Private healthcare - the animal perspective

Cinders (cat) got run over yesterday, thankfully a lady stopped and took her straight to the vet. The lad that hit her was apparently going too fast, he knew he hit her but didn't stop. Even though she was lying in the road, stunned, and clearly not dead. She was extremely lucky as she only has a snapped tooth and cuts on her chin - she also bit her tongue. So I am now feeling considerably poorer and Jason has been threatened with some radical personal surgery if he keeps letting the cats out! I have some strict rules about which cats are let out and when, ie they go out if they are hungry, and not for too long, and are called back in for food. She is currently lying on a towel in our bedroom (she really likes towels), trying to lick all the sticky plaster stuff off her leg from where the vet put a drip in to stop her getting shock.

The vet that had her didn't want me to take her home, they had her in a little cage on a drip and she looked really fed up - not eating or drinking. They said the vet was busy and wouldn't be able to see if she needed an operation until either tomorrow or Monday! Anyway this morning I asked for a price .....feeling the £ signs ticking away, plus I also think most animals like to be in familiar surroundings not shut in a tiny cage in silent room. Cost for admission, 1 night's stay, some antibiotics and painkillers and a saline drip £107! Costs to stay overnight for Sunday and Monday another £120, cost for operation ??? Anyway I didn't get that far as I phone my normal vet and told them what was going on (bear in mind I used to have a lot of animals and have spent a fair bit of time at the vets in the past 14 years since moving here).

My vet said that it was fine to bring her in first thing Monday, remember the other vet said they wouldn't be doing anything until Monday anyway. So I phoned the first lot back and said I was coming to get her (didn't give them a choice)...10 mins later my vet phoned me to say that the other lot had been on the phone checking that I had made an appointment, the first vet had said they were really worried, thought she needed to be hospitalised etc (1 vet giving the other a guilt trip, and giving me a guilt trip too).

Collected Cinders, parted with £107, went to other vet - who had stayed specially as the first vet said it was urgent. My vet had a look, said she looked quite perky. He took out the needle for the drip that the other lot had kindly left in, saying that she looked like she didn't need anymore fluid to him. He clipped off some fur from her chin (cat purring at this point), said it was a bit nasty but would probably heal up ok if we keep it clean (as if I'd keep it dirty), said the tooth operation looked a bit pointless as the tooth will probably drop out on its own, and the op would be fiddly and expensive. So I've got an appointment to take her in on Tues evening. Total cost at my vet £24 for Saturday out of hours appointment, 1 painkiller injection and 10 antibiotic tablets. Hmm I wonder why I go to my vet!!!

However the warning sign at Vet No1 was that the first thing they said to me was 'is she insured' and the second thing was ' can you sign this consent form' which gave them authority to do anything without asking me first.

Cat is now asleep on my bed, she has stuffed her face with food and spent an hour trying to lick the nasty sticky plaster mark off her leg.

Jason has been threatened with radical surgery if he keeps letting the cats out, he has also promised to revamp the dog flap to make it less cat friendly.
Cats are banned from going out until this is done.

I am thankful that a good samaritan called Leanne stopped to rescue Cinders from the middle of the road before the next car squashed her flat, and found time to put a note through the door saying what she had done. I am also happy that she went to the vet and that because she received prompt treatment the cat didn't go into shock, but I am even happier that my regular vet is such a calm and sensible practitioner who doesn't just go for the insurance....and the guilt trips.