# How much to treat an abscess on a corn snake???



## holdensam

Hi guys, 

just found what looks to be an abscess on the base of our females tail. Any idea how much we will expect it to cost to treat? Will be ringing the local reptile vets tomorrow to get her booked in but would like an idea of how much it will cost us to treat.
Thanks.


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## elishacoombes9

Honestly I don’t think anyone can give you a rough price. It’s changed so much since we went years ago. 
They’ll charge you to get it looked at, Then whatever the cost to treat is on top. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## ian14

Not much.
Last time I took a snake to the vet it was £35 consultation and that was it.
They really aren't the money machines you get led to believe they are.


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## Malc

As Elisha mentions, it's impossible for anyone to give you the cost of treatment for your snake, other then the vet who gets to see it.

Depends on the vet, the prognosis, and a course of treatment. 

Some vets like the experience of dealing with exotics so don't charge the Earth for the consultation. Others see them as a means to make a bit more as they are a specialist animal. I'm speaking form experience. I was not able to get my boa booked in with my local vet due to covid, and the referral they gave me wasn't taking on any more cases so they in turn referred me to a third vet. The vet that saw my boa, which I suspected as having an RI dismissed my prognosis and suggested it was something else and wanted to book the snake in for scans and an MRI at a specialist reptile hospital in Oxford which would have been a bill running into thousands of pounds... Just a consultation fee and a single course of three anti-inflammatory injections set me back £160. The snake made no progress and I was still sure that the snake had an RI, so I contacted my local vet again, explained the situation to them what I had experienced and they agreed to see the snake. Straight away the vet diagnosed an RI, was shocked to hear that a so called specialist miss-diagnosed the symptoms which were so obvious, and prescribed a course of anti-biotics... The consultation and course of 8 injections cost me a total of £115, and there was no charge for any follow up consultation.

Some people have reported paying around £65-£70 for x-rays on corn snakes, plus consultation fees, etc... But it depends on what vet you have and what the problem is. If its something like a simple cyst, you could be looking at £100 or less or maybe £100- £200 depending if the snake needs a sedation. If its a tumour of some description and a biopsy needs to be done then that would add to the cost, and then there is any further treatment.


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## elishacoombes9

ian14 said:


> Not much.
> Last time I took a snake to the vet it was £35 consultation and that was it.
> They really aren't the money machines you get led to believe they are.


We got charged around £70-80 just to look at our cham a couple years back. Got told they saw nothing wrong even though his tongue was broken! But they also said they couldn’t get his tongue out but looks fine. (Even though he had an infected tongue). Won’t be using them again that’s for sure. 
Well he lived the rest of his life not being able to catch food properly with his tongue. Had to get close to his food but he managed! And months later a massive around of infected tissue fell off his tongue. Nothing wrong indeed  

Also A couple weeks back I was told £80 just to look at my fat tail who had a prolapse. And then I’d get charged whatever for treatment etc. 

Usually it’s £35 to look at one unless emergency. Assuming the corn isn’t in need of urgent care I’d assume that’s the price to see it. But if treatment is needed then that would also up the price. 


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## Malc

ian14 said:


> Not much.
> Last time I took a snake to the vet it was £35 consultation and that was it.
> They really aren't the money machines you get led to believe they are.


Sorry Ian, would have to disagree... it depends on the vet

The second vet I saw charged me £27.50 for the initial consultation, and then just £18.50 inc vat for the second, and no charge for the 3rd

The first vet charged me £71.55 "exotic consultation"..... and that would have been the same for the follow up visit he wanted me to attend.


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## Shellsfeathers&fur

Malc said:


> Sorry Ian, would have to disagree... it depends on the vet
> 
> The second vet I saw charged me £27.50 for the initial consultation, and then just £18.50 inc vat for the second, and no charge for the 3rd
> 
> The first vet charged me £71.55 "exotic consultation"..... and that would have been the same for the follow up visit he wanted me to attend.


To become an exotics vet cost upwards of £30,000 for the additional studying.


