redcharlie43 Posted May 8, 2012 Share Posted May 8, 2012 This is probably a bit of an indelicate subject but I do have to ask. Unfortunately Bully had to be PTS this afternoon. I was much more upset that I thought I would be and made a bit of a fool of myself at the vets. He thought she had a tumour and heart failure and not peritonitis so it was best for her to be PTS. So Bully has gone off the meet up with Baldy so they can FR in the sky. I decided that I would leave her with the vet. He offered for me to go and collect her body later but I declined and said they could send her for cremation. I was shocked when the bill came to £57. I was actually too shocked to ask why it was so much. I live in Cobham in Surrey which I know is quite a pricey area but £57!. So does anyone know what the average cost of having a chicken PTS is. Should I have gone and collected her body and not had her cremated? I'm sorry if this subject upsets people but it will make me think twice about the vets in the future if I can't find somewhere that costs less. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dance in the dark Posted May 8, 2012 Share Posted May 8, 2012 So sorry to hear your news. I have never had a chicken PTS yet. Having an animal put to sleep in my experience can cost anywhere between £10 and £50, but I would have thought a chicken was at the lower end of the scale. I would imagine that without cremation it would have cost a lot less. Is this bill itemized at all? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coco Posted May 8, 2012 Share Posted May 8, 2012 So sorry RIP Bully. I was in bits when I had Coco pts, she had been ill for a month or so and we had tried everything. I suspect it was the cremation that put the price up. I have had two hens pts and have left them both at the vets. Its only cost about £18.00 each time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
debsygooch Posted May 8, 2012 Share Posted May 8, 2012 HI, so sorry to hear your news, I too had to have a chicken PTS last week - our first ever experience of this, Maisie our top chook had been poorly for a couple of days. The vet offered to give her some anitobiotics and painkillers and see how she faired overnight but suggested that she may not make it and would probably suffer, so I made the heartbreaking decision to have her PTS there in my arms. I have to say it was very difficult but the vet was wonderful and was a self confessed "chicken nut" which made it much easier. I was charged a total of £18 (and this included her being cremated) as they charged for her under their "small animal" charging system. I am based in Luton, Bedfordshire Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Margaret Posted May 8, 2012 Share Posted May 8, 2012 So sorry to hear about Bully. I paid £50 last month to have Mabel on the Table PTS, was amazed but at the time so grief stricken didnt bat an eye. They did ask if I wanted a private cremation or was it ok to despose of her with others Goodness knows what that would of cost. It does seem very expensive, but I assume that is the price you pay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chestnutmare Posted May 8, 2012 Share Posted May 8, 2012 How about phoning the vets and asking exactly what you were charged for? I'm always in shock when I get a vet bill but this seems very expensive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Salop Chuck Posted May 8, 2012 Share Posted May 8, 2012 Sorry to hear of your loss and shocking bill I recently had one of my bantams PTS and it only cost £17 (without the cremation - I took her home with me). I have had other hens PTS + cremation and it has never been more than about £20. If you can face phoning your vet re: indiviual cost of anesthesia + cremation then I think you have a right to know what you being charged for though wait until you are feeling a bit stronger. All my vet's bills are itemised so I know the breakdown costs. Lots of hugs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
House MD 221B Posted May 8, 2012 Share Posted May 8, 2012 I'm not ashamed to admit I cried like a baby when we had Scramble put to sleep. I'd spent two weeks spending all day every day nursing her, and she was making improvements up to a point, but then she started going down hill due to infection and it was the kindest thing to do. Because it was a weekend it had to be an "emergency" vet, but she very kindly waived the additional fees and only charged us for the actual medicine and was about £30-£40 if I recall, but if she hadn't have waived the extras she should have billed for, it was going to be about £80-£90. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Olly Posted May 8, 2012 Share Posted May 8, 2012 So sorry, and it's totally understandable to be upset. I would guess that the cremation has increased the cost - was this an 'individual' arrangement or just a general one? I think I paid about £15 when I had to have a hen PTS a couple of years ago. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keyhole kate Posted May 8, 2012 Share Posted May 8, 2012 I paid £18 to have merryweather pts and cremated two months ago I usually pay £7.50 just for cremation when oldies pass away. I would ring and ask for a breakdown £57 sounds a lot to me. Harsh as it sound you do need to ring around for quotes I was quoted £ 30 for cremation only at another vets sorry to hear about your girl I cry like a baby when I have to have any pet pts even sons Rat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tweety Posted May 8, 2012 Share Posted May 8, 2012 Sorry to hear your sad news. I had to have one of my ex batts PTS last week, and it cost £36 including cremation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quickcluck Posted May 8, 2012 Share Posted May 8, 2012 I am all very upset when I have to do this..... Some vets look at me as if I am mad, and berate me because they are thin... They dont understand the hybrids..... I pay £20-24 but if you leave them there it's always at least £25 to have them cremated, so maybe thats why it was sooo expensive... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Potts Posted May 8, 2012 Share Posted May 8, 2012 Sorry to hear about Bully. Hettie's PTS cost £9 in March 2012 at the vet surgery near Malvern. I brought her home with me. It's probably not the nicest thing to have to ask for at the moment, but I would. It probably is the cremation, but that does seem a lot of money to me. Vet geography might come into it, but even if you love your hens and want to do the best for them, £57 is not an insignificant sum. