Ontario Chinchillas

Has anyone taken their cat or dog, or know someone who has, to the toronto animal services spay/neuter clinic? I got a spot in a month long queue for my kitten to get spayed, and it's $85, versus the min $230 I was looking at everywhere else.

Obviously I'm skeptical about whether they can do the job right. I've read online some people who recommend it based on price alone, but I can't find any information about quality. I would hope they could do the job right if they have a month long wait list (ie. they SHOULD be experienced by now!)....

It's a drop off at 8am, pick up at 3pm, so no overnight risks...

Well the vet I once did a co-op at did the same thing with spay/neuters; usually there was no overnight stay unless the owner couldn't pick up their pet later, or there was some concern and they wanted to observe. As for the price, maybe their vets are being nice and just charging for the actual procedure.

I haven't heard about that one in particular, but it's in and out, no fluids, no bloodwork, no real pre/post op care. Just in & out surgury. You get what you pay for. These are usually inexperienced (new) vets, or those who were vets in another coumtry that are looking to get a leg into the veterinary field here. My friend went to the clinic here in Miss and they did a real crap job on the closing suture.

i think lizz has a good point. mind you, ive seen experienced vets have issues too. some pets are calmer during recovery, others not, obviously something you can't predict. it's definitely higher risk, my parents dog had to be taken back in to their vet about three times for restitching, fortunately it didn't seem to phase the big dumb boy (i say that lovingly), but it sure was a mess, and hassle, and a lot of worry about infection and such. i doubt they would be so good with an emergency follow up at the humane society. my parents vet i think charged them for the first restitch, but not the others. so what im getting at is if anything didn't go well, you would likely have to take the cat to your own vet anyway, and pay for everything.

oh forgot to update. well i did end up going here after calling and asking about the experience level of the vets. they said they do spays and neuters all day long, some of the vets there have been doing it for over 20 years. They all have loads of experience.

I dropped her off at 9am, and picked her up at 330pm, and she was drowsy. When I got home she came right out of the carrier and wanted to play with her toys, despite falling over many times from the drug leftovers. I tried to confine her to a quiet room with her favorite blanket so she'd sleep, but she kept whining to come out and play

Two days later and it's nearly healed, she hasn't been biting the stitches at all. The hair is growing back fast too.

The animal services people say that if anything does go wrong like an infection or the stitches come out, i'd have to take her to my own vet to get it fixed. animal services ONLY does the spay/neuter.

Total cost was $88 after license and spay (they insist on the license, since it's the law, and the government is doing the procedure, heh).

Do they do the suture removal for you to? I'm glad you had a good experiance

nah, they used absorbable stitches. that didn't seem like too good idea to me when she said it, but it's been 5 or 6 days and still no problem, although the stitches string are still there just at the edge (the final piece). it may be absorbed inside, can't really tell though.

it was done tuesday morning, and it's now monday morning. i'm having trouble counting days, lol.

I am so late to this thread, but, I had the same trouble getting my kittens spayed (well they were my roomates kittens, but she was negligent as hell and left them, in heat with me for a month, and i got fed up and decided to take them myself, besides the point anyway). The cheapest place in toronto (trust me i called every vet) for routine stuff, like spayings and shots is Brimley & Lawrence Animal Clinic. It is way out in scarborough (at Brimley and Lawrence) but heads and shoulders cheaper than anywhere else in the city.

My parents have been using them for over 10 years (for their three cats and dog who passed away at the ripe old age of 17 last year) and have never had a problem. Despite being inexpensive, I have never heard of anyone receiving neglegent or poor care there and we have used them for emergency care, when our (my parents now, but I was young then) cat Pumpkin got bit by someone out in the back yard and it got infected and he needed some surgery to drain the cyst (it wasnt a cyst but i cant think of the word for it now darn!).

Anyway cheap does not always mean inexperienced (the vet there has been working for over 30+ years) and I know many ACA's who can also attest to the fact that a good vet is a good vet regardless of price. Some of the most expensive vets around here are the worst. Anyway they don't do exotics or anything, I just thought I would get the name out there because I know how expensive routine vet care is for our regular furry friends.

