Reforms must be fair to vets and pet owners | Letters

Readers respond to an editorial on the UK competition watchdog’s investigation of vet chains and the cost of treatment The Competition and Markets Authority report on vet chains is welcome, but your editorial (24 March) does little to clarify things for struggling pet owners. The remedies include a further levy of between £600 and £1,000 per year, to be paid by practices to the regulator. This represents an increase of approximately 5% in our small independent referral practice, and will necessarily lead to increased prices, which have been displayed on our website since opening. Reform of the Veterinary Surgeons Act 1966 may lead to similar rising costs. Current median salaries for veterinary surgeons are less than those of teachers and nurses. While pet owners may wish that care was cheaper, they also depend on it being available. Veterinary qualifications involve a minimum of five years’ undergraduate training, without the benefits of clinical years bursaries offered to doctors and dentists. If society deems affordable veterinary care to be essential, it needs to support the sector, as many practices make profit margins more similar to pubs than corporations. Bills could instant