or two later, I'd understand, but if they couldn't see a stomach obstruction yesterday afternoon, chances are they wouldn't see one this morning either.

It just feels like emergency vets pad the bills. I'm sure not all of them, but a good percentage, probably.

The other emergency hospital I took my cat to because of a freak accident that happened in the evening also left me feeling the same way. String got wrapped tightly around my baby's paw digit so that she was crying in pain and holding her paw like it was injured. I asked the emergency vet to cut it off and they took my baby to another room. The emergency vet came back and said they wanted to run an x-ray. The vet tech came in with the estimate and it was almost $400. I asked to see my cat, so they brought her back and my cat looked fine and was standing on all 4 paws instead of lying down, curled up, or standing on 3 paws. I declined the x-ray and my cat eagerly ran into her cat carrier and I took her home. Seriously, I understand that we wouldn't have known her paw was okay without an x-ray, but she looked fine and had done a 180 after the string was cut off. Also, I'd read online while I was waiting to see her that cat bones are so small that you can't set them.

I'm just left feeling, like a lot of other pet owners I'm sure, that these vets throw in all kinds of additional charges to make money. It bothers me how overpriced pet foods and otc pet meds cost at these vet places. The mark-ups must be huge. Just like for the tests then.

Also, the vet hospital wanted to keep my baby even longer - a cpl days it sounded like. Many cats don't eat for days when they get taken somewhere strange and my cat is one of those. She didn't eat for 3 days when I brought her home. I don't need my cat to develop that liver disease because the emergency vet wants to keep her until they can get her to eat. I can do it faster, I think, especially with the Fortiflora she recently started eating again. I also think my cat must be depressed that she's not at home and probably missing me. Now that she's gotten her IV fluids, oxygen treatment, injections, pain meds, I'm taking her home to baby. If she doesn't eat or drink water, I'll bring her back, of course. But now that she's gotten her treatment, I think she'll recover much better at home than at the emergency vets. I'm glad I pushed to get her later this morning.

Having to worry about unnecessary testing is just not right when your cat is seriously ill or ill or injured.

I am not a vet or vet tech I can only speak to the experience I have had at the emergency clinic that I have taken a kitty to twice.  Yes they are expensive but emergency treatment for people is also expensive, actually the most expensive care that someone can receive.  That is one of the things that is wreaking havoc with the human medical system people without insurance going to emergency rooms for all their health care. 
 

I have been happy with the treatment that my kitty got at the emergency clinic.  Yes there is testing and x-rays done but both times I took them it was outside of normal business hours so they had no access to their records or their vet.  They do have a good relationship with the vets in the area.  They fax or email all results to the vet so they are there the next business day morning.  The last time I took my kitty they also did an x-ray which they gave me on a DVD to take into the vet the next day.  At least by doing that there is no repeat testing or x-rays done.

I do agree though that they are expensive.

I hope your Bonitaba is improving or at least more comfortable.

I am not sure I follow exactly what transpired, but if I understand correctly - Xray for suspicion of stomach blockage, and then suggesting Xray for the same suspicion the next morning,

yes- is indeed a puzzler.  It sounds suspicious if that is the reason they gave.  Perhaps they meant they wanted to look at a different area of the GI tract/bowel to see something that wasn't captured on the 1st film,

but then again - if I recall correctly, the technique is to look at the entire GI...?

One thing that really sounds infuriating is the declaration that she is keeping your cat overnight- whether or not you give your OK.

Ah, excuse me?

They cannot literally take custody of your animal, as fare as I know.

What an arrogant stance that vet has.

I've lived long enough, and gone through enough irritating attitudes and practices with assuming, pompous vets, and their staff,

that I no longer take their superior attitude with meek resignation.

I ask questions and let them know this will be a cooperative effort between both of us to manage my pet's health/crisis/wellness, and ultimately *I* am the decider.

Believe me, I once called our state's licensing board to report the 3, count 'em, 3 vaccinations my previous vet gave to my cat without my knowledge or permission,

when I dropped him off for an eye duct flushing.

He wasn't ultimately reprimanded, but the investigation that brought his practice to a halt for a day or two made me feel a little vindication.

At any rate - I understand your frustration and sense of being taken for a ride - I don't have emergency vet services here out in the boondocks.

@Denice, my post was not about the need for emergency vets or the emergency testing and treatment. I rushed my cat over to the emergency vet for all of that. What I didn't rush her over for was for unnecessary, duplicate testing.

