When Anna Ginsky’s terrier mix Ellie needed a teeth-cleaning in 2014, she was quoted over $2,000 in out-of-pocket costs by her vet in San Diego, California.
“I had just happened to get my tax return, and I had gotten around that amount back,” Ginsky, 42, who was then working as a barista, told The Independent. “But I was like, ‘man, that’s going to be a bummer that I’m going to have to give that money to this dental work that she needs’.”
That’s when a friend made an interesting suggestion. “She was like, ‘well, we get our dental work done in Tijuana… do you think that they do dog teeth cleanings, too?” Ginsky recalled.
The notion proved fortuitous — and cost-effective. After researching online, Ginsky discovered affordable veterinary care on the other side of the U.S.-Mexican border. Soon, Ellie was on her way to a dog dentist in Tijuana with Ginsky where she had dental cleaning, extractions and bloodwork done for around $400.
“That first experience made me feel really good. I was like, ‘Oh shoot, I can say yes to everything.’ I don’t have to dread the vet because I know that I’m not gonna drain my whole savings account here,” Ginsky said.
Some 95 million American households own a pet, and prices for veterinarian services in the U.S. have gone up by over 300 percent in the last 30 years, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
As a result, many are looking beyond the states to care for their furry friends.
The latest data from SENASICA (an agency covering part of Mexico’s Ministry of Agriculture) reveals that over 33,500 pets crossed into Mexico from the U.S. in 2023, an increase of 68 percent in four years.
Traveling across the border for their own medical and dental care has become a frequent trip for many Americans with over 550,000 U.S. citizens going to Mexico for dental procedures in 2024, according to Patients Without Borders.
As well as Tijuana, cities including Los Algodones and Cancun have established themselves as dental tourism hubs, offering dozens of clinics with U.S.-grade medical equipment and bilingual staff to cater to American patients. Like veterinary care, procedures are often thousands of dollars cheaper in Mexico, according to consulting firm, Grand View Research.
The American Veterinary Medical Association, which represents 111,000 U.S. vets, is strongly against the practice and noted that only one veterinary school in Mexico meets U.S. accreditation standards.
“The initial savings may be appealing, but there are often hidden costs and risks that deserve careful consideration,” AVMA president Dr. Michael Q Bailey told Intelligencer.
Pet-related horror stories are extremely rare, however, and growing numbers of people are considering making use of the services.
Page Ryland, a 27-year-old personal assistant from Los Angeles, was quoted $22,000 for nasal passage correction surgery for her French Bulldog, Brody, in 2023.
“French Bulldogs are notorious for hurting the wallet,” she told The Independent. “I remember there being times where I would get the vet bill after Brody had one of his many medical issues and thinking, ‘oh, my God, this is going to actually set me back.’ I mean, I’m talking like my entire paycheck and then some.”
Though the surgery was not immediately necessary, Ryland has considered venturing south.
“If that same surgery could be done the same way in Tijuana, or anywhere in Mexico, hopefully for less than half the price… I would 100 percent go down there. I’d just have to figure out the logistics,” she said.
Fortunately, help with logistics is now precisely what Ginsky is offering.
After her own positive experience, she founded MexiVet Express in 2018 to connect pet owners in San Diego with affordable vet care in Tijuana. The company‘s packages include animal transportation and translation services between Mexican vets and American owners.
No pet passports or insurance is required for them to make the crossings – only proof of vaccines and a CDC dog import form, which the company fills out.
MexiVet Express has 15 full-time employees, with seven drivers shuttling dogs between San Diego and Tijuana. Transporting three to five animals at a time, the drivers make several trips per day, and they are nearly always fully booked.
“If somebody wants to use a vet in Mexico or Tijuana they definitely need to do their research,” Ginsky said. “The good thing is that we’ve done that work for you.”
With business booming, competing services have sprung up, including PetMex international – run by two former MexiVet employees, which offers “white glove cross border home-to-clinic pet transportation.” The company promises customers can save up to 90 percent off their “traditional vet bill.”
Ginsky says she has heard of other sole proprietors running similar businesses with just one vehicle. “They’ve heard about what we’re doing and they’ve thought ‘oh, that’s a good way to earn some extra cash,’” she said.
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