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## Malc

Shellsfeathers&fur said:


> To become an exotics vet cost upwards of £30,000 for the additional studying.


I'm not disputing how much time or money it takes to become a vet, or to specialise, just stating that some vets will charge you more than double other vets charge, and in my case the so called specialist got it wrong by miles, and clearly the "specialist" element was questionable. 

I don't know if my local vet who successfully treated my boa had specialised in reptiles or not, but she has had previous experience of reptiles. Her charges were very reasonable she and correctly diagnosed the issue and prescribed the correct treatment. If I had relied on the so called specialist my boa would be dead by now


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## LiasisUK

Ring a vet to ask, no one on here will know.

A consultation is usually around £50, that's before treatment


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## lewismh45

ian14 said:


> Not much. Last time I took a snake to the vet it was £35 consultation and that was it. They really aren't the money machines you get led to believe they are.


 £376 for my corn snake to be seen and antibiotics that didn't work


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## ian14

lewismh45 said:


> £376 for my corn snake to be seen and antibiotics that didn't work


I'd be looking to another vet should you need one in the future. Sounds like you were ripped off frankly.


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## lewismh45

ian14 said:


> Not much. Last time I took a snake to the vet it was £35 consultation and that was it. They really aren't the money machines you get led to believe they are.





ian14 said:


> I'd be looking to another vet should you need one in the future. Sounds like you were ripped off frankly.


 It's because I took it to an emergency out of hours vet they said they'd offer payment plans if couldn't pay but the only plan they had was pay in 30 days....


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## Swindinian

lewismh45 said:


> £376 for my corn snake to be seen and antibiotics that didn't work


Would you mind sharing your experience; what happened, signs and symptoms, treatment and outcomes?

Andy


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## ian14

lewismh45 said:


> It's because I took it to an emergency out of hours vet they said they'd offer payment plans if couldn't pay but the only plan they had was pay in 30 days....


Aah, the good old emergency out of hours con. Because of course, all treatments cost 10x more once it gets dark.


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## Shellsfeathers&fur

ian14 said:


> Aah, the good old emergency out of hours con. Because of course, all treatments cost 10x more once it gets dark.


It is more what the vet is being paid. A week of being the permanent out of hours one can equate to three weeks' pay as a Monday - Friday day time one.


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## Malc

How could this be an out of hours emergency. The initial post stated the OP would phone the vet the next day, and whilst it may be something that should be treated sooner rather than later it's still not a matter of life or death that needs seeing outside normal hours, which for most vets end around 8pm.

I paid £115 to the "specialist" vet for a consultation (£60+VAT) and a single course (3 injections) of Metacam (£36+VAT) that I administered and he totally mis-diagnosed the RI, and was all keen for scans and x-rays to confirm the reason he was holding his mouth slightly open wasn't related to a broken jaw. I never did get that money back even after a formal complaint when the second vet correctly diagnosed and treated the boa for an (now) advanced RI. By comparison the second vet (senior partner in the practice) charged £15.42+VAT for the consultation, and a course of Caftazidime at £31.67+VAT - Total was £56.50. The second cousultation feed was just £27.50 inc VAT with another course of the same meds at £38 inc VAT. Making the total £122.

Sorry to hear the medication failed to work, and for closure can you advise if the snake is still alive or did it die due to the infection from the abscess


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## ian14

Shellsfeathers&fur said:


> It is more what the vet is being paid. A week of being the permanent out of hours one can equate to three weeks' pay as a Monday - Friday day time one.


Which simply highlights the ripoff con of out of hours vets. There is absolutely no way to justify a vet being paid the equivalent of 3 weeks pay just for working a week when it's dark outside. While night shift work can sometimes attract an enhanced pay rate (for example I get an extra 10% for each hour I work between 8pm and 7am), I'm not aware of any other job where you get triple pay just for doing the same work overnight. Not even doctors get that!! This simply reinforces the fact that veterinary practices are money making machines.


