To those who see their pets as family, would you take the same measures or spend the same money as you would for a human relative in regards to medical treatment for your pet?
I have heard often online and off, that people see their pets as part of the family of their ”furry kids”, however, if it came to a very serious illness that required extensive treatment, or operations would you spend the same money on your pet as you would if it were your son, daughter, or parents? I know people if their child needed a special but expensive surgery that was not covered by insurance they would be willing to jettison the vehicles, sell of the toys (bass boat, jet skis, etc.), sell or take out a second mortgage on the house, etc. If you see your pets as family are you willing to make that deep of a sacrifice for them that they may gain more life even if it is less than a year? If it were your children from your loins would you?
Observing members:
0
Composing members:
0
21 Answers
A friend of mine sold her house and moved back to an apartment so she’d have the $35,000 she needed for surgery and treatment of her dog. They both died within ábout three years. She felt it was the right thing to the end.
Since we’ve got OHIP coverage, it’s unlikely we’d need that kind of money to pay medical bills for a human here.
I can’t imagine going as far as J did, but I understand her reasoning. Her dog was her primary source of emotional support. Without Scout there wasn’t much in life for her. She only outlived him by a few months.
Nope. I love my dog and consider her family, but $2,000 is my stated limit for medical care. Sorry puppy.
No, I wouldn’t. A pet, however beloved, lives a fraction of a human lifespan, and there is an enormous number of animals in shelters that need good homes. I would let go of my pet and give another a chance at a happy life. I have actually made that choice in the past.
I would by unlimited steaks and or treats for a pet in the end and give it a happy life . I would not spend more than my credit card limit.
I’ve gone through this recently and continue to deal with it. My very old dog is unwell. We were offered the opportunity to have exploratory surgery and chemotherapy if required, but it would have cost thousands to do this. And more importantly, he’s an old fella. It would have put him through surgery and recovery and so on, and he’s 14. So we made the decision not to do this, even though he really is one of the family.
I actually see it as a blessing that we can let our pets go when it’s time. Euthanasia is not legal for humans (where I am), but for Ollie, I can monitor how he is doing and when I feel the time has been reached when he doesn’t have quality of life, I can let him peacefully go.
If he had been a much younger dog, I would have weighed up the costs versus the benefits for him. I wouldn’t spend more than I can afford.
We have had a couple $500 -$1000 vet bills. I can’t see spending much more than that unless it means another 5–10 healthy years with the pooch.
I worked at an emergency veterinarian hospital for almost 10 years. There were surgical, neurological, oncology,cardiology specialists in the same massive building.
Trust me. People will spend what they can. It’s a very lucrative business.
I remember one man who brought his dog in after it was hit by a car. It needed two surgeries, and lots of treatment. When he picked it up a week later (healthy) he admitted that he had lots of money saved for his human daughter’s dental procedure, (braces ) but the family decided that they loved the dog more than the daughter having straight teeth. I heard many stories like that over the years.
We also had a in hospital line of credit you could apply for, with 26% interest.
For example, if you bring your dog in for vomiting, and diarrhea, on a Saturday, you’re looking at several hundred bucks for very basic diagnostics (bloodwork , x-rays ) and treatment.
I have spent thousands and thousands on my pets/animals over the years but at this time I am on a budget and just hoping for the best. My cats are spayed/neutered, current on the vaccinations but I am also not re-vaccinating for certain things at this time as they are 7 and 10 years old and have a lifetime of immunity as it is now. A lot factors into treating our pets.
The nature of the problem, the animals age, and ones financial status in the moment. My neighbors just spent 8k on hip surgery for their 10 year old Husky last year. My cap at this time is about $500.00 maybe. I am really big on doing what’s right for your animals but there is no shame in not being able to afford thousands and thousands in treatment. Shift happens and you just do your best.
Pets do not understand complex medical practices. I think it is not fair to subject them to those things that infringe on their quality of life.
This is precisely why I don’t have a cat yet. I want one so badly but I’m not getting one until I have enough money saved up so that I could get it medical treatment if it needed it. The guilt would eat at me otherwise.
