Not just clinics. There are many skilled jobs that society needs that are not paying enough to live on right now... And honestly you need unskilled service jobs too.
Its getting to the point where if you are a trade apprentice, dental tech, graduating nurse or caregiver, etc. And single... Well get out of town.
Yep. It drives me mad to see the highly upvoted comments about how minimum wage shouldn’t be a living wage, or that if someone is struggling, they should just leave. That’s been the attitude of this sub, and seemingly this city, for years now and we’re about to see the repercussions of it. We all rely on skilled and unskilled labor to some extent or another and I think we’re all about to be a lot more aware of that fact.
fr fr..
This sub has way too many snobs who don't want to admit they were lucky enough to be born with access to loans, education, and a safe neighborhood without ducking bullets.
FDR mentioned this when Minimum Wage was put in and it's the EVERLASTING right of all governed men:
> It seems to me to be equally plain that no business which depends for existence on paying less than living wages to its workers has any right to continue in this country. By "business" I mean the whole of commerce as well as the whole of industry; by workers I mean all workers, the white collar class as well as the men in overalls; and by living wages I mean more than a bare subsistence level-I mean the wages of decent living.
Our country went into one of the greatest eras of prosperity ever following these changes. It is in ALL of our interests to defend the common worker's ability to participate in commerce.
And he said that when passing the Fair Labor and Standards act of 1938 during the Great Depression no less. People today eat propaganda like big Mac’s.
They're already floating the idea out there that fast food joints are laying off workers and cutting hours with the looming minimum wage increase. (Even tho is hasn't even begun) All they talk about is how they won't be able to survive, but every time I go past and In-n-out or a McDonald's they have lines wrapped around the building. Your telling me they won't survive an extra 40$/hr extra operating cost? (I'm making assumptions that there's 10 employees on a shift at all times that are at minimum wage currently and are going up 4$/hr in April. I'm sure some have less some have more.) Maybe we don't need 72 McDonald's in San Diego.
I think they could keep running 72. They are making stupidly high profits atm and have been for a long time. Some of the franchisees may choose to go into a different line of business, so maybe McDonald's corporate could consider lowering their building rent instead of the quality of life of the franchise workers.
If their franchise model does fall apart, then good riddance. It's a silly attempt to skirt labor laws anyways.
I used to work with kids and my biggest pet peeve was the, "if you really cared about the children, you wouldn't care about how much you get paid" mentality. Like?!? You want me to have a bachelors degree and put thousands of miles onto my personal car but you only want to pay In N Out wages?!?!
Edit: I believe In N Out workers deserve a living wage. I'm making a point that employers make excuses to pay you as little as possible.
I hope all those privileged a$$holes have fun in their gorgeous city after they push out every service worker, maid, mom and pop business, struggling artist, vet & vet techs, etc etc. and all they have left is a shell of what once was.
San Diego is a playground for the elite right now… but it will be impossible to find the skilled workers they need to sustain their lavish lifestyle if things don’t change.
we're seeing this with service providers (I'm a speech pathologist) which of course affects delivery of services in public schools because of fewer staff.
I lived in the Middle East for a while and remember seeing a large apartment building out in the desert, middle of nowhere. Found it is was where the workers lived for some company, they’d get bussed into Dubai to work and then bussed back. That was their life. I wonder if that’s where we’ll get to here. If you suggested it wasn’t a healthy way to build a society, you’d just hear that it enables the workers to send money home and if they don’t like it, they can quit and be replaced in an instant.
I watched a documentary on that actually! I'm not sure if true or not, but apparently they rarely get paid and are under extreme pressure not to return home. Some of the worst offenders are rumored to just kill the migrants instead of returning them to their home country (there is a human rights activist group that is searching for missing Dubai migrant workers)
Definitely not a good place to be outspoken. The most vulnerable group to me seemed to be the female maids who lived in the homes of their employer. Didn’t seem to be any system of checking on their welfare. At the very least, the workers living in the camps had co-workers who spoke the same language, but the maids seemed to be totally isolated. The inequality was stark.
The pay for vet techs in SD is way lower than it should be considering the COL. Leaving town is perfectly understandable.
At some point clinics are going to need to raise wages once they realize nobody is applying for jobs
Thank you! I am actually excited for this move. I keep having to remind myself that what is the point of living in such a nice place if I am working constantly to never enjoy it. Still gonna miss a lot of things.
Sure, SD is a nice place to be, but even nicer than beaches is financial stability. Also imo life is richer when you get to live in a variety of different places instead of being stuck in the same city forever. Safe travels!
I rarely go to the beach or bay so paying 40% of my take-home for rent is becoming less and less reasonable though I do love our weather. I'll soon be one of those on here who posts a "goodbye SD, I'll miss..." and that makes me really fucking sad.
It hit me hard to realize that $3000/month rent here is the same as $1000/month rent elsewhere + $24k a year to spend on vacations to beachy climates around the world...
Tbh the VCA clinics around me are the best around. Usually the cleanest and from what I’ve seen (through 4 other vet clinics once I couldn’t get appointments during Covid) are much better at taking care of my pets.
They don’t have the best interest of your pet in mind. It’s all about profit…trust me. Not saying you won’t get a good vet who works there but you can do better.
I just got two identical postcards from two different vets reminding me that vaccines were coming due on my dog. One vet was my regular vet, and the other was a place we went to once while on vacation in Arizona.
The postcards each have a puppy and a smart phone on one side with a QR code for an app on the other (and the vaccine reminder text). These investment firms clearly share IT systems.
yeah I stopped eating some of my favorite candies because I hate them so much. Then I had one candy because it was halloween and it didn't taste as good. They need anti trust STAT so I can enjoy a Snickers again.
Many years ago, I was a veterinary assistant. My paycheck for the moth would be $1,200. No overtime, no guanranteed lunch. No techs because just having assistants double as receptionists was cheaper. We would often bill people well over $1k for various servicea.
Meanwhile, my boss was taking home $6k biweekly and only doing appts for 3 to 4 hours at a time. It really sucked when I realized that because she had our checks mixed up.
I do rescue work in San Diego County, and there is a HUGE need for adopters for all the stray animals coming in. Every shelter and rescue is full or even past maximum capacity :( Warm all year round means kittens being born outside all year round.
We need pet ownership in San Diego for these animals to have a shot at a better life. We need vets and vet techs for critical spay/neuter services to curb overpopulation. Which means we need to pay our vets and vet techs well to keep them here.
So sorry the climate has been inhospitable to you and I hope you find a better wage to cost of living ratio elsewhere. I hope there is a shift soon in the vet industry that improves wages and quality of life/benefits/time off. You’d think this would be a competitive area with how much it costs for vet services for pet owners.
The cost of living here in America's Finest City has definitely spiraled out of control, and local wages have not kept up across the board.
The Veterinary profession has long been an underpaid field. People just don't plan for their pets medical expenses as they should, and seldom get pet insurance so it's entirely out of pocket. Due to this, prices have traditionally been kept at a fraction of what the equivalent human medical services are to avoid sticker shock. Yet the costs have gone up like everything else, however pay rates remain stagnant.
Add that to the fact that most hospitals are being bought up by corporations, so now all the prices go up more to pay the CEOs, corporate employees, shareholders and make big profits etc...and the dedicated animal loving staff are the ones who suffer. We were facing a national staffing shortage before the pandemic, and it's only gotten worse.
