The short answer is yes. In fact many vets do, even though they don’t publicly announce this fact. As a farmer with livestock that requires a vet visit to see a large number of animals at once, I’ve been offered an ‘account’ by veterinarians throughout the years that permitted me to pay off a large amount.
Small Pet Owners and Veterinarians Need Payment Options
As a small animal owner I’ve not had this option, ever. But as a web developer I started doing some research to see if it could be possible…and it is.
Without additional costs to the vet.
Without additional headaches for the vet.
And most especially readily available to most of their clients.
One of the options I discovered paid the veterinarian in full at the time of the procedure while also allowing the client to pay installments either short term (without a credit check) or long term with some credit checks but not to the extent of CareCredit or the like.
Animal Emergencies Require Payment Options
If you’ve ever been in an emergency situation, you know you don’t want to be faced with a large bill you can’t afford, or the death of your pet. It’s unfair to you and the vet both to have to make that choice.
I had a dog once that got hurt playing with another dog. His spleen ruptured and by the time we realized it, it was late at night and an emergency. Luckily I had the $2200 for the surgery, but what if I didn’t? I would have lost my 4 year old dog. Instead he lived another 10 years.
No one should have to make that choice.
Veterinarians and Veterinary Technicians Need to Give Pet Owners a Break
Many in the vet industry have a very staunch viewpoint about pets, payments, and the client’s ability to pay. I saw a laundry list of these viewpoints just a few days ago from several vet techs:
“If you own a pet you should get insurance.”
“If you own a pet you should have a credit card ready in case of emergencies.”
“If you can’t afford a procedure you shouldn’t own a pet.”
Pet Owners Need to Understand Veterinarians Need to be Paid Too
As a business owner, I fully understand the sentiment of wanting to be paid. As a pet owner, however, I feel like the vet industry hasn’t fully researched the options available to them today that would provide them with a near 100% recovery rate on billing. Nor the vast amount of available income a pet owner would need to handle such emergencies.
These days I have a hobby farm. A few horses, goats, chickens, nine dogs and a cat. No vet wants to offer me payments, and if I had multiple emergencies the cost would be far beyond my ability to pay. Before I became a widow, emergency costs for my pets were doable, but now my income and available resources are less than half than what they were. So, according to the naysayers, I should get rid of my animals because I can’t afford an emergency. Or multiple emergencies.
To me, there should be – and there is – better options that permits clients to get the care they need AND the veterinarian the money they deserve for treatment.
Without additional work, effort, or problems for the vet’s office.
If you have a veterinarian practice who wants to explore billing and payment options for your clients, let’s discuss the ways we can help you deliver the same great service, with options that help you retain your clients. And perhaps even increase business because they can now bring their pets more often for additional services.
One of the options I found even has a prepayment option, like a savings account for future services.
Exciting and interesting options for both vets AND clients.
