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Larry is a Beagle/American eskimo mix. I love him to death however the cancer treatment is out of the question. I do not think it is right to subject an 11 year old dog to chemotherapy or surgery in order to extend his life another year or two. His quality of life would not be what it should.
The blastomycosis treatment is close to 1000 dollars. I am on the fence about this treatment. At best Larry has another two-three years left in him and while I love him very much I also have four other dogs that I have to take care of including a diabetic that is costing me 100 dollars per month.
I am caught in a "dog triage" situation. Who lives and who dies? DO I spend the 1000 dollars and hope that Larry lives or do I put him down? Money is kind of tight for me however I would make the sacrifices if I thought it were worthwhile.
I don't know what to do. Do you spend the money or not? Is it better for the dog to leave now or suffer through treatments?
I always go by the prognosis...good outcome likely with high quaility of life I will spend the bucks.
Poor prognosis- dog survives 6 or so months doped up on medications...no thank you, I wouldn't want that for myself or any of my animals.
Without a diagnosis its hard to say...but I ALWAYS consider quality of life.
Also its a hard decision but its really unwise to spend money that you can't afford to.
If its possibly just an infection you could simply try the antibiotic route and see how it goes.
That shouldn't be terribly costly and you would be giving him a chance.
If its possibly just an infection you could simply try the antibiotic route and see how it goes.
That shouldn't be terribly costly and you would be giving him a chance.
I am doing the antibiotic treatment now. It is the other two possible problems that have me worried. I forgot to mention that in my original post.
Larry is a Beagle/American eskimo mix. I love him to death however the cancer treatment is out of the question. I do not think it is right to subject an 11 year old dog to chemotherapy or surgery in order to extend his life another year or two. His quality of life would not be what it should.
The blastomycosis treatment is close to 1000 dollars. I am on the fence about this treatment. At best Larry has another two-three years left in him and while I love him very much I also have four other dogs that I have to take care of including a diabetic that is costing me 100 dollars per month.
I am caught in a "dog triage" situation. Who lives and who dies? DO I spend the 1000 dollars and hope that Larry lives or do I put him down? Money is kind of tight for me however I would make the sacrifices if I thought it were worthwhile.
I don't know what to do. Do you spend the money or not? Is it better for the dog to leave now or suffer through treatments?
It sounds like vet isn't sure what's wrong yet. Is that correct? If it is, why don't you wait until you get a definite diagnosis before trying to decide? Maybe it's a treatable infection. Knowing for sure will make the decision much easier for you.
I am doing the antibiotic treatment now. It is the other two possible problems that have me worried. I forgot to mention that in my original post.
Did your vet run an antigen test for blasto? Its not conclusive but you would at least know if your dog has even been exposed.
I would rec reading as much as possible on the disease and treatment side effects making a decision from there.
There is nothing wrong with being concerned with what the treatment might entail and possible side effects which might not be something you want to potentially put your dog through.
Either way I am sure you will make the right decision for you both.
Wow...I could have written your post, almost verbatim, about two years ago.
My dog Buddy was 11 years old when some weird stuff started happening. He was sneezing a lot, and then the nose bleeds started. Lots and lots of blood. I spent a lot of time and money taking him to vets and specialists...even ended up taking him to NC State's veterinary hospital. He ended up in their ICU unit for a day before he died while the vets were trying to give him a second blood transfusion.
As far as I know (I could never bring myself to read the necropsy report) he died because of a nasal fungus: aspergillosis.
Here is what I learned: over the years I have always said I would spend whatever I realistically could to save my dogs' lives. But after the experience with Buddy, I realized that what I did was kinda mean to him. He had to be completely stressed out and scared and hurting...and all I did was prolong that pain.
It's a tough decision, but I just don't think I could do that again. I think knowing that with our beloved furry families, we CAN choose to end their pain instead of forcing them to endure medical treatments that probably traumatize them. Yes there are exceptions (age, prognosis, etc). But in the end, I think for me the more realistic choice is that I can help them by ending their suffering in a dignified and peaceful way.
Just my 2 cents...and I'm not even sure it's worth that. But I wanted you to know that sometimes doing more isn't better. And sometimes realizing that is just as hard as making that terrible decision.
Wow...I could have written your post, almost verbatim, about two years ago.
My dog Buddy was 11 years old when some weird stuff started happening. He was sneezing a lot, and then the nose bleeds started. Lots and lots of blood. I spent a lot of time and money taking him to vets and specialists...even ended up taking him to NC State's veterinary hospital. He ended up in their ICU unit for a day before he died while the vets were trying to give him a second blood transfusion.
As far as I know (I could never bring myself to read the necropsy report) he died because of a nasal fungus: aspergillosis.
Here is what I learned: over the years I have always said I would spend whatever I realistically could to save my dogs' lives. But after the experience with Buddy, I realized that what I did was kinda mean to him. He had to be completely stressed out and scared and hurting...and all I did was prolong that pain.
It's a tough decision, but I just don't think I could do that again. I think knowing that with our beloved furry families, we CAN choose to end their pain instead of forcing them to endure medical treatments that probably traumatize them. Yes there are exceptions (age, prognosis, etc). But in the end, I think for me the more realistic choice is that I can help them by ending their suffering in a dignified and peaceful way.
Just my 2 cents...and I'm not even sure it's worth that. But I wanted you to know that sometimes doing more isn't better. And sometimes realizing that is just as hard as making that terrible decision.
I wish you and Larry the best.
I just read the symptoms of Aspergillosis an it sure seems to be what Larry has been experiencing more so than the blasto. My vet noted blood in his nasal discharge that I hadn't seen.
I have had Larry sine the day he was born. I adopted his mother while she was pregnant and kept all the surviving pups.
I just read the symptoms of Aspergillosis an it sure seems to be what Larry has been experiencing more so than the blasto. My vet noted blood in his nasal discharge that I hadn't seen.
I have had Larry sine the day he was born. I adopted his mother while she was pregnant and kept all the surviving pups.
I know it's hard. Buddy was a rescue that I adopted when he was 2. 9 years didn't seem long enough. We had also lost another dog about a year before (she had diabetes) and Buddy was also diabetic. After Buddy passed, we only had Daisy who my husband has had since puppyhood. She's still with us at about 15 years old. And we have another dog we adopted in January 2012. But I still miss Buddy and Sally.
When they diagnosed Buddy with the aspergillosis, we were told to take him to NC state where the vets could do a special fungal treatment. We just didn't get there fast enough. I can only tell you that the scenes we went through with Buddy are not something I would ever wish on anyone.
Perhaps you can have a heart to heart with your vet, or get a second opinion. Find out what the prognosis really is and make a better informed decision. It's heartbreaking either way.
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