you want HOW MUCH for an ELISA test????

[daniellebluetoo]

I called the vet I've used in the past, I wanted to know HOW MUCH the fee to drop off a fecal sample for an ELISA test.... I'm in NJ btw.

drum roll puleeeeeeeseeeeeeeee

ONE HUNDRED and FIFTY DOLLARS!!!!!!!


HOly Moly, this seems AWEFULL high to me.......and that was JUST to drop of the poop, no office visit, nothing!

What does every one else pay???

Are there alternatives? Maybe a lab to overnight poo to?

 

[Lena]

Whoa!! Definately take it somewhere else.

My place (Chadwell Animal Hospital in Abingdon, Maryland) has vets that do reptile fecal samples for $15...

 

[daniellebluetoo]

well the going rate for a 'normal" parasite float test around here is 35-45$, so I expected it to he higher, but WoW, thats just insane.....

 

[rubym]

The vet we go to charged us 75. A normal fecal is 25.

 

[leonut]

Wow that's high. :main_no: normally about $20-$30.

 

[acpart]

If you don't mind the trip, call the Univ. of Pa vet school and see what they'll do it for (PHila.).

Aliza

 

[Alusdra]

What are you doing the ELISA for? Trying to ID something in the feces? A float probably would be sufficient to find parasites, no? Lab tests are always more expensive, though that does sound pretty high. They likely have to send it to a special place.

 

[JordanAng420]

If you don't mind the trip, call the Univ. of Pa vet school and see what they'll do it for (PHila.).

Aliza

This is a really good idea :main_yes:

 

[daniellebluetoo]

well, philly IS pretty far from me. I'll call, maybe they can except postal poo?... LOL

 

[JordanAng420]

I'm sorry you have had such negative experiances with veterinarians for your little one...let me get up on my soapbox for a minute, and explain that we are not all "money-hungry murderers."

Most of what we charge for is 25% plus what we are charged at cost (to do the test/run the bloodwork/take the biopsy & send it out) A lot of the time, for our "good clients" we take an additional 10% off (for multiple pets, etc...)
So you come in for an exam and a fecal. The exam is $35. The fecal is $15. Your bill as an average client is around $50...but then you tell me you have 6 leopard geckos, 4 dogs, 3 cats, 2 ferrets, and 16 fish. I guess you get the =-multiple pet discount. $50 - 10% = $45. But your dogs nails aren't done correctly. You complain. There's another $5 you save. You're down to $40, for an hour and 30 minutes of advice from a veterinarian, medication to take home, paperwork/caresheets from the technician & a receptionist to carry your stuff out for you.

I'm sorry, but as a veterinary nurse, I don't see anything wrong with what is charged for a medical visit.

 

[daniellebluetoo]

:main_huh: where did that come from?

I'm not looking for multiple discounts, nail trims, or anything like that....

I just want to hand over some poo,.. and from what I've been told, MOST vet clinics send it out.

I don't think there is a problem with seeking REASONABLY priced diagnostic tests that will lead to more work for the vet in the long run with treatment and dispensing medication. JMO.

 

[MXW]

Hey guys,

I'm from Germany, but I test them at the university of Wien (Austria), the costs are 25 € about 30 $. It is the PCR-Test, the saftest test.



Max

 

[Baoh]

None of you people are on the same page.

Float /= ELISA /= PCR

 

[daniellebluetoo]

It is my understanding that they ALL test for parasites, but at least the float and the ELISA are different tests, and the ELISA being the most effective for identifying protozoa.

 

[OSUgecko]

The tests in question (fecal float/smear, PCR, and ELISA) are not at all similar and require varying degrees of skill/lab technology to carry out. The ELISA is a highly specialized, very specific test... it it can't be used for diagnosing parasites unless you know exactly what you are trying to find. If you are wanting to do a broad based parasite search to check for several different types of parasites, the lab might have to run several different ELISAs to positively identify them. The ELISA test kits are NOT cheap, and neither is the time of the lab technicians trained to run them.

While you might very well be able to find a cheaper lab, don't expect to pay the same price as a fecal float... it will be significantly higher.

 

[Lena]

I'm sorry you have had such negative experiances with veterinarians for your little one...let me get up on my soapbox for a minute, and explain that we are not all "money-hungry murderers."

Most of what we charge for is 25% plus what we are charged at cost (to do the test/run the bloodwork/take the biopsy & send it out) A lot of the time, for our "good clients" we take an additional 10% off (for multiple pets, etc...)
So you come in for an exam and a fecal. The exam is $35. The fecal is $15. Your bill as an average client is around $50...but then you tell me you have 6 leopard geckos, 4 dogs, 3 cats, 2 ferrets, and 16 fish. I guess you get the =-multiple pet discount. $50 - 10% = $45. But your dogs nails aren't done correctly. You complain. There's another $5 you save. You're down to $40, for an hour and 30 minutes of advice from a veterinarian, medication to take home, paperwork/caresheets from the technician & a receptionist to carry your stuff out for you.

I'm sorry, but as a veterinary nurse, I don't see anything wrong with what is charged for a medical visit.

Tell that to my vet. Paid over $400 when my beardie was sick with parasites. She did 4 totally unnecessary x-rays. All I really needed was the panacur and the liquid diet.. Highway robbery. I'm just sending in fecals and doing my own parasite treatments from now on. :main_no:

 

[BettaDragon]

I'm really wary of reptile vets. I work at a veterinary hospital for just cats and dogs but we have a lot of people that stopped working at other places because of how bad they were. I've heard the stories about a lot of vet offices in my area and the majority of the stories are appalling to say the least. I can't say more than that really but after hearing all those stories I really have become afraid of what would happen if I needed to take my geckos to the vet. It really isn't uncommon for unscrupulous business things to happen at vet offices. It really is a shame. I wish my office took care of exotics because we're a bunch of really passionate people and we really care about the animals.

 

[daniellebluetoo]

that was a little vague....BUT.... I can ad that I have used several vets that SAID they treated reptiles, only to discover that they knew JACk about them, and once the fecal came back negative they had NO clue what was wrong with the gecko and them blamed me for inferior husbandry practices.... Let me tell you, my husbandry is tight!

I've lost several geckos due to lying vets!:main_thumbsdown:

I pretty much do my own thing now, and just want to send in some poo!

 

[BettaDragon]

A lot of reptile vets are in it for the money. They know no one else does exotics so they charge a lot for it. That's at least what I've seen in this area.

 

[daniellebluetoo]

sounds about right... but it wouldn't be so bad if they ACTUALLY knew what they were doing WHILE charging an arm and a leg!!!... i HATE that!