Spay and Neuter - vets? Muffins? $500?? [SPLIT TOPIC]

anastasia beaverhausen

LongTimeSloper wrote: [
My problem with Animal Kind were their prices and extremely long waits.

I second this. I had Oscar neutered at 6 months. The bill from Animal Kind was 525.00 with no overnight stay and no complications. Just a simple neuter. I thought that was an insane amount of money.

carmen

I need to find a vet that charges a reasonable amount for neutering...if anyone has any suggestions I'd love to hear them. $500-$600 is insane.

lila

Carmen wrote: I need to find a vet that charges a reasonable amount for neutering...if anyone has any suggestions I'd love to hear them. $500-$600 is insane.

not sure how much they charge, but I generally find Prospect Park Animal Clinic to be very reasonable - no trying to sell you extra shots, meds, etc.

They spayed my Stella, but i had a Muffins certificate, so the price was fixed.

105 Prospect Park West
Brooklyn, NY 11215
718 768-6125

Plus, Dr. Halloway didn't make me feel stupid when I cried like a baby dropping her off (my previous girl cat had died shortly before and I was freaked out at taking my cat to the vet0

veets

Anastasia.. I do understand. It is a lot of money and suspect it is more now. Some pets don't get pre- op blood tests. the reason to do it is if there is any Liver dysfunction (and probably other indicators) than the general anesthesia could be a problem.

I use Animal Kind and they are expensive. there are reasons (on the positive side) that the cost is high. I know I have posted on this on previous threads so I will cease and dests..lol. But I wanted you to know I agree with you Anastasia.

the oral meds would have just decreased the total by $30... so yup a lot of money!

opossumqueen

$500 to neuter??? That seems ridiculous to me. Think of animal shelters that charge say, $200 for adoption. That obviously doesn't cover all the costs associated with that animal but it generally includes spaying, chipping, and current shots. If the real cost of that surgery alone were very high, they would have to up adoption fees.

I decided to google this. Here are some bits from this site that might be helpful or at least interesting (neuticles are mentioned!): http://www.costhelper.com/cost/pets/spay-neuter-dog.html

Typical costs:

* The cost of neutering a dog at a Human Society or at a low-cost clinic can range from $45 to $135, depending on the weight of the dog. The cost of spaying, a more complicated surgery, usually ranges from about $50 to $175.
* Some clinics and animal hospitals can charge up to $200-$300 or more, depending on the weight of the dog.
* The cost of both neutering and spaying vary greatly by geographic region, and even by veterinarian.

What should be included:

* In neutering, the veterinarian makes an incision in front of the scrotum, removes both testicles, then stitches the incision.
* In spaying, the veterinarian makes an incision in the abdominal wall, removes the uterus and ovaries, then stitches the incision. VeterinaryPartner.com offers an overview of neutering and spaying.
* General anesthesia usually is used for neutering and spaying.
* Neutering benefits include protection from prostatitis and testicular tumors, as well as reduction of undesirable behaviors, including aggression toward other male dogs, desire to roam, urine marking and inappropriate mounting.
* Spaying benefits can include a lowered risk for mammary tumors, reproductive bleeding, uterine tumors and infection.
* The American Veterinary Medical Association offers a list of the benefits of spaying and neutering.

homeowner

Carmen wrote: I need to find a vet that charges a reasonable amount for neutering...if anyone has any suggestions I'd love to hear them. $500-$600 is insane.

Get a muffin certificate. It knocks the cost down significantly (although if I recall you still need to pay for anesthesia). But the proceedure itself is less than $100. I had both my cats done for less than $300 and that included an overnight stay and everything.

ETA: Muffin certificate pricing
Male Cat ... $38
Female Cat ... $51
*Male Dog ... $52
*Female Dog ... $72

* If a dog is over 30 pounds, there may be additional fee paid to the vet for more Anesthesia. Shots, pain management and antibiotics are NOT included with certificate.

flonflon

I've always used Muffin's Pet Connection certificates, and they've helped considerably. (The alternatives were: either pay an undiscounted small fortune that would be better spent on the dog's future care, or trek to the Humane Society in Manhattan.)

