The cost of living crisis is hitting everyone across the UK and we’d all like to know how to reduce vet bills for our horses – without compromising their welfare.
Veterinary care is expensive and new horse owners don’t always fully factor in these costs. It is better to work with your vet to plan your horse’s healthcare than to call the vet only when something goes wrong, which can mean expensive treatment that could have been avoided.
Cancelling or cutting back on horse insurance – or dipping into your emergency fund for routine bills – could prove a very expensive mistake, so make sure you do keep your rainy day provisions in place.
Routine vet care essential to reducing vet bills for horses
All owners should ensure horses receive routine veterinary care; cutting corners here is a false economy which compromises welfare and can lead to larger vet bills for horses in the long run. Horses are stoic creatures and often hide pain until it is serious, but detecting issues early can mean less expensive treatments are sufficient, and horses often have a greater chance of recovery.
Preventative medicine includes equine vaccinations, dentistry and testing for worms and your vet practice may be able to offer a check-up or MOT alongside this care, to spot other issues before they become serious. Preventative care also helps minimise drug resistance to wormers and antibiotics, so treatment can be targeted better and we avoid unnecessary use of drugs, which is a serious ongoing problem in the horse world and beyond.
Veterinary practices may also provide discounted healthcare packages, combining vaccinations and dentistry and offering add-ones such as worm egg counts and blood tests.
By putting in place good preventative measures, your horse will hopefully enjoy good health and you will enjoy low vet bills. Don’t let that make you complacent and relax your routine healthcare, though, as inevitably that will be when disaster will strike.
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Zone visits and yard discounts
Many vet practices offer zone visits, where vets concentrate non-emergency calls in a set area on a particular day of the week. Some practices also offer yard discounts, where multiple horses are seen in one visit. Do ask your practice whether these are available.
Old friends – and the final decision
When owners need to cut costs, they sometimes curtail veterinary care for older, retired horses and ponies, but these equines need as much healthcare as any horse, sometimes more. If you cannot afford suitable care for a retired horse, the responsible thing to do is to give him a humane end and have him put down.
Equine euthanasia is a difficult subject, but all owners should have enough money saved for this eventuality. Costs vary according to the method, plus there will be a fee for disposal of the body.
Have a chat with your vet about options at a time when there is no pressing need for that conversation – it is better to have decided what you want to do in advance than to have to make difficult choices (and worry about costs) in an upsetting emergency situation.
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Pippa is a true eventing geek and has been H&H’s eventing editor since 2005. She has first-hand experience of competing up to British Eventing intermediate and international CCI2*-L level, and has worked in the industry on a top event yard. Pippa enjoys nothing more than immersing herself in the sport at the highest level, reporting from the five-stars and international championships, including the Olympics.
