At 16, Louie is an old man by cat standards.
Two years ago, Alexandra Pearce noticed that the cat who usually stuck to her like Velcro wasn’t quite himself. What started as a minor rash under his collar evolved into a painful, swollen ulcer in his left eye that required months of trips to the vet, pills and eye drops.
The bill exceeded $2,000. For many people, that’s a rent payment.
“I really am amazed that I just handed over my card that day,” Pearce said.
“I have a good job. I’m fortunate. These animals are my children, and I can afford to spend money on them. But there’s a point where I know it’ll just be unreasonable.”
Although Pearce was able to pay her bill, other pet owners have been faced with the prospect of giving up their animals, or in more extreme examples, had to consider “economic euthanasia.”
The average cost of veterinary services, including examinations, shots, surgery and other care for domesticated pets, has increased by over the past decade, nearly twice the pace in that time span.
Dr. Jennifer Quammen, president of the American Veterinary Medical Association, said prices at veterinary practices climbed after 2019 as clinics faced higher costs for equipment, drugs, staffing and technology.
“Those are factors I would bring to the conversation. That’s what has been happening within our country and healthcare … inflationary costs overall are impacting us in veterinary medicine as well,” Quammen said.
More than 200 people responded to a Denver Post survey asking Colorado pet owners about their experiences with veterinary care. They described bills ranging from hundreds to thousands of dollars, difficulty securing appointments, high specialist costs, delayed care and concerns about private equity ownership of local vet practices.
‘Sticker shock’
About three months ago, Denver resident Doug Hesse had a dog in gastrointestinal distress that required a vet visit.
“Twenty-four hours and an overnight stay later, we were $2,300 poorer,” Hesse said.
Hesse has two 3-year-old dogs, Jumbotron, a Labrador-shepherd mix, and Poppy, a shepherd mix whose name is short for Soda Popinski. Poppy was the dog who landed in the hospital three months ago.
In late July, Poppy was back at the veterinarian’s office for a CT scan after an eye infection returned.
Hesse said his veterinarian offered three options for care. He wrestled with the decision for several minutes before ultimately choosing a CT scan, figuring that getting a conclusive answer might, perversely, save them money in the long run.
The bill came to $3,000.
“That’s a sticker shock. That’s, you know, five trips to go see grandkids in Washington, D.C.,” he said, “but dogs are a part of the family.”
“I do not begrudge the vets. You know, that level of training and care is expensive. They need to pay bills. They need to earn a living. But the reality is itap still expensive to pet owners.”
The average amount spent on pets by households was $1,516 in 2024 and $1,727 in 2025, excluding adoption or purchase costs, according to the . In 2025, the average amount spent per household on vet bills was $598 for a dog and $529 for a cat.
The AVMA said the veterinary sector, like the broader healthcare system, has been subjected to post-COVID pressures and inflation that is driving up the costs for many other goods and services.
“Food prices are going up, gasoline prices are going up, electricity prices probably are,” said Diane Matt, CEO of the . “So itap a challenging time.”
As those expenses add up, more pet owners are delaying veterinary visits, Matt said. By the time pets eventually receive care, they are often sicker and require more intensive, and therefore more expensive, treatment.
About 17.3% of The Postap survey respondents said they had delayed veterinary care because of cost, while 13% said they chose a different treatment option because of cost. Another 8.2% said they decided not to pursue treatment.
“Affordability really affects both whether animals receive care and when they receive care,” Matt said. “When affordability pressure contributes to delayed care, itap also going to contribute to more advanced and difficult disease, which means itap more expensive. So that results in difficult conversations for everybody.”
For Dr. Jeff Young, owner of in Conifer and the , those costs are a daily reality. He is seeing more economic euthanasia, in which owners make the difficult choice to put down their pets because they cannot afford treatment.
“We know we kill at least a million animals a year just because of economic expenses at veterinary hospitals because they can’t afford it,” said Young, who had a show on Animal Planet called “Rocky Mountain Vet” that ran for eight seasons.
Based on decades of experience, Young said more than half of pet owners say $2,500 is the most they can afford to spend on veterinary care, while about 36% put their maximum at $1,000. Beyond those amounts, he said, some owners choose euthanasia.
Fort Lupton pet owner Jim Sidebottom shared with The Post that an emergency bill for their sick dog was estimated at $13,000. On the advice of the veterinarian, the dog was euthanized. Sidebottom’s bill was the highest in The Post’s survey.
Young said affordable veterinary care should be accessible to all pet owners and has built his practice around that philosophy. Planned Pethood sets a hard ceiling on what clients pay, even for complex surgeries that could cost five figures elsewhere, he said.
“Nothing here that you do costs more than $2,500, that’s our cap. Even if we keep your animal for three weeks,” he said. “I’m not going to make a whole lot of profit on that, but I’m not going to lose a whole lot either.”
Young said the clinic is able to maintain that model by performing many advanced surgeries in-house and trimming steps that aren’t necessary or financially realistic for a client.
