Let me start off by saying that I’m not sure if this is how it works everywhere, but it’s how it works at our veterinarian’s office. Good, now that that’s out of the way…

We were supposed to take our dog, Roxy, to the vet to get her shots back in September. Yeah, I know that’s like 4 months ago, shame on me. I kept holding out because 2 days per week were “half-price shot days.”

Knowing how much money we have already spent on her, it sounded like a brilliant idea. Aside from the fact that these discount days were on days that my husband works, so I couldn’t drive there.

In all honesty, the veterinarian’s office is only a mile or so from our apartment. That’s not too bad, especially if you can save half off the vet bill. In my mind, I knew it wouldn’t be difficult to walk the dog there and get her shots.

I was only worried about having to carry her home because she gets all lethargic after her shots. This isn’t even a big dog; she’s ½ Pomeranian and ½ Pekingese and only weighs about 7 pounds. I really don’t know why I imagined it to be some sort of struggle (probably just another excuse to procrastinate).

So after months of putting off her appointment to get her shots, I finally lined up a ride with my mom for any day I could get her in. Here’s where it gets interesting. I called the vet’s office to get her in on one of the “half-price shot days” and they said that the shots would be $55.80 (for the 4 shots) plus $58.00 (for the exam) for a total of $113.80.

Exam? I said that we didn’t need an exam, just the shots; I’m trying to save money here. But guess what? If you go in for shots on a discount day, you are required to have the exam. When I asked what the exam was for, they said it was to check her out and determine what shots she would need.

Apparently it didn’t matter that they already did that back in August or September when we brought her in for being sick. They know what shots she needs, but we would still be required to have an unnecessary exam if we wanted to get the shots ½ off.

So then I asked how much it would be to bring our dog in for just her shots on a regular day. They said that if Roxy’s vet approves it, she could just go straight to the technician and get her shots for a total of $106.35.

Huh. So it’s cheaper not to get shots for our dog on the day when they are half price? Wtf? Does this seem messed up to anybody else? I can understand it making more sense if you need to get in for a check-up or some kind of ailment, but shouldn’t that be optional?

I opted for the non-discount shot day and saved about 7 bucks. Unfortunately, my daughter and I had to walk there while it was super-snowing and freezing because I did not get a ride. It wasn’t that bad, although it certainly would have been more enjoyable if it wasn’t snowing and wet.

The shots are finally done with and it feels good to stop procrastinating, I really need to stop that. At least I’ve accomplished one of my goals for January so far by making her appointment. Now I just need to get her groomed…whenever that’s going to happen.

Do I have a point? Yep, my whole point of sharing this with you is that even when something seems like a good deal, it might not be all that great. Always do your homework.

Has something like this happened to you?
Do you just accept something as a good deal or do you check it out first?