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mollie333 Posted May 8, 2012 Share Posted May 8, 2012 So sorry. RIP... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sadietoo Posted May 8, 2012 Share Posted May 8, 2012 When I had poor darling Pansy PTS I too cried buckets.... I also asked for a pm....The vet was keen to find out what had defeated him, and so didn't charge for the pm...and charged me £10 for the drugs... I obviously left her with him... When I lost Mabel she died at home, but I decided to take her to the vets for cremation because I could not bear the thought of preparing her (not private) that cost me £9.95...... So very sorry to hear of your loss.xxx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ohcarolina Posted May 8, 2012 Share Posted May 8, 2012 I'm in West Sussex/Surrey border and have used 3 or 4 local vets over the last couple of years but used to be Ms Loyal to one vets for over 15 years. Consulations are anything from £23 to £35 and when I had a chook PTS one Sunday the 'Farm' type practice wanted over £80! (I'd already agreed FREE if she was PTS). They do all of the ops for the local small animal practices and out of hours cover so have got us over a barrel (as me mum used to say. What does that mean?) Around here it really does seem to be a licence to print money at times (I'm not blaming individual vets - just certain practices). Unfortunately I've found that levels of expertise for chooks vary between practices and I do try and choose the best one for my pocket according to whats wrong with the girl. That said the practise with the most expensive consultation fee has the best chook vet and is closest to home so thats where Persephone was rushed the other week after the fox attack. £46 for consultation and antibiotics! The things we do for out girls! BTW - she's doing fine now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G and B Posted May 8, 2012 Share Posted May 8, 2012 So sorry to hear about Bully - thoughts are with you. When Hilda had to be PTS the day after New Year's Day, the vets in Brighton charged £108 !! I was gobsmacked but paid it because she couldn't suffer any longer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lavenders_Blue Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 So sorry to hear about Bully I have only had one girl PTS at the vets. I seem to remember it cost about £15/£16. I left her there with them, I am not sure whether she would have been cremated or not, I assume so... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chick wiggle Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 So sorry about Bully and dont worry, i also cried like a baby when i took one of mine to be PTS. I was charged £49 which also included cremation and i was a bit shocked too, but you dont like to question it do you? Thankfully, this is a one off because she was my very first chicken and very special to me, i could not bring myself to do the deed no matter how much i knew it was the right thing to do. RIP Bully Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vickichicky Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 Sorry to hear about Bully xx I've had 3 girls pts over the last few years (2 had Peritonitus & 1 heart failure). The Euthanasia + disposal cremation cost £13. More if you want an individual cremation & ashes back. When I wanted a PM on one (as not classic Peritonitus symptoms) it cost £80 all together. The first Peritonitus case (my Ex-Batt Mornay) the vet did the PM for free as she wanted to make sure for herself & learn from it. Had a slight wobble about that - but decided if some good was going to come of her loss then I'd go with it. I was welling up with all 3 - but Benni, the last of my Ex-Batts particularly got to me and I burst into tears and had to pay over the phone the next day as I dissolved into a hopeless lump. Luckily my chicken keeping neighbour friend drove me there.... Vicki x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chortle Chook Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 RIP Bully. You were clearly very kind to her. I've not had to have a hen PTS yet (fingers crossed) but looking at the costs on here I'm going to ring around our various vets so I know where to go should it be needed. There seems a huge disparity in costs even when cremation is taken into account. Could it be a difference between vets who charage for pet hens under their 'small animal scheme' and vets who charge for them as 'livestock' ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chickenopolis Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 We had Flo PTS Saturday morning. She had been ill for a little while and whilst I gave her Baytril and looked after her every need (she didn't want to eat layers mash so I ended up buying tins of mini crickets which she loved), the Vet found a tumour and nothing further could be done. She was a Gingernut Ranger and was 3 and 1/2 years old, so not bad for an "old bird". So after handing over Flo to let the vet do whatever they do, I said that I wanted an individual cremation (as I couldn't bear the thought of her going with other animals) and I wanted her ashes back in a wooden box - total cost £97! I am, at the moment lucky enough to be in full time employment and, not that you can afford that kind of expense, but I chose to - am giving up work shortly, so I just hope my remaining chooks keep healthy. But Flo has been part of our lives for all that time, and it didn't seem right to me anyway to leave her at the vets. She wouldn't have know, but I would. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luvachicken Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 Sorry to hear about Bully and the expense. I had to have Poppy put to sleep a while ago and it only cost about 15 pound. 12 for a small animal consultation, 2 to have her cremated and the last pound presumably for the sleep injection. I didn't think that was too bad for the Fleet area - also expensive - actually it was in Hartley Wintney, just down the road. Perhaps you should question why it was so expensive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