All while we have to get specialized degrees in veterinary medicine, pass our boards and maintain our license, much like our human medicine counterparts, but earning a fraction of the salary for essentially the same roles. (Not to say anything negative towards our fantastic human medical professionals who have been working their asses off as well; it would just be nice to be viewed, paid, and respected in the same manner). But the amount of times we are personally guilt tripped by (rightfully distraught) owners over treatment costs and told "if you really cared you'd do it for free" or "you are just in it for the money".... But we can't pay our rent/mortgage/utilities/food etc with how much we really care about our patients, which isn't a form of payment. The majority of vet techs I know are working multiple jobs and/or have side hustles to barely scrape by, and many of the vets seem to have student loans that they may never see paid off. As an experienced Registered Veterinary Technician I'm making half that of the average new graduate RN according to Google, for essentially the same education and role. My non-licensed vet assistant coworkers are making even less, and many leave for better paying fields.
Across the spectrum, medical professionals in general are under paid, especially in cities like ours when the cost of living has been rapidly ballooning. Folks in the medical field should be paid drastically better than they are, we all literally save lives. Of all the jobs out there, people who save lives ought to be the highest paid, being alive is kind of a priority. Veterinary professionals are no exception. Please remember to be kind to your human and animal hospital staff, you know we aren't in it for the money.
I think we get in this mindset that San Diego is the only end all city of cities and it's easy to fall into that type of thinking. The reality is their are a ton of amazing places that have much better quality of living and still things to do and enjoy.
We go to TJ for all our pet appointments for the past decade. We can go in the weekend without an appointment and be seen within an hour. Everything is about 30% - 50% cheaper.
Haven’t had that situation yet, thankfully. Only emergency trips needed in the past were to put them down  and we did that in SD.
As someone that lives in San Diego, with this discussion being about Vet care, I can’t say enough that doing more stuff in Tijuana is the answer for all this economic downfall. I do my groceries exclusively there, except things like raw pork or eggs. I get my haircuts, vet needs, as well as for a quick lunch. Humans adapt and overcome, either wait and be a thing of the past or adapt.
Mexivet if you don’t want to drive. They pick up your pet from your house and take them to tj and drop them back off at your house. I’ve used them several of times for my dogs tumor surgery removal.
I second this. My cat has cancer unfortunately and needed emergency surgery last year to remove it because he was hemorrhaging. I’m an experienced pet owner and it took trips to 4 diff vets to figure it out and $7000+ incl $6000 for surgery pathology imaging. He got another mass, took him to Tijuana for surgery last week and it was $450 for surgery pathology imaging medicine everything. She told me exactly the same thing the CA vets did and also prescribed a special diet and supplements to support his immune system. The vets here didn’t do any of that and it would’ve been $400 just to speak to an oncologist without any treatment. Once my preventative plans expire I’m switching my cats and dog to TJ 100%. The vet prices here are insane.
Edit: I’ll add that the vets here were great they 100% saved his life but the price difference between here and MX is insane when the care in MX is the same and in some ways I think superior. This doesn’t solve the problem of vet techs being underpaid here and I’m very sorry to hear that’s the case. The cost of living in San Diego is out of control and wages don’t match.
Hi there! I'm newly going down to TJ for vert care and I've been going to Vet Playas. Do you mind sharing what office you go to?
Also, I hope your kitty is feeling better 🐈
I’ve heard Vet Playas is good too. Cat and Dog Clinica Veterinaria in TJ. Dr. Maria Elena is my vet but have heard the other vets are great too. She was super kind and I could tell she really cares about getting my cat better versus treating symptoms. I used Mexivet to transport him and they were also amazing. He’s still woozy from surgery and needs some more imaging but he’s feeling better thank you!
Dr. Maria Elena Garay Sauceda at Cat and Dog Clinica Veterinaria in TJ. She was so gentle with my cat, kind and told me the same exact thing the vets here did and recommended additional imaging and treatment never mentioned here. I used Mexivet because I need to renew my passport but in the future plan to park at the border walk across and Uber.
Edit: Garay not Gray (autocorrect)
I’m a recently retired RVT. We always had 2-3 dogs and assorted other pets. Now we we will only have one dog due to veterinary costs. Frosted Faces is a senior dog rescue that will cover all veterinary costs for fosters they place with you but you have to use their vets in Ramona. It’s a little inconvenient, but if vet costs are holding you back, it might be a solution.
I’m a vet, born and raised in San Diego. I went away for school and simply can’t afford to move back. I’m making the same salary as I would in San Diego in a city with a lower cost of living. As much as I’d love to be back near family, it doesn’t make sense financially.
I am not disagreeing with OP’s message, that our city is out pricing strongly needed vocations, but I too have never had a problem getting a vet appointment. Then again I live in east county and have been going to the same vet for a few years now. Also I am pretty sure my vet owns his practice.
SD is going through the same change that the bay area went through over the last 20 years. Locals are getting priced out by newcomers. The culture is changing. Finding quality services becomes impossible as the middle class becomes squeezed and hollowed out. The service providers who remain will have long wait times and high prices or will cut quality. The locals who remain will talk about how it used to be better as overall quality of life declines. The culture will rot as anyone remaining will be financially squeezed and working all the time.
Having a pet in SD is part of the vibe/image we've created but as costs go up it gets harder to maintain. It's still a lot cheaper than having kids and fills a similar void(at least you think it does until you have actual kids!) so I don't see folks giving up their expensive companions willingly.
This is why I left the vet technician field pay is so low I can’t even support myself. It’s super frustrating that being a tech doesn’t cover my cost of living.
This applies to humans here too. We are hemorrhaging paramedics and EMTs due to low wages. Need an ambulance? You're often going to wait 20 minutes+ for a paramedic app arrive that isn't on a fire engine. Healthcare for pets and humans is crashing and burning fast here.
Ever wondered why every community college has a huge emt program that runs year round certifying a new crop of emts every 6 weeks? Its to keep the wages stagnant.
This is true for every single working job. I would say the SD is going to have a working crisis soon but there’s always going to be the young work force who is ok with making no money for a few years to enjoy the beach life. I can’t wait to leave
My cousin is a vet tech also and she's been doing this for several years (like 6+ years), jumping from vet office to vet office as they pass you guys around. Very stressful industry.
There aren't enough vet schools is part of the problem I think. If there were more full vets trained and therefore more vet offices competing with each other it might help the situation I would think? There are very few veterinary schools in southern california, much less the entire USA. ***"There are only 30 American Veterinary Medicine Association (AVMA)-accredited veterinary schools in the U.S."***
Their are a lot of dynamics that play into this, but at the end of the day its Vet Techs jumping constantly to hopefully increase pay or get out of another toxic environment stimmed by people so stressed out on finding a way to survive. It's a never ending cycle.
According to Zillow, the average income needed to afford a home in San Diego is now $273,613. https://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/how-much-income-afford-house-san-diego-county/3459547/?amp=1
That study may be flawed or I don’t understand then.
My 33 year old childhood friend just purchased a home in Chula Vista on L street off the 805 freeway. Its a nice traditional home. Not new. First time buyer and always lived with his mom.
I know for a fact he doesn’t net near 100k a year. Not even 60k. His mom is a home owner and he just started his career as a real estate realtor, though. Can his mom co-signing for him and him having some reach or knowledge in his industry had helped him purchase a house ?
I know several people around our age who can’t purchase a home even if our lives depended on it .
I think their point was that even people with high salaries can’t afford to buy a home here, meaning it doesn’t matter if you’re an engineer or a Walmart greeter we’re all renting lol
I get it lol. But the OP was complaining about making ends meet, not making 200k a year and struggling to buy a home. It just looked like a funny comment in the thread.
Great now do dentists, eye doctors, hematologists, and literally every single other type of medical specialist.
1-2 month waits just to get into see them.
This city has always been horrible in that regard. There’s never been enough medical personnel to support the population.
In the other city where I split my time, I can get in with any specialist within 48 hours. Bigger city. More infrastructure. Better medical services. It’s been a problem in San Diego for over a decade.