Young traces some of today’s high prices partly to the growth of private equity and corporate ownership of veterinary hospitals, which he said began around 2015.
“They have a whole tier system of bureaucracy. Plus, as with anything, if you have shareholders, stock people have to get paid. You know, so they’re looking for profit,” Young said.
Young said independent veterinarians may have more flexibility to tailor treatment plans around what a client can afford.
“I may go from step one to step four and skip some in between because I know that people don’t have money for those things in between,” Young said.
However, even Young’s practice has not been immune to rising expenses. The clinic recently announced that it would raise its prices for spay and neuter procedures beginning March 1 because of increased supply costs.
The pressures facing veterinary medicine extend beyond pet owners. Veterinarians and veterinary staff are also dealing with workforce shortages, , education debt and limited availability of services.
Young said those pressures can take an emotional toll on veterinarians.
The profession has a high burnout rate and a , according to the Centers for Disease Control.
Young said at some clinics when vets aren’t able to provide care because of costs, “that animal goes out either in pain or to be euthanized or dropped off at a shelter, and that wears on you.”
Matt said the challenge in Colorado and across the country is to preserve high-quality care while making better use of veterinary teams, helping owners understand and plan for costs, and creating more flexible options for appropriate care.
“Access to veterinary care in Colorado is actually quite complicated. It’s not a one-size-fits-all kind of thing,” Matt said.
“For the most part, we don’t have a statewide shortage of veterinarians or veterinary care. It’s very localized in different places all over the state, where it can be challenging for people to get veterinary care.”
Navigating the system
For Pearce, Louie’s owner, the cost was not the only challenge she faced.
After receiving a steroid shot for the skin irritation at a veterinary clinic, Louie developed a herpes flare-up that led to the ulcer in his eye. As his condition worsened, she found herself moving between veterinary clinics, trying to find someone who could treat him.
Pearce, who lives in Lafayette, struggled to navigate a system in which care is not always coordinated.
“I’m running around to all these vets, I’m actually breaking down in tears in these vet offices just calling around trying to get appointments. It was a huge, huge drain on my emotional and mental well‑being,” Pearce said.
Eventually, Pearce was told Louie needed to see a veterinary ophthalmologist. But much of the information on a list of specialists she was given was out of date.
She made calls, researched specialists and kept searching until she found an ophthalmologist who could treat Louie.
“If I’d been less willing to engage with the process or something, he would have suffered tremendously. He would have lost the eye.”
From the initial visit for the skin irritation through emergency treatment, medications, repeated visits and specialist care, Louie’s treatment cost $2,078, excluding prescribed medication.
Today, Louie is doing well and his eye has recovered. For Pearce, that recovery means more than getting a sick cat through treatment. In the years since her husband died, her pets have been a source of comfort and companionship as she navigated her grief.
“There has to be a way for widespread, affordable veterinary care, however that looks,” Pearce said. “I mean, I’m sure it’s reaching a crisis.”
Law creates a new position
In an attempt to help the industry bolster its staffing, voters approved Proposition 129 in 2024 to establish the a new position that requires less schooling than a veterinarian.
Colorado State University recently launched a master’s program that prepares graduates to pursue VPA licensure in Colorado. The program’s first cohort of 17 students began classes Monday, with three graduate certificate students also joining the cohort for select classes.
But the new role has not been without controversy. CVMA, AVMA and groups of veterinarians initially raised concerns about the lack of clearly defined responsibilities for VPAs, including questions about patient safety, scope of practice and quality of care.
The Colorado State Board of Veterinary Medicine met in August to work on developing the VPA national examination, and its next meeting is scheduled for Oct. 8.
Resources for pet owners and veterinarians
AVMA and CVMA to be upfront with their veterinarian team about what they can afford. Asking for an estimate, an itemized bill and which treatments are essential can help owners and veterinarians develop a plan that fits both the petap needs and the family’s budget.
Preventive care can help catch health problems before they become more serious and costly. For those who are able to set aside money, building an emergency fund can help with unexpected veterinary expenses.
Pet insurance is another option owners can consider, although coverage and costs vary by plan and type of pet. For dogs and cats, several Colorado pet owners have mentioned ASPCA Pet Health Insurance, , Lemonade Pet Insurance and Pets Best Pet Insurance. For birds, reptiles, rabbits and other exotic pets, Nationwide offers specialized .
Owners can also compare veterinary practices and ask about lower-cost options. Some clinics post prices online. in Denver, for example, lists procedure fees on its website so clients know the cost upfront.
Local animal shelters and humane societies may also offer lower-cost preventive care and vaccinations. , for example, lists rabies vaccinations for dogs and cats at $25.
, a website tracking private-equity and corporate ownership in veterinary medicine, also maintains a list of that pet owners can use when comparing local options.
For owners struggling to pay for care, veterinarians may be able to identify financial-assistance programs or charitable funds. In Colorado, the CVMA offers for qualifying pet owners and veterinarians in rural and frontier areas.
The grants are a last-resort option for a one-time medical or surgical intervention for a companion animal with a good to excellent prognosis.