@4catsNcounting, yes, the emergency vet wanted to do the same x-ray in the morning. Vet: "I'll want to x-ray her again to see if there's a change." I was even billed for it when I paid my deposit. I had said I wasn't comfortable with the additional injections that totaled almost $400 so I didn't pay for that in my deposit. Turns out those were probably needed. Either those or medications, but I'm very glad I called yesterday afternoon & then this morning to decline the additional x-ray!

I definitely was going to leave my cat there for treatment, but I thought I had no choice when she just said she was keeping her anyway. I was wondering what happens to people who can't pay the vet bill.

I'm very sorry you don't have emergency services in your area. My cat and I are very fortunate to have a lot, although I'm hoping we don't have to go back. At least, for a while.

When my  kitty had his first IBD flare he was only 18 months old and he has symptoms like a swallowed foreign object.  I didn't go to an emergency vet but the vet that I was taking them to at the time.  He was hospitalized on an IV and had multiple x-rays.  The vet was looking for changing gas patterns.  Patterns that don't change is indicative of a foreign object.  Foreign objects are not always visible on an x-ray.  I ended up with a thousand dollar bill that time with the hospitalization and multiple x-rays and that was 10 years ago.

@Denice, in your case, the multiple x-rays made sense. After the pancreatic exam on my cat showed pancreatitis and one x-ray was already done that didn't show anything and all symptoms pointed to pancreatitis, a second x-ray less than 24 hrs later is probably not needed. Also, an x-rat was not needed when I brought my cat into the vet for the string tightly wrapped around her paw digit. After they cut it off, she did a total 180 and was active again and happy instead of curled up and hiding.

And what would they have done if a bone in the digit of the paw HAD been broken?

Splint it?  Cast it?  Put her in an Elizabethian collar?  Come on.

I understand needing to attend to it if it splintered and was gouging at her flesh, nerves... which would be demonstrated in her behavior with her paw,

but as you said-

she was standing, walking, not showing indication it was painful.

Denice said:

I am not a vet or vet tech I can only speak to the experience I have had at the emergency clinic that I have taken a kitty to twice.  Yes they are expensive but emergency treatment for people is also expensive, actually the most expensive care that someone can receive.  That is one of the things that is wreaking havoc with the human medical system people without insurance going to emergency rooms for all their health care.

 
I have been happy with the treatment that my kitty got at the emergency clinic.  Yes there is testing and x-rays done but both times I took them it was outside of normal business hours so they had no access to their records or their vet.  They do have a good relationship with the vets in the area.  They fax or email all results to the vet so they are there the next business day morning.  The last time I took my kitty they also did an x-ray which they gave me on a DVD to take into the vet the next day.  At least by doing that there is no repeat testing or x-rays done.

I do agree though that they are expensive.

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One difference is that human ER's have to take you whether you can pay or not. My baby boy was dying. The vet said kidney failure and there was no hope but she did mention surgery which she wouldn't do without upfront payment. Some vets don't care about the owner or the pet. My angel died in my arms. I had to take his sister to the same ER. After I gave my payment they released her. What were they going to do? Hold her hostage if I hadn't? There needs to be a law that says vets have to treat the pet in emergencies whether the owner gives payment up front or not. They weren't even willing to make arrangements with his sister. After she was treated the receptionist only gave me the amount it would cost me monthly after the six month interest free period. And she emphasized it. The card company gave me a much lower amount. My boy's death has shattered me. I miss him immensely every day. I have severe PTSD. His death has only made it worse.

4catsNcounting said:

And what would they have done if a bone in the digit of the paw HAD been broken?

Splint it?  Cast it?  Put her in an Elizabethian collar?  Come on.

I understand needing to attend to it if it splintered and was gouging at her flesh, nerves... which would be demonstrated in her behavior with her paw,
but as you said-
she was standing, walking, not showing indication it was painful.

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Exactly! Thank you! Thank God for cellphones and the Internet. Otherwise, I would have said yes to that $400 x-ray that day because the emergency vet wanted to do it and I didn't know any better. That was on top of the $98 for the emergency visit to look at my pet. I Googled about fractured or broken cat bones when they took my cat away from me and I'm pretty sure they wouldn't have splinted or put a cast on my cat's tiny paw digit IF there was a fracture. After I saw my cat, I realized she looked completely fine and happy to have the string off. If she had been curled up in pain or standing on three paws, then I would have said yes to the x-ray, but c'mon. Exactly what you said. There was no need to run a $400 x-ray on my cat's tiny paw digit.