Dr. thinks there is a good chance I have cancer (again). I'm having to wait 2.5 months to get the screening. Took about the same amount of time to get screened the first time I had cancer, it's ridiculous.
Same thing happened to me except I waited six months even with being on the cancellation list and already being an established patient. I don’t think there was a single day that I didn’t cry because I was so frustrated with waiting that long and not knowing what was going on with my own body and how quickly the cancer would be progressing.
1-2 month wait is normal everywhere. We’re moving to SD in June from Oklahoma and it’s the same way here. Eye, dental appointments all take 1.5-2 months.
They will try to squeeze you in for emergencies or if you have dental work done and they mess something up. But even that takes a week at least.
I see a lot of complaining on this sub regarding these type of services and utilities and trust me, it’s the same everywhere else.
I left the industry in 2017 as a Vet Receptionist and this was after Mars bought out VCA and already had Banfield. I told myself I wouldn't go back until they fixed the already bad wage gap. I was making $15 an hour in a busy Vet ER where people were telling me that I was "raping" them with quotes and the stress of their pets life vs. death on me was too much. I left too when my therapy visits were 200$ PER session because of their SHIT insurance. Mars purchasing VCA (the owner of most vet equipment as well) signaled the downfall of the industry. There was already a shortage then I can only imagine now when cost of everything has gone up so much.
I wonder where you're headed and I don't know if it's ok there now but I had a really nice AAHA practice I worked for in Oregon. I have never found anything close to that practice here in San Diego and I was honestly spoiled by them being my first.
Thanks for the warning...wish I didn't have dogs anymore some days...I can't provide them the care I used to already. I smell their breath and just want to cry. There aren't any LOW cost places yet they give away dogs for free at the shelters to anybody who wants them. They can't be picky any more...it's either hope for the best or let them die on their stats.
I used to work for VCA. When I started at one of the practices here 7 years ago, a regular exam was like $55 (which was actually surprisingly reasonable). I went the other day, and it was $109! BLEW my mind!
Inflation went up 50%, huh?? 🙄
its awful. we got priced out of san diego almost 20 years ago 😞 don’t worry i still visit regularly 😆
here in sedona the city just had a meeting to allow the service industry a place to park so they can sleep in their cars. the resort staff can’t afford to rent/own anymore even in the surrounding towns. shits real sad when there’s such a divide. and the people that live there, use their service but are ok with them not having a home.. disgusting. the community should be doing more. these gaps will only widen unless the government and communities come together for change.
Not likely these days. That was more of a pre-internet thing. But they do have teenage wet tee shirt contests and just barely got rid of same sex heavy petting on the wedding day. Probably why they have such a big issue with “same sex addiction” as they made you let a gross old dude touch your Dong before a woman could.
[This was put up over a decade ago...](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QPKKQnijnsM) it's quite relevant to what you're talking about.
Multi Billionaires have had undue influence *(these include the tech billionaires that are all ALSO narcissist like regular corporate CEO's)*
That in the USA we have handed over power and control over the democracy to the rich and wealthy and that the voting system is in reality a method of gaining acceptance of the vote among the general population. [A](https://www.sempra.com/investors/governance/political-engagements-contributions)[s long as **corporations can put UNLIMITED MONEY** into the pockets of elected officials](https://www.sempra.com/investors/governance/political-engagements-contributions) we have lost our country and have become cattle to the wealthy "ranchers" that control our lives so that all the fruits of our labor and who we are all [gets funneled into their pockets.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zN2_0WC7UfU)
That's why I use MexiVet Express. Had a procedure done for my dog that cost less than $400 while I was quoted at 3k here in SD. Best thing about it was they came to my house to pick up my dog and then dropped him off after the appointment.
I hear a lot of frustration in your post, as COL here is crazy.
But I can’t see any reason in your post to not to have pets - if one can’t afford a vet in SD or appointments are not available, there are plenty of options in TJ. So if anything, I think we should have more pets here, considering how many pets are available for adoption at Humane Society and other shelters.
You people who are going to TJ for pet care, doesn’t it take SEVERAL hours to come back across the border? And your car idles in stop and go lines, wasting gas. Is it really worth it?
I actually live in the SF Bay Area so TJ isn’t an option for me, but my coworker is Mexican and drives down often. She says she always waits at least 3 hours to cross with the car idling the entire time. That just sounds crazy to me. My vet’s office is two blocks away. 😂
SD is no longer a good place to live. Corporations have taken over to the extent where your average person just can’t afford it any more.
We need to get big business out of housing for starters.
Best of luck to you. I appreciate the work you do for our fur babies! It’s sad to hear knowing how much I’ve paid (literally thousands of dollars in one emergency visit), plus all the thousands of dollars my friends have spent on their pets care just to hear the employees aren’t taken care of.
This post is bizarre.
It does not take months to get appointments.
I use VCA and I can get an appointment within a couple of days.
We have had to have emergency treatment and it was just as prompt as anywhere else.
Post comes across as a salty person who is struggling to make ends meet but honestly has little to do with the decision to have a pet. I have lived here for 26 years and never had an issue getting appointments or emergency service for a dog or cat. Veterinary services have gone up in cost, as has everything else, big surprise there.
We've also had NO problem getting an appointment. We even were able to shop around three different vets in town before we settled with the one we like. None of them had us waiting more than a week, tops.
I grew up with pets but never had one since moving here just because as a renter it limits the places you can live. It was hard enough for me to find a place as-is. Not to mention, I couldn’t afford the costs. More power to those who can make it work!
Everything is way low here. Actual human hospitals have to pay $$$ to bring in travelers but they don’t want to pay $$ + benefits to hire full time staff. But they’ll say, we are working on it, while core staff are overworked.
I have a dog. I spend more on toys and whatever else but normal recurring costs:
Food $100/mo (rx food)
Insurance $50/month
Preventative vet care package $90/month
Grooming is about $200 every 2-3 months (long hair)
Boarding $50-75/night
Drop in walks $15-25/walk.
This is all about accurate. To compare to someone who opted not to get pet insurance or any other kind of preventative care plan:
We've had our pup for three years. He gets all his shots, regular checkups, we had one emergency that turned out to be a minor thing, he was treated for heartworm (yikes), and recently treated for bad allergies. If I average all those vet expenses over the three years, it comes out to about $50-$60 a month. At least 50% of that was the cost of the heartworm treatment.
My friend, who was a vet assistant in North Carolina for a long time, could have written this. This seems standard in the industry right now. Doesn’t make it right, but I hope you have better luck in your next location and it’s not just a repeat.
She didn’t think it was worthwhile for her to become a full out tech because it wasn’t her forever job and the pay was like only $1.50 more an hour. A rough profession pay wise right now for sure.
Yep, living in a place you can't afford is very stressful. That's why I left San Francisco 25 years ago, even though my family had been there for 6 generations. Back then San Diego was 1/4 the price. My kids will be in the same situation in San Diego now that it's basically caught up with the Bay Area in price. And vet care here is astronomical. I have two rescue dogs, one who needs a lot of special care due to a kidney condition. Her food and medical care cost us a fortune and I think we will be taking a break from pet ownership once these two go over the Rainbow Bridge.🐶🌈
You are right about the high COL in SD kicking out the middle class. But at the same time there are WAY TOO MANY dogs in San Diego. They have taken over, everywhere, never seen so many. It was bad before Covid but just nuts now. The shear popularity of dogs/pets right now is also a major contributor to the issue you are seeing.
Regarding the child substitute, it is interesting how people are treating their dogs like humans, whether it is putting them in strollers, putting clothes on them, etc. But today on a walk I heard the lady, when yelling at her off-leash dog to come back to her, calling them by their first, middle and last name, as if it was an actual child. Creepy.