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## Swindinian

I think there are 2 people posting, so presuming the are not the same animal?


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## Swindinian

ian14 said:


> Which simply highlights the ripoff con of out of hours vets. There is absolutely no way to justify a vet being paid the equivalent of 3 weeks pay just for working a week when it's dark outside. While night shift work can sometimes attract an enhanced pay rate (for example I get an extra 10% for each hour I work between 8pm and 7am), I'm not aware of any other job where you get triple pay just for doing the same work overnight. Not even doctors get that!! This simply reinforces the fact that veterinary practices are money making machines.


10% extra seems pretty measley Ian? I hope the basic pay is more generous to balance off with terms and conditions?

Time and a half or double time or copious additional leave seems fairer to me.
Irregular early starts has caused havoc for me. Circadian rhythm, mood, eating, brain fog, sustained fatigue…….. Knocks about ten years off life expectancy?


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## ian14

Swindinian said:


> 10% extra seems pretty measley Ian? I hope the basic pay is more generous to balance off with terms and conditions?
> 
> Time and a half or double time or copious additional leave seems fairer to me.
> Irregular early starts has caused havoc for me. Circadian rhythm, mood, eating, brain fog, sustained fatigue…….. Knocks about ten years off life expectancy?


We're lucky we get that!!
Double time is only paid for bank holiday working (plus a rest day in lieu). Time and a half only paid for rest day working with less than 14 days notice. Work a rest day with more than 14 days notice and you just get a reallocated rest day.
Time and a third for hours worked over the rostered shift for the day.
Austerity meant that our real wage value has declined massively as our pay was frozen for 10 years.
We did get a reasonable increase this year although it was a set amount for all regardless of pay scale, rather than a percentage increase on salary, and our boss also upped the regional living allowance to the maximum we are allowed so I can't really complain!


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## Shellsfeathers&fur

ian14 said:


> Which simply highlights the ripoff con of out of hours vets. There is absolutely no way to justify a vet being paid the equivalent of 3 weeks pay just for working a week when it's dark outside. While night shift work can sometimes attract an enhanced pay rate (for example I get an extra 10% for each hour I work between 8pm and 7am), I'm not aware of any other job where you get triple pay just for doing the same work overnight. Not even doctors get that!! This simply reinforces the fact that veterinary practices are money making machines.


They are not doing the same work overnight as day time. They are the emergency vet, not the day appointments one. Practices cost a lot to run.


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## ian14

Shellsfeathers&fur said:


> They are not doing the same work overnight as day time. They are the emergency vet, not the day appointments one. Practices cost a lot to run.


Sorry but I just don't agree. It doesn't cost more to run a practice overnight than daytime. The running costs are the same. The materials and medicines cost the same.
If an owner has a sick animal that needs emergency treatment by day, it's the same treatment as if its done at night! Yet not charges at out of hours fees.
Charging extortionate fees because the treatment is being done at night is just not acceptable.


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## Malc

Part of the problem is that these days, with 24/7/365 working, the old standard of time for 9 - 5, time & a quarter for evenings, time and a half for Saturdays and double time on Sundays and Bank Holidays have long gone in todays world... My son works for one such company, doesn't get any extra for working a bank holiday, although they do give a small bonus for working Christmas and or Boxing day... and it is small !

The point I was trying to make is that some vets see those with exotic pets as money pits, whilst some are more inclined to price the treatment fairly. In fact back in the past I've had a vet offer to do a necropsy on a male lizard for free as it would be good training and make a change from treating cats, dogs and rabbits !


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## Shellsfeathers&fur

ian14 said:


> Sorry but I just don't agree. It doesn't cost more to run a practice overnight than daytime. The running costs are the same. The materials and medicines cost the same.
> If an owner has a sick animal that needs emergency treatment by day, it's the same treatment as if its done at night! Yet not charges at out of hours fees.
> Charging extortionate fees because the treatment is being done at night is just not acceptable.


