But Doc, the Dog's Already Dead! How to Say No to Your Vet

i'd maybe pay $100 (apart from regular vaccinations)for vet treatment for a pet. Any more than that and it's goodbye Fido.

http://www.slate.com/id/2176521/?gt1=10538

Recently, my friend A's vigorous 10-year-old laika (a Russian breed whose name means "barker") woke up wheezing. She seemed fine the next morning when he went to work, but that afternoon he got a call from his mother, who had come over to let the dog out, telling him the dog seemed disoriented. He left work, arriving home about an hour later, to discover his pet on the floor of the bedroom, eyes open and fixed, body stiff. He picked the dog up, put her in the car, and drove to the vet. He ran in with the rigid dog over his shoulder and announced, "I think my dog is dead!" Everything stopped in the waiting room as the techs whisked the dog away.

Soon an employee emerged to explain it looked as if the dog had suffered a cardiac arrest. He also had a question: "Do you want us to do CPR?" All eyes turned to A, including those of the woman who had begun weeping in sympathy when A announced his dog had died. He realized he couldn't bring himself to say what he was thinking: "How much are you going to charge me to do CPR on my dead dog?" Instead, he told them to go ahead, and took a seat. Techs came out with periodic reports—neither heart massage nor drug infusion was generating any vital signs. "I wanted to say, 'That's because she's been dead for an hour,' " says A. Finally, they suggested the treatments should stop, and A agreed. They presented him with the bill. It turns out it costs $250 to try to revive a dead dog.

If an animal is only worth $100 to you, I hope they find homes with somebody who really loves them.

(except 1 that got hit by a car) but when a cat is 13-14 years old, and its teeth start falling out, and it goes blind, and its quality of life sucks ass, then it's time for kitty to die.

That's what's objectionable.

a former co-worker of mine spent $2000 to have back surgery for a 9 year old dachshund that had to be put down 3 months later because it was in constant agony as a result of the surgery.

my own mother paid $1500 to have her cocker spaniel's shoulder surgically repaired after the idiot dog tripped over a curb. he limped on that leg and winced all the time for the rest of his life.

personally, i think it's cruel to anthropomorphise animals so much that we ignore their physical comfort for our own emotional well-being.

then again, i'm DNR all the way.

My best friend paid $1500 to get her wolf hybrid's leg fixed after he jumped through a closed window to chase a burglar out of her house and severed a tendon in the process. She didn't really have the money, but he's part of the family and he hurt himself protecting her and her stuff, and she never considered not doing the surgery.

He's as good as new, and she says it's the best money she ever spent.

Our little dog is part of the family. She is deserving of being treated like it.

The bill was not unreasonable.

Provided I had it, I would gladly pay that much and more if I thought there was a chance that a vet could bring my beloved Buddy back.

Some people don't or can't put a price on love.


:cry:

:popcorn:

Move over pit bulls...

It just seems wrong to do those procedures on a dog that is obviously gone.

that's the part that confused me. was he going for Frankenpooch?

I guess I would have at least called the vet to see what could be done with the dog's body but yep, I don't see the point of carting the body there unless you're thinking that some medical care would help.

My dog needed emergency surgery - the bill came to $4,135.00.

His life is worth every penny - I can't put a price on my friend.

I don't currently have a dog, but my husband and I would cheerfully break the bank for the cats. :)

had diarrhea and on Thanksgiving night he vomited about 3 or 4 times...but a large amount.
So I brought him into the emergency hospital, and by all indications of his radiograph, he needed an exploratory surgery. His intestine appeared coiled....which indicates an obstruction. He's only 2 years old and 7 pounds, so I was particularly frightened because I felt he was so tiny and delicate, he couldn't handle the anethesia.

He's on my lap now as I type.

:-)

go spend the $10/month on pet health insurance, so you you don't have to make the decision between the life of your pet and your pocketbook.

Two years ago, my cat swallowed a plastic tube that got stuck in his stomach. A $1500 operation was completely paid for by the insurance company. Out of pocket? $30.

http://www.petcareinsurance.com/ if you want to check it out.

~Writer~