Rising Vet Costs Are Pushing Pet Owners to Skip Visits. The Data Is Alarming.
The Numbers
A PetSmart Charities and Gallup survey conducted with 2,498 US dog and cat owners between November 2024 and January 2025 found that 52 percent of respondents had skipped or declined veterinary care in the previous year. Of those, 71 percent cited cost as the primary reason.
The same survey found that 73 percent of owners who declined care due to cost were never offered a more affordable alternative by their vet. Forty-six percent were not given a treatment plan that better fit their financial situation.
In the United Kingdom, prices charged by veterinary practices rose by approximately 63 percent between 2016 and 2023, according to data published by the World Animal Foundation. Veterinary fee inflation is currently running at around 6 percent annually — more than double the UK's general inflation rate of approximately 2 percent.
In the US, veterinary service inflation hit 8 percent in the twelve months to early 2025, according to data analysed by Vetsource from nearly 6,500 practices — 1.6 times higher than the national inflation rate. Annual vet visits in the US fell 3.1 percent in 2025 alone, continuing a four-year downward trend.
Veterinary visits in the US have declined four years in a row. In 2025, wellness visits — the preventive, routine end of care — fell 3.8 percent. Owners are cutting the visits most important for long-term health first.
What Is Driving the Cost Increase?
Veterinary professionals and industry analysts point to several converging factors.
Advanced medical technology
Veterinary medicine has become significantly more sophisticated over the past decade. Procedures that were once unavailable for animals — MRI scanning, minimally invasive surgery, specialist oncology — are now offered at many practices. These services deliver better outcomes but carry substantially higher costs in equipment, training, and staffing.
Staff shortages and wage pressure
The demand for qualified veterinarians is outpacing supply in both the UK and the US. The AVMA reported veterinarian unemployment at just 0.7 percent in 2024. Tight labour markets have driven up wages at every level of veterinary practice, from vets to technicians to receptionists.
Post-pandemic demand
Pet ownership surged during the COVID-19 pandemic as millions of people adopted animals during lockdowns. That wave of new owners has created sustained higher demand for veterinary services, with practices that never fully scaled up to meet it.
Corporate consolidation
Significant consolidation of independent veterinary practices into corporate groups has changed the pricing landscape in both the UK and US. Corporate practices often operate with different pricing models than independent clinics, and Competition and Markets Authority investigations in the UK have highlighted concerns about transparency and competition in the sector.
The insurance feedback loop
In markets with high pet insurance penetration — notably the UK and the Nordic countries — insurance has created a pricing dynamic that pushes costs higher. When clinics know that most clients have insurance, they tend to set prices that the market will bear rather than what uninsured clients can afford. Insurance premiums then rise to reflect higher claim costs. The owner sits in the middle, paying both higher premiums and increasingly large excesses.
The Human Consequences
Behind the statistics are real decisions that pet owners are making every day. The MetLife Pet Insurance survey conducted in October 2025 with 1,000 American pet owners found pet parents turning to home remedies, switching providers, and delaying treatments they knew their animals needed.
Two-thirds of US pet owners said they could afford $1,000 or less for lifesaving treatment. Yet the same survey found that when offered a one-year interest-free payment plan, 64 percent said they could at least double that figure. The barrier is not unwillingness to pay — it is the upfront structure of how care is billed.
The consequences of skipped preventive care compound over time. Conditions caught early in a routine wellness visit become more expensive emergencies when left undetected. The cost pressure that causes owners to skip annual check-ups is precisely what creates the larger bills later.
The Rise of Veterinary Medical Tourism
One trend emerging from the cost crisis is veterinary medical tourism — pet owners travelling internationally to access the same standard of care at a fraction of the price.
The cost differences are substantial. Research by Pet Holiday Club and data published by PetAbroad in 2026 shows the same dental cleaning procedure — a routine intervention at many practices — priced at approximately £475 in the UK, £200 in Spain, £75 in Poland, and £45 in Thailand. These are not substandard facilities. Many are internationally accredited clinics staffed by European or US-trained veterinarians.
The same pattern holds for specialist procedures. An orthopaedic surgery available in Finland for €1,000 can be performed at equivalent standard in the Czech Republic or Spain for less than half that cost, with savings that exceed the cost of the entire trip.
The countries offering the world's most affordable specialist veterinary care are often the same countries that rank highly in our Global Pet Travel Preparedness Index 2026 for clarity of documentation. Access to affordable care exists. The barrier is navigating the paperwork to get there.
What the UK Government Is Doing
In March 2026, the UK government announced new regulations requiring veterinary practices to publish prices and introducing prescription fee caps. The reforms followed a Competition and Markets Authority investigation into the veterinary sector that highlighted concerns about pricing transparency, consolidation, and the treatment of consumers.
The changes are a step toward transparency, but industry analysts note they do not address the underlying cost drivers. Price comparison tools help owners make informed choices between existing providers. They do not reduce the fundamental cost pressure that is causing owners to skip care entirely.
What Pet Owners Can Do
Compare costs before booking
Pricing varies significantly between practices even within the same city. The UK's new transparency requirements make it easier to compare costs before committing. In the US and EU, platforms that aggregate pricing data are making this increasingly practical.
Consider preventive care plans
Many practices now offer wellness plans that spread the cost of routine care across monthly payments. For owners who budget well in advance, these plans can significantly reduce the financial shock of an annual wellness visit.
Understand what your insurance actually covers
The gap between what pet insurance promises and what it pays out has grown. Read the exclusions carefully — particularly around dental care, hereditary conditions, and what the policy defines as "routine." Many owners discover the limits of their cover only when they need it most.
Explore veterinary medical tourism for planned procedures
For non-emergency specialist procedures — orthopaedic surgery, dental care, dermatology, oncology — international options exist that can provide identical care at significantly lower cost. This requires planning, documentation, and careful research. Pet Holiday Club provides country-specific documentation requirements for all planned international pet travel, including veterinary trips.
Don't skip wellness visits
The single most cost-effective thing you can do as a pet owner is maintain routine annual wellness visits. Conditions caught early are treated at a fraction of the cost of emergency intervention. The financial pressure to skip these visits is real, but the downstream cost of skipping them is higher.
How Pet Holiday Club Helps with Veterinary Medical Tourism
Planning veterinary treatment abroad isn’t just about finding a clinic—it’s about navigating complex travel requirements for your pet.
Pet Holiday Club removes that friction.
We provide government-sourced, vet-verified travel requirements for over 150+ countries, tailored to your exact route and destination. Whether you’re travelling for a routine procedure or specialist treatment, you’ll know exactly what documents, vaccinations, and timelines are required—before you book anything.
Instead of spending hours researching regulations across multiple countries, you get a clear, personalised checklist in under 48 hours.
So you can focus on what matters:
getting your pet the care they need—safely, legally, and without surprises at the border.
Pet Holiday Club's Global Pet Travel Preparedness Index 2026 identified veterinary cost disparities as one of the key structural barriers to affordable pet healthcare worldwide. The full 194-country report is free to read at www.petholidayclub.com.
