Photo of the late Brogan, and pet parent by Max Whitaker, courtesy of The New York Times
How much would you spend to save the life of your beloved dog, cat or other pet? Haven't thought about it lately? Well, we don't blame you-it's not an easy or fun topic to consider. But given the rapid advances in treatment for our four-legged companions, it may be a necessary one. There are now entire oncology hospitals with the latest cancer treatments, organ transplants, prosthetics...if you can name a treatment for human illnesses, it's likely also been developed to extend our pets lives.
This lengthy article from The New York Times Money Blog helps us consider the options when confronted with a pet's illness, no matter his or her age. One of the points that hit home for us (or at least for Parental Unit) is that the total cost kind of creeps up on you...$1000 here, a $2,500 surgery there. In her case, the surgeries for her last pooch, Carson, the incredibly ornery Wire Fox Terrier, totalled a whopping $11,000, But the various surgeries were spread out over nearly eight years, and each one made sense at the time (really they did!)
What about you? What would you pay to keep your pet alive-balanced of course with your personal finances and the estimated quality of life for your pet? Let us know!
How much would you spend to save the life of your beloved dog, cat or other pet? Haven't thought about it lately? Well, we don't blame you-it's not an easy or fun topic to consider. But given the rapid advances in treatment for our four-legged companions, it may be a necessary one. There are now entire oncology hospitals with the latest cancer treatments, organ transplants, prosthetics...if you can name a treatment for human illnesses, it's likely also been developed to extend our pets lives.
This lengthy article from The New York Times Money Blog helps us consider the options when confronted with a pet's illness, no matter his or her age. One of the points that hit home for us (or at least for Parental Unit) is that the total cost kind of creeps up on you...$1000 here, a $2,500 surgery there. In her case, the surgeries for her last pooch, Carson, the incredibly ornery Wire Fox Terrier, totalled a whopping $11,000, But the various surgeries were spread out over nearly eight years, and each one made sense at the time (really they did!)
What about you? What would you pay to keep your pet alive-balanced of course with your personal finances and the estimated quality of life for your pet? Let us know!
5 comments:
That's one of the hardest questions I could have to answer...When my Labrador girl Murphy was found to have snout cancer I chose not to do surgery...partly for cost, but mostly cause she was 12 and had never been away from me...the long hospitalization and recovery period just didn't make sense for a dog of that age...We enjoyed every day we had together doing the things she loved most (water retrieves)including on her final day...I'm at peace with my decision
We have been very fortunate and haven't had to make supercostly decisions. In the case of our angel Maggie, she was 13.5 and had oral cancer, which is a very aggressive cancer. We have no regrets about the decision that we made - no surgery and enjoy life to the fullest each and every day.
Love ya lots,
Mitch and Molly
It really depends on what will be the best thing for the pet. We don't have a problem spending the money, but it really comes down to our pet's quality of life. When our 13 year old cat, Maggie, was diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer, we knew she would not be a good candidate for repeated vet visits, chemo and pills for the rest of her days.
Agree, to vague of a question cuz it depends on the quality of life to me personally but I did buy Max pet insurance so in the event of something pretty costly that hopefully it would be there to help :)
This is so tricky ...ultimately, should be whatever is best for the animal, but of course, things are rarely so clear cut. I have been in this situation and its not easy. I don't think I have an answer - every situation is different
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