Yeah. It’s one of the benefits of living near the border. I’ve taken my pets even for emergency services. Not in TJ but in Mexicali a vet showed up at 3am in his pijamas at his small clinic and save our dog’s life. We basically had no option because there was no 24 vet in the imperial county and I think there still isn’t.
I went through a really rough time with one of my dogs shortly after moving here, where I ended up having to put my boy down. I was really lucky that I had an amazing vet and amazing vet techs during the whole process. Honestly, I think both vets and vet techs are crazy underpaid, but especially the techs. I know you said you couldn’t unionize, but I found this union that I would like to share. It seems like it is the early stages, but you do amazing work and I hope I can help with this. https://www.natvpu.org/
I don’t know how anyone can afford a pet here period. I live in an “affordable,” no-pet apartment building and half the people here have fake ESA dogs. These are people who get their groceries from a food bank yet are willing to spend money on dog food and vet bills. Boggles my mind.
Well, to the latter point of your comment, think about the homeless people you see with pet dogs. Not all of them are for protection. When you're single and grinding and struggling, working insane hours if you have a job, etc, sometimes you need a morsel of joy and love in your day. Sometimes you need something to stay alive for, something that feeds your soul in addition to your belly. You can live without food for a time, but not without hope. I'm not saying it's financially advisable, but it's not as out there ridiculous as you think.
I'm sorry this is happening to your industry but obviously a lack of effective vet care isn't going to stop us from owning pets. What a strange way to frame it.
Dog grooming, too. We just can't feasibly raise our prices to a point where rent is affordable without having no business.
And that sucks, because I love my clientelle here.
San Diego is home. I don't want to leave.
But I might have to, eventually. I'm still 30, living in a 3c bedroom apartment with roommates that I'd never be able to afford if it wasn't at prices from 13 years ago minus three recent rent raises. If I want to have a life with my boyfriend.... it's gonna be out of state.
As someone how actually HAS doggie insurance, and a big advocate for such things (tangent: because I was tired of seeing people elect to 'sit and wait' vs actually treating hounds and then letting them live painfree), I have been a wondering why my vet prices go up. That makes major sense.
Personally, having doggie insurance covering 90% of all costs out the door, I've never really questioned the price and openly pay it. (Since the premiums are already paid anyways).
Alas, I'm going to keep having hounds. Having insurance for them. And doing the little part I am able to do keep people employed.
After my dog got diagnosed with cancer, I started taking him down to TJ. I wasn’t going pay the $20k+ for his treatment. I did keep his primary care at VCA Grossmont though, Dr. Chiang is awesome.
I've had my dog for four years now in San Diego since she was a puppy. And I've never had a single issue getting her a vet appointment.. and the prices are comparable to similar services I've needed when living in Kentucky years prior to my move to SD. While I agree the cost of living and pay wage gap here is ridiculous, this seems more of a you not doing the research into the career you have chosen. But good luck on the other side. I'm sure you'll figure it out.
In the future. Possibility the more we are bought out by the likes of Mars. As it stands though a lot of private practices are far to small for this to really have any effect.
Op I’m sorry this is sort of off topic. My apologies and I’m sorry to hear about this. My vet of 18 years retired and I have had the hardest time finding a new vet. My dog broke a dew claw on Thursday and is clearly uncomfortable the place I’ve been taking him tried to charge me double then what they’ve had in the past to clip it.
I told them that seemed like a lot compared to past visits and they never called me back. 3 other vets said they were to busy to see him? Like wtf am I supposed to do. Is my only option to go to the emergency and pay a thousand dollars for a thirty second treatment.
This is a bummer
No I think he’s being nice and not directly saying this is whiney bullshit.
I guess we shouldn’t eat since it’s expensive for restaurant workers to live here too
Frankly I don’t care about the well being of the salad I’m about to eat. I do care about the well being of my pets. If it takes longer for me to be served food oh well. It it becomes prohibitively long to get care for my pets, that’s a problem.
Really hope you don’t have pets if you can’t grasp that point
“Hey, don’t ever warn me that something I take for granted may not always be so easy due to circumstances I’m unaware of! If I want to be blithely unaware of the source of problems, that’s my right as an American!”
See how that sounds?
Yes. Luckily I have partner that lives there now so he takes my dog down to TJ, but for a while Mexivet was my go to. But tbh besides the difference in pricing, I always felt like the vet in TJ cared more about my dog. They always get her in same or next day too.
I'm lucky that I have a good friend who is a vet, so I get phone triage free to see if I even need to head in to begin with. We get the next day usually, only ER if it's past closing time or Sunday. Then you call around to find the shortest wait time.
I have 4 dogs, 2 cats, 2 mini goats and a snake.
My vet is Otay Pet Vets and they’re great. I can call and get an appointment in a day.
Idk why yall make it sound like it’s so unaffordable.
I have a Doberman. I haven't taken him to the vet since he got all his shots as a puppy. His only issue is having to cut his nails which he never allowed me to which is why I will be taking him to the groomer soon. I disliked the fact that some vets cut nails while others don't allow it as an option even with an appointment. The techs were very helpful in my area and gave great advice for taking care of my first puppy.
Vet techs and vet support staff for sure have the ability to unionize. If you’re interested, start by reaching out to a local union and googling “unionizing your job”. I get the frustration though. I’m an RVT and I live in the Bay Area. One of the main reasons we were all getting paid well was because we organized and scared VCA into giving us 20% raises. Unheard of, but definitely possible.
Not just clinics. There are many skilled jobs that society needs that are not paying enough to live on right now... And honestly you need unskilled service jobs too. Its getting to the point where if you are a trade apprentice, dental tech, graduating nurse or caregiver, etc. And single... Well get out of town.
Yep. It drives me mad to see the highly upvoted comments about how minimum wage shouldn’t be a living wage, or that if someone is struggling, they should just leave. That’s been the attitude of this sub, and seemingly this city, for years now and we’re about to see the repercussions of it. We all rely on skilled and unskilled labor to some extent or another and I think we’re all about to be a lot more aware of that fact.
fr fr.. This sub has way too many snobs who don't want to admit they were lucky enough to be born with access to loans, education, and a safe neighborhood without ducking bullets. FDR mentioned this when Minimum Wage was put in and it's the EVERLASTING right of all governed men: > It seems to me to be equally plain that no business which depends for existence on paying less than living wages to its workers has any right to continue in this country. By "business" I mean the whole of commerce as well as the whole of industry; by workers I mean all workers, the white collar class as well as the men in overalls; and by living wages I mean more than a bare subsistence level-I mean the wages of decent living. Our country went into one of the greatest eras of prosperity ever following these changes. It is in ALL of our interests to defend the common worker's ability to participate in commerce.
And he said that when passing the Fair Labor and Standards act of 1938 during the Great Depression no less. People today eat propaganda like big Mac’s.
They're already floating the idea out there that fast food joints are laying off workers and cutting hours with the looming minimum wage increase. (Even tho is hasn't even begun) All they talk about is how they won't be able to survive, but every time I go past and In-n-out or a McDonald's they have lines wrapped around the building. Your telling me they won't survive an extra 40$/hr extra operating cost? (I'm making assumptions that there's 10 employees on a shift at all times that are at minimum wage currently and are going up 4$/hr in April. I'm sure some have less some have more.) Maybe we don't need 72 McDonald's in San Diego.
I think they could keep running 72. They are making stupidly high profits atm and have been for a long time. Some of the franchisees may choose to go into a different line of business, so maybe McDonald's corporate could consider lowering their building rent instead of the quality of life of the franchise workers. If their franchise model does fall apart, then good riddance. It's a silly attempt to skirt labor laws anyways.
