After 20 years of price stagnation, vet bills for pets in Germany will soon be more expensive. Some already overcrowded animal shelters fear rising costs could mean closure.
From November 22 vet bills in Germany are set to increase. The rising costs are not solely linked to overall inflation, but rather a result of the Bundesrat's July decision to update the German veterinarians' fee scale, which hasn't changed for the last 20 years. Such stagnant prices in recent years have meant that many veterinary practices across Germany were forced to close due to insufficient income from clients. These closures have also led to a disparity when it comes to accessing veterinary practices across different federal states in Germany.
Rising vet bills will impact the 47 percent of households in Germany who have a pet, who are already contending with record inflation and the energy crisis. In response to the news, Germany’s Animal Protection Association (Tierschutzbund) has expressed concern that common pets such as cats and dogs might not be treated when sick or may be abandoned by people who can’t afford to take them to the vet.
For some animal shelters, the imminent rise of vet costs poses an existential threat. Organisations will be met with two problems: an increase in abandoned animals that need to be cared for, and the rising veterinary cost of caring for more animals. For some organisations this could mean closure.
These difficulties come at a time when many animal shelters in Germany are already at breaking point. After a pet boom during the coronavirus pandemic many shelters were overwhelmed with unwanted animals that, once social restrictions were loosened, people found they did not have the resources or time to take care of.