Another (more recent example): Brought my mum's 2 cats in:
For a check up, plus shots, plus steroid ointment (one of them had a cut on his chin that wasn't healing quickly on its own) it was $130.

Nat, watch the sutures. I've seen some that claim they were absorbable but weren't. If they are still there after 10 days, remove them

beauty, thanks for the reference jess, and thanks for the tip lizz, i'll check it out really closely on the friday and if there's anything left I'll swing by my vet to get the final bits removed. I'll update here as well

Just reviving an old thread here to thank Natalie for bringing this up.

I don't live in Toronto but I came across the new OSPCA Spay/Neuter Clinic in Aurora.
http://www.spayneuter.ontariospca.ca/

Waiting list is long. The recording said I have to leave a msg and wait up to 12 weeks for a reply to book! However, my kitten is 8 weeks old so I can wait 3 months. Also heard that it's a one day thing. Bring your pet in 8am and bring them home 5pm. No extras like Elizabethan collar/cone or take home pain meds. Prices are way more reasonable than your local vet. I heard from someone it's $50 to neuter/spay a cat, $60 Dog Neuter and $80 Dog Spay. WOW! All the quotes I got with vets were in the $300+ range! I'm not a cheapskate when it comes to the health of my pets. If they only do this procedure, then I can be comfortable that they know what they are doing.

Again, wanna thank Natalie. Without her bringing this idea up, I wouldn't have thought to google for a similar service in my area.

wow 12 weeks for aurora? im suprised all those people found out about it so fast too. They might just be saying that for the message, it's probably not that long.

I had forgot to update eons ago, everything was fine, the stitches were all gone after a few weeks I think. She's still with me, healthy as ever. I had zero problems with these city run clinics

Yes, it appears to. Long wait, huh? If the wait gets too long, I'll have to it at a vet. We'll see how it goes.

Guess it depends on the kitten but it looks like yours just came out and was playful immediately after? Wasn't trying to bite the stitches off?

I feel like a new mom all over again. Especially on the way to the vet. She saw a huge dump truck and was staring at it apprehensively. I found myself saying to her 'Look Miu, it's a big scary dump truck, but it's okay, moms is here!' Just like how you would say to a child. HA HA!

I certainly can relate, I do that to all of my animals... they are my kids since I don't have any. Silly but yet keeps me saine somehow lol!

haha yeah, its impossible not to try to reassure them sometimes, they look so expressive. She was really tired and dizzy, but kitten-antics kept luring her in to action. She eventually fell asleep, and when she woke up, she pretty much ignored the stitching. I watched her like a hawk when she'd try to clean herself, but it was just regular licking, she didn't seem to worry about the string bits coming out of her stomache. I was nervous because the string stayed around for longer than I would have thought they should, but that could have been because I was obsessively checking them every 10 minutes for a couple weeks straight, heh.

So the time has come...the kitty kat will be getting spayed on Monday. I'm so nervous.

Any advice anyone can pass me?

Give her a kiss, a tell her you will pick her up later.
She will be fine Jessica. All my cats have been neutured at different times and ages.
Even at the pet store that I once worked, all the cats where neutured before selling them and all came back fine.

The vet will let you know what to do.

just have a nice quiet room with a good safe area for them to sleep off the drugs in if the vet doesn't keep them there overnight. and don't take it personally if they're mad at you the next day, lol, they always forget, always

good luck!

Ah yes, she can rest in her cat room so that's fine. My god, I can't believe the day is approaching fast! I"m sooo nervous! But thanks for the kind words. Yeah someone else told me she'll be mad too! Oh well. I'll see how it goes. Thanks guys!

You are a good mom Jessica... we all get that nervous and worried. let us know when so we can send you relaxing vibes. lol!

Ah, the kitty is back. She went wild with delight in the house as soon as she got home. So much for caution. She was spayed on Monday and I spent 2 nights on the floor of the cat room where she was confined. I'm not as young as I thought I was. My body is aching in places I didn't even know was possible. Well, Ms, Kitty is on the way to recovery. Today is the first day of house freedom for her. Tonight I can sleep in my own bed again. She has some interest in the string that's dangling from her stomach, but stops when I tell her No.

Happy she,s doing well. Now rest well in your bed mama:)

keep an eye for infection is all, it heals over fast I found happy all worked out well!