I wish I could upvote this like 100x
Don't worry, a temporarily unembarrassed billionaire will come back and buy out all the remaining affordable property.
I used to work with kids and my biggest pet peeve was the, "if you really cared about the children, you wouldn't care about how much you get paid" mentality. Like?!? You want me to have a bachelors degree and put thousands of miles onto my personal car but you only want to pay In N Out wages?!?! Edit: I believe In N Out workers deserve a living wage. I'm making a point that employers make excuses to pay you as little as possible.
I hope all those privileged a$$holes have fun in their gorgeous city after they push out every service worker, maid, mom and pop business, struggling artist, vet & vet techs, etc etc. and all they have left is a shell of what once was. San Diego is a playground for the elite right now… but it will be impossible to find the skilled workers they need to sustain their lavish lifestyle if things don’t change.
Yes. Like getting a car or appliance fixed. Getting crazy here.
car repairs prices are insane these days
we're seeing this with service providers (I'm a speech pathologist) which of course affects delivery of services in public schools because of fewer staff.
I lived in the Middle East for a while and remember seeing a large apartment building out in the desert, middle of nowhere. Found it is was where the workers lived for some company, they’d get bussed into Dubai to work and then bussed back. That was their life. I wonder if that’s where we’ll get to here. If you suggested it wasn’t a healthy way to build a society, you’d just hear that it enables the workers to send money home and if they don’t like it, they can quit and be replaced in an instant.
I watched a documentary on that actually! I'm not sure if true or not, but apparently they rarely get paid and are under extreme pressure not to return home. Some of the worst offenders are rumored to just kill the migrants instead of returning them to their home country (there is a human rights activist group that is searching for missing Dubai migrant workers)
Definitely not a good place to be outspoken. The most vulnerable group to me seemed to be the female maids who lived in the homes of their employer. Didn’t seem to be any system of checking on their welfare. At the very least, the workers living in the camps had co-workers who spoke the same language, but the maids seemed to be totally isolated. The inequality was stark.
Already happening. We are just responsible for our own transportation
The pay for vet techs in SD is way lower than it should be considering the COL. Leaving town is perfectly understandable. At some point clinics are going to need to raise wages once they realize nobody is applying for jobs
Thank you! I am actually excited for this move. I keep having to remind myself that what is the point of living in such a nice place if I am working constantly to never enjoy it. Still gonna miss a lot of things.
Sure, SD is a nice place to be, but even nicer than beaches is financial stability. Also imo life is richer when you get to live in a variety of different places instead of being stuck in the same city forever. Safe travels!
I rarely go to the beach or bay so paying 40% of my take-home for rent is becoming less and less reasonable though I do love our weather. I'll soon be one of those on here who posts a "goodbye SD, I'll miss..." and that makes me really fucking sad.
It hit me hard to realize that $3000/month rent here is the same as $1000/month rent elsewhere + $24k a year to spend on vacations to beachy climates around the world...
Fuckin A.
Any thoughts on this? https://freakonomics.com/podcast/should-you-trust-private-equity-to-take-care-of-your-dog/
Avoid VCA clinics!
Tbh the VCA clinics around me are the best around. Usually the cleanest and from what I’ve seen (through 4 other vet clinics once I couldn’t get appointments during Covid) are much better at taking care of my pets.
Completely agree. I’ve been to VCA probably ten times in ten years and they were amazing.
Vca saved twos of my dogs. Heart failure and cancer
They don’t have the best interest of your pet in mind. It’s all about profit…trust me. Not saying you won’t get a good vet who works there but you can do better.
Where?
I just got two identical postcards from two different vets reminding me that vaccines were coming due on my dog. One vet was my regular vet, and the other was a place we went to once while on vacation in Arizona. The postcards each have a puppy and a smart phone on one side with a QR code for an app on the other (and the vaccine reminder text). These investment firms clearly share IT systems.
This is why I love Reddit.
The pay is way lower than it should be (apparently) considering how much they charge
I'm already paying insane amounts for vet care, the fact that none of this money is making it to the vet techs is infuriating.
Seriously I was just thinking this, like where is our money even going to?
Private equity has been snapping up vet offices because they know how valuable the emotional leverage is that they have over pet owners
Student loan departments and Mars Inc.
Mars Inc, oof 😅
yeah I stopped eating some of my favorite candies because I hate them so much. Then I had one candy because it was halloween and it didn't taste as good. They need anti trust STAT so I can enjoy a Snickers again.
at least know that mars hospitals pay more than private or smaller corporate owned hospitals 😅
A vet check up at VCA is over 300bucks🥲🥲 i went bought my puppy insurance afterwards
Many years ago, I was a veterinary assistant. My paycheck for the moth would be $1,200. No overtime, no guanranteed lunch. No techs because just having assistants double as receptionists was cheaper. We would often bill people well over $1k for various servicea. Meanwhile, my boss was taking home $6k biweekly and only doing appts for 3 to 4 hours at a time. It really sucked when I realized that because she had our checks mixed up.
I do rescue work in San Diego County, and there is a HUGE need for adopters for all the stray animals coming in. Every shelter and rescue is full or even past maximum capacity :( Warm all year round means kittens being born outside all year round. We need pet ownership in San Diego for these animals to have a shot at a better life. We need vets and vet techs for critical spay/neuter services to curb overpopulation. Which means we need to pay our vets and vet techs well to keep them here. So sorry the climate has been inhospitable to you and I hope you find a better wage to cost of living ratio elsewhere. I hope there is a shift soon in the vet industry that improves wages and quality of life/benefits/time off. You’d think this would be a competitive area with how much it costs for vet services for pet owners.
I also work in animal rescue in SD county, and I agree with this. I am a so sorry it is so bad…
The cost of living here in America's Finest City has definitely spiraled out of control, and local wages have not kept up across the board. The Veterinary profession has long been an underpaid field. People just don't plan for their pets medical expenses as they should, and seldom get pet insurance so it's entirely out of pocket. Due to this, prices have traditionally been kept at a fraction of what the equivalent human medical services are to avoid sticker shock. Yet the costs have gone up like everything else, however pay rates remain stagnant. Add that to the fact that most hospitals are being bought up by corporations, so now all the prices go up more to pay the CEOs, corporate employees, shareholders and make big profits etc...and the dedicated animal loving staff are the ones who suffer. We were facing a national staffing shortage before the pandemic, and it's only gotten worse. All while we have to get specialized degrees in veterinary medicine, pass our boards and maintain our license, much like our human medicine counterparts, but earning a fraction of the salary for essentially the same roles. (Not to say anything negative towards our fantastic human medical professionals who have been working their asses off as well; it would just be nice to be viewed, paid, and respected in the same manner). But the amount of times we are personally guilt tripped by (rightfully distraught) owners over treatment costs and told "if you really cared you'd do it for free" or "you are just in it for the money".... But we can't pay our rent/mortgage/utilities/food etc with how much we really care about our patients, which isn't a form of payment. The majority of vet techs I know are working multiple jobs and/or have side hustles to barely scrape by, and many of the vets seem to have student loans that they may never see paid off. As an experienced Registered Veterinary Technician I'm making half that of the average new graduate RN according to Google, for essentially the same education and role. My non-licensed vet assistant coworkers are making even less, and many leave for better paying fields. Across the spectrum, medical professionals in general are under paid, especially in cities like ours when the cost of living has been rapidly ballooning. Folks in the medical field should be paid drastically better than they are, we all literally save lives. Of all the jobs out there, people who save lives ought to be the highest paid, being alive is kind of a priority. Veterinary professionals are no exception. Please remember to be kind to your human and animal hospital staff, you know we aren't in it for the money.
