received some bad news today... need some support

[Bengal]

My thoughts are with you and your wife and of course, your dog...

It sucks big time. But it's the nature of being a pet owner. But it still sucks...

Best wishes for a positive outcome...

[rjohnstone]

Damn dude... so sorry to hear that.
I love my dogs. My cats too... sometimes.

[AlexL]

Eric

The breeder did offer a health gaurantee but he would want him back... There is NO WAY I am giving Buddy back to the breeder. If he has to be put down, he will have his family with him.

...if it gets to be much more than that, I dunno... is that bad?

BTW, what was your experience like at the U?

Zak:

My point exactly about the breeder's health guarantee. Hold on to that little guy, and make sure you are with him if the time comes (which hopefully it will not).

No. It is not bad. You have to be realistic. You have already incurred great expense to help him, and are continuing to do so. That is more than some would have done, but you can not bankrupt your family for a dog. It is a tough decision - but even if you decide you can't swing it financially, you have *already* done the honorable thing, proven by the expenses you have incurred to get him this far.

My experience with the U of M? They treated him very, very well. But their diagnosis was miles (or should I say years) off. The medical world is not exact, so I don;t hold it against them. But I am glad we didn;t make any rash decisions based on their diagnosis.

Gibson was on meds for about 5 or 6 years, at a cost of 300.00 a year. They were antibiotics. Usually, if we forgot to give him a pill, we could tell because his caughing increased. Then when he was about 6 or 7, we noticed that if we forgot to give him his meds, he didn;t seem to be affected. We pulled him off of them at that point, and he lived another 7 years. Go figure.

Regards,

- Eric

[Inazone]

We are basically waiting to hear back from the vet regarding the culture results. Vet said that once it comes back, if the results are serious we will be going to the U of M to have them do various tests. I hate to say it, but at that point it comes down to a matter of costs... if it is only a few hundred dollars or even up to a grand, I'll gladly do what it takes to pay it but if it gets to be much more than that, I dunno... is that bad?

One of the worst parts of that expense is that there are no guarantees. If Buddy is in otherwise good health and there is some medication to treat his current condition, everything might be great for a long time. But if he is hit with some other illness or injury, will it be a huge setback? Will he have to take other meds that interfere or react badly with the initial meds? My parents experienced that very thing with their cat: she needed blood pressure pills because she was losing her eyesight, but then something else came along that require another pill . . . that would be dangerous when combined with the blood pressure meds.

Look at it this way: for all the people here who have been in virtually the same situation as you, how many of them still have pets? Most, if not all. I don't think there will ever be a time when I don't have a pet, even after seeing so many come and go over the years.

[Thor Von Clemson]

so let me ask you guys this.. WTF do I do in the next few days while we wait for the seemingly inevitable?

By the way, I tend to get attached to dogs. I've had some traumatic experiences with dogs and car accidents and the memories seem to be popping in and out recently. I think I just love the idea of having a dog around. I told me wife "honey, no offense but the dog does something for me that you can not do" she understood. I've had them my entire life and its like some of you guys said, they are truly the best friends you can have.

I would have no problem getting another dog. I feel confident we would love him, raise him well, and he would become a part of the family. The obvious problem with that is I start to feel like we are just replacing Buddy...does that makes sense?


Ryan, I got your pm btw.. I will respond when I have a moment.

[slayer32390]

I would have no problem getting another dog. I feel confident we would love him, raise him well, and he would become a part of the family. The obvious problem with that is I start to feel like we are just replacing Buddy...does that makes sense?

That makes perfect sense to feel that way about getting a new dog. My family's dog was so sick when we got her from the city pound. She was extremely skinny and had all sorts of worms and sicknesses. My parents had to spend, I think, close to two grand to keep her from needing to be put down within the first two or three months we had her. It looked grim for our puppy but now close to four years later she is still with us and also a large part of the family and both my parents agree that it was money very well spent. So dont lose hope on Buddy just yet and I wish all of you the best of luck with this.

