Pets and Money

Posted on November 18, 2009 
Filed Under Personal

Over the years, my wife and I have had a few dogs as pets. When we met, Dena had a wonderful Golden Retriever. Harvest was a fantastic pet, so wonderfully trained and so very loyal. We’ve got fond memories of that dog! Another Golden followed, and then for several years we relied on smaller pets for the kids to have and care for. Reptiles, fish, birds…we’ve had a menagerie of pets.

Since 2001 we’ve had a “mixed breed” dog, a 90 pound gentle – but rather strong-willed – animal. As our kids and the dog have grown together, we’ve had lots of fun along with some problem behaviors. At this season in her life, though, Kenai is content to chase squirrels, scrounge for dropped crumbs and sleep away the days. She’s a good dog, but we’ve been noticing some unusual symptoms which may indicate a health issue. Lately she isn’t very hungry, and it seems she’s having trouble hearing (maybe she’s just ignoring us?