Veterinary fees give rise to a great many questions, criticisms, remarks and the like.
Until recently, the Swiss Association of Veterinarians offered its members schedules of suggested fees, with factors varying according to the practitioner's location and their specialisations, areas of expertise or other strengths.
These fee schedules were fairly complex, but well thought out and flexible; without being compulsory, they helped clients and vets alike to get their bearings, and gave newly established practitioners a starting point.
Then the competition commission stepped in and, for the good of the consumer and of competition, banned these indicative service fees. In the end the consumer is no better off, because reference rates are now missing and pet owners can no longer find out about average prices.
These can indeed differ completely from one vet to another, and that is perfectly normal. It is therefore quite pointless to try to ask a vet about the fees usually charged for this or that examination, procedure or treatment, since they can only answer for their own practice.
And complaints about overcharging have no basis, since there is no ceiling of any kind.
It would nonetheless be wise to remember that the choice of a vet can also depend on factors other than money — such as location, the welcome you receive, and so on — but above all it should rest on trust and on a good relationship between the client, the patient and the vet.
Moreover, some services are not comparable: a consultation for post-operative follow-up, for example, is not comparable with an emergency consultation.
Veterinary fee notes may at first sight sometimes seem high, but they are tied to the financial overheads that a practice generates, like any other business (rent, products and equipment, salaries, continuing education, taxes, equipment inspections, depreciation, and so on).
It is important to discuss the cost and the significance of a treatment or of further examinations with the vet beforehand, especially where these go beyond the single visit or the annual check-up, with or without vaccination.
Everyone is free to decline or to agree to proceed. But they must say so clearly, or set a budget with a request to be consulted again if costs exceed it. We also often see criticism stemming from the fact that clients sometimes forget that a vet works to an obligation of means, not of results.
It should also be noted that every vet is free to refuse to carry out a treatment or a procedure — another point that is often forgotten.
An animal's quality of life often comes at a price, and it is wise to talk things through in a spirit of trust between everyone involved, so as to give the animal the best possible quality of life while respecting the owner's budget.