Attention pet owners: a visit to the doctor for dogs and cats will be significantly more expensive
Created: 08/26/2022, 14:53
By: Stella Henrich
Dog and cat owners will have to dig deeper into their pockets at the vet from October.
(Iconic image) © Guillermo Spelucin/imago
From October, the prices for men and women when visiting the vet will increase.
This is stipulated by the new veterinary fee regulation.
The aim is to make the profession of veterinarian more attractive.
Munich ‒ Nobody is happier than a dog when a master or a woman comes home.
They wag their tails, bark happily and nudge you with their noses - meaning "come play with me".
Cats are a lot more reserved.
But they also show their affection.
When they stretch out comfortably in the evening, masters or women are allowed to scratch their four-legged friends from time to time.
If you own a pet, you don't want to be without it.
Dogs and cats are not necessarily cheap to keep.
Food, visits to the vet and then there is the dog tax.
Attack dogs add even more to the book.
The Federal Council has now approved a new version of the so-called Veterinarian Fees Ordinance.
This regulates what an examination at the veterinarian may cost.
For pet owners, this means higher costs from October.
The
veterinary fee schedule
regulates how much money veterinarians are allowed to charge for which services.
For more than 20 years, since 1999, the costs have not changed.
The Federal Council has now approved a new version that will bring expensive changes for dog and cat owners from October.
The basis for the adjustment of the fee schedule is a scientific study on veterinary services and their appropriate billing, which the
Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food
(BMEL) commissioned.
It was published in November last year and revealed that the current fees are no longer sufficient.
Attention animal owners: costs for examinations are increasing significantly
According to the Thuringia Chamber of Veterinarians, the price for a general examination of a dog will increase by almost ten euros ,
reports
mdr.de.
The cost of vaccinations for dogs and cats has almost doubled from EUR 5.77 to EUR 11.50.
For X-rays, the price difference is slightly smaller.
So far, a recording has cost 26.53 euros.
In the future you will have to pay 32.07 euros for it.
Depending on the individual treatment, however, the costs can be higher.
Only by adjusting the fees to changing economic conditions is it possible to make veterinary practices and the practice of the profession more economical and attractive again
Lea Schmitz, spokeswoman for the German Animal Welfare Association, Bonn
The German Animal Welfare Association welcomes the new billing model as long overdue.
"Only by adjusting the fees to changing economic conditions is it possible to make the operation of veterinary practices and the exercise of the profession more economical and attractive again, in order to prevent a further reduction in the supply network in the field of veterinary medicine," says spokeswoman Lea Schmitz compared to the magazine,
Your Animal World.
From the point of view of animal protection, good veterinary care for all pets and farm animals is of the utmost importance.
Of course, this requires appropriate remuneration for the veterinarians.
Attention pet owners: More four-legged friends could end up back in the home
However, animal rights activists also see problems and risks that could arise from the rising prices at the veterinarian.
With the result that more animals end up in animal shelters, animals are not treated and suffer, or dogs and cats are simply abandoned by their owners.
They are already demanding vouchers for pet owners or other relief.
Otherwise the animal shelters could be overwhelmed,
reports
mrd.de.
Birgit Binder from the Saxony-Anhalt consumer advice center advises pet owners to put money aside regularly or to take out animal health insurance.
However, it is important to take a close look at which services are taken over.
The German Animal Protection Association is also in favor of taking out insurance in order to be able to compensate for higher costs for illnesses, accidents, necessary vaccinations and visits to the vet.
These are often underestimated.
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