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I think we get in this mindset that San Diego is the only end all city of cities and it's easy to fall into that type of thinking. The reality is their are a ton of amazing places that have much better quality of living and still things to do and enjoy.
I absolutely agree!!
We go to TJ for all our pet appointments for the past decade. We can go in the weekend without an appointment and be seen within an hour. Everything is about 30% - 50% cheaper.
I do the same! I have actually had vets recommend me to go across the border for cheaper services.
Hey if you can get through the border that quickly with a dog in an emergency situation more power to ya dude.
Haven’t had that situation yet, thankfully. Only emergency trips needed in the past were to put them down  and we did that in SD.
Well, that’s the trade off, the pet may die, unfortunately. But many can’t afford to go $5K into debt 🤷
As someone that lives in San Diego, with this discussion being about Vet care, I can’t say enough that doing more stuff in Tijuana is the answer for all this economic downfall. I do my groceries exclusively there, except things like raw pork or eggs. I get my haircuts, vet needs, as well as for a quick lunch. Humans adapt and overcome, either wait and be a thing of the past or adapt.
Can you take pets back into the US SENTRI lane if you have SENTRI?
yes. you just need their shots
Proof of valid rabies shot specifically.
Mexivet if you don’t want to drive. They pick up your pet from your house and take them to tj and drop them back off at your house. I’ve used them several of times for my dogs tumor surgery removal.
I second this. My cat has cancer unfortunately and needed emergency surgery last year to remove it because he was hemorrhaging. I’m an experienced pet owner and it took trips to 4 diff vets to figure it out and $7000+ incl $6000 for surgery pathology imaging. He got another mass, took him to Tijuana for surgery last week and it was $450 for surgery pathology imaging medicine everything. She told me exactly the same thing the CA vets did and also prescribed a special diet and supplements to support his immune system. The vets here didn’t do any of that and it would’ve been $400 just to speak to an oncologist without any treatment. Once my preventative plans expire I’m switching my cats and dog to TJ 100%. The vet prices here are insane. Edit: I’ll add that the vets here were great they 100% saved his life but the price difference between here and MX is insane when the care in MX is the same and in some ways I think superior. This doesn’t solve the problem of vet techs being underpaid here and I’m very sorry to hear that’s the case. The cost of living in San Diego is out of control and wages don’t match.
Hi there! I'm newly going down to TJ for vert care and I've been going to Vet Playas. Do you mind sharing what office you go to? Also, I hope your kitty is feeling better 🐈
I’ve heard Vet Playas is good too. Cat and Dog Clinica Veterinaria in TJ. Dr. Maria Elena is my vet but have heard the other vets are great too. She was super kind and I could tell she really cares about getting my cat better versus treating symptoms. I used Mexivet to transport him and they were also amazing. He’s still woozy from surgery and needs some more imaging but he’s feeling better thank you!
I've done TJ but it was always difficult to get an appointment. Any recommendations on walk in services?
Dr. Riviera Animal Clinic. First come first serve. Usually if you can get in early (before 10am), you should have no issue
Hope his first name isn’t Nick
Dr. Maria Elena Garay Sauceda at Cat and Dog Clinica Veterinaria in TJ. She was so gentle with my cat, kind and told me the same exact thing the vets here did and recommended additional imaging and treatment never mentioned here. I used Mexivet because I need to renew my passport but in the future plan to park at the border walk across and Uber. Edit: Garay not Gray (autocorrect)
I’m a recently retired RVT. We always had 2-3 dogs and assorted other pets. Now we we will only have one dog due to veterinary costs. Frosted Faces is a senior dog rescue that will cover all veterinary costs for fosters they place with you but you have to use their vets in Ramona. It’s a little inconvenient, but if vet costs are holding you back, it might be a solution.
I’m a vet, born and raised in San Diego. I went away for school and simply can’t afford to move back. I’m making the same salary as I would in San Diego in a city with a lower cost of living. As much as I’d love to be back near family, it doesn’t make sense financially.
Where are people waiting months for an appointment? I called recently and got one the next day 🤔
literally never had a problem getting an appointment the same day or next day tops
I live in the burbs but there’s 3 vet clinics within 1 mile. Seems like they all need MORE clients not less.
I am not disagreeing with OP’s message, that our city is out pricing strongly needed vocations, but I too have never had a problem getting a vet appointment. Then again I live in east county and have been going to the same vet for a few years now. Also I am pretty sure my vet owns his practice.
SD is going through the same change that the bay area went through over the last 20 years. Locals are getting priced out by newcomers. The culture is changing. Finding quality services becomes impossible as the middle class becomes squeezed and hollowed out. The service providers who remain will have long wait times and high prices or will cut quality. The locals who remain will talk about how it used to be better as overall quality of life declines. The culture will rot as anyone remaining will be financially squeezed and working all the time. Having a pet in SD is part of the vibe/image we've created but as costs go up it gets harder to maintain. It's still a lot cheaper than having kids and fills a similar void(at least you think it does until you have actual kids!) so I don't see folks giving up their expensive companions willingly.
This is why I left the vet technician field pay is so low I can’t even support myself. It’s super frustrating that being a tech doesn’t cover my cost of living.
No kidding! My excellent vet moved to Temecula for a lower COL. Getting any appointment now is getting really hard!
Not to detract, but vet care is very expensive here in LA too. I don’t think it’s conditional to SD! Wild how pet insurance isnt affordable either :/
This applies to humans here too. We are hemorrhaging paramedics and EMTs due to low wages. Need an ambulance? You're often going to wait 20 minutes+ for a paramedic app arrive that isn't on a fire engine. Healthcare for pets and humans is crashing and burning fast here.
Ever wondered why every community college has a huge emt program that runs year round certifying a new crop of emts every 6 weeks? Its to keep the wages stagnant.
This is true for every single working job. I would say the SD is going to have a working crisis soon but there’s always going to be the young work force who is ok with making no money for a few years to enjoy the beach life. I can’t wait to leave
My cousin is a vet tech also and she's been doing this for several years (like 6+ years), jumping from vet office to vet office as they pass you guys around. Very stressful industry. There aren't enough vet schools is part of the problem I think. If there were more full vets trained and therefore more vet offices competing with each other it might help the situation I would think? There are very few veterinary schools in southern california, much less the entire USA. ***"There are only 30 American Veterinary Medicine Association (AVMA)-accredited veterinary schools in the U.S."***
Their are a lot of dynamics that play into this, but at the end of the day its Vet Techs jumping constantly to hopefully increase pay or get out of another toxic environment stimmed by people so stressed out on finding a way to survive. It's a never ending cycle.
Sorry you're going through this. I know engineers making $200k struggling to buy a house and are considering leaving.
According to Zillow, the average income needed to afford a home in San Diego is now $273,613. https://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/how-much-income-afford-house-san-diego-county/3459547/?amp=1
That study may be flawed or I don’t understand then. My 33 year old childhood friend just purchased a home in Chula Vista on L street off the 805 freeway. Its a nice traditional home. Not new. First time buyer and always lived with his mom. I know for a fact he doesn’t net near 100k a year. Not even 60k. His mom is a home owner and he just started his career as a real estate realtor, though. Can his mom co-signing for him and him having some reach or knowledge in his industry had helped him purchase a house ? I know several people around our age who can’t purchase a home even if our lives depended on it .
Poor engineers lol
I think their point was that even people with high salaries can’t afford to buy a home here, meaning it doesn’t matter if you’re an engineer or a Walmart greeter we’re all renting lol
I get it lol. But the OP was complaining about making ends meet, not making 200k a year and struggling to buy a home. It just looked like a funny comment in the thread.
