Cat - Full Mouth/Teeth Extraction Cost?

Hi,





My cat has a severe case of stomatitis, and the vet is recommending that we see an oral specialist to have her teeth extracted. We went to the specialist, and they want to charge us over $3,200 for this procedure. Is this the usual fee for those who have had it done before? If not, then I will definitely get other estimates.





Thanks!

Cat - Full Mouth/Teeth Extraction Cost?
That sounds terribly high to me. I would look for a more reasonable price - say $500-700 dollars.





I think Erica's suggestion of a veterinary school is excellent if there is one available to you. You would probably get an in-training feline oral sugeon who would be well supervised by his teachers.
Reply:probably wouldn't hurt to get a second opinion..





..but bear in mind - you get what you pay for, and feline anesthegeology is tricky..and feline oral surgery is pretty specialized.. you don't want just ANYONE doing it.





$3200 (assuming USD) does sound a little high..





quote:





Surgical Removal





Unless a tooth is so deteriorated that it is ready to fall out, Dr. Carmichael extracts a tooth through surgical removal. "We never just yank a tooth," he explains. "Rather, we lift the gum tissue on the outside of the tooth and use a high-powered water-cooled drill to remove some of the bone tissue that is holding the tooth in the mouth. Then, with special instruments, we remove the tooth and sew the gums back together with dissolvable suture material." Any licensed veterinarian is qualified to clean, examine and extract teeth. According to Dr. Carmichael, the cost of an extraction, depending on the difficulty of the procedure, will typically range from $25 to $100, excluding any anesthesia and any necessary laboratory tests.





Shortly after the extraction, he says, the cat wakes up and goes home with a few days' supply of pain medicine. "One thing that I can guarantee," says Dr. Carmichael, "is that the cat will never miss a tooth that's been extracted. It will feel better, eat better and do better overall without it."
Reply:I wouldn't spend $3200 on a cat. period.
Reply:My cat had the same condition and we had his teeth extracted for a little over $200 dollars at a local cat speciality clinic. Initially, we were told we would have to see a cat oral surgeon in a far away location and the cost would be well over $1,000 dollars and that was devastating in so many ways because our cat was and is dear to us, but the cost and the trip just made it look impossible. We had our prayers answered when we went to seek a second opinion and found out that a vet at the speciality clinic could do the entire procedure in two steps for far less than $1,000.
Reply:Hmmm, I do not have experience with this exact issue, but that does sound a bit high. 2nd opinions are never a bad thing, really. In addition, I would consider trying a teaching hospital. Do you have any universities relatively close that have a vet school? Often, the vet school will operate a clinic that may be less expensive than a regular specialists office. And b/c it is a vet school, they normally have very up-to-date equipment, specialists, etc.