[AlexL]

so let me ask you guys this.. WTF do I do in the next few days while we wait for the seemingly inevitable?

I would have no problem getting another dog. I feel confident we would love him, raise him well, and he would become a part of the family. The obvious problem with that is I start to feel like we are just replacing Buddy...does that makes sense?

Spend time with buddy, and make him feel like he's the best dog ever. Make him a steak to eat. Seriously.

Don't get another dog right away if the worst happens and you must put Buddy down. Wait one year to honor his memory. Then get another one. That way you will not feel like you are trying to replace him. That's what we said we woudl do. It has been over a year now since Gibson passed on, and though we haven't gotten a new dog yet, if we did, I wouldn;t feel guilty.


- Eric

[Inazone]

so let me ask you guys this.. WTF do I do in the next few days while we wait for the seemingly inevitable?

By the way, I tend to get attached to dogs. I've had some traumatic experiences with dogs and car accidents and the memories seem to be popping in and out recently. I think I just love the idea of having a dog around. I told me wife "honey, no offense but the dog does something for me that you can not do" she understood. I've had them my entire life and its like some of you guys said, they are truly the best friends you can have.

I would have no problem getting another dog. I feel confident we would love him, raise him well, and he would become a part of the family. The obvious problem with that is I start to feel like we are just replacing Buddy...does that makes sense?


Ryan, I got your pm btw.. I will respond when I have a moment.

In the last few days Weasel was with us, he and I were basically inseparable, and my wife took pictures at every opportunity. That was really the most important part, capturing those moments. It's still sad to look at them, but I feel better knowing that he wasn't neglected or set aside just because he was "broken" in some way. In Buddy's case, since you don't know what the test results will be, try to treat him the same as you would on a normal day. If he's not in pain, then do all the things with him that you would if he was perfectly healthy. If he is getting around OK and able to play, then by all means play! If there isn't any harm in giving him treats, then do that too . . . but remember that if he ends up being fine, he might start expecting special treatment!

Don't worry about eventually *replacing* him. Possessions are replaced, pets are not. You could go out and get an entire litter of puppies, and none of them would replace Buddy. Pets are unique, just like people, and you'll know the difference. Meeting new friends doesn't mean you are replacing old friends.

(The PM can wait.)

[OnlineStageGear]

Those who say you can't buy love have never bought a puppy.

I wouldn't get another puppy/dog right away. A mourning time is appropriate and respectful. The time you wait to get another is entirely up to you. It may sound silly, but your puppy would want you to be happy. You aren't replacing him, that could never happen and no matter how much you love you have for a new puppy, you will not be taking any love away you had for your passing friend.

Matt

[rjohnstone]

This is part of why we got another dog before my little guy goes.
My Shi-Tzu, Elliott is 14 and he's lost most of his hearing and eye sight and is going down hill. He's 14, so we know it's only a matter of time.
My daughter loves him, but even at 4 she knows he's not going to be around much longer. Long story, but she understands at a high level what death means.
We got our Cocker, Milo from an extremely reputable breeder last year and his presence alone has helped perk up Elliott.
They play a ton and at times, Elliott is almost acting like a pup again.
To get to my point, we got Milo because our house isn't a home without a dog. It's going to be hard enough when Elliott goes, but at least we will have Milo and we already have a call into Milo's breeder to get on the waiting list for another Cocker. It took us a year of waiting to get Milo.
She only breeds twice a year and all her dogs are papered (AKC) and she will take any dog back, no questions asked.

I would be very angry with the breeder you got Buddy from.
It won't fix the issue, but it sounds like severe inbreeding.
Puppies don't get hip dysplasia (sp?).

All I can say is I feel for you. I hope the vet can make Buddy better.

[AlexL]

I would be very angry with the breeder you got Buddy from.
It won't fix the issue, but it sounds like severe inbreeding.
Puppies don't get hip dysplasia (sp?).

That's definitely true. Very common in old Shepards and Collies, but not in pups.

- E.