I have a cat who swallowed a needle and is going to wrack up about $3500 in vet bills, though I have insurance that will pay 80% of it. I've already said yes to the surgery, but it was a hard decision to make. My cat has issues-- he gets uti's, though I've gotten those under control by buying him more expensive food, he has seizures when he gets too stressed out, he has some sort of nasal problem that despite all the antibiotics won't go away so he sneezes and leaves mucous everywhere. He's skittish and fat and seems depressed all the time. I love him, and he's my responsibility, but where do you draw the line? There's a million cats out there that need homes who would be less trouble. But he's a living, breathing creature and I'm the one who adopted him.

I'm conflicted.

3/24/2010 1:14:15 PM

Quote :

"There's a million cats out there that need homes who would be less trouble."

3/24/2010 1:15:51 PM

it's still your cat- you took it in


now if the cat is 15 years old and on it's last leg, I say euthanize it. When I worked at a vet clinic, I saw people that would pay upwards of 3g's a month just to keep their animals alive. And the quality of life is no good. Pets are a pretty big responsibility. Only reason I got a dog is because my dad is a vet, and I get all my stuff for free (and I myself am trying to get into vet school)

3/24/2010 1:19:15 PM

For some reason Brett I get a funny image in my head imagining you operating on a cat or diagnosing someone's pet turtle. That is awesome though, what is your timeline for getting into vet school?

[Edited on March 24, 2010 at 1:24 PM. Reason : a]

3/24/2010 1:24:21 PM

If he is fat it seems you're not feeding him correctly. Being overweight causes a ridiculous amount of problems for cats (and other pets).

how the fuck did it get a needle?

3/24/2010 1:31:01 PM

+1 for new cat

(actually +1 for dog)

3/24/2010 1:46:02 PM

I left a needle out with the thread attached... he likes to eat stringy things. yeah, he's only 6 years old.

I have two cats. They also don't make uti formula diet food-- not to mention diet food is usually worse for cats than regular food. I feed them a quarter cup each of uti dry food mixed with a high protein dry food twice a day, and sub in half a can of canned food every other day for the dry food...I have another cat who doesn't pig out, so my fat cat will eat his food. It's not something I can prevent unless I'm standing over watching them eat. And when I shoo him away from the food it's like it stresses him out so he's determined to eat more when he's stressed.

3/24/2010 2:22:04 PM

There is no moral difference between a cat, a pig, or a gecko.

You have a pet and take care of it because it makes you feel good to do so and you like having it around. But you don't have any moral obligation toward it other than to avoid torturing the thing.

Put it out of its misery and get a cheaper and more enjoyable pet.

3/24/2010 2:35:46 PM

These decisions are always tough and you have to weigh quality and quantity of life. At 6 years old he's still a young cat with a lot of life left a head of him.

I had a similar weight/urinary issue/2 cat problem.

I have 2 cats, brother and sister. The boy cat (who are more prone to urinary issues, like blockage in my case) is also a little overweight (which makes you even more prone to urinary issues) and is young (which oddly enough I'm told a younger say 5 year old cat is more prone to urinary issues than say a 10 year old one). The sister is fine on weight and no urinary issues but is a food stealer.

Well I had been trying to get the boy cats weight down by giving them both diet food, but after getting blocked (which is can be fatal for male cats) I switched him to one that neutralizes the ph in his urine so it was safe for both cats to eat.
(for cats who have ph off really bad you have to do prescription food to move it in one direction or another, and then you can't share it between cats b/c it would turn the cat with the normal ph into having the same urinary issues you are trying to cure in the other cat).

But with this new prescription food I started giving them some wet and some dry instead of their own meal plan which was dry only (because more water in your diet the less likely you are to get blocked - I also got a new running water fountain to encourage the cats to drink more). I had never had real problems with the sister being a food stealer until this point. And it wasn't particularly convenient to stand over them and yell at them the whole time not to steal each others food. So eventually I started feeding the cats by the kitchen door, 1 on one side, 1 on the other, and once both plates down I could close the door and walk away (which also makes it possible to slim their portions of food to encourage weight loss since they can't steal from each other any more). Now any time I pick up the can of cat food both cats run to their specific side of the door and sit and wait for their food.

So while the urinary issue nearly killed the boy cat at one point and I racked up a few thousand in vet bills, he's back to perfect health and easily has another decade or more of good quality life left ahead of him.

