From vets to dentists to car dealers, why does it seem like all companies are hustling us?
While pet owners may treat their dogs like family, is there a monetary limit they won't cross?
I walked into the vet’s office for a wellness visit and to pick up oral flea and tick ointment. But as soon as my dog was lifted onto the examination table, I kept hearing the veterinary assistant mention how the vet may want to test my dog for this or that — things I had neither asked for nor were they of concern.
By the time the vet actually came in, I was unenthused by the whole visit and ready to leave. As a woman, it made me realize for the first time why so many men dodge going to the doctor. (It took me a year into my 40s to warm up to mammograms because I thought I had until I was 50, but I am a stickler about annual physicals, vitamins and prescription refills.) While the belief is that some men are worried that the doctor will tell them there’s something wrong with them, there’s also a financial burden. I can relate for myself — and my dog.
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However, I don’t have the same stress about visiting a neighborhood cat adoption agency that offers annual vaccines for less than half the vet’s rate, cheaper heartworm tests, and optional purchasing of flea and tick topical ointment and heartworm medication. I felt the same stress-free way about this facility as I did the adoption agency where I purchased my dog. They also offered age-appropriate vaccines, deworming, microchipping, and spaying and neutering service. I was in and out without feeling like someone was trying to hustle me the entire time.
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While my dog always has all of her shots, is registered with the city and is tested regularly for all of the above health needs, I just don’t want to deal with service veterinary prices shooting up like an airplane every single time I go. I compared the vet rates I paid when my dog was a puppy in 2021 to now, and all of them are two and three times higher.
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Last month, I asked about wellness exams from my regular vet and was told I would have to pay the full price in advance — after I had already submitted proof of all vaccinations and heartworm tests from a cheaper facility. I’d never had to pay full price before the exam in prior years, not even when I was a brand new customer. This new rule made me want to play Ace Hood when I got off the phone.
Buying a car is less of a hustle than taking your dog to the vet
As appreciative as I was by a relative who bought and rebuilt my first car from an auction, it only lasted four years before I sold it to the relative of a high school friend. A few years after college graduation, I decided I wanted a brand new car. When I walked into the car dealership, I already knew what kind of car I wanted after renting this same make to go to my HBCU’s homecoming. I loved the way this car drove.