After four or five years they are still only on about £15 per hour hence why they choose to solely work nights. The work is entirely different though as it will be real emergencies. Most do suggest waiting until the day time vets are working if they do not consider it vital the animal is seen that night.


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## Shellsfeathers&fur

Malc said:


> Part of the problem is that these days, with 24/7/365 working, the old standard of time for 9 - 5, time & a quarter for evenings, time and a half for Saturdays and double time on Sundays and Bank Holidays have long gone in todays world... My son works for one such company, doesn't get any extra for working a bank holiday, although they do give a small bonus for working Christmas and or Boxing day... and it is small !
> 
> The point I was trying to make is that some vets see those with exotic pets as money pits, whilst some are more inclined to price the treatment fairly. In fact back in the past I've had a vet offer to do a necropsy on a male lizard for free as it would be good training and make a change from treating cats, dogs and rabbits !


Not quite sure why they would think those of us with exotic pets are money pits?


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## ian14

Shellsfeathers&fur said:


> After four or five years they are still only on about £15 per hour hence why they choose to solely work nights. The work is entirely different though as it will be real emergencies. Most do suggest waiting until the day time vets are working if they do not consider it vital the animal is seen that night.


After more than 20 years of working in a role to keep the public safe, risking physical harm to myself every time I start a shift, knowing I will be abused verbally and physically nearly every day,and I still earn less than £15 an hour. I get paid the same no matter what hours I work, bar the 10% uplift from 8pm to 7am.
It's a pathetic money making scam to charge the amount that out of hours vets charge.
Sorry, but trying to claim these fees are justified in the way you have is sick.


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## Malum Argenteum

ian14 said:


> There is absolutely no way to justify a vet being paid the equivalent of 3 weeks pay just for working a week when it's dark outside.


You're assuming this all goes to the DVM?

Emergency staffing is different than typical clinical staffing -- since they need to be prepared for whatever, whenever (rather than a patient every 50 minutes with no critical care needed) -- with no guarantee that they'll have x number of patients in a shift. And sorry to say but folks who have put in the schooling do expect a decent shift differential. Not sure about vet school (which here in the US is actually more competitive than medical school), but MD training is hardcore suffering, for years. 

Not sure why anyone would think that exotics care should cost the same as dog and cat care. Not sure why one would expect that each visit should end in a cured condition; antibiotics are often 'shotgunned', since cultures take time and are not always fruitful -- if they don't work, then further testing is required. Pretty standard practice, and a good cost/benefit over culturing and testing for every possible pathogen. Heck, that's standard practice for lots of human medicine -- headaches? Let's try a beta blocker before we schedule an MRI to look for a brain tumor. 

Not sure why one would expect -- at the same time as complaining about costs for the service of a professional in the middle of the night -- that any one vet could possibly have a comprehensive knowledge of any one of a hundred or so species, certainly not to the point where they could diagnose a tongue issue with a tongue that they couldn't access. Presumably if requested the vet would have anesthetized the cham to inspect the tongue; would the cost of that been acceptable? If vet practices are money making machines, they'd be happy to perform every procedure under the sun, right? We can't have it both ways here.



ian14 said:


> I'm not aware of any other job where you get triple pay just for doing the same work overnight.


Here in the US (where the patent sees the cost of each medical visit, even if insurance covers some of it), getting a wart burned off (or choose any basic procedure) in my GP's office is much, much less than 1/3 the cost of going to the ER for the same procedure (not that anyone would). Emergency plumbing repair is about 3x regular trip charges. Emergency cleaning services (post fire/flood) are certainly 3x more than scheduled maid services. And so on.



Malc said:


> Some vets like the experience of dealing with exotics so don't charge the Earth for the consultation. Others see them as a means to make a bit more as they are a specialist animal.


It has been claimed that some vets charge more up front since exotics keepers are more likely (than dog/cat owners) to fail to treat their animals for diagnosed conditions. That certainly squares with my impression of many casual herp keepers who do a quick calculation of value of animal vs cost of treatment to decide whether to provide it care or let it die. There's also likely quite a bit more negative feedback from exotics owners regarding costs, compared to dog/cat owners who seem generally to be able to see the value in getting their pet treated rather than the costs of doing so; dealing with that kind of flak is certainly worth something (=a lot).

