Struggling with rising veterinary costs, more Winnipeggers surrendering their pets

Could you come up with an extra month’s rent at a moment’s notice? How about four months of rent?

That’s what Stephanie Adamov was faced with – to pay for her two-year-old cat Lola’s emergency surgery.

To treat Lola’s case of stomatitis, a dental disorder that affects the mouth and gums, Adamov was initially quoted $6,400. That’s more than four times the cost of the median rent price in Winnipeg, which currently sits at $1,400.

More and more pet owners are struggling with the rising costs of veterinary services, which means if you can’t pay, your animal could end up as a shelter surrender.

“Pets are a part of their family, and so for people to not be able to afford medical care that’s needed for a family member is very traumatizing,” said Gina Bowen, the Winnipeg Humane Society’s director of veterinary services.

Bowen says there are more pets being adopted across Canada over the last few years. That means more pets are requiring medical care.

“Something that we’ve seen an increase in in the last two, three years, I would probably say since COVID, is that we’re getting more and more surrenders because people can’t afford vet care for their animal,” Bowen said.

So far in 2024, 71 per cent of dogs and 58 per cent of cats surrendered to WHS have been because the owner couldn’t afford vet care.

“There’s a limit to our resources here and so we’re definitely feeling the pressure of increased demand for lower-cost vet care,” said Bowen.

The Winnipeg Humane Society says it does what it can to keep pets with their owners. That includes helping people subsidize the cost of care if they can’t afford it.

Although there are more animals, Bowen says a huge reason care costs have risen is because there are also fewer veterinarians in the industry.

“A lot of older vets are retiring these days and we’re not graduating vets to meet the demand that we have.

“The cost of care is going to go up … When you have pets who are seeing multiple specialists, just like we do in human medicine, then you have more resources being put towards a smaller number of pets, because it takes two or three doctors to figure out a complicated issue with a pet and manage it. If you have more vets looking at one pet, then there’s fewer vets to go around to look at the rest of them.”

Bowen says it’s a huge reason people get bill estimates like the one Adamov got for Lola’s stomatitis.

“I understand that a lot of people don’t view pets as part of the family. I get it. I do,” Adamov told CityNews.

“The back of (Lola’s) teeth is almost covered by an ulcer, which is really scary.”

Adamov says Lola’s treatment is classified as an emergency situation and needs to be treated. Lola, affectionately called “cuddle buddy” and “ankle warmer” by Adamov, is currently on antibiotics and steroids for pain.

“I just said, I have to surrender her,” Adamov said. “There’s nothing that I can do. Right now I can’t pull this $6,400 from a savings account.”

Across Canada, anyone taking their cat in for the same procedure is paying well into four figures.

CityNews contacted different veterinary clinics across the country to get estimates for care similar to Lola’s and found Vancouver’s rates to be from $3,500 to $5,500; in Calgary it costs from $2,500 to $4,000; and in Halifax the procedure sets you back at least $2,000.

“I think that for a lot of Canadians it’s a shock about how much medical care costs,” Bowen said.

Bowen says while emergency visits aren’t completely avoidable, people can look into different kinds of pet insurance or putting away money each month to try and soften the next blow.

“You’re not going to eliminate medical issues happening but you’re going to cut down on a lot of risks,” she said.

The Winnipeg Humane Society also has different programs that help pet owners get care, from basic needs like spaying and neutering to more urgent and life-saving care.

Thankfully for Lola, Adamov managed to reduce the price by half for Lola’s emergency surgery by going to a different vet.

“When you get a big vet bill like that, the best thing to do is shop around because paying another $100 to get another perspective could be a big change in the end,” she said

“Lola’s part of my household. She’s my family.”