Description
PDSA is a British veterinary charity that treats the pets of people on benefits for free or at reduced prices, in its own pet hospitals and through partner vets.
Maria Dickin opened it on 17 November 1917 in a basement in Whitechapel, London, as the People’s Dispensary for Sick Animals of the Poor. It is a registered charity in England and Wales and in Scotland (nos. 208217 and SC037585), and runs more than 40 pet hospitals. In 2023 it treated more than 430,000 pets, with 2.2 million treatments. Since 2011 it has published the PAW Report, a yearly survey with YouGov on the wellbeing of pets in the UK.
Help depends on benefits and postcode. Owners living near a PDSA hospital who receive Housing Benefit, Council Tax Support or Universal Credit with the housing element get free treatment for one pet; other pets go to the low-cost service. That service is open to people on a wider list of benefits, including Pension Credit and PIP, at prices PDSA puts at 20 to 30 % below private vets. Where there is no hospital, a Pet Care Scheme with private practices lets owners pay a small monthly amount.
Strengths
- Treatment is free for one pet in households on housing-related benefits near a hospital.
- Low-cost prices are 20 to 30 % below private vets, for a broad list of benefits.
- It treated more than 430,000 pets in 2023, in more than 40 hospitals and partner practices.
Weaknesses
- Help is only for people on benefits who live in the catchment of a hospital or partner practice.
- Free care covers one pet per household, and PDSA gives no money towards treatment elsewhere.
- Its eligibility page returned an error when checked, and the monthly cost of the Pet Care Scheme isn’t published.
Who it is for
Pet owners in the UK on Housing Benefit, Universal Credit or other qualifying benefits who need a vet they can afford and live near a PDSA hospital.
Sources
- PDSA: home, our services, why we’re special, PAW Report (checked November 2026)