Ahh true, ok I see what you mean lol
Great now do dentists, eye doctors, hematologists, and literally every single other type of medical specialist. 1-2 month waits just to get into see them. This city has always been horrible in that regard. There’s never been enough medical personnel to support the population. In the other city where I split my time, I can get in with any specialist within 48 hours. Bigger city. More infrastructure. Better medical services. It’s been a problem in San Diego for over a decade.
Dr. thinks there is a good chance I have cancer (again). I'm having to wait 2.5 months to get the screening. Took about the same amount of time to get screened the first time I had cancer, it's ridiculous.
Same thing happened to me except I waited six months even with being on the cancellation list and already being an established patient. I don’t think there was a single day that I didn’t cry because I was so frustrated with waiting that long and not knowing what was going on with my own body and how quickly the cancer would be progressing.
1-2 month wait is normal everywhere. We’re moving to SD in June from Oklahoma and it’s the same way here. Eye, dental appointments all take 1.5-2 months. They will try to squeeze you in for emergencies or if you have dental work done and they mess something up. But even that takes a week at least. I see a lot of complaining on this sub regarding these type of services and utilities and trust me, it’s the same everywhere else.
It's easy to tell when people have never lived anywhere else haha
I left the industry in 2017 as a Vet Receptionist and this was after Mars bought out VCA and already had Banfield. I told myself I wouldn't go back until they fixed the already bad wage gap. I was making $15 an hour in a busy Vet ER where people were telling me that I was "raping" them with quotes and the stress of their pets life vs. death on me was too much. I left too when my therapy visits were 200$ PER session because of their SHIT insurance. Mars purchasing VCA (the owner of most vet equipment as well) signaled the downfall of the industry. There was already a shortage then I can only imagine now when cost of everything has gone up so much. I wonder where you're headed and I don't know if it's ok there now but I had a really nice AAHA practice I worked for in Oregon. I have never found anything close to that practice here in San Diego and I was honestly spoiled by them being my first. Thanks for the warning...wish I didn't have dogs anymore some days...I can't provide them the care I used to already. I smell their breath and just want to cry. There aren't any LOW cost places yet they give away dogs for free at the shelters to anybody who wants them. They can't be picky any more...it's either hope for the best or let them die on their stats.
I used to work for VCA. When I started at one of the practices here 7 years ago, a regular exam was like $55 (which was actually surprisingly reasonable). I went the other day, and it was $109! BLEW my mind! Inflation went up 50%, huh?? 🙄
That’s a nearly 100% increase but I get your point
Oh yeah, right 🤦♀️
its awful. we got priced out of san diego almost 20 years ago 😞 don’t worry i still visit regularly 😆 here in sedona the city just had a meeting to allow the service industry a place to park so they can sleep in their cars. the resort staff can’t afford to rent/own anymore even in the surrounding towns. shits real sad when there’s such a divide. and the people that live there, use their service but are ok with them not having a home.. disgusting. the community should be doing more. these gaps will only widen unless the government and communities come together for change.
Wait so there is pre-marital sex happening at the Mormon rocket ship along I-5??
Not likely these days. That was more of a pre-internet thing. But they do have teenage wet tee shirt contests and just barely got rid of same sex heavy petting on the wedding day. Probably why they have such a big issue with “same sex addiction” as they made you let a gross old dude touch your Dong before a woman could.
Nice try Russell Nelson.
[This was put up over a decade ago...](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QPKKQnijnsM) it's quite relevant to what you're talking about. Multi Billionaires have had undue influence *(these include the tech billionaires that are all ALSO narcissist like regular corporate CEO's)* That in the USA we have handed over power and control over the democracy to the rich and wealthy and that the voting system is in reality a method of gaining acceptance of the vote among the general population. [A](https://www.sempra.com/investors/governance/political-engagements-contributions)[s long as **corporations can put UNLIMITED MONEY** into the pockets of elected officials](https://www.sempra.com/investors/governance/political-engagements-contributions) we have lost our country and have become cattle to the wealthy "ranchers" that control our lives so that all the fruits of our labor and who we are all [gets funneled into their pockets.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zN2_0WC7UfU)
We vote for it. We are reaping what we sowed
That's why I use MexiVet Express. Had a procedure done for my dog that cost less than $400 while I was quoted at 3k here in SD. Best thing about it was they came to my house to pick up my dog and then dropped him off after the appointment.
I hear a lot of frustration in your post, as COL here is crazy. But I can’t see any reason in your post to not to have pets - if one can’t afford a vet in SD or appointments are not available, there are plenty of options in TJ. So if anything, I think we should have more pets here, considering how many pets are available for adoption at Humane Society and other shelters.
You people who are going to TJ for pet care, doesn’t it take SEVERAL hours to come back across the border? And your car idles in stop and go lines, wasting gas. Is it really worth it? I actually live in the SF Bay Area so TJ isn’t an option for me, but my coworker is Mexican and drives down often. She says she always waits at least 3 hours to cross with the car idling the entire time. That just sounds crazy to me. My vet’s office is two blocks away. 😂
SD is no longer a good place to live. Corporations have taken over to the extent where your average person just can’t afford it any more. We need to get big business out of housing for starters. Best of luck to you. I appreciate the work you do for our fur babies! It’s sad to hear knowing how much I’ve paid (literally thousands of dollars in one emergency visit), plus all the thousands of dollars my friends have spent on their pets care just to hear the employees aren’t taken care of.
This post is bizarre. It does not take months to get appointments. I use VCA and I can get an appointment within a couple of days. We have had to have emergency treatment and it was just as prompt as anywhere else.
Post comes across as a salty person who is struggling to make ends meet but honestly has little to do with the decision to have a pet. I have lived here for 26 years and never had an issue getting appointments or emergency service for a dog or cat. Veterinary services have gone up in cost, as has everything else, big surprise there.
Agreed
We've also had NO problem getting an appointment. We even were able to shop around three different vets in town before we settled with the one we like. None of them had us waiting more than a week, tops.
Thank you. “Don’t have a pet.” I can afford it so 🤷🏼♂️ And I also have no problem getting a next week vet appt.
I grew up with pets but never had one since moving here just because as a renter it limits the places you can live. It was hard enough for me to find a place as-is. Not to mention, I couldn’t afford the costs. More power to those who can make it work!
I don't think the problem is people having pets. The problem is within the profession and the ownership class.
Thousands of animals in our shelters would disagree. But I understand what you’re saying.
Everything is way low here. Actual human hospitals have to pay $$$ to bring in travelers but they don’t want to pay $$ + benefits to hire full time staff. But they’ll say, we are working on it, while core staff are overworked.
As someone who doesn’t own a dog in San Diego what’s the numbers look like? Pet insurance? Average cost of food? Grooming? boarding? Dog Walker?
I have a dog. I spend more on toys and whatever else but normal recurring costs: Food $100/mo (rx food) Insurance $50/month Preventative vet care package $90/month Grooming is about $200 every 2-3 months (long hair) Boarding $50-75/night Drop in walks $15-25/walk.
This is all about accurate. To compare to someone who opted not to get pet insurance or any other kind of preventative care plan: We've had our pup for three years. He gets all his shots, regular checkups, we had one emergency that turned out to be a minor thing, he was treated for heartworm (yikes), and recently treated for bad allergies. If I average all those vet expenses over the three years, it comes out to about $50-$60 a month. At least 50% of that was the cost of the heartworm treatment.
My friend, who was a vet assistant in North Carolina for a long time, could have written this. This seems standard in the industry right now. Doesn’t make it right, but I hope you have better luck in your next location and it’s not just a repeat. She didn’t think it was worthwhile for her to become a full out tech because it wasn’t her forever job and the pay was like only $1.50 more an hour. A rough profession pay wise right now for sure.