For the other poster, obviously, I believe in emergency vets. I've taken my cat twice now. What I don't believe in is unnecessary and/or duplicate testing. It's terrible when owners are already worried about their pets and then have to examine a long list of tests, treatments, medications to figure out what's not necessary. If the pancreatitis test had come back negative and the x-ray didn't show anything, then I might have consented to the same exact x-ray being performed again in the morning, but in this case, I don't think it was necessary at all and I'm glad I refused it.

@angels4mom, that's just terrible. I'm very sorry. Vets who don't care and are just doing a job to collect money are terrible. Just like human doctors and dentists who do the same. With humans at least, there are often payment plans. I think dentists give that and also doctors maybe. Human hospitals definitely do. They even reduce the cost by 50% or more for low income patients who can't pay and also put them on installment plans. I would think vets would at least have installment plans as an option. Terrible.

With both emergency vets I've experienced, I felt like they were just trying to add on to my bill to charge as much as possible.

I've had good and bad vet experiences.

I've gone through a few local vets and the most recent turned out to be the worst! They really made me angry- not because they seem to be padding, but because they don't seem to care about my cat. They just treat whatever symptom they were brought in for and get uppity with you when you start to question things. It is kind of like they just want to do things the way that is easiest for them and don't care about the actual pet. After they gave my very laid back and pill-able cat a long acting injected steroid with possibly dangerous side effects, didn't mention to me that he was over due on his vaccines and would not discuss a urinary blockage over the phone with me I gave up on them.  

My Emergency Vet, however, is the absolute best place in the world!!! I wish they weren't an hour away and I wish that they were a regular vet also (they only do referrals and emergencies). They have helped us with the bill (not charging for small supplies, charging for a low level stay instead of post surgery care- difference of $12 an hour!, and eventually getting the last surgery covered without a penny out of our pocket!), and every person there knows me and my cat by name.  

I guess I just want to say that there are all kinds of vets out there, some of them are crooks, some don't care, some may not explain why they feel everything they suggest is important (even when the procedure seems pointless to you), and some are just plain awesome. Ask around, ask your friends, family, and coworkers. Eventually you'll find a vet that you like. 

I have to say I never feel like they're ripping me off or pressured me and I've always received a written estimate of the charges first.  Plus you can only leave your cat overnight if it's Fri-Sun.  They've always recommended I do a procedure at my regular vet if at all possible.  Which they should because it's over $800 bucks to leave your cat there overnight.

I hate having to be vigilant with the vets about charges, but one of things I"ve gotten better at in the past year is asking for time to think about it before I commit to a test or a treatment decision.

My sister is an emergency vet yes they maybe more expensive but they are open 24 hrs a day. If you wake up a non emergency vet for a call in the middle of the night there's alway a fee for after hours care . My vet tries to give me options for procedures . I think most realize we all have budgets but want to offer the best care possible. Sorry you had a bad experiences.

Reba said:

 
I have to say I never feel like they're ripping me off or pressured me and I've always received a written estimate of the charges first.  Plus you can only leave your cat overnight if it's Fri-Sun.  They've always recommended I do a procedure at my regular vet if at all possible.  Which they should because it's over $800 bucks to leave your cat there overnight.

I hate having to be vigilant with the vets about charges, but one of things I"ve gotten better at in the past year is asking for time to think about it before I commit to a test or a treatment decision.

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i left my cat at the emergency vet on a saturday night and the overnight fee was $50. 

detmut said:

 
i left my cat at the emergency vet on a saturday night and the overnight fee was $50. 

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 wow...It's $950 more than that here!  

I have a regular vet that I like and they stay later than their normal hours for emergencies.  If someone calls 5 minutes before closing crying over an animal they always say to bring it in and the doctor will stay.  I've only had to go to a real E-vet a few times and when I have gone I've always been so distressed about my animal that any breakdowns of cost etc just kind of fizzles in my mind.  All I could ever focus on was what is wrong with my pet and what are the treatment options and odds.  Later I hurt for the money but that is pet ownership.  My regular vet is an expensive vet but they do go the extra mile and I can ask anything I want and am always taken seriously.  I feel like we have a mutual implied agreement that we are partners in the wellbeing of my cats.

I don't want to indict all emergency vets, but I can tell you with a sample of one experience, mine wasn't a good one and I would actively avoid going to the same facility again even though it is the most convenient one to home.  Luckily I live in a large metro area and there is an additional choice only a few miles more distant.

Some years ago we took a CKD (CRF, kidney disease) cat who was crashing to the ER vet at the advice of the regular vet.  He said she should get some IV fluid and so forth.  (I know a lot more about CKD now than I did back then, having had a second cat go through it with sub-q fluid at home and so forth).  What the ER vet did was basically ignore the existing vet info, come up with a new diagnosis for cancer, and wanted to proceed with that.  They take the cat away out of your sight and you wait interminably in the waiting room until finally someone hands over a sheet of paper with a $2000 estimate and no explanation.  When you ask the person at the desk what is up, they have to get the ER vet back out and finally you get an explanation.

