Will you spend whatever it takes on a pet?

[mom2rtk]

We spent close to $3000 on the gray cat in my signature. She had luxating patella's on both her back legs. They regrooved them. She was about 4 at the time and had no other health problems so we had the surgery. This same cat now has allergies/asthma and get steroid shots 3-4 times a year and to add to the equation 2 months ago was diagnosed at diabetic. She's on a special diet now and it seems to be controlling the diabetes. If she has to go to shots we'll re-evaluate things, we'll probably end up doing them if we need to but she's close to 13 now.

We had a diabetic dog. It really wasn't hard doing the daily shots. What was hard was the countless return trips to the vet every time he started peeing all over the house, indicating he needed his dose adjusted. But seriously, don't let the idea of giving the shots scare you. I hope you're able to get it under control and have some more quality time together.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

One of my dogs died during "exploratory" surgery when I was about 17. I was absolutely devastated. Sadly, they never found anything wrong. I didn't know any better then than to take what the doctors told me at face value. (Unfortunately, not much parental oversight then, and somehow it wasn't as big a deal back then having to be 18 to sign things.) The experience taught me a lot (as did many years as a hospital nurse). I never rush into any surgery (unless, of course, it's a true emergency) as there are always some risks. I've had a lifetime now of very active, large dogs (and one little one) who've had lots of twists and sprains and whatnot, but fortunately I had a vet who also didn't rush into surgery (which I is probably, in part, why I liked him and stayed with him for so many years) so treating conservatively served everyone well. If a dog was limping, treatment was rest, then wait and watch. Not a lot of pain medication, either, as he'd always say that things needed to heal, so some pain was ok because it forced the dog to rest, and pain medication would mask the pain so the dog would continue to be active if there was no pain. He was adamant about rest. We were fortunate because none of the dogs ever required any major orthopedic surgery. (The little one was in a cast before, but no surgery.) One of my friends had a dog all set to undergo orthopedic surgery when there was a family emergency. Things got delayed, and in that time, the dog stopped limping and never wound up with surgery. They had told them he'd need not one, but two surgeries likely. So I think there's sometimes no harm in waiting and watching. I would recommend that even if you have insurance - don't rush into surgery. A few years back a radiologist diagnosed my son by MRI as having a torn meniscus in his knee from a sports injury. He wound up in surgery and guess what, his meniscus wasn't torn, it was just a soft tissue injury (that healed with rest and PT). My son underwent the risk of general anesthesia and had his knee torn open for nothing. Was not happy about that.

 

[jenm2878]

It depends on age and prognosis. We recently lost 2 of our 3 cats to cancer.

The first one was absolutely my baby; he was close to 15 and always our healthiest cat. He ended up getting a tumor under his tongue that could not be removed, and the vet said any extraordinary measures would only extend his life by weeks. We chose not to put him through that. Had he been younger and the prognosis better, who knows how much I would have spent on him.

Three weeks later, his 14 year old sister who was entirely dependent on him got a "cold" that she couldn't recover from. Two trips to the vet later we find out she had lymphoma and was likely just holding on for her brother while he was alive. We also chose to do the kind thing and put her down rather than put her through treatments that would not extend her life for long. She also was absolutely terrified of going to the vet and I couldn't put her through making many vet trips for treatment.

Our pets are completely members of the family, so it wasn't an easy decision either time.

 

[Jennasis]

I have a LOT of pets....2 dogs, 3 cats (1 just past), and 7 horses. In the last 9 months I have had the following vet bills:

Dog 1: $597 for teeth cleaning and extracting 3 teeth (including pre-post op meds)
Cat 1: $30/month for thyroid meds since July, $500 for various tests to diagnose, $200 to euthanize in December
Cat 2/3: $250 for kitten shots and neutering in June
Horse 1: $300 for shockwave therapy on hairline fracture of splint bone 2 weeks ago
Horse 2: $400 for 25 stitches on massive leg gash including antibiotics in early Jan
Horse 3: $200 for x-rays twice to diagnose hoof infection last month
Horse 4: $300 for xrays for broken elbow and meds in June
Horse 5: $450 for joint injection next month

It is appalling to me how much more expensive the small animal vet stuff is vs. my large animal vet. We pay what it costs to care for our animals...unless the cost will not make them 100% whole again. Will not prolong inevitable suffering.

 

[Magpie]

We don't know this to be true. I know I don't speak cat language or read their minds, but I also don't speak French, German, Swahili, etc or read their minds and know they understand why they suffer.

Dr. Temple Grandin has made connections about animal knowledge and pain (among other things) and once spoke about cattle that were abused by a worker in a black cowboy hat and as a result would balk at any worker in a black cowboy hat but had no problem with those in white/natural cowboy hats. They understood where it was coming from and made the conscious decision to get away from it.

I'm sure they know they're dying. But, I was actually talking more about having a religious or moral or philosophical reason to embrace suffering.

Animals don't do that.

And, as I said, a pet in pain rarely has the freedom to end their own life. You may argue that they do sometimes end their own lives, but not an indoor cat, who can't possibly even choose to crawl away and hide. They don't have that option.

I love Temple Grandin. If you haven't seen it, do check out her TED talk.

 

[Disney_traveler]

I'm sure they know they're dying. But, I was actually talking more about having a religious or moral or philosophical reason to embrace suffering.

Animals don't do that.

And, as I said, a pet in pain rarely has the freedom to end their own life. You may argue that they do sometimes end their own lives, but not an indoor cat, who can't possibly even choose to crawl away and hide. They don't have that option.

I love Temple Grandin. If you haven't seen it, do check out her TED talk.

2 things:
1) again, you don't know that. It is possible any animals have some kind of religious or moral or philosophical reason for doing what they do.

2) I teach Ag and studied Animal Science. I have seen recordings of her presentations, read books, research, seen the new movie. She was even part of my Master's research.

 

[WDWBarb]

As my little chihuahua loses her battle with cancer, I wish there was a sum of $$ that would save her life. We did radiation and bought her a year, but since I've only known her two years, it just wasn't enough time. As much as it hurt to spend that much on radiation, as I have to prepare to say goodbye to her, I would be very grateful if someone made me an offer of $x to save her.

 

[DawnM]

Ugh, idk if that's how it's usually done. I don't recall ever reading that. (And it seems like a method that would be fraught with problems unless you're really skilled at it!) That was not what was done to Woody. I really don't even want to say.

Ugh, now you have me wondering...

 

[Magpie]

2 things:
1) again, you don't know that. It is possible any animals have some kind of religious or moral or philosophical reason for doing what they do.

2) I teach Ag and studied Animal Science. I have seen recordings of her presentations, read books, research, seen the new movie. She was even part of my Master's research.

It's nice we're both fans of the same person.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

^ I like her, too.

 

[mi*vida*loca]

I would spend the money to keep my pets healthy, feed them, get them vaxed and any routine healthcare. I would not do cancer treatments or spend thousands on a pet. For people who believe you shouldn't have a pet unless you can spend in the thousands to take care of them then should these pets stay in shelters their entire lives? Or be put down because they've reached their limit in the shelter? Personally I would have a dog or cat be adopted and have a warm place to live, people who feed them and show them love but don't have 5K to do cancer treatments rather than live in a shelter or be put down because they can't get adopted.

 

[Dentam]

I would spend the money to keep my pets healthy, feed them, get them vaxed and any routine healthcare. I would not do cancer treatments or spend thousands on a pet. For people who believe you shouldn't have a pet unless you can spend in the thousands to take care of them then should these pets stay in shelters their entire lives? Or be put down because they've reached their limit in the shelter? Personally I would have a dog or cat be adopted and have a warm place to live, people who feed them and show them love but don't have 5K to do cancer treatments rather than live in a shelter or be put down because they can't get adopted.

Once again, pet insurance.

 

[mom2rtk]

Once again, pet insurance.

Some of us are spending so much on people insurance that pet insurance is out of the question.

 

[mom2rtk]

I would spend the money to keep my pets healthy, feed them, get them vaxed and any routine healthcare. I would not do cancer treatments or spend thousands on a pet. For people who believe you shouldn't have a pet unless you can spend in the thousands to take care of them then should these pets stay in shelters their entire lives? Or be put down because they've reached their limit in the shelter? Personally I would have a dog or cat be adopted and have a warm place to live, people who feed them and show them love but don't have 5K to do cancer treatments rather than live in a shelter or be put down because they can't get adopted.

Once you've walked through a shelter that you know puts down pets routinely, I don't see how you wouldn't agree with this.

 

[Dentam]

Some of us are spending so much on people insurance that pet insurance is out of the question.

You can get pet insurance for $50/month or less. It seems like a no brainer to me, and most people spend that amount at Starbucks in a month. There are also vets who will work with pet owners on payment plans.

 

[mom2rtk]

You can get pet insurance for $50/month or less. It seems like a no brainer to me, and most people spend that amount at Starbucks in a month.

Regardless of the nation's Starbuck's habit, not everyone can afford to add even $50 more to their monthly insurance bill. I'd venture to say that many of those people still provide great homes for their pets. Many of those pets were rescued from a certain death at their local animal shelter and are oh so lucky and happy to be there.

We have 3 very happy cats living in the lap of luxury. They aren't even aware that they have no insurance, and thankfully nobody is charging us a fine for not carrying pet insurance on them. 2 were rescued from the pound. The other was an abandoned kitten from a rural area just outside town.

 

[Dentam]

Regardless of the nation's Starbuck's habit, not everyone can afford to add even $50 more to their monthly insurance bill. I'd venture to say that many of those people still provide great homes for their pets. Many of those pets were rescued from a certain death at their local animal shelter and are oh so lucky and happy to be there.

We will have to agree to disagree then. Most people here are also spending a lot more on Disney vacations. I think it comes down to how much you value your pet.

 

[mom2rtk]

We will have to agree to disagree then. Most people here are also spending a lot more on Disney vacations. I think it comes down to how much you value your pet.

I'll be happy to agree to disagree. And our pets are valued very greatly, thank you very much.

 

[Dentam]

I'll be happy to agree to disagree. And our pets are valued very greatly, thank you very much.

Okay, take care.

 

[Jennasis]

For those who can't afford pet insurance or can't get it due to pet's age etc, I suggest opening a CareCredit account. It is a credit card. Anything over $200 gets 6 months of 0% interest. Just about all veterinarians take it. We have one and it's quite invaluable. Our dentist also accepts it.