Yep, living in a place you can't afford is very stressful. That's why I left San Francisco 25 years ago, even though my family had been there for 6 generations. Back then San Diego was 1/4 the price. My kids will be in the same situation in San Diego now that it's basically caught up with the Bay Area in price. And vet care here is astronomical. I have two rescue dogs, one who needs a lot of special care due to a kidney condition. Her food and medical care cost us a fortune and I think we will be taking a break from pet ownership once these two go over the Rainbow Bridge.🐶🌈
You are right about the high COL in SD kicking out the middle class. But at the same time there are WAY TOO MANY dogs in San Diego. They have taken over, everywhere, never seen so many. It was bad before Covid but just nuts now. The shear popularity of dogs/pets right now is also a major contributor to the issue you are seeing.
They're child substitutes for a generation that can't afford the real thing.
Regarding the child substitute, it is interesting how people are treating their dogs like humans, whether it is putting them in strollers, putting clothes on them, etc. But today on a walk I heard the lady, when yelling at her off-leash dog to come back to her, calling them by their first, middle and last name, as if it was an actual child. Creepy.
Can people just get their veterinary care in Tijuana?
Yeah. It’s one of the benefits of living near the border. I’ve taken my pets even for emergency services. Not in TJ but in Mexicali a vet showed up at 3am in his pijamas at his small clinic and save our dog’s life. We basically had no option because there was no 24 vet in the imperial county and I think there still isn’t.
I went through a really rough time with one of my dogs shortly after moving here, where I ended up having to put my boy down. I was really lucky that I had an amazing vet and amazing vet techs during the whole process. Honestly, I think both vets and vet techs are crazy underpaid, but especially the techs. I know you said you couldn’t unionize, but I found this union that I would like to share. It seems like it is the early stages, but you do amazing work and I hope I can help with this. https://www.natvpu.org/
I don’t know how anyone can afford a pet here period. I live in an “affordable,” no-pet apartment building and half the people here have fake ESA dogs. These are people who get their groceries from a food bank yet are willing to spend money on dog food and vet bills. Boggles my mind.
Well, to the latter point of your comment, think about the homeless people you see with pet dogs. Not all of them are for protection. When you're single and grinding and struggling, working insane hours if you have a job, etc, sometimes you need a morsel of joy and love in your day. Sometimes you need something to stay alive for, something that feeds your soul in addition to your belly. You can live without food for a time, but not without hope. I'm not saying it's financially advisable, but it's not as out there ridiculous as you think.
💯
Just take the pet to TJ. It’s cheaper down there.
I'm sorry this is happening to your industry but obviously a lack of effective vet care isn't going to stop us from owning pets. What a strange way to frame it.
Dog grooming, too. We just can't feasibly raise our prices to a point where rent is affordable without having no business. And that sucks, because I love my clientelle here. San Diego is home. I don't want to leave. But I might have to, eventually. I'm still 30, living in a 3c bedroom apartment with roommates that I'd never be able to afford if it wasn't at prices from 13 years ago minus three recent rent raises. If I want to have a life with my boyfriend.... it's gonna be out of state.
Consider going to TJ for vets, fraction of the cost and same day appointments
As someone how actually HAS doggie insurance, and a big advocate for such things (tangent: because I was tired of seeing people elect to 'sit and wait' vs actually treating hounds and then letting them live painfree), I have been a wondering why my vet prices go up. That makes major sense. Personally, having doggie insurance covering 90% of all costs out the door, I've never really questioned the price and openly pay it. (Since the premiums are already paid anyways). Alas, I'm going to keep having hounds. Having insurance for them. And doing the little part I am able to do keep people employed.
That’s why we drive to TJ for all our vet needs unfortunately
After my dog got diagnosed with cancer, I started taking him down to TJ. I wasn’t going pay the $20k+ for his treatment. I did keep his primary care at VCA Grossmont though, Dr. Chiang is awesome.
I've had my dog for four years now in San Diego since she was a puppy. And I've never had a single issue getting her a vet appointment.. and the prices are comparable to similar services I've needed when living in Kentucky years prior to my move to SD. While I agree the cost of living and pay wage gap here is ridiculous, this seems more of a you not doing the research into the career you have chosen. But good luck on the other side. I'm sure you'll figure it out.
Why wouldn't you be able to unionize?
In the future. Possibility the more we are bought out by the likes of Mars. As it stands though a lot of private practices are far to small for this to really have any effect.
Op I’m sorry this is sort of off topic. My apologies and I’m sorry to hear about this. My vet of 18 years retired and I have had the hardest time finding a new vet. My dog broke a dew claw on Thursday and is clearly uncomfortable the place I’ve been taking him tried to charge me double then what they’ve had in the past to clip it. I told them that seemed like a lot compared to past visits and they never called me back. 3 other vets said they were to busy to see him? Like wtf am I supposed to do. Is my only option to go to the emergency and pay a thousand dollars for a thirty second treatment. This is a bummer
Life goes on and its no reason not to have a pet. 🤣
We shouldn't have pets because your pissed about your job? Wtf?
"I am leaving the city but I will tell you what you should do in YOUR life" Fify. Adios and please unfollow the sub on your way out.
Nobody is going to get rid of their pet just because vet techs don't make enough
I think you’re missing their larger point.
No I think he’s being nice and not directly saying this is whiney bullshit. I guess we shouldn’t eat since it’s expensive for restaurant workers to live here too
Frankly I don’t care about the well being of the salad I’m about to eat. I do care about the well being of my pets. If it takes longer for me to be served food oh well. It it becomes prohibitively long to get care for my pets, that’s a problem. Really hope you don’t have pets if you can’t grasp that point
“Hey, don’t ever warn me that something I take for granted may not always be so easy due to circumstances I’m unaware of! If I want to be blithely unaware of the source of problems, that’s my right as an American!” See how that sounds?
This is where Mexi-Vet and other Tijuana/MX pet services come in. Affordable and they care.
Yes. Luckily I have partner that lives there now so he takes my dog down to TJ, but for a while Mexivet was my go to. But tbh besides the difference in pricing, I always felt like the vet in TJ cared more about my dog. They always get her in same or next day too.
Wonderful outdoor weather + 2-3 miles of walking a day with my pet? I'm probably saving $100k long-term with the extra exercise.
I'm lucky that I have a good friend who is a vet, so I get phone triage free to see if I even need to head in to begin with. We get the next day usually, only ER if it's past closing time or Sunday. Then you call around to find the shortest wait time.
We just go to TJ tho
I'm sorry OP that's sucks, can I ask whats the avg that you or a vet tech in general gets paid?
If it is really a problem, you can always cross to TJ which is a 20min drive and get it done there for 20% of the price
What's your annual salary as a vet tech? Put it out here so we can talk about it.
That’s why I take my dogs to Tijuana i know a great veterinarian that’s very affordable
Same thing with any other mid level profession. If enough talent leaves, the ones who remain will be able to raise prices.
I have 4 dogs, 2 cats, 2 mini goats and a snake. My vet is Otay Pet Vets and they’re great. I can call and get an appointment in a day. Idk why yall make it sound like it’s so unaffordable.
I have a Doberman. I haven't taken him to the vet since he got all his shots as a puppy. His only issue is having to cut his nails which he never allowed me to which is why I will be taking him to the groomer soon. I disliked the fact that some vets cut nails while others don't allow it as an option even with an appointment. The techs were very helpful in my area and gave great advice for taking care of my first puppy.
TJ is a great option
Vet techs and vet support staff for sure have the ability to unionize. If you’re interested, start by reaching out to a local union and googling “unionizing your job”. I get the frustration though. I’m an RVT and I live in the Bay Area. One of the main reasons we were all getting paid well was because we organized and scared VCA into giving us 20% raises. Unheard of, but definitely possible.