• Hero Banner
  • ACVCACVC
  • DVM 360
  • Fetch DVM 360Fetch DVM 360
DVM 360
dvm360 | Veterinary News, Veterinarian Insights, Medicine, Pet Care
dvm360 | Veterinary News, Veterinarian Insights, Medicine, Pet Care
By Role
AssociatesOwnersPractice ManagerStudentsTechnicians
Subscriptions
dvm360 Newsletterdvm360 Magazine
News
All News
Association
Breaking News
Education
Equine
FDA
Law & Ethics
Market Trends
Medical
Products
Recalls
Regulatory
Digital Media
dvm360 LIVE!™
Expert Interviews
The Vet Blast Podcast
Medical World News
Pet Connections
The Dilemma Live
Vet Perspectives™
Weekly Newscast
dvm360 Insights™
Publications
All Publications
dvm360
Firstline
Supplements
Top Recommended Veterinary Products
Vetted
Clinical
All Clinical
Anesthesia
Animal Welfare
Behavior
Cardiology
CBD in Pets
Dentistry
Dermatology
Diabetes
Emergency & Critical Care
Endocrinology
Equine Medicine
Exotic Animal Medicine
Feline Medicine
Gastroenterology
Imaging
Infectious Diseases
Integrative Medicine
Nutrition
Oncology
Ophthalmology
Orthopedics
Pain Management
Parasitology
Pharmacy
Surgery
Toxicology
Urology & Nephrology
Virtual Care
Business
All Business
Business & Personal Finance
Buying or Selling a Practice
Hospital Design
Leadership & Personal Growth
Personnel Management
Practice Finances
Practice Operations
Technology
Wellbeing & Lifestyle
Continuing Education
Conferences
Live Conferences
Conference News
Conference Proceedings
Resources
CBD in Pets
Contests
Veterinary Heroes
Partners
Spotlight Series
Team Meeting in a Box
Toolkit
Top Recommended Veterinary Products
Vet to Vet
  • Contact Us
  • Fetch DVM360 Conference
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Privacy
  • Do Not Sell My Information
  • About Us

© 2023 MJH Life Sciences and dvm360 | Veterinary News, Veterinarian Insights, Medicine, Pet Care. All rights reserved.

Advertisement
By Role
  • Associates
  • Owners
  • Practice Manager
  • Students
  • Technicians
Subscriptions
  • dvm360 Newsletter
  • dvm360 Magazine
  • Contact Us
  • Fetch DVM360 Conference
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Privacy
  • Do Not Sell My Information
  • About Us
  • MJHLS Brand Logo

© 2023 MJH Life Sciences™ and dvm360 | Veterinary News, Veterinarian Insights, Medicine, Pet Care. All rights reserved.

Counting the cost of chronic disease

December 17, 2009

Study shows what clients pay for common conditions in pets.

No doubt you've been educating your clients for years about the value of regularly scheduled wellness care and preventive medicine. But no doubt many of them balk when it comes to actually paying for a wellness plan, opting instead to pay for health problems if and when they arise. Now, new research from Michigan State University can help you make your case for prevention and early detection by showing the cost of treating common health problems in pets.

Dr. Paul Bartlett, MPH, PhD, an epidemiologist at Michigan State, teamed up with Dr. James Van Buren, MBA, president of research firm Vector Scientific Resources in Kalamazoo, Mich., to conduct a study of treatment costs at the university's veterinary teaching hospital. The study, funded by Hill's Pet Nutrition, tabulated the annual cost of treating dogs and cats with certain common diseases. (For each disease, up to 15 dogs and cats were evaluated.)

The cost totals don't include examination fees, overnight hospital charges, or clinical pathology charges because these services are often related to other disease conditions. They do, however, include all other veterinary costs pet owners incurred at the teaching hospital during the 12 months after their pets were first diagnosed with the disease. To reduce the bias of referral case costs, the researchers selected patients whose owners used the university teaching hospital for both their primary and secondary care.

The following charts reflect the extent of financial risk incurred by clients whose pets are diagnosed with the studied diseases.

Annual veterinary costs associated with canine diseases

 

Median cost

Advertisement

25th percentile

75th percentile

Heart disease $1,912 $953 $4,693 Hypertension $1,700 $1,125 $3,273 Osteoarthritis $1,656 $451 $3,242 Cancer $2,447 $1,124 $6,502 Diabetes $1,108 $387 $2,355 Pancreatitis $1,422 $492 $2,120 Obesity + ruptured ACL $2,367 $215 $3,137 Chronic kidney disease $1,823 $1,078 $2,998

 

Annual veterinary costs associated with feline diseases

 

Median cost

25th percentile

75th percentile

Heart disease $1,065 $387 $2,924 Hypertension $1,241 $674 $2,253 Osteoarthritis $286 $89 $2,581 Cancer $994 $630 $2,308 Diabetes $860 $531 $4,285 Pancreatitis $1,483 $543 $3,072 Chronic kidney disease $1,065 $562 $2,396 Hyperthyroidism $1,401 $1,015 $4,034

 

While not all of these diseases can be prevented through regular care, clients who participate in a wellness plan that includes periodic physical examinations and diagnostic testing are much more likely to learn of their pets' condition early in its course and keep costs of treatment toward the lower end of the scale. Also, these numbers can help you make a convincing case for the value of pet insurance.

So the next time you sense that a client is starting to tune out your recommendation for wellness care or pet insurance, see if you can help them quantify the cost of treatment in comparison. It just might make the difference in that client's decision-and improve your patient's quality of life.

Related Content:

Client Relations & Marketing
Overcoming language barriers with diverse veterinary staff
Overcoming language barriers with diverse veterinary staff
Industry leaders launch Positive Pet Care Guide
Industry leaders launch Positive Pet Care Guide
Navigating emotionally charged conversations
Navigating emotionally charged conversations

Advertisement

Latest News

Novel vaccine on the market for viruses in pigs

3 Must-reads for World Oceans Day

Research reveals efficacy of non-surgical contraceptive alternative for cats

Potential blood transfusion may offer lion chance of survival

View More Latest News
Advertisement