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Pet Owners, We Need Your Input!

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By Kate Nerenberg   Published Tuesday, July 22, 2008

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Sunshine, a golden retriever, was our first dog and we loved her dearly. However she was diagnosed with kidney failure soon after her third birthday. An ultrasound revealed that one kidney was 1/3 the size it should have been and that the other was 1/2 the size of a cat kidney. Our vet explained that there was no treatment, that our only option was to spends thousands on weekly dialysis for her. After one more sad day with her, we decided not to prolong her suffering and had her put down. It was a tough decision, but the right one.

Posted by: Sarah, Aug 12, 2008 09:07:54 AM

Our 6-year old cocker spaniel, Vito, has been abandoned twice by his previous owners. We found him in the Oldies but Goodies cocker spaniel shelter open house last year. We call him, "the furry love of our lives." The first week we got him, he was diagnosed with stomach infections, kidney and liver problems. After countless trips to the vet, feeding him with a spoon, putting him to sleep with us, he’s doing so well, more medications, and he’s just one big 6-year old puppy. Money doesn’t matter when it comes to making sure he feels well!

Posted by: Tatyana, Jul 29, 2008 07:10:56 AM

Our 11 yr old Himalayan, Purfect, was diagnosed with a cancerous growth, and the vet recommended cancer treatment. She was on medication and had a full course of chemotherapy to the tune of about $6K. My husband was in law school at the time and I was fresh out of college, working as a secretary -- this was not an expense we should have incurred. Nevertheless, the cat did have another 2 years and we are not sorry we did it. In retrospect, I probably would not do it again. And, there is nothing more pathetic then a bald Himalayan (Kitty chemo is like human chemo...)

Posted by: Angela McGahan, Jul 28, 2008 08:11:27 AM

Our Australian Shepard that we rescued from the humane society was purposely run over by a boy in our neighborhood. Our dog, Cody, fought for 11 hours to stay alive waiting for someone to find him. The neighbor found him around lunch time the next day when her dog refused to leave his side. After many surgeries and over $8,000.00 Cody is doing very very well. In fact unless you know he was run over you really can’t tell. His entire rear end is made of screws and plates and wires, he had three broken legs, broken pelvis and the end of his spine was broken. There was no way I could put him down, he fought so hard to stay alive and the look on his face when we picked him up was such a sigh of relief that we had finally found him. The doctors are still amazed that he not only survived the whole ordeal but that he has healed with wonders.

Posted by: Greta Corkran, Jul 24, 2008 09:50:30 AM

When our elderly cat was diagnosed with diabetes my husband and I had to give him insulin shots twice a day. I’m not sure the monetary cost of treated him for over 3 years were but he was hospitalized twice, countless trips to the vet to check his blood sugar and he was on a special diet. My husband and I didn’t take any trips together because someone had to stay home to give Bogey his shots.

Posted by: Colleen White, Jul 24, 2008 07:42:41 AM

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