Does anyone know about affordable vet services in WA. | Squat the Planet

Does anyone know about affordable vet services in WA.

Mrcharwe

Well-known member
Joined
Oct 2, 2018
Messages
57
Reaction score
257
Location
On a bicycle, in the desert
Hey,

My dog recently broke a tooth off at the gumline with the roots still intact. I'm trying to find an affordable vet in Washington.
I have called a few vets and keep getting the same run around. They won't give an average cost for the procedure without seeing the dog in their office first. The office visit cost $50-100 and because of covid they are booked out for 4-6 weeks. At their rate, I'll spend $1000 in office visits and maybe by New year's we will have the root extracted. I imagine he will have a jaw infection well before New years.
Does anyone know of an affordable vet service? I'm currently in Olympia but I can sail/hitch to about anywhere in the state.

Thanks
 
  • Best of Luck!
Reactions: croc

croc

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 24, 2017
Messages
453
Reaction score
2,004
Location
Roads n rails
Since this is kind of an emergency I think u should just fly a sign for as much money as u can get together in a day and go to the nearest emergency clinic the next. I know flying signs isn't everyone's thing but when it comes to getting ur pet help, it would help lift the weight of having to find a cheap place n waiting that month-month and a half for an appointment.
(my puppy has a uti and i recently went thru the same thing of calling around to all these places that are booked up for many weeks and hunting for low prices so I feel ur frustration <3)
 

Mrcharwe

Well-known member
Joined
Oct 2, 2018
Messages
57
Reaction score
257
Location
On a bicycle, in the desert
Since this is kind of an emergency I think u should just fly a sign for as much money as u can get together in a day and go to the nearest emergency clinic the next. I know flying signs isn't everyone's thing but when it comes to getting ur pet help, it would help lift the weight of having to find a cheap place n waiting that month-month and a half for an appointment.
(my puppy has a uti and i recently went thru the same thing of calling around to all these places that are booked up for many weeks and hunting for low prices so I feel ur frustration <3)

Thanks croc. after a dozen more phone calls today I found a place that is walk in only and if i get there early they should be able to do it the same day. she said they don't normally quote but one tooth is typically $350-500. i think that sounds reasonable so we are off to Seattle tomorrow to hopefully get him taken care of.
 
  • Best of Luck!
  • Like
Reactions: Gin and croc

watson

Well-known member
Joined
Oct 24, 2014
Messages
94
Reaction score
77
Location
Bama
i know this response is late but to shed some light on teeth problems in dogs, i was a vet tech for a year awhile back. i regularly did dental procedures on plenty of cats and dogs. most teeth problems are almost always going to require the dog be "put under" with drugs such as tellazol, ketamine etc. (idk the fancy terminology but we had to log the drug use down to the .1mm and keep them in a safe or else the doctor would lose his license) the drugs itself are expensive and to keep the dog under he would be put on isoflurane and oxygen (also is not cheap) heart monitor etc. not to mention a dental or any dental work because of this is almost always classified as a surgery. so if your dog has a chipped tooth or something you may think is mundane it generally means surgery. so 350-500 for a dental is very normal considering what needs to be done. (doctors also like to ask to do bloodwork first because if you deny bloodwork and your dog has an underlying condition bad liver, kidneys etc. then your dog can die while put under, bloodwork uisually costs about 80-100 itself. if you feel like a vet is trying to tack on bloodwork to get more money out of you i assure you they want to know your dogs healthy before putting them under anesthesia. some of the most healthy dogs you could imagine have had bad genetics wether its heart, kidney, liver functions etc. (resulting in death while under anesthesia so dont get to thinking because your dogs young hes invincible.) working at a vet as a vet tech taught me so much about road dogs im glad i had the opportunity.

edit: granted, all VDM's are different and i wouldnt put it past a random to try to fix the issue without surgery. but with the cost of 350-500 i assume hes getting the full dental work. if its the case theyll put him under, pull the tooth. and clean and polish the rest of the teeth. when i did dentals i would clean all the tooth every square inch. and then i would determine what teeth needed to be pulled. exact tooth location always logged aswell.. if hes getting a dental im going to assume there cleaning his teeth aswell.
 
Last edited:
  • Useful
Reactions: Ameris and croc

About us

  • Squat the Planet is the world's largest social network for misfit travelers. Join our community of do-it-yourself nomads and learn how to explore the world by any means necessary.

    More Info

Help us pay the bills!

Total amount
$10.00
Goal
$100.00

Latest Library Uploads