You can order Muffin's certifs online or get them in some Bklyn pet-supply stores. See:
http://www.muffins.org/Reps_10.htm
But first, check with Muffin's to see which vets accept the certificates.
And since costs vary, call the vets to see what the fee will be with certificate.

pitu

Anastasia Beaverhausen wrote: [quote=OpossumQueen]$500 to neuter??? That seems ridiculous to me.

Yep - I thought so, too. Again, I am *not* knocking AK. Oscar had no pain afterward, in fact it was like he didn't have anything done. I dare say I'd bring him there in an emergency because I do think the level of care is good. Had a been a little more diligent, I'd have looked around for a certificate or some program to reduce the cost.

the vet thread got split -- spay and neuter here, general dog vet discussion back here

the psycho-ologist

WOW I went to the ASPCA mobile clinic and had both my male and female cats neutered for 75$

http://www.aspca.org/aspca-nyc/mobileclinic/

Its cheaper if you receive any type of government aid: wic, food stamps, medicaid, section 8 etc.


YOU HAVE TO GET THERE VERY EARLY, since its FIRST COME FIRST SERVE AND PEOPLE GET THERE EARLY!!!


Both my cats are fine after the procedure. They are healthy enough to run around all night long and drive me nuts. but I loves them anyway

hitokiri

.... doesnt anyone pay for pet insurance?

anastasia beaverhausen

hitokiri wrote: .... doesnt anyone pay for pet insurance?

I do! But this was well before I got it.

scarlett

Carmen, I know you are afraid of Manhattan, but the Humane Society is wonderful. When I worked there some years ago it was like $25 to neuter your little totcho. The vets there are amazing- most of them work for drastically reduced rates because they care about the animals so much.

carmen

Btw I just called prospect park animal clinic for some costs- using a muffins cert (which is $55 or so) I'll need to pay an additional $25 for painkillers, which is based on the weight of the dog (and mine is small) But still, its going to end up being under $100 versus a possible $550. This is the route I'm going!

leozoeypiper

Prospect Park Veterinary Clinic does a wonderful job and they don't require you to get any services that you don't want to. They only require the post-op pain injection in addition to the spay/neuter which is a nice thing to do for your animal anyway. Be sure to mention that you willb e using a Muffins Certificate when you schedule your appointment since they only do so many spays/neuters with Muffins Certificates per day.

Animal Kind requires a lot of extra things that not everyone can/will pay for. Services like IV fluids, pre-op blood work, vaccines, etc. are good if you can afford them but more than likely your animal will be fine without them. I don't go to them any longer with Muffins Certificate since they require IVs, feline distemper vaccines, etc. even for the feral cats that I bring in - although several times I insisted that it be waived so maybe there is some flexibility. I still don't chance it.

I have used Pet Haven in the past with Muffins Certificates. They do a good job and don't require tons of extra services but their bed side manner stinks.

The Humane Society in Manhattan, the ASPCA mobile van, and Brooklyn AC&C all do spays/neuters for a low price. They all do a good job.

opossumqueen

Carmen, that price sounds really reasonable and I'm a fan of that clinic (the main receptionist can have a nasty attitude but everyone else is good).

Leozoeypiper, I've had a very different experience at Pet Haven with my gecko. Dr. Caruso and the vet techs we dealt with each time were wonderful. No idea on doing dog/cat stuff but she and staff were all really helpful and friendly to me and my gecko, who bit her (I had no idea he had that in him!).

Also, I had to give antibiotic injections to the gecko 7 times after his surgery and they showed me how to do it but also offered me the option of bringing him in for them to do it each time, free of charge. They also didn't charge me for follow-up visits where they just looked at how he was healing. Overall a great experience.