Losing a pet is expensive

Avatar for fire_bug
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-25-2003
Losing a pet is expensive
4
Sun, 07-19-2009 - 4:36pm

Yesterday we had our cat, Shadow put to sleep. She was 15. She had been losing weight and DH and I started discussing how far we would go to save her life. I was planning on taking her to the vet soon. On Thursday afternoon I watched her go to the litterbox 5 times in about 1/2 hour and decided she needed to go then. I didn't want to take all the kids with me, but it would have been 2 more days before I could take her without them, so I dragged them with me. The office visit with bloodwork and urinalysis was $197. The next day we got the news that she was in severe kidney failure. there was nothing that could reverse the damage. The only treatment that would have likely helped would have cost around $1,000 and the best case scenario it would have given her 6 months or so, but it could have been as little as a few weeks. We decided that since it was a lot of money that wouldn't "fix" her and wouldn't buy her a lot of time, we decided to put her down - another $88. It was the hardest thing I ever had to do and I'm dreading going through it again with my other two. It's easy to forget how expensive it is to own a pet when they're healthy.

So we've added nearly $300 to our debt in 2 days. I feel like a lot of the progress we've made this year is gone, but I still wonder if we made the right decision.

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iVillage Member
Registered: 10-01-2008
Mon, 07-20-2009 - 8:48am

Fire Bug,

Norma


"Patience is the best remedy for every trouble"- Plautus


Avatar for fire_bug
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-25-2003
Mon, 07-20-2009 - 10:24am

No hard feelings.

I'm so sorry you've had some losses lately, too. It's probably very common for people to put off veterinary care because it's so expensive. She hadn't been to the vet in 3 years because I feel like they're always pushing expensive tests and procedures. Now I wonder if taking her in sooner would have helped. It might not have been able to prevent the kidney failure, but we might have been able to slow the progression if we caught it earlier.

Now I want to take my other two cats to the vet for checkups. They're getting older, too. That's going to have to wait a little longer, though.

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iVillage Member
Registered: 06-25-2006
Mon, 07-20-2009 - 11:21pm

Fire_bug,

I am so sorry your cat had to be put down. I can't imagine anything harder. Vet care is excruciatingly expensive - even routine care when they are healthy can get crazy.

I am sure you made the best decision possible for her and her comfort.

Avatar for cl_phocid
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Tue, 07-21-2009 - 9:06am
Oh no. I'm so sorry to hear this. You're in my thoughts.

All my best,
Danni
cl-phocid, Debt Support Group



All my best,
Danni