My vet has a standard question for each visit: 'how many dollars do you approve for treatment without further consultation'. I typically say something about 5x higher than I think it will cost, and about 10x the "value" of the animal. I wouldn't accept $1000 for someone to infect my $100 snake with an RI, so I don't know why I wouldn't pay that much to try to cure one.


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## Malc

In the 36 years of keeping reptiles I've had to use the services of a vet on five occasions. The first was to treat a garter snake that, through been given poor advice from the shop keeper, ended up with a thiamine deficiency (this was back in the late 80's when we didn't have access to online forums etc). I spent around £100 on treatment, and a further £80 on equipment to improve his habitat. Two days later the snake died. At the time the shop was selling red sided garters for £15, which makes the treatment 6x more than the cost of replacing the snake. I used the equipment to house a normal Royal, and joined a society that held meetings 40 miles away. That royal lived for 21 years before a reaction to the treatment for an abscess in its throat resulted in the snake death. 

I had a corn snake with an eye infection, it was treated by a local vet with limited reptile experience. I was charged a "small animal consultation fee" of around £20 and a few pounds for some cream to apply to the snakes eye. The cream worked, and subsequent visits for check ups whilst treatment was applied were free. This was the same vet that diagnosed an impaction in a leopard gecko and offered a free necropsy when the lizard died.

The last time I needed a vet was with the Boa, which I detailed above. The first "specialist" vet was all for referring me to someone more specialised in a practice that offered x-ray and CT scans... costing thousands. As much as I am fond of the snake, there is no way I would go to that extent even if I had the money which I didn't at the time. Again, the second vet I went to charged me a "small animal consultation fee" making cheaper than the consultation fee for my German Shepherd, and she agreed and confirmed my diagnosis of an RI and and that the antibiotic I had been told to request was indeed very effective. It was however something they didn't carry in stock, so ended up with a member of staff making a 100 mile round trip to a sister practice on the day I had the consultation booked for. There was no extra charge for going that extra mile.

Costs are also an issue as unlike insurance for a dog or cat, insurances for reptiles is not something the run of the mill companies offer. Again you have to approach a "specialist" insurance company that solely deals in providing cover for this sector. Often they have high excess amounts, and have a list of exclusions as long as your arm, often making them not worth taking out. You have to be real based on your own personal circumstances at the time. Personally, I'm on a low fixed income, and finding money for vet bills can be hard. I can cover the insurance premiums each month for my German Shepherd, but finding £400 should I need treatment for one of my snake would be difficult at this moment in time, so I would have to take advice from the vets on the chances if the snake was left untreated or cost of having it put to sleep if the prognosis was a long painful death. But most vets understand and often put the animals health above funds and offer assistance to repay the costs over time, but equally we again have to be realistic and I would not put myself in huge debt to cover CT scans etc even if a payment plan was offered.

Slightly off topic, but related, back in the mid 90's I had an occasion to ring a vet out of hours regarding one of our cats. The out of hours service was handled by a 3rd party company who contacted which ever vet was on-call and they rang you back. Having explained the symptoms, the vet suggested a visit the next day in normal hours. They advised me of the costs to come out and open up the surgery to diagnose the issue and undertake any treatment. They then gave me the starting cost of a home visit, so I had the choice, which fortunately based on the answers I provided did not require an out of hours visit. There was also no charge added to the bill for the telephone consultation either.


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## Debbie1962

ian14 said:


> Sorry, but trying to claim these fees are justified in the way you have is sick


That's a little rude don't you think!


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## Shellsfeathers&fur

Debbie1962 said:


> That's a little rude don't you think!


I thought it incredibly rude and a very odd choice of word - sick? I have merely been stating facts.


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## Malc

Was the snake treated and has there been any progress with the cause of the abscess ?


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