Does that make them seem like crooks?  Well, it did seem a little like they were jumping to get as much billable stuff as possible.  We did let them do an x-ray as a possible diagnosis for any cancer, and it was negative.  The visit cost $500 after that and some meds we took home and the fluid she did get while there and exam cost.  I don't mind the 500 bucks, I mind the ignoring her existing condition and looking for something else to treat when it didn't seem to be warranted.  The cat was 16 or 17 years old, we wouldn't have done aggressive cancer treatment even if she did have it.  I also mind the process of handing over an estimate.  That estimate process was worse than if you were having your car serviced!

It's also quite possible things have gotten better there after so many years later, this was probably 6 or 7 years ago.  But I wouldn't take that chance, I'd try another place first, even if I then had a bad experience at the second place.  It would have to be really serious too during off hours, otherwise I would stretch and wait for the regular vet hours with my vet.

I recently took my cat in for blockage and the vet took an x-ray.  the results were not clear enough to rule it out.  They gave the poor cat an enema, sent him home and had me bring him back empty the next day.  The 2nd x-ray showed no obstruction in the stomach but did turn up pneumonia.  They also ran blood test at the 2nd vist (diff vet who knew my cat) to check the liver and kidneys.  I think I have a pretty good vet and they are at a vet hospital.  So far I haven't seen any outrageous charges - though I agree they up the price on meds and food.  All charges are discussed and explained to me before they do anything.  They also want to know you can pay the bill before they do anything.  Even caring vets have a business to run and expenses to pay.

I should have put "Why do SOME emergency vets seem like crooks?," but I was upset when I was posting. Answer: because they are. Sometimes, at least. Not always, I'm sure. I read some Yelp reviews about the 2 emergency hospitals I took my cat to and the bad ones said the same thing. They both charge a lot and apparently a lot more than some other emergency hospitals that are not too far away, but in less nice neighborhoods. Sounds like both these hospitals refuse to treat unless payment is made up front. Looking at Yelp reviews is the last thing you want to do when you have an ill pet though. I thought I knew where to take my cat in an emergency, but I don't now.

One review for the first emergency hospital with the string incident said that they charged the woman $200 for a dead dog. She realized the dog was dead upon arrival, but they went ahead and gave it IV fluids and oxygen, then charged her for it when she was leaving. I'm not surprised to hear that.

For the 2nd hospital, apparently the rude, arrogant owner who I had the misfortune of meeting today, said a guy's dog didn't need a transfusion like his vet had said he needed, ran tests, kept the dog for 2 days with just IV treatment costing $900, then said the dog did need a transfusion. When the guy couldn't pay more money, they refused to give the dog the transfusion when if they had given it in the first place, the $900 would have covered it. Another reviewer said they charge 2 arms & 2 legs, but if you say you can't afford it, then they will lower the cost to charge 1 arm & 1 leg. I'm not going to haggle over the prices, but apparently this hospital has 2 sets of prices: one very expensive and then one more reasonable, which you don't get until you say you can't afford the very expensive treatment. Both vets there seem clinical and the owner seemed very cold, rude, and not interested in my cat when he met her today. They never even bothered calling after my cat's overnight stay to see how she was doing. I only brought my cat back there today because that hospital already had the test results. They gave me an estimate today for another $1,000 for further treatment and when I told the vet tech that I was not coming back again because they always seem to be adding in extra stuff, she came back and said they wouldn't do the treatments I'd authorized because I didn't trust them. I don't. The place was empty when I came in with my cat the first time and there was only one other owner there waiting this morning while that other emergency hospital was too busy to admit my cat last Thursday. Empty businesses end up either cutting costs to survive so the customer gets a poor quality product, or they charge as much as possible. You walk in and you're dollar signs to them. Probably refused further treatment in case my cat goes downhill and I blame them and sue instead.

But from some of the reviews of both these hospitals, I'm glad to see some others felt the same way, that they were just given very large estimates by cold people who wanted as much money as possible. It's not that we don't want to pay either, we are willing to, but not for any unnecessary, expensive tests that have been added on to pad the bill so the emergency vet can pocket more money. I have to leave my own Yelp reviews. I won't be going back to either and will have to do my Yelp research along with other research to find out where I should be taking my cat when she's ill. Hopefully, she recovers soon, but the nearest emergency hospital is not always the best place to go.