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vet bills

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leewayne | 20:11 Wed 07th May 2008 | Pets
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hiya all,i really need some advice.My 1 year old cat got knocked by a car yesterday and have since taken her to the vets which turns out she has a broken femur and cost me 180.00 just for the x-ray and is going to cost me another 500.00 for the operation,they estimated a total bill of 1000.00,i dont mind paying that but i cant afford it in one hit,ive asked about monthly instalments but the vet is not to keen on the idea as he has had problems in the past with people not paying,i owe them money for the xray and her treatment so far but i cant pay until the end of the month as i get monthly pay,can i take her somewhere else in the meantime who will do monthly payment options,or do i have to paay them first before they release the cat,the vet has even asked me to take a loan out!! any advice,help would be appreciated,ive also tried to get funds but because i am not on benefits they cant help,many many thanks-lianne : )
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its meant to mean funds from a charity i.e rspca,pdsa
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please any advice would be helpful : )
if you can't get the money together do you know anyone on benefits that could take your cat and say it was theirs to one of the pdsa centres or the blue cross and ask them to help.i know it is a lie but i am thinking of your pet. i wish you luck
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she is already at the vets and they have seen me and taken both our details,i dont know any friends on benefits anyway i dont think,surely they must take a payment plan option they cant make me put her down because i cant pay in full surely?
Hi lee,

So sorry to hear about your girl.
At the minute I can not offer you any advise on this, but I will have a look around and see if I can get any info from somewhere else.

I cant see that the vet would make you have the cat put down as you can not pay, as although they need the money, it is against everything they do to put an animal down that can be helped.

Do you mind if I copy and paste your question to see if I can find any possibilities anywhere else?

Wiggal xx
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no thats absolutely fine,crack on thank you : (
Well I have asked, and will get back to you as soon as I have anything useful back.

Wigal xx
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thank you sooo much,greatly appreciated,just stuck on what to do,just want her home quick as possible : (
Sorry to hear that your little pet has been hit leewayne .
I do feel for you , it's a lot of money to find in one go. I'm sorry I can't suggest anything other than your vet letting you pay it off over several months. I hope something works out for you and kitty xxx
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so do we and my little boy! the vets said they dont like the idea of payment plan,but i was sobbing so much i think they may consider a payment plan for me.......i hope
God knows what I'd do if that happened to me! Barring the unbelievable upset, the cost would be simply prohibitive.
I'm insured though, so fingers crossed I'll never need to make a claim. Little Jess has been insured with Tesco since she was 9 weeks, for only �3.50 a month, and she's an indoor cat (can't bear thinking what could happen to her outside)....Worth thinking about when that injury is sorted hun. :O(
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ive only had her for a couple of months and has only recently just started going outside and didnt think of getting insurance sorted until it was too late,i have now got insurance but obviously wont be covering this injury : ( I am willing to pay whatever amount to get her better but the vets dont seem to be helping much!
vets can be funny about people not paying bills straight away. not sure if they can hang onto the cat though if she doesn't have the money.

on the other hand they shouldn't carry out treatment without the owners consent but if she consented to the xray in the first place I guess she should have been prepared for a hefty bill or asked them about payment before hand

she could try contacting a PDSA vets for the rest of the treatment, they are more likely to allow some sort of payment plan arrangement


That was one answer and

i gave my vets my card details and they take something every week

Was another. I will let you know when I hear more.
thats fine, I have also found this on the RCVS web site which may be of help

Securing payment for veterinary services
10. A client is the person who requests veterinary attention for an animal, for example when a veterinary surgeon is called to the scene of a road traffic accident by the police or by the RSPCA, the organisation in question will be liable to pay for any emergency treatment and for the call out even if the animal owner is subsequently identified (because the owner had no opportunity to consent to treatment). This applies equally to any member of the general public taking in a stray or injured animal whose owner is unknown.


11. When dealing directly with the owner, or the owner's agent whose consent to treatment must be given, it is important to obtain that consent in writing on a properly drafted form which should include any estimated charge

Unpaid bills
15. A veterinary surgeon is entitled to charge a fee for the provision of services, and where the fee remains unpaid, to place the matter in the hands of a debt collection agency or to institute civil proceedings.


16. In the case of persistently slow payers and bad debtors it is acceptable to give them notice in writing (by recorded delivery A.R.) that veterinary services will no longer be provided

Holding an animal against unpaid fees
17. Although veterinary surgeons do have a right in law to hold an animal until outstanding fees are paid, the RCVS believes that it is not in the interests of the animal so to do, and can lead to the practice incurring additional costs which may not be recoverable. This right should therefore only be exercised in extreme cases and after discussion with the RCVS.

the website is http://www.
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i have done a post dated cheque for the consultation and the x-ray but for her full treatment i am unsure??? I may have to take her somewhere that will agree to a pay monthly basis and i have offered to give them my details to ensure payment??!! Thank you : )
Would it be possible to get one of these 0 per cent credit cards - if you could get one of them you could pay the vet bill on it and repay over the 6-12 months they give you interest free.

There is some good info. here about them the HSBC one is for 12 months interest free.

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/cards/lowest- interest-credit-cards#deals
the 0% credit card is a good idea, if you can get one (I can't).
It's always when you're least prepared that something happens eh....Hope all goes well. xx
I'm sure that now the vet's done the work leewayne, he isn't going to waste all that by doing anything as dreadful as putting your poor cat to sleep. Tell him that you've exhausted all means of finding the money (even if you haven't), and that you can offer "X" amount at the end of the month, to be followed up with an agreed instalment plan. If you plead to his better nature, than I'm sure he'll have to agree to it. I must say though, that the x-ray charge seems unusualy steep to me. One of my dogs had to have 3. The first one cost �75, and then subsequently got cheaper, but maybe this depends on where abouts in the country you are. I hope you get things sorted, and that your cat recovers well.
Oh god...It didn't even cross my mind that a vet would ever put a pet to sleep due to lack of funding for the treatment Ice!!! Does that really happen?

If it happened to me, I have to say I'd be inclined to sort the guy out myself (well, through a few friends I have who wouldn't mind).

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