I do have fish though, and people are sometimes amazed by the lengths I go to for “just a fish.” I have a huge arsenal of various fishy medicines on hand. Actually I currently have my smaller quarantine tank running, because one of my guppies is swollen and I’m not sure if it’s just constipation or an illness, and I don’t want it spreading to my other fish if it’s contagious. He’s being treated with antibiotics and being fed mashed peas exclusively (supposedly they work as a laxative for fish).
At one point I gave away several of my for free because I realized I had over-stocked my tank and didn’t feel it was fair to my fish. A girl came to my house and took them and the new tank they went to was 3x the size of mine so that was probably a great change for them. Then, a couple months ago, I upgraded my tank from 15 to 30 gallons, which was a huge (and more expensive than expected) process, partially because I just wanted a bigger tank but also partially because I felt my fish didn’t have as good of a quality of life in the smaller tank as they could have. They’re living in damn luxury now. Their tank is a glorious green paradise with all manner of live plants and driftwood hidey-holes, and is heated to a constant 75 degrees. Sometimes I wish I could climb in there with them.
Anything living under my roof is going to be treated kindly.
I just spent about a thousand or maybe $1200 on my cat. Cat had a tumor and the vet said she was anemic so between the initial visit, the second visit where surgery had been scheduled (where he told me she was anemic and gave us the medication for that) and the actual surgery ($700 which includes biopsy), it was a chunk. She is 12 and even if she were younger, I wouldn’t do chemo on her.
Vet said the biopsy results will take a few more days but probably it’s cancer since it multiplied, and it was 3 tumors after he shaved her and did the surgery.
It’s no different than “No heroic measures” or “Do Not Resuscitate” on an elderly person. What would be the quality of life for the elderly person who was resuscitated from near death?
To do chemo on a cat would mean repeated vet visits and the misery of chemo, and the stress of it all for the cat, plus the expense, plus the time at the vet, all for a cat that has about 3 years left, tops, anyway. Plus chemo is not guaranteed to be successful.
I love my cats but probably about 2k per animal would be my limit. I can afford it but don’t want to break the bank, either.
For us (myself, child), we have health insurance. If I didn’t, I’d do what I had to but a child has the chance of another 70+ years of life, whereas the cat does not.
Let me guess – if we answer “yes” then we clearly do not hold human life in high regard, since we value people no more than we do a dog or a cat. If we answer “no”, then we’re hypocrites or lying about our pets being part of the family.
@Mariah Could the guppy be pregnant?
^yeah, guppies I’ve ever known reproduce quickly. And unfortunately, sometimes eat their young…
If it’s colorful, it probably is a male.
I only have male guppies, as I didn’t want them to have zillions of offspring. The males and females are very easy to distinguish in guppies; they are both colorful but the males have much more flamboyant tails.
@Darth_Algar [..if we answer “yes” then we clearly do not hold human life in high regard, since we value people no more than we do a dog or a cat.
If one tried to frame the comment as just that, but we know people may value human life more than that of dogs and cats (at least most people I know less those strange people would put any animal in front of a human) just not in front of their pooch or kitty; should they come upon a car slipping into the canal, they would grab the human and leave the mutt to fend for itself if they had no time to grab it. Now if they for some strange reason gave a stranger a ride, say to her college they are passing by, and somehow crashed and was about to slip into the canal or over a cliff, is she was unconscious and there was time to grab only one of them, the pooch or her, you know as well as I do, some would grab their pooch and say adios to the coed.
If we answer “no”, then we’re hypocrites or lying about our pets being part of the family.
To be hypocritical it would have to not be under conditions from the start. Even those who say their pets are family started off with the condition that they would not go for broke for Spot, Fido, or Rex as they would for their son or daughter, some will not even go for broke for an uncle or cousin, and they are family. As the answers have indicated, if the amount spent doesn’t equate to many years of return on the money, keep the taxidermist on speed dial.
My last cat was my last pet.
I loved him dearly, and I would have paid the hundreds of dollars for surgery if I had believed he could be made whole again, and have decent quality of life. I did not. I have a living will that tells my relatives the same basic concept. They should do the same.
Pets are helpless. You are not. Don’t burden your relatives with your life decisions.
Answer this question 
Composing members:
0