3/24/2010 2:50:47 PM

My cat crushed some Christmas bulbs during Christmas this year and then ate them. I told the little guy that i loved him, but also that, if he was stupid enough to eat glass, there wasn't much I could do to prevent him from dieing in the future.

In short if he got really sick i was going to put him down, because you cant fix stupid.

Hes still alive and still stupid, and he still eats crap he shouldn't (including what seems to be about 3 square inches of cardboard a day).

I think at some point you have to put reasonable limits on pets, you love them and they are important, but there are plenty of animals out there who need good homes.

Im not syaing your cat that youve had since you were 10 is easily replaceable, but they arent people, they dont understand treatments ectra. Its hard on you and hard on the animal to just keep them alive.

3/24/2010 3:21:55 PM

^i also change his food every month, the last 3 or 4 days the food gets mixed between the old and the new.

Ive done this since he was a kitten...However he seems to have less stomach issues than most other cats.

3/24/2010 3:26:49 PM

^^ Sorry, but that's pretty funny

3/24/2010 4:28:55 PM

I'd say put him down or fix him and set him free.
He's obviously not happy.
He's fat and can't deal with the stress of being a cat? THE STRESS OF BEING A CAT?

I know that sounds terrible, but it's my honest opinion.

3/24/2010 4:57:35 PM

call me crazy or stupid or whatever

but pet insurance exists? if so thats great where do you get coverage?

3/24/2010 4:58:08 PM

I've spent over $1000 on surgery to set my bird's broken leg.
But I also put a cat to sleep instead of spending $500 on a procedure.

It just depends on the situation. When my bird's leg was broken, I was in college and had no other responsibilities. The bird was also young and had a very good prognosis. When the cat was ill, we were preparing our son for his transplant and had very little money on hand. The cat was also a 'senior' and the vet felt that he would continue to have health problems. It was heart breaking, but I felt like we had no other choice at the time.

3/24/2010 4:58:10 PM

If you are considering killing your pet because you don't want to pay for a surgery that will save it's life, then you shouldn't be a pet owner.

3/24/2010 5:29:43 PM

i killed teri schiavo because i didnt wanna pay to have a zucchini blink at me

3/24/2010 5:34:17 PM

yeah pet insurance exists. some plans can be a pretty good deal if you have a pet that ends up going to the vet all the time because it is wimpy or gets into things all the time.

3/24/2010 6:07:27 PM

its really upsetting that pets arent part of the healthcare bill

millions, uninsured

3/24/2010 6:10:49 PM

^LOL

Fuck 3500 in vet bills

3/24/2010 6:43:00 PM

ANIMALS SHOULD HAVE THE RIGHT TO VOTE!!!!

3/24/2010 9:00:06 PM

Quote :

"Put it out of its misery and get a cheaper and more enjoyable pet. "

Seriously. I love my cats to death but if they had the rack of medical problems you're listing at that age I don't think I could continue doing it. Nature would have knocked them out years ago. Seems kind of cruel letting them live with a bunch of medical problems they wouldn't suffer through otherwise.

3/24/2010 10:21:32 PM

Its a simple economical decision, is the money worth the companionship you will receive? Same principle as when deciding whether or not to treat food animals (or any animals raised for profit) but more difficult because you have to try to assign a dollar amount to emotions in order to do a cost/benefit analysis. Personally, I would try to think of something I would buy purely for fun for $3500 and decide if I would appreciate that more or less than a high maintenance cat.

3/24/2010 11:20:20 PM

3/24/2010 11:35:50 PM

Quote :

"If you are considering killing your pet because you don't want to pay for a surgery that will save it's life, then you shouldn't be a pet owner"

If the animal's quality of life is going to be shit after said surgery, then it is cruel and selfish and THEN you shouldn't be a pet owner.

3/25/2010 11:42:05 AM

OK, and where in this thread did she state that the cat's quality of life would be shit after the surgery?

All she stated was that the cat already has issues, but nothing that will get any worse by having the surgery to save it's life.

If you adopt an animal only to find out later that it has some medical problems you have to take care of, it's not ok to just trade it in for "one of the millions of cats out there that would be less trouble".

If you are looking for "less trouble", then you shouldn't own a pet

[Edited on March 25, 2010 at 11:49 AM. Reason : a]

3/25/2010 11:47:48 AM

Hmm. 800 in vet bills. If you can afford it and are willing to put up with the cat's other issues, then I say
that's enough to continue his life if he's young enough. If not, just put him down. I have to agree- you have given the cat a good life thus far and you shouldn't try to go broke to give it a mediocre quality of life. You tried like any reasonable person would do.

