Not every financial situation fits neatly into a credit application. Third-party financing programs are useful tools, but they rely on credit profiles that don’t always reflect a person’s actual ability and intention to pay. In-clinic payment plans take a different approach: they’re built on a direct relationship between your veterinary clinic and you, structured around what you can realistically manage. At Great Plains Veterinary Clinic, we offer this option through VetBilling, a platform designed to help practices extend that kind of trust-based arrangement without creating administrative chaos in the process.
We work with clients across Vaughn, Power, Fort Shaw, and the rural stretches of Cascade County, and we’ve seen firsthand what financial pressure looks like in an agricultural community. Our payment options give every client multiple pathways, and in-clinic plans are the option that works when the others don’t. If staying on top of your pet’s health through regular preventive care is already a priority, a payment plan can make it possible to handle an unexpected cost without derailing everything else.
VetBilling is a cloud-based platform that allows our clinic to offer structured payment arrangements without managing the billing cycle manually. The system automates recurring drafts from your bank account or credit card, handles reminders and exceptions, and updates payment methods when cards expire or accounts change. Here is what the process looks like from your first conversation with us to your final payment.
The key distinction between VetBilling and a third-party financing company is that VetBilling does not pay the clinic upfront. There’s no loan issued to you from a financial institution. Instead, the clinic extends the arrangement directly, and VetBilling manages the mechanics of collecting it — giving our clinic more flexibility in who qualifies and on what terms.
Research published in Frontiers in Veterinary Science examined more than six years of VetBilling data across nearly 400 veterinary clinics and found that when plans are structured appropriately, 95.1% of accounts were successfully repaid. That figure matters because it demonstrates what our team believes: most clients who need a payment plan are not a credit risk. They’re people who care deeply about their animals and need a structure that works with their actual financial life.
In a community like ours, where rural and agricultural employment shapes the income patterns of many households across Cascade County, having a payment option that doesn’t filter purely by credit score means more animals get treated. That’s the entire point.
The best time to ask about a payment plan is before your visit, not during it. If you know a procedure is coming up — a diagnostic workup, ongoing care for a chronic condition, or care you’ve been putting off — reaching out ahead of time gives us the chance to structure something workable before the appointment. Our pet care guides can also help you stay ahead of common conditions so that fewer surprises arise in the first place.
If cost has been a reason you’ve hesitated to bring a pet in, we’d rather have that conversation now than have it after something has progressed further than it needed to.
Dr. Jessica Johnson came to Montana because she believes in this community, and she built this clinic to serve it. As a 2017 graduate of the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine with experience across both large and small animals, she understands the range of situations our clients face. Her approach to care is grounded in the idea that healthy animals and healthy families go together, and financial barriers to that outcome aren’t acceptable when there’s a reasonable path around them.
If you want to talk through whether a payment plan is right for your situation, reach out to our team and we’ll have a straightforward conversation about what we can do.
We’re happy to work with you to find a payment option that feels right for your situation. Just ask—we’re here to help make great care easier and more accessible.
Let’s work together to give your pet the happy, healthy life they deserve.
