Discussion
Got an email from our local vet today announcing that she was retiring, and selling the practice to another independent veterinarian, having turned down several much higher offers from private equity rollup funds.
I am so grateful to Burbank/Toluca Pet Hospital's Dr Skaar for this. Having watched PE-backed rollups destroy so many veterinary practices, killing pets and ruining workers' lives, it's such a relief to know that our vet put her patients first.
@pluralistic I'm so envious. Our local vet prices are extortionate now after PE ruined it. We needed to have some relatively minor treatment for our dog last year. I did the math and it would have been cheaper to fly first class to a Midwest city, stay at a 4-star hotel, have the work done, and come home than to pay the local vet.
No doubt about it, PE is literally killing pets. Everyone wants to do right by their furry friends, but when you get a quote for $10K, you start to weigh options.
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@pluralistic I took a sick cat to one of these private equity vets once.
When I saw the lobby I knew I was in for it, and sure enough....
They use all the same tricks to inflate bills that you're familiar with from human medicine.
You can't drive around town bargain hunting with a sick pet, but I did a little research and knew where the cheap/honest/locally-run vet was next time.
Gouging pet owners is one of the lowest forms of PE crap out there.
Everyone has some kind of limit on what they can pay for their furry family member's care, even if they haven't though it through. It sucks that someone might hit that point and think it's time to say goodbye, when a traditional vet across town might charge half as much.