My cat has a broken femur bone - question about surgical costs

Hello, I am new to the forum.

Our cat August was missing the day before yesterday. Thank goodness we finally found her yesterday, but hunched over on the neighbors yard not able to walk. To make a long story short, we immediately took her to the emergency vet. They gave her pain meds, took x-rays, and gave antibiotics. Our poor girls femur bone is badly broken!

The vet said the surgeon won't be available until this Sunday! That's 3 full days. In addition, the surgery and care will cost $3000, on top of the $500 I already spent for her immediate care. We decided to have her spend the night at the vet to be administered fluids and pain meds.

Is $3000 a normal price for pinning a broken bone? I called around and no one is willing to give me an estimate, even with provided x-rays, unless I bring her in to them. I don't want to move her too much, but if I can save $1000 somewhere else, it would mean a lot for my financial situation. The surgery is going to happen no matter what, but I don't want to be taken advantage of - especially if my cat can get the care she needs today, instead of on Sunday.

So, $3K, normal price, great price, or too much? I live in Los Angeles.

Here are her X-rays...



Thank you in advance. 

Try to find an AAHA accredited hospital convenient to you and see if they have a qualified surgeon who could do it sooner than Sunday.  I always recommend AAHA hospitals because they have to meet certain standards to be accredited and they have to complete continuing education each year.  In general, you can trust those hospitals.  They will NOT be the least expensive ones, but they are usually well within regional limits as to costs AND they are GOOD.  Since Los Angeles is a big place, you can narrow down location by using your zip code in this search box.

https://www.aaha.org/pet_owner/about_aaha/hospital_search/default.aspx

I am in Georgia and am not sure which other members are in Los Angeles per se but @catwoman707 is in southern California and has a lot of connections and perhaps she can point you in the right direction and also give you an idea what the average cost is for such a surgery.  It looks to be as though it will need to be pinned, so it's not a simple surgery.  I'm so glad you found her and care taking great care of her.   Let us know how this turns out.

Thank you so much for your advice. I will check them out. 

Any more information/advice is greatly appreciated. Thanks again. 

So I spoke to the clinic and explained my situation -  they were willing to knock off $500 from the price of her procedure, so it'll be $2500. Also, her surgery got moved up to tomorrow, instead of Sunday!

I'm going to just go ahead and have them do it - shopping around might save another couple hundred dollars, but it's not worth putting August through all the visits and transportation. Plus, I was happy they were considerate enough to the drop cost a bit - now I'm just hoping the surgery goes well.

Really looking forward to August being healthy again and on all 4 paws! Thank you! 

So sorry your kitty has a broken bone. That sounds like a lot of money to me, like what emergency surgery would cost and you're having to wait that long. Is she still at the ER vet? I think it sucks that when you call around other vets can't give you an estimate, they should have some idea.

Have you considered trying to get a Care Credit card? With mine, if the charge is $200 or more there will be no interest charges for 6-18 months and I am pretty sure that is standard. You can also print a temporary card right after you qualify to bring to the vet.

Hope the surgery goes well and her recovery as well Do they suspect they know what happened? Could a person have abused/kicked her or was it a car?

Vet costs vary so much that it's hard to say if the price you were given is reasoanable. Factors such as a full service vet hosptail vs small clinic, where in the US or other country you live, your cat's specific injury and what the vet thinks would be the best way to treat it, etc all affect vet costs. I would suspect the $3K is typical for a large expensive city such as LA.

If you need additional financial help, you can try this: http://www.thecatsite.com/a/no-money-for-vet-care-how-to-find-help-and-save-your-cats-life

I'm so glad the surgery was moved up to today!  Yes, the fact that it will be done today and the fact that they knocked $500 off the bill are both good reasons to stay where you are.  I hope it goes well and that she can come home soon.  It will be a long recovery with a complete fracture like that, but hopefully it will heal well with no complications.  I think she must have been hit by a car, because unless she was kicked by a horse, I don't think anything less would cause such a complete fracture.  Our hearts are with you.  Let us know when the surgery is done and she's out of anesthesia.  Maybe you could follow up with ongoing pictures of her so others facing the same thing can watch the happy recovery.

Red Top Rescue said:

 
Try to find an AAHA accredited hospital convenient to you and see if they have a qualified surgeon who could do it sooner than Sunday.  I always recommend AAHA hospitals because they have to meet certain standards to be accredited and they have to complete continuing education each year.  In general, you can trust those hospitals.  They will NOT be the least expensive ones, but they are usually well within regional limits as to costs AND they are GOOD.  Since Los Angeles is a big place, you can narrow down location by using your zip code in this search box.

https://www.aaha.org/pet_owner/about_aaha/hospital_search/default.aspx

I am in Georgia and am not sure which other members are in Los Angeles per se but @catwoman707 is in southern California and has a lot of connections and perhaps she can point you in the right direction and also give you an idea what the average cost is for such a surgery.  It looks to be as though it will need to be pinned, so it's not a simple surgery.  I'm so glad you found her and care taking great care of her.   Let us know how this turns out.

Click to expand...

I'm actually in Northern Ca, bay area, but it sounds like your vet is your choice, and as he should be considering he brought down the cost and moved her surgery day ahead, to help accomodate shows some caring and consideration.

Often times vets will quote a cost that may not be questioned by some, but I have def. found that anytime you do let them know that it will be a struggle to spend that amt, there are usually things that can be knocked off which will drop the costs.

Let us know how she is doing, and I second the fact that she was surely hit by a car.

Thanks for everyone's support and good wishes. The surgery was successful! August is still recovering, but here she was just a few hours ago...



We still have no idea what in the world happened to her. Just so thankful she is safe and not missing, or even worse, forever lost.

Excellent news!!  

Looking very good!  I'm sure she hates the cone, but cat teeth are very good at removing surgical staples, so I guess she will need to keep it on until the staples come out.  Give her extra love & treats so she will know she is not being punished or tortured by the cone!

Hi there, how's your kitty? Hope she is doing well. Our boy broke his femur very badly back in January, everything was almost completely healed and now having issues as he's in pain again, probably because of too much movement/jumping? I'm not exactly sure what happened, but I'm terrified that it's broken again ;( Going to the vet tomorrow to find out.