I have 2 dogs, and I've already decided if something horribly expensive happens to them (>$2500), I'm going to have to put them down. I'm trying to go back to nursing school, have student loans, and currently work full time with a modest salary- I'm not interested in keeping alive an animal whose quality of life is going to suck vs. what it was before.

I also saw a co-worker of mine spend >$8000 on a 12 year old dog in emergency abdominal surgery, only to have it die a few months after the operation from complications- now he's got to pay that off and regrets the whole thing.

So you have to weigh the situation, I suppose.

3/25/2010 11:55:42 AM

Quote :

"i killed teri schiavo because i didnt wanna pay to have a zucchini blink at me"

After watching Veggietales with my boys yesterday, for some reason this made me laugh so fucking hard. Just glad my coworkers isn't in his office across from mine.

For relevance to the topic, working at a vet clinic in college, I saw some ridiculous amounts of money spent on pets, and some pets put down over less than 200 bucks. Pretty awful. Thankfully my dog that I was given from my brother never gets into shit and is a good healthy mutt. But when/if we ever get a puppy, I will drop some catastrophic pet insuranace on him, so if we do need to drop a grand to get him fixed, we can. If I had to pay out of pocket on shit like that, I'd probably prefer to put them to sleep.

Shit right now my dog has 1-2 lumps on her that are kinda hard and have grown in the last couple of years that you can feel under her skin. I worry about that shit, but if its cancer, we can't treat it. She is fine now and runs around and never whines, complains, or appears to be in pain. Maybe its just something benign, and at her last checkup in Dec. 09 the vet never said anything about them. My mother-in-law did have to put down both of her dogs though when they got cancer.

[Edited on March 25, 2010 at 12:06 PM. Reason : ]

3/25/2010 11:58:30 AM

is pet insurance something that is offered through normal insurance companies

cuz state farm has never tried to sell this to me and that pretty much means it doesnt exist

3/25/2010 12:13:45 PM

Quote :

"it's not ok to just trade it in for "one of the millions of cats out there that would be less trouble". "

actually, it is. It is a pet, not a family member.

3/25/2010 12:22:45 PM

Quote :

"I have another cat who doesn't pig out, so my fat cat will eat his food. It's not something I can prevent unless I'm standing over watching them eat. And when I shoo him away from the food it's like it stresses him out so he's determined to eat more when he's stressed."

Sylver, not sure if someone else addressed this already, but we separate our two cats when they eat. We have a fatter one who will eat his food and move on to the smaller kitty's food. We lock big hoss in the laundry room until little kitty has had a chance to eat without being stressed about his food being stolen. If little kitty stops eating and doesnt finish, it goes back in the food container. Eating surveillance FTW

3/25/2010 12:26:02 PM

^^ another person who should not be a pet owner

3/25/2010 1:07:56 PM

Quote :

"another person who should not be a pet owner"

why? because they don't consider an animal to be equal to a human being?

there is a set maximum amount of money i will spend on my dog to save her life...past that point, i will put her to sleep

i have no such stipulations with a human being

for both animals and people, i have a vague idea of what level of illness/injury/quality of life would cause me to choose to pull the plug or put them to sleep

3/25/2010 1:18:14 PM

it has nothing to do with an animal being like a human being

but the fact of the matter is, people who take on a pet should be willing to pay the price if they get sick or injured. if you have the "well if he gets sick I will just get a new one" attitude, then you shouldn't be a pet owner.

maybe you would be better suited for house plants or collecting stamps.

[Edited on March 25, 2010 at 1:21 PM. Reason : a]

3/25/2010 1:20:51 PM

If you ever put a serious thread on here about a sick animal or pet euthanasia you really set out the troll bait.

3/25/2010 1:33:11 PM

Quote :

"but the fact of the matter is, people who take on a pet should be willing to pay the price if they get sick or injured. if you have the "well if he gets sick I will just get a new one" attitude, then you shouldn't be a pet owner."

your viewpoint is, quite frankly, retarded

you're making the baseless assumption that everyone who even considers that a new pet would be less stress (emotionally and financially) is a bad pet owner

so i take it that your view, from your very high horse, is that you would pay ANYTHING...sell your house, your possessions, take out loans...to cover the care of a sick or injured PET? you just implied as much, so i'd like to hear you confirm that a pet is the single most important thing in the world

Quote :

"maybe you would be better suited for house plants or collecting stamps."

i have tons of house plants...i love having them around...i also have blueberry bushes, raspberry bushes, blackberry bushes, apple trees, and an extensive garden...what's your point?

