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To launch our 41st season, host Erica Johnson reveals how pet owners may be paying hundreds of dollars for questionable treatments and procedures at the vet. On hidden camera, the Marketplace team goes undercover with our four-legged sleuth, Marshall, a healthy bulldog, taking him to ten veterinary clinics. We put the vets to the test on what they'll recommend for routine pet care needs.
Some vets we visit prescribe vaccines our undercover dog doesn't need, testing that's unnecessary, expensive medications and pet food, as well as differing diagnoses for a common condition. And we reveal five ways that your vet bill may be inflated and how to keep your pet healthy and your vet costs down.
With 14 million dogs and cats in Canada and a 90 per cent jump in household pet care spending since 1997, no wonder pet owners facing soaring vet bills are Barking Mad.
We take our results to health and nutrition experts, as well as disgruntled pet owners, who tell us that they're not impressed. "I think that's in pretty poor taste, if they're charging for stuff we don't need," one dog owner tells us.
And we also take your concerns to the Canadian Veterinary Medical Association (CVMA). "You need to have a very active conversation with your veterinarian," Dr. Jim Berry says, CVMA president. "We will find lots of ways to work with you to maximize the health of your pet and to minimize cost."
Watch our full investigation for more on what we uncover. And you can join the Marketplace watchdog team by sending us your vet bills. We're building a map of what Canadians coast to coast pay for basic services at the vet.
It's the wild west for moving companies, so this week, Marketplace is wiring up a house with hidden cameras and getting ready for a showdown.
We found a great deal online, but what's going to happen at high noon?
Bandit movers are robbing Canadians across the country with a truckload of tricks. From sneaky hidden charges to surprise contracts, fly-by-night movers make an already stressful day worse.
"I got robbed right in broad daylight and the worst thing is I called them to come to my house and rob me," one angry customer tells us.
So Marketplace is tracking down one shady outfit. What happens when we decide not to stand up to their scare tactics? A showdown on the street.
How can you protect your wallet and your stuff from moving company mayhem? The Marketplace Survival Guide gives you everything you need to know to avoid your own movin' day showdown.
Marketplace is checking back in to six of Canada's largest hotel chains, testing to see if they have cleaned up their act after we revealed The Dirt on Hotels last year. Are the stains on the sheets and walls gone? Are the bathrooms and ice machines free of bacteria?
After Marketplace uncovered what's really between the sheets and hiding in Canada's seemingly clean rooms last year, hotel chains promised to improve their cleaning practices. But did they? Despite promises to address the shocking conditions, bedroom surprises still lurk in some of Canada's most popular hotels.
Canadians are installing spray foam insulation in their homes in ever-expanding numbers. It's sold as energy-efficient, easy-to-apply solution, but when the job goes wrong, it can be a nightmare for homeowners.
Tom Harrington takes you inside the walls and up into the attic to explore a home renovation horror story, a foul-smelling foam job that's driven a family from its home.
Are you sick of door-to-door salespeople and their high-pressure tactics?
Watch as we reveal the secret psychology of persuasion used by door-to-door salespeople, and show how some Canadians are fighting back.
When you trust someone else to take care of your car, can you trust that they're not taking you for a ride?
This week, our undercover investigation reveals ripoffs at a popular oil change chain. We're going in for the advertised $19.99 oil change, but you won't believe the charges we end up with. And did they even do the work? We go up on the hoist to show you what's really going down at these oil change shops.
It's a shopping trip you won't want to miss.
We're doing some testing - and about to reveal secrets behind the food lots of us buy every week. Erica Johnson and Tom Harrington will reveal food secrets that just may change the way you eat.
"I'm afraid we're being gouged."
Marketplace hits the road putting prices to the test in Canada and the US checking in on products at some of the largest retailers.
It's no surprise that Canadians pay more than our friends south of the border for some items, including how we're being shut out of cheaper US car prices. You'll never believe what we find on our cross border shop-a-thon.
It's a little machine that can save your life... if you can find it in time. Are those publicly accessible defibrillators really that accessible?
It's a scavenger hunt like you've never seen as our Heart Start Patrol hunts down these mighty machines.
Find out why Canada needs A SHOCK TO THE SYSTEM.
You think you're covered... but what if you're not?
Ordinary Canadians are in financial ruin after discovering they lacked the coverage they thought they were paying for.
This week, Marketplace gives you a a crash course in insurance as we check the fine print, reveal the loopholes and show you how - for travel, your home and your car - you may not be covered.
Had it with frustrating packaging? Tape, twist-ties, impossible-to-open plastic... we asked for your nominations for Canada's most frustrating package and now we're handing out the first-ever Wrap Rage awards! Over-packaged products can be a pain - they take ages to open and produce so much waste that even environmental icon David Suzuki had a nomination, saying he's "pissed off."
Eight sorority sisters take the Marketplace Detox Challenge, testing the claims behind TV star Dr. Oz's "detox" cleanse.
Detoxing has become a multi-billion dollar industry and Canadians are gulping down detox elixirs and going to extremes to cleanse their bodies. We ask: is there real science behind the claims, or are we just swallowing a story?
Marketplace puts retailers' return policies to the test. Out of luck, because you've lost your receipt? Don't have the original packaging? Missed the 30-day deadline?
Retailers don't have to give your money back, or offer an exchange or a credit. That means a successful return often comes down to a shopper's individual abilities. We teach three Canadians the secrets of negotiation - then challenge them to do successful returns. We reveal what it takes to get past the point of no returns.
Can sport products make us push farther, run faster, become fitter?
We're holding our own trials and asking some of Canada's greatest Olympians what works for them. Clara Hughes and Simon Whitfield join co-host Tom Harrington as Marketplace digs into the world of sports drinks, performance foods and specialized athletic gear.
It's tax season, and Marketplace is putting financial advisors - the people you trust with your cash - to the test.
We talk to ordinary Canadians who've felt the bite of bad financial advice, and use hidden cameras to catch outrageous promises from some big institutions. We'll show you the tactics to watch out for and give you tips on figuring out who to trust with your money.
Plus, we bring you the whole grain truth about Subway's bread.
Nearly 60% of Canadians have tried an adventure sport like rock climbing, parasailing or ziplining. But those adventure sports can lead to terrifying misadventure... or worse.
What's really behind that waiver you had to sign? Who's looking out for you when you’re left Up in the Air?
Also, Canadians drink almost 10 billion cups of tea every year. But what's lurking in your cup? We tested tea for pesticides, and found that tea can be a strange brew indeed.
Erica Johnson investigates turkey and reveals the darker side of white meat. Undercover footage shows what one activist calls "the worst abuse I've ever seen inflicted on an animal," raising troubling questions about animal welfare on Canadian farms.
Also, Tom Harrington enlists a popular prankster to surprise Canadians with personal information they've shared on social media. How exposed are you on social media?
From lost luggage to lengthy delays to oversold flights, who's looking out for you when you fly in Canada? Tom Harrington reveals the rights you have as a passenger when things go plane wrong - and when airlines won't give you the straight goods.
When we're eating out, we expect the places that make our food to be as clean as possible. But almost two million of us get sick every year. What's happening behind the scenes?
Marketplace goes undercover in some of your favourite chains to reveal Canada's Restaurant Secrets. We've pored over thousands of inspection reports from coffee shops, fast-food and family dining restaurants and we'll reveal who comes out on top.
Celebrity chef Roger Mooking joins us for a crash course in kitchen hygiene in our special one-hour season finale!
Where does your favourite restaurant rank?
