How much is your pet worth to you?

[Herra Gautason]

I recommend you let the dog die if he is constantly coming down with them tumors.

But how on earth do you know if your dog has got one(or more)?

[Sava]

Originally posted by SlowwHand
"My pet is like family to me and I would spend what ever it takes to save my pet's life."

[Hot Mustard]

I love animals - I intend to have pets once I have a real house for a home. That said, I would never pay more for medical treatment than what a replacement pet would cost. It's an animal, not a person.

Just my 2c.

[Hueij]

Originally posted by SlowwHand
"My pet is like family to me and I would spend what ever it takes to save my pet's life."

I once thought the same. My cat got colon cancer so I spend over $1500 for treatments and surgeries. The end result was that she died anyway and had a miserable life because of all the cutting up. I don't mind the money but I really hate myself for putting her through all of that.

My other cat (who is 19 years old now ) won't have to go through the same ordeal if anything should happen to her. As much as it would hurt me I'd rather let her go than to put her through hell.

[MichaeltheGreat]

Re: How much is your pet worth to you?

Originally posted by Oerdin
I ask because my pet dog has just come down with his third tumor in four years. I know in the end I will just pay the money to have surgury done again but it is getting me to question exactly how much a dog is worth. The dog keeps having tumors grow at the end of his colon right by his anus. The result is a huge swollen area around his butt which he won't stop licking and which (the first two times) turned into a egg sized growth on his butt. The first two tumors cost me $1100 plus tax each time and now the vet is telling me the dog needs a specialist in dog cancer.

Ugh! This mutt is getting to be expensive.

Check out Veterinary Specialty Hospital in Rancho Santa Fe: http://www.vshsd.com/

Twice I've spent upwards of $4,000 on my cats - Fridge, a black cat who was mutilated before one Halloween and required 360 stitches, and Yeti, a 13 year old who I'd had since she was 6 weeks old, who ended up with a tumor metastasizing into her lung and blocking her lymph duct.

Mostly, you can tell looking in their eyes if they've still got some fight in them, or if they realize they're just too sick and are ready to let go.

With recurrent tumors, you might be looking at doggy chemo or radiation in addition to the surgery.

[Sava]

Originally posted by Hueij

I once thought the same. My cat got colon cancer so I spend over $1500 for treatments and surgeries. The end result was that she died anyway and had a miserable life because of all the cutting up. I don't mind the money but I really hate myself for putting her through all of that.

My other cat (who is 19 years old now ) won't have to go through the same ordeal if anything should happen to her. As much as it would hurt me I'd rather let her go than to put her through hell.

Part of doing such things is weighing the possible outcomes of treatment with how the quality of life will be for the pet. Money does play into such a decision, no doubt, as I have recently had such an experience with a cat of mine.

The way I feel is that I just want things to be as comfortable as possible. Concerns about money are secondary (as long as we are not talking about excessive expenses). However, there is somewhat of a balance between these factors. If a certain procedure is very expensive and has little guarantee of solving the pet's health issue, I'll ask the vet's advice and perhaps try to get more information before coming to a decision.

However, I don't have any qualms about spending money when it comes to a pet's health. They are family. Age does play a part in this too, however. I'll not be dilluded into thinking a pet is able to live much longer when it is just it's time. But my sister's kitten (he's over a year old now) had some serious issues and ended up costing over $1,000 in overall bills. But he's healthy now and will hopefully live a long life.

[Blaupanzer]

Sava has the trick, it is a matter of balance. I'm glad I have the money if my cats need treatment, but I have put them down when their lives were nothing but misery. They are like family. However, humans make their own choices for as long as they can.

[Bosh]

The going price of cat meat x the weight of my cats

That ought to do it...

[Lorizael]

Thanks to this thread, and probably the Futurama one as well, I dreamt last night that my cat was put to asleep against my wishes. What a wonderful dream that was. Man. I was not happy when I woke up.

[ajbera]

I would think that you would've experienced a wonderful flood of relief when you awoke. "Holy shit, thank God it was only a dream!"

[Dinner]

Originally posted by Wezil
Sorry to hear your dogs situation Oerdin.

How old is the dog?

I had an old ferret put down rather than incur the cost. I could have paid but the animal's quality of life would have been reduced and he was already quite old. Very tough decision.

It's 11 but since is is a medium sized dog he can be expected to live to 15-20 years.

[Lorizael]

Originally posted by ajbera
I would think that you would've experienced a wonderful flood of relief when you awoke. "Holy shit, thank God it was only a dream!"

The relief only came when Annie finally wandered into my room and jumped up on the bed.

[Spec]

My pet is like family to me and I would spend what ever it takes to save my pet's life.

Spec.

[Spec]

Originally posted by Oerdin
I guess dogs are worth more. They live longer, it is a pain in the ass to train a new puppy, and once they're trained they're great pets.

Cats live longer than dogs


Spec.

[chequita guevara]

I spent $130 on Bunnyrgrrl's bunny a few years back, and then the sucker went and died on us. I spend a few hundred dollars on vet care each year for tha animals as it is, so I'd spend at least that much to keep them alive. I'm looking at Brenden right now and trying to determine how much I'd spend, and it'd probably be a lot.