3/25/2010 1:33:18 PM

I stopped reading at retarded. Because if you want to resort to name-calling, then you just showed your lack of ability to have an intelligent discussion on the topic.

3/25/2010 1:36:08 PM

he didn't actually call you a name.

Quote :

"if you have the "well if he gets sick I will just get a new one" attitude, then you shouldn't be a pet owner."

says who?

also, point out where anyone has said they would just get a new pet if theirs gets sick. You're over simplifying the point in order to make whatever you have in your head that you think is a point have better legs.

[Edited on March 25, 2010 at 1:40 PM. Reason : *]

3/25/2010 1:38:43 PM

Quote :

"I stopped reading at retarded. Because if you want to resort to name-calling, then you just showed your lack of ability to have an intelligent discussion on the topic."

someone who unconditionally considers a pet the single most important thing in the world is questioning MY intelligence? please.

3/25/2010 1:38:44 PM

please show me where i said my pet is the single most important thing in the world

3/25/2010 1:40:11 PM

I think it IS ethically wrong to spend thousands trying to fix one animal when it could keep several others in perfect health sheltered and fed for years. The animal impoundment facilities are going to put down thousands upon thousands of healthy cats capable of forming a bond with a human in NC alone this year. Why do they deserve less of a chance at life than sylvershadow's pet which clearly would have already died if left to its own devices?

3/25/2010 1:40:53 PM

gotta agree with quags on this one.

[Edited on March 25, 2010 at 1:41 PM. Reason : in terms of what's reasonable to do to save a pet's life.]

3/25/2010 1:41:08 PM

^^ and do you know why those facilities are so overcrowded that they have to euthanize?

Mainly because people buy pets because they like the "idea" of having one, then realize that they can't afford them.

[Edited on March 25, 2010 at 1:42 PM. Reason : a]

3/25/2010 1:42:27 PM

Quote :

"please show me where i said my pet is the single most important thing in the world"

had you read my post, you would realize i've already pointed this out...but since you shy away from logic, i'll point it out again for you

Quote :

"people who take on a pet should be willing to pay the price if they get sick or injured."

since you made no allocations for varying circumstances, you have implied that this statement is boundless

your words imply, quite clearly, that regardless of circumstances, people who take on a pet should "be willing to pay the price"

are you unclear on what you said?

let's be honest...we ALL have our boundaries for what we consider reasonable...and while i agree with your assertion that some people should not be pet owners, your single qualification is unrealistic

[Edited on March 25, 2010 at 1:45 PM. Reason : .]

3/25/2010 1:43:39 PM

^^I don't think it's because they realize they can't afford them so much as they realize they don't want to to the requisite work required to own a pet, but either way that's a totally different argument from what's reasonable to do in terms of medical costs for a pet.

[Edited on March 25, 2010 at 1:44 PM. Reason : a]

3/25/2010 1:44:38 PM

Quote :

"I don't think it's because they realize they can't afford them so much as they realize they don't want to to the requisite work required to own a pet, but either way that's a totally different argument from what's reasonable to do in terms of medical costs for a pet."

this

3/25/2010 1:46:31 PM

Quote :

"your words imply, quite clearly, that regardless of circumstances, people who take on a pet should "be willing to pay the price""

And this is a correct statement, but I feel the same way about just about every other responsibility that people willfully take on. It, in no way, implies that I feel my pet is the most important thing in my world. It does, however, imply that my pet is just as important as every other responsibility I have taken on.

3/25/2010 1:47:14 PM

Quote :

"It does, however, imply that my pet is just as important as every other responsibility I have taken on."

this is stupid and a blatant falsehood, whether you want to admit it or not...your pet has a priority level associated with it...if i take on caring for a sick relative, i will fully admit that he or she has a higher priority level than my pet, despite the fact that i have chosen to take on both responsibilities

reality teaches us that not all things are equal, and your pet is not, regardless of what you tell yourself, just as important as "every other responsibility" you have

but now we're playing a game of semantics...if you want pretend that a pet is priceless, that's fine...i'm glad that i live in a world where i can prioritize my life

[Edited on March 25, 2010 at 1:51 PM. Reason : .]

3/25/2010 1:50:00 PM

i stopped reading at stupid

3/25/2010 1:51:22 PM

of course you did

[Edited on March 25, 2010 at 1:52 PM. Reason : which is why you'll not learn anything...more's the pity for you ]

3/25/2010 1:51:48 PM