My vet drives a Porsche

[ShelbysMom]

Today I paid $50 for a routine fecal exam for my puppy. Am I out of the loop or does this seem a tad pricey?

[JMM]

We charge $17.50 for a fecal float. That doesn't include an exam or anything, just the fecal float.

The vet who owns our practice has a Porsche and two Hummers...feel better? LOL

[ShelbysMom]

No..........there wasn't any exam. When I was there a month ago for shots, they gave me a little sample bag with a stick and I took the sample this morning and dropped it off.
Wow, that is a huge difference. I'm wondering if they charged me wrong. This was just to routinely check for worms.

[Traci]

Fee structures will vary amoung vets...some examples include a one-vet clinic as opposed to a specialty clinic as opposed to an emergency service available clinic. Location/geographical area may also play a role in some areas (rural vs large metropolitan areas, competition, etc)

If your vet has specialized services, this could be one reason for the high cost of the fecal. A float usually tends to be less than $20, but a culture would be around $35 or more if sent to an outside lab.

[ShelbysMom]

Today I checked with them and they said it was correct. They do two separate tests (on the premises). One is for ova/parasites and the other is giardia. For each test, they charge approx. $25.
Then the receptionist informed me that other clients have complained that it was pricey compared to other vets in our area.
I hate to change vets because I've been with them for 25 yrs.

[jason]

my vet has special equipment along with specialists so im quite familiar with the high costs. just as an example, they only do the new laser declaw procedure for felines which is tons better on the cat (can leave same day, no bleeding that im aware of, etc etc) but rough cost is $300.00.

i'd prefer my vet drives a porche so he can rush to my emergencies. if you want a profession to gripe about, look no further than large banks.

[k9Karen]

The fecal float is a VERY cheap procedure to perform, but it does require a good bit of experience and expertise to be properly read. The Giardia test, on the other hand, may be a bit pricey for the vet to purchase. We do a very labor-intensive test in our lab that runs ony about $5.00 a test (but takes 2 hours and multiple steps), if the vet is using a single device method, his cost could easily be $20 or more (that's why we don't use them, Medicare only reimburses $16). That said, however, I see no reason to do the Giardia EIA on a non-symptomatic dog (or person), although I think we probably charge at leat $25 for the equivalent of the fecal float for human tests. (not sure, but I do know our retail price for the Giardia is $35).

To sum it up, the pricing seems reasonable, except that I don't think they should have done the Giardia on a dog with no symptoms and without informing you.

[JMM]

We send out Giardia ELISAs and it is about $50 or $60 just for that, float not included.

[davet]

i used to charge ten when done separate or 5 with an office visit..

[TheSkeptic]

i used to charge ten when done separate or 5 with an office visit..

You wouldn't consider going back into practice here, would you?