Pet surgery. How much is too expensive?

[Lil Missy]

Over the past 6 months I have wrestled with the question of how much is too expensive to spend on a pet surgery. Specifically, if money is tight, since I wouldn't have to think about this if I were well-to-do.

I've had my dog for 14 years now, and he has been the best companion I could ever ask for. He's always had terrible allergies and frequent ear infections that have been treated numerous times over the years. But his ears are now shot with years of wear and tear and constant scratching, and the vet cannot even see in them anymore because the ear canal is so swollen that she cannot fit the scope in there. But it is certain they are infected cause they stink so bad all the time.

I finally took the step and scheduled surgery this morning. It's going to cost $2000 to do bilateral oblations and the delay was coming up with the down payment of half the cost. It will make him deaf as a result, but it is questionable how much he can hear now and he is so terribly miserable.

It's a lot of money for me, but my financial situation is improved to the point I can make the payments afterwords and sacrifice with minimum payments on my high interest credit cards. But he is so spry and full of life and with many good years ahead of him. So I am willing to make a financial sacrifice after all the good years he has given me. And I don't want him to suffer like this for the rest of his life.

Where do you draw the line when it comes to pet expenses? To me, it's almost like spending it on my child, which is something I wouldn't hesitate to do.

[GardeningGal]

1. If he's doing well otherwise

then I think the cost is whether you can afford it or not. For me personally, I haven't had to face a decision where one of my furbabies needed something that made me question whether it was worth it or not. I hope I'm always able to afford what they need since they are my children.

[LeftyMom]

2. It's like kids.

They need something you make it happen, and figure out the how part later if you have to. That's the commitment involved.

[Shine]

3. It's such a personal decision

pets are family. :hug:

[xchrom]

4. i would -- do anything --

for my dogs.

my ol' boy is gone now -- but when he was 11 he went through chemo -- for 5 days -- a thousand a pop -- 5 thousand all together.

now i am not rich -- that was a terrible burden.

but my ol' boy sport meant the whole world to me -- i would have done anything -- and i managed to come up with the money -- and i got it all paid off.
he lived another 4 years -- not bad for a big old 80 lb dog.

[supernova]

5. Have you looked at pet insurance?

It might be worth it if you expect that since he's older, he might have more problems.

[OhioChick]

6. Like the Above Poster Said:

"Pets are like family." I've spent a fortune on my dogs regarding surgeries, etc. I spent about $1,000 bucks a few months back to get bladder stones removed from my Siberian....and think more are growing since that surgery. :( It's a huge expense, but my kids and I would be lost without her. Good luck to you and your pup. :)

[spacelady]

7. This is weird, but when I saw your post before I read it, I thought

"$2000 would be my absolute limit" thinking in terms of a life-saving operation. But a quality of life operation is something yet again - we were told that our springer spaniel had the worst hip dysplasia ever at age 4 & that he would go down and not be able to walk in a year. We knew he had pain, but he was always active for walks. We kept him moderately exercised & he had quality life until age 11 without surgery & he got up and walked in the last 1/2 hour of his life of his own volition. Now, this same dog had floppy ears and was prone to stinky yeast ear infections & we battled that with various methods to get the Ph balanced & it worked most of the time. Over the years, we had many suggestions by vets for various operations suggested by vets for the hips ($2000) for comgestive heart failure ($2000) for glaucoma ($2000) and so on (see a pattern?) but the truth is, Cosmo (his name) had a pretty good life and had the heart to enjoy it. At 14 your beloved buddy has enjoyed a good long life and you must weigh whether his ear problems are worse than possible complications from surgery. Maybe a second opinion is in order - if your dog is otherwise healthy and can enjoy himself, ya know, it is not life threatening.

[skygazer]

8. Those are such hard questions

Responsible pet owners take on the care of their pets with the understanding that they need to care for them but in reality, it sometimes becomes a question of expense.

I don't think I could tack a dollar amount on to it but I think I would do exactly what you are doing. When it comes down to something that will give them a better quality of life and they will presumably be able to live several more years - and I can pay for it, even if it is a stretch - I will do it.

