vet bill?

[wilkeliza]

If you have an elderly dog in constant pain (since it was stated that the dog had had constant hip pain for years and was 11+ years old) with a problem that will perpetually recur (which was also stated) and don't have the funds to take care of the dog, giving the dog to a shelter is not the worst plan for you or the dog. Grown ups have to make tough decisions all the time, and these include decisions about family pets. If that insults people on the thread, I'm not sure why - it's why many of these animal shelters exist...

I've adopted both of my current animals from shelters (and these animals had previous owners who voluntarily gave them up) since I do have the funds to take care of those who can't...and they are 2 of the best animals I've had. I'd much prefer people give their animals to shelters than have them suffer...and yet I understand some shelters would not readopt an animal in that condition with all of the issues the op mentioned (which is why I mentioned it's possible the animal would be put down)...

Sorry but sending any dog even healthy ones to a shelter is an 80% death sentence. I'd say almost no no kill shelter is going to take an 11 year old dog with medical issues and at a kill shelter, especially the city or county pound, an 11 year old dog with or with out health issues is going to be first in line for euthanasia.

How old were the 2 shelter dogs you adopted? Mine was 1 and she was hours away from the gas chamber. Had we not walked in at closing that night she would have been put down. Perfectly healthy sweet 1 year old dog.

 

[TwoMisfits]

Sorry but sending any dog even healthy ones to a shelter is an 80% death sentence. I'd say almost no no kill shelter is going to take an 11 year old dog with medical issues and at a kill shelter, especially the city or county pound, an 11 year old dog with or with out health issues is going to be first in line for euthanasia.

How old were the 2 shelter dogs you adopted? Mine was 1 and she was hours away from the gas chamber. Had we not walked in at closing that night she would have been put down. Perfectly healthy sweet 1 year old dog.

I actually have recently adopted cats - one 7 1/2 and one 3, although I looked at 2 cats (13 and 14) who were available as a free adopt (they just weren't gonna work in other cat households). At my local public shelter, it routinely adopts out dogs of all ages (up to age 14) and they don't last more than a week (really more than a day), but they do have to be in "good enough" health (which the shelter will try to get them up to, if possible). My local shelter adopts out above 90% of all animals it receives (it's one of the tops in the nation as a public shelter) and for dogs, its numbers are closer to 95-98%. I'm also surrounded by no-kill shelters and they literally kill no animal they receive (although they also don't always re-adopt out the tough animals but just keep them at the shelter long term)...

So, a shelter is not an auto-death sentence in some areas...although I would avoid giving the animal to any Peta-animal shelter ever, b/c they do kill most of their "not perfect, young" animals...

 

[Green Tea]

A DisBoards first for me. The three ABSOLUTE WORST RESPONSES I've ever seen here, all on one thread! WooHoo!

Flame me all you want, I couldn't care less. I didn't realize that saving money involved throwing a much-beloved life away or putting an animal at risk for infection by performing surgical procedures on pets when you have no clue how, nor no business doing so.

OP, thank you for being reasonable. I think the veterinary school option was a good suggestion, as was looking around, perhaps, at a different veterinary practice - just make sure your pet is still getting quality care. People have to understand that the cost of veterinary medical care has increased just as human medical care has, as well. We live in a very expensive society today, unfortunately, and having pets can be costly. It doesn't make them throw-aways when they outlive their usefulness or require medical care. Good grief. (And with a DVC name, to boot!)

THANK YOU for saying what I was thinking......The DIY pet surgery and the surrender to a shelter.....Jeez.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

THANK YOU for saying what I was thinking......The DIY pet surgery and the surrender to a shelter.....Jeez.

Don't forget euthanize and buy a younger, healthier dog with the savings!

 

[tiggerluver12]

My daughter adopted a 10 year old dog recently. Her mouth became swollen one morning and we were told that she had an abscessed tooth that needed to be removed. Got several quotes, ranging from $250 to $750. Ended up needing to have it done quickly so we took her to the vet that I use regularly. Cost - $573, which included cleaning, tooth removal, nails clipped and 3 prescriptions (antibiotic, pain and tooth gel).

My advice is to call around, even outside your city limits, if you are willing to drive a little further out. Most country docs don't give a rats rear end if they make a bunch of $. The vet that quoted us the $250 was in our old hometown about 20 miles outside of Dallas. Only reason we didn't use them was because my daughter is moving to California next week and they didn't have space on their schedule in time for us.

 

[Legendteri]

I would call around or ask friends and family on Facebook how they like their vets.

A few years ago, my dog was going to the bathroom in the house. This had happened before and it was always just a UTI, we got antibiotics and we were done. Well I took her to her usual vets office and got a new vet that day. She kept trying to guilt me into paying for a CT scan to check her kidneys. I had to keep saying " Ill think about it, but first I want to try antibiotics. " Finally, she reluctantly gave me the prescription. Sure enough, within a few days she was back to normal. I got a really bad feeling about that certain office, so I asked my facebook friends about their vets and that is how I found our current vet. I am very happy with the new one. I don't ever get a scammy vibe from them and they always try the least expensive options first. They just...get it. My dog also had a growth on her face and the current vet's office took it off and removed two teeth for around $450.

 

[Iowajes]

Sorry but sending any dog even healthy ones to a shelter is an 80% death sentence. I'd say almost no no kill shelter is going to take an 11 year old dog with medical issues and at a kill shelter, especially the city or county pound, an 11 year old dog with or with out health issues is going to be first in line for euthanasia.

How old were the 2 shelter dogs you adopted? Mine was 1 and she was hours away from the gas chamber. Had we not walked in at closing that night she would have been put down. Perfectly healthy sweet 1 year old dog.

You're right that at most shelters an 11 year old dog with health issues is not going to fare well.

But shelters do the best they can. We adopted our dog 8 years ago from a shelter that does euthanize, but only when they have to. They had a pit bull there for more than 5 years, she's a sweet doggie there, but had an aggressive past, so they were very careful about who could take her.

 

[GOOFY4DONALD]

Talk to your vet. We had an extremely high vet bill that we just could not tackle. We were also in process of buying our first home and couldn't take out a care credit loan. The vet let us make payments (pretty high payments but better that having to put him down). Our vet didn't advertise is and it's not the norm but sometimes they will make exceptions, especially if you've been going to them for a while