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Vet costs
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"Oh there's very much going on that there's been news stories and ministers talking about regulation due to price fixings. As nearly all the veterinary practices countrywide are owned by 3 or so large companies all " allegedly " in cahoots. This is what people are saying about it. A simple blood test costing many hundreds of pounds our own vet quietly advised us to buy our cats medication online as buying from the practice was 3 times as expensive. Like the charity ads on telly during the day they play on people's hearts knowing people will shell out many thousands for their pets. If you don't have insurance ( they are very good at worming their way out of paying) you are at the mercy of the vets. We have decided once our two cats pass we shall not have and pets afterwards due to these costs." A quick search said approximately 60% are corporate and 40% are independent. I wouldn’t say that’s “the vast majority”. The online drug company doesn’t have to buy all the equipment a vet does. I do agree some charges are ridiculous tho. And I also agree that some insurance companies try to avoid paying out if they can. It’s a tricky one with no straight forward solution other than not have pets if you can’t afford the bills. | |||
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"VetPartners, owned by the private equity firm BC Partners, isn’t alone in keeping its clinics’ former brand identities intact when it acquires them. Four of the big six are guilty of the practice ..." I've not heard of Novara Media before (where this quote came from). It's interesting that they consider the use of branding to be a crime, suggesting that companies are "guilty" if they don't spend lots of money telling all of their newly acquired customers that ownership has changed. | |||
"Baffles me the thousands people spend on pets, then feed on other abused animals in our food chain " Cats taste horrible but little piggies - mmmmmm. | |||
"VetPartners, owned by the private equity firm BC Partners, isn’t alone in keeping its clinics’ former brand identities intact when it acquires them. Four of the big six are guilty of the practice ... I've not heard of Novara Media before (where this quote came from). It's interesting that they consider the use of branding to be a crime, suggesting that companies are "guilty" if they don't spend lots of money telling all of their newly acquired customers that ownership has changed." Novara are far far left cranks ! | |||
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/08/24/vet-costs-spiralling-corporate-ownership-fightback/ | |||
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"here's why .... six corporations have bought out independent vetinary practices across the length and breadth of the country. Deregulation chipped away at the small business model, allowing corporations to quietly gobble up clinics. In 2013, only 10% of vet practices were owned by the “big six”: Pets at Home, CVS Group, IVC, Linnaeus, VetPartners and Medivet. Fast-forward to 2024 and it’s 60%. prices have increased threefold. Until a legal change in 1999, only qualified and licensed vets could own a veterinary practice, meaning that vets tended to be independent practices or small local chains. Deregulation chipped away at the small business model, allowing corporations to quietly gobble up clinics. In 2013, only 10% of vet practices were owned by the “big six”: Pets at Home, CVS Group, IVC, Linnaeus, VetPartners and Medivet. Fast-forward to 2024 and it’s 60%. VetPartners, owned by the private equity firm BC Partners, isn’t alone in keeping its clinics’ former brand identities intact when it acquires them. Four of the big six are guilty of the practice, leaving pet owners no inkling that their local veterinary practice is now part of a multinational corporation. Linnaeus is owned by American chocolate giant Mars, who are also behind pet food brands like Whiskas. Among Medivet’s investors is LGT Capital Partners, a Swiss private equity vehicle owned by the Liechtenstein royal family. IVC – the biggest of the six – is owned by Nestlé and private equity firms Silver Lake and EQT. When Valley Vets, a veterinary practice in South Wales, was bought by VetPartners in April 2017, there was no sign for pet owners that the independently owned outfit had been snapped up by a private equity firm; the practice retained its name, branding and staff. " Wowww this is amazingly insightful, especially after having just spent £4k having some previous work put right that was causing an affection to our pooch. But I will say, if anybody needs dog dental work I can’t recommend the pet dental surgery in Cheadle enough, and the surgeon was truly amazing. You instantly know that he’s another level when it comes to pet dental care | |||