Several years ago, my male Boxer was attacked by a pit bull. He was badly injured and the wounds were infected and the vet told me it would cost upwards of $3000 to repair the damage with no guarantee he'd even survive. He was 10 years old - not old but not young either and I didn't have that kind of money. I still sometimes question whether I did the right thing by letting him go - most of the time I think I did but there are no easy answers.

I hope your friend has many happy years left to spend with you. :hug:

[Lil Missy]

11. He does have many years left and is as spry and spunky as a new pup.

I'm so sorry to hear about your Boxer. Sounds devastating. ;(

[stuntcat]

9. dog years

If it would cause him more trauma then it might not be worth it for him.
Maybe the vets can do something for him to make him more comfortable for a while without the major surgery.. while you can get used to the idea of him not being there always. And then have them give him a shot to save him from more misery and confusion.
We did this with our old cat Jake a couple years ago, he was 17, very old in cat years, and his treatment for diabetes was just traumatizing him I think, an he couldn't get around well and take care of himself. We took him in one day for the Shot, that was something I've never done before but I'd rather they pass away in peace than misery.

This might be awful advice to give, I know just how important the decision is. I don't know what I'll do when my Tonka gets very old, all I know is I want him to be comfortable and happy. We had $600 surgery on his ear once but we would have paid much more. he was 8 or 9 then, young in cat years.

[China_cat]

10. We had a dog with the same problem.

The vet advised us that the surgery might not even work. Please keep that in mind. As an alternative, he put Bailey on a daily regimen of prednisone and cipro and daily cleaning. It didn't get rid of the infection but it did make him comfortable...got rid of the pain. Another non-surgical option he mentioned to us was a chemotherapy drug that they have found is almost like magic on chronic ear infections but, at the time, that option was too much for us to afford. Not in the area of $2000 by any means but still more than we could shell out.

Bailey was a large dog (Briard/Bearded collie) and making it to 14 was a feat in itself. That he did it with the last 3 years of his life on constant meds was a wonder.

Good luck with yours.

[Kali]

12. No way would I spend that on a 14 year old dog.

I understand the pet is equivalent to child emotion, but I just would (couldn't) do it. I WOULD do a lot to make sure he was healthy otherwise and not in pain, but $2000 for ear surgery on a 14 year old dog? Nope.

What do you feed him? Most allergies are food allergies. I am assuming you have tried dietary changes.

[VLC]

13. One of my coworkers put down her young dog over $500

She said it was too much. Her husband has a gun collection worth far more. I've never looked at her the same way.

[Wcross]

14. Similar situation- co-workers dog.

The young dog caught something and the treatment was 750 bucks, less than a weeks pay for this guy. He declined treatment for the animal and needless to say I have very little respect for him.

[idgiehkt]

15. wow

I bet he is miserable if they are going to do oblations. Man. Is this a cocker spaniel? For me, it comes down to what vets that I have worked for have said over the years, it's the quality of life, not the quantity, and whether or not you can prolong their life with a significant improvement in quality of life. I know that you can, with that surgery it should be a hundred percent cure for the problem and should greatly improve the dog's quantity of life, probably to a level that he hasn't had in a long time. For me another important factor is how am I going to feel about this decision 5, 10, 15 years down the road. If I am going to look back in regret wishing I'd gone the extra mile for that animal it's better to bite the bullet and do it, if it will extend their life with a decent quality of life. It's a very personal decision though. I once spent $800 on a kidney surgery for a pet rabbit who passed away about 6 months later. Another time I declined to have surgeries done on one dog I'd had for eleven years, because she had an enormous angioscaroma in her abdomen, which herniated a disk on her back which would have also needed repairing. The ruptured disc paralyzed her in the rear legs, and it wasn't known whether she'd get the ability to walk back. She would have required two surgeries, and I would have been at work for ten hours a day, leaving her alone and most probably lying in her own urine/feces during that time as there was no one living with me and I didn't know anyone who could help me care for her. Her quality of life would have been hell, in other words, so I decided to let her go, which was very hard. Working for vets and kennels over the years I've seen people keep animals alive whose quality of life was just about zero, just to spare themselves the pain of letting go. That is wrong, imho. It is very hard to watch an animal suffer day after day and know they are in constant pain, and the owner seem oblivious to it. I think you are a great person to be having that done for your dog. :hug: :hug: :hug: