This petition is born out of a deeply personal and distressing experience. Indy Duke, a beloved family pet, required emergency surgery. We were presented with three different prices from three different offices for the same procedure - $10,000, $6,000 or $3,000 with an extra hour drive. This inconsistency in pricing is not only confusing but also exploitative during times of crisis.

The current system allows veterinary practices to refuse life-saving treatment until full payment is made upfront. In our case, if we didn't have the money on hand immediately they would have let Indy die. After one clinic performed the surgery without pay upfront, they refused to release our pet until we had paid in full - essentially holding him hostage. 

We are all mammals deserving of love and respect. Healthcare should not be a privilege reserved for those who can afford it at any given moment. Ten years ago my family was in a better place when we got Indy, times have changed and we are not nearly as well off as we once were. It's time to change laws to require animals the right to have emergency surgery without prepayment and mandate vets do everything possible to save a life rather than euthanizing due to financial constraints. No animal should be killed or given euthanization unless they are suffering and cannot be saved. Every animal has a right to live.

Veterinary clinics should bill the patients' owners as human hospitals do and there should be set prices for particular surgeries and medications - no price gouging when a life hangs in balance or any other time. The practice of holding an animal until payment must end; it's akin to ransom demands which are both unethical and cruel.

Accordingly, we call upon lawmakers nationwide to implement these changes that will ensure fair treatment of pets in medical crises irrespective of their owners' immediate financial capabilities. Imagine going to the hospital with your child and your child needing emergency surgery but the doctor won't do the surgery to save your child until you pay for everything. Some people's pets are like their children and what is currently allowed nationwide is cruel and needs to be changed. We need lawmakers to step up and put laws in place to protect animals from being used as money-making objects. If Veterinarians are not willing to try to save every life that crosses their threshold then they need not have a Veterinarian License. There is no reason Veterinarians can't go through the billing process as every hospital does. I literally worked as a veterinary assistant and heard Veterinarians say they would put down someone's pet before they would do surgery if they didn't have the money upfront. I worked with a Veterinarian that did not want to try to save any pet if the owners were poor but they would euthanize the pet for them which is unfortunate and unethical. 

Please sign this petition today; help to bring about necessary change that will protect your pets and all pets like Indy Duke from being victimized by an unjust system. Please sign and share this so we can make changes in the law to protect our pets.