Quote:
Originally Posted by sneaky
not really depression related this time, more like I need somewhere to vent..
my dog hurt her leg the other day and she will need surgery to fix a cruciate ligament injury.. she is a 7yr old golden retriever so hopefully still lots of life in her.
yesterday there was no question of getting the surgery, now I still want her to get the surgery but wondering how crazy I am for spending the money required to fix a loved family member.
The normal vet ball-parked an estimate at between $5k-$10k which I can get my hands on but in the current economic climate it is getting to where I don't even feel comfortable telling close friends and family how much I'm looking at spending. We have a consult with the surgical vet tomorrow, he doesn't work Wednesdays - I assume he is sailing his giant yacht or buying another Ferrari or something.
I will ask about alternative options, but it doesn't look like there is one at the moment - seems to be surgery, carry the injury or get put down...
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One thing to consider is quality of life with surgery vs non surgery. Get multiple opinions.
I had a golden retriever when I was 18. He had a tiny little lump on the roof of his mouth, vet wanted to check it out, so I let him. Turned out to be a tumor. Without any thought, I pulled out my entire life savings, and said "off you go, fix him". Whilst they successfully removed the tumor, his quality of life suffered due to chemo. Cut a long story short, 12 months later he didn't make it. His quality of life was next to zero after the operation. Before that he was a happy dog. If I had my time again I would have said, let him be until his time is up.
Sounds like your dilemma is more about what other people might think. One way to get around it is to tell family / friends that you self insured. Whats the cost to insure a dog these days? $900 a year? 900 x 7 = $6,300. And you don't have to cover any excess.