Operation Extra's

Margo is having a abscess removed from her ear tomorrow, My head is going to be all over the place, but Ron is going with her, much to his amusement.
But the vets rang me up yesterday to see if I wanted her bloods testing before she goes under to see if there is any problems with her heart, kidneys etc and to see if I wanted additional fluids given to make her 'coming round' easier??
I have gone for them, as you only want the best for your bun, I would have paid but she is insured so its all included.
I said to the lady who called me that I thought this would all be included during the op but she said no.
Is this all new as vets are getting better with technology or is it just to get more money from the owner.
Does anyone elses vet charge for these extra's
Please send vibes for her.

i think pre-op bloods are always an extra, since it's not essential for every pet so the idea is to cut costs for owners (and vets). i would have thought additional fluids and ensuring animals come round as easily as possible should be a given though!

sending lots of vibes for Margo, hope the op goes smoothly x

My vet is really good with rabbits but with any operation, pain relief to take home is an added cost, this really annoys me because what if people choose not to have it to keep costs down? I think it's barbaric xx

mushlett said:

My vet is really good with rabbits but with any operation, pain relief to take home is an added cost, this really annoys me because what if people choose not to have it to keep costs down? I think it's barbaric xx

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I agree pain relief definitely shouldn't be optional!

mushlett said:

My vet is really good with rabbits but with any operation, pain relief to take home is an added cost, this really annoys me because what if people choose not to have it to keep costs down? I think it's barbaric xx

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My vet friend tells me that rabbits need the most pain relief of any 'small' animal: I think she said it was something like ten times the dose of a medium-sized dog! I would always pay for recommendations from my vet (unless they were completely unreasonable!).

I wouldn't expect to be asked about the extras. I would expect to be told that my bunny was having blood tests as they were needed, if they deemed that to be the case. I would also expect Metacam to be prescribed after the surgery as a separate item (is this an extra?) but not asked if I wanted it, just for it to be added but not included in the cost of the surgery, so I can see what I was paying for. I wouldn't however expect to be able to say, "I don't want Metacam because it costs extra."

Pre- anaesthetic bloods are always an extra, primarily because it comes down to the animal's condition. Our vets always offer it, but recommend it for older animals in case they need to be dripped, fluids aren't always advised and in some cases can be detrimental, for example if an animal has a heart condition and has ascities.
Or vets charge separately for pain relief, but it is handed over, pretty much, without giving the owner the option of refusing it.

I wouldn't consider bloods to be essential unless there was some reason to be worried about them before ie an older bun or a bun with underlying health conditions. However I would expect fluids to be given as a standard part of the op and not be an extra!

As for pain relief whilst it is not optional I would expect to be charged extra for it as it is not part of the op but just as needed. I would expect it to be explained to me by the vet at the same time as the op was.

Vibes for your little one xxx

Hoping bunny will come through the operation successfully.

elmoandfern said:

i think pre-op bloods are always an extra, since it's not essential for every pet so the idea is to cut costs for owners (and vets). i would have thought additional fluids and ensuring animals come round as easily as possible should be a given though!

sending lots of vibes for Margo, hope the op goes smoothly x

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I agree with this ^^

However, my vet always asks me if I want fluids after an op (for my rabbit!), presumably as she knows it will bump up the cost ...

Personally I think that pain relief as an absolute minimum should be included in the standard operation price, whatever that op is. In my view, pain relief should not be an optional extra for surgery and if it's not optional but extra is charged, then why not just include it in the standard price for the operation? I can see that some vets might include the cost separately on a breakdown of fees but I wouldn't like it if the pain relief could be chosen or not, I don't think that would be good veterinary practice at all (I realise this isn't relevant to the original query, it's just something that's been raised later on in the thread!)

It's pretty normal for bloods to be optional, I think most places realise that they're very expensive and that in an ideal world each animal would have them every time, but that's just not realistic for most people, especially if the animal is not insured or the procedure is not covered by insurance. Most vets will therefore provide it as an option but will more strongly recommend it for some animals than others (e.g. older ones or ones with a known or suspected organ problem) as it could change the way they undertake the procedure, the choice of anaesthetics etc. Many years ago my cat had pre-op bloods and it showed a slight kidney issue, so the op was delayed for a day so he could be put on a drip overnight to get him very well hydrated in advance, to help with his recovery.

My current vet includes fluids in the normal operation price but I don't know if this is normal or not - by the sounds of it not necessarily! It must be really tricky for many owners to decide whether or not it would be appropriate to go with various of these optional extras!

Thanks everyone for your replies, so it does look like the majority of vets ask these options.
I still think the fluids should be part of the overall operation though.
Thanks again. :roll:

I think painkiller should just be a default include!

Blood tests are a good idea for older bunnies or ones with underlying health issues, but I don't think most vets would suggest them routinely for youngsters for neutering, for example. If I was neutering a 16 week old I probably wouldn't bother, but a six year old I'd probably go for them, particularly with rescue bunnies when you've got less history.

Bloods are extra at my vets, as are IV fluide but they give subcut fluids as standard - you should clarify that with the vet.
I was sceptical about whether if I said yes to the IV fluids they would actually give them IV - I can't imagine how difficult it is to cannulate a rabbit for IV fluids and I couldn't work out how I would be able to tell the difference, so I didn't pay extra and just stuck with the fluids subcut...

I think it's a real shame some vets don't offer IV fluids as a given after an op. I always have to think twice when I'm told the price ON TOP of the operation .. It's a really good thing to aid recovery

sun_city_girl said:

Bloods are extra at my vets, as are IV fluide but they give subcut fluids as standard - you should clarify that with the vet.
I was sceptical about whether if I said yes to the IV fluids they would actually give them IV - I can't imagine how difficult it is to cannulate a rabbit for IV fluids and I couldn't work out how I would be able to tell the difference, so I didn't pay extra and just stuck with the fluids subcut...

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a shaved ear is a clue

ETA , the Rabbit's ear, not the Vets :shock:

Jack's-Jane said:

a shaved ear is a clue

ETA , the Rabbit's ear, not the Vets :shock:

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I thought they did that for the sats probe though? now Im confused because bun did have a shaved ear last time he had a tooth op...maybe they gave him IV afterall!

The Op went well.
Thanks for the tip of the shaved ear, I was shaved, so I now know they did the extra fluids and was not just put on the bill.
So now she has a slit lug and a skinny one, she has a 2" wound and her ear is about 1/4" slimmer where they removed the cyst.
The Extra fluids was well worth it, I would have paid for it anyway, she came around really well and was not staggering around like a drunk
Even tho I moaned about Ron's XS been extravagant I'm glad I have it, Margo is the First Bunny I have claimed for.
Just waiting for the test results from the laboratory coming back now.

Glad it went so well Let us know how the results come back.

Lil & Ron's Mum said:

The Op went well.
Thanks for the tip of the shaved ear, I was shaved, so I now know they did the extra fluids and was not just put on the bill.
So now she has a slit lug and a skinny one, she has a 2" wound and her ear is about 1/4" slimmer where they removed the cyst.
The Extra fluids was well worth it, I would have paid for it anyway, she came around really well and was not staggering around like a drunk
Even tho I moaned about Ron's XS been extravagant I'm glad I have it, Margo is the First Bunny I have claimed for.
Just waiting for the test results from the laboratory coming back now.

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So pleased to hear that the op' went well. Hopefully you wont have to wait too long for the test results xx