The results were similar across all income levels. Pet advocates say it shows the need for veterinarians to coordinate to address client financial concerns.
Some states have lost pet insurance nationwide
Nationally, it says inflation and pet veterinary care are one of the reasons why pet insurance is dropped.
Fox-35 Orlando
Whether their best is Fido or FIFI, owners are becoming more cranky about the cost of pet health care.
More than half of owners (including high-income households) either skipped the required veterinary care the previous year or rejected the recommended treatment at some point in the past.
A study conducted by Petsmart Charities and Gallup found that about seven out of ten people who skipped or refused care cited costs as the main reason, saying they didn’t think it was worth spending.
The results were surprisingly similar at all income levels, said Amy Gilbrace, president of Petsmart charity, indicated the need for veterinarians to fit their clients’ financial concerns.
“There’s a story that says that this only affects people at the bottom of the revenue spectrum,” Gilbreth said. “But it’s all the whole spectrum. It surprised me – and it bothers me.
According to the PET of Pet Care report, veterinary care costs in the United States have skyrocketed by more than 60% since 2014, causing many owners to refrain from pet recommended treatment, with sometimes life-threatening consequences.
“At least 60% of households have pets and people love them as a family,” Gilbress said. “We don’t think they should be a gorgeous item. They’re good for people’s mental, physical and emotional health, and even if it gets out of hand, it’s a really sad situation.”
According to the American PET Products Association, PET owners are expected to spend an estimated $39 billion in 2024, and in a survey of dog owners conducted by Pawsafe.com that year, more than 44% of respondents felt the cost of care had risen significantly. 84% accused them of veterinarians.
Even higher income owners feel in trouble
A survey of 2,498 US adults who own at least one dog or cat, conducted between November 2024 and January 2025 found that 52% of pet owners refused to skip or refuse.
Diagnostic procedures (22%), vaccinations (18%), and elective surgery (16%) were the most commonly rejected PET healthcare services, while 11% refused the recommended medication and 7% refused life-saving surgery.
Of those who skipped or refused care, 71% of respondents said cost was a key factor. That response was the highest (80%) of people with household incomes ranging from $36,000 to $60,000, with almost two-thirds (66%) of people who earned more than $90,000 said the same thing.
For people with high incomes, it wasn’t necessarily an issue of affordability. Only a third of people making more than $90,000 said they couldn’t pay for the cost, compared to 72% of people making more than $36,000 to $60,000. However, 44% of people in high brackets said the cost is not worth it.
Gilbreth said pre-veterinary investigations suggest an increasing problem as veterinarian costs have increased.
“When I look at veterinarian pricing over the past five years, I’ve been shot faster than other indexes,” she said. Inflation has exacerbated the rise in health care costs, in part, prompted by more expensive diagnostic tests and higher wages for veterinary staff.
“For many pet families, the dramatic increase in that dramatic cost in a short period of time makes things very painful,” Gilbress said. “We are in an age where families are really growing, and it’s hard to manage unexpected costs like the massive veterinary bills.”
Payment plans can be a pet’s lifesaver
Animal shelters across the country said they are seeing the effects.
Ginnebele Shuster of the Utah Humane Society of Murray said: Last year, the number of owners who became pets increased by more than 22% because they couldn’t afford to get a pet, she said.
In Tennessee, the Nashville Humane Society will partner with the Banfield Foundation to fund monthly low-cost clinics, allowing owners to access more affordable veterinary care for their pets.
“As the cost of living increases year by year across the US and many private veterinarian practices are open, the costs of care are skyrocketing and plans are filling up for months,” Whittemore said. “We hope these clinics are currently experiencing some of the financial stock owners in our community.”
Additionally, Gilbreath said he has begun exploring medical options for animals that were not considered 20 years ago as owners are increasingly treating pets as part of their family.
“Now there are options they didn’t have and that could be increasing costs,” she said. “There is treatment for dogs with cancer. You can get a pet CT scan and MRI or advanced orthopedic surgery. If your dog was bred 20 years ago, you can go with wooden frame rest and pain management.
Petsmart charity estimates that around 15% of pet households can provide gold standard care.
“They want the best and most technically advanced care,” Gilbress said. “But there are many other households that aren’t an option and those people should be able to get more affordable care.”
Despite financial constraints that hinder veterinarian access to care, 73% of owners who refused treatment were not offered affordable alternatives, and surveys found that fewer than one in four (23%) said they were offered a payment planning option.
Research has shown that offering payment plan options makes a big difference. Almost two-thirds of respondents (65%) said they could afford under $1,000 if their pets were in a life-threatening condition. However, given an option of no interest for a year, he said that in most cases it would double what they could pay.
“We want to see options like 18 months of interest-free financing,” says Gilbreath. “More veterinarians are beginning to offer options, but that’s relatively new.”
For example, a blocked intestine that requires surgery may require a single action, but “a lot more people would have thought they would be offered a payment plan or a more affordable treatment option,” Gilbreath said.
She added that Petsmart Charities hopes to look into veterinarians later this year and learn more about why.
“Pets are family.”
Necessary or recommended pet care is associated with inadequate outcomes, the study found. Among the decline in care, one in seven (14%) reported that their pets had worsened or died.
Three in 10 pet owners (30%) said they have friends and family whose pets have passed away in the past five years due to affordable treatment.
Gilbreath recommends that pet owners discuss possible treatments or payment options with their veterinarians and find solutions that meet their needs. Additionally, veterinary care and other resources may be found through community nonprofits and animal shelters with public clinics.
She noted the experiences of “relatively wealthy” women who adopted cats when they settled in the home they purchased. The cat developed a dental condition that required expensive treatment.
“This woman was heartbroken,” she said. “She didn’t want the cat to suffer, so she gave it up to the shelter in hopes of it getting the care it needed.”
Suffering from guilt, the woman returned to the shelter the next day to retrieve the cat, learning that community organizations could provide the necessary care at a more affordable price.
“She got her cat back and got the care she could afford,” Gilbreth said.
Research has shown that offering payment plan options makes a big difference. Almost two-thirds of respondents (65%) said they could afford under $1,000 if their pets were in a life-threatening condition. However, given an option of no interest for a year, he said that in most cases it would double what they could pay.
“We want to see options like 18 months of interest-free financing,” says Gilbreath. “More veterinarians are beginning to offer options, but that’s relatively new.”
Additionally, Gilbreath said veterinary schools can provide a range of options by ensuring students recognize low-tech treatment alternatives to high-tech ones.
“The data shows that despite interest in such options, many pet parents are not presented with alternative care options that could make veterinary services more accessible,” said Zach Hrynowski, a senior researcher at Gallup, in a press release accompanying the report. “The data analysis points to a clear opportunity for the veterinary industry to expand affordable and flexible solutions to meet the needs of pet parents.”
Gillbless said he hopes to help pet owners feel alone or unashamed about their decisions, given how common these situations are.
“Pets are family,” Gilbreth said. “For a lot of people, they are the only family, so we do this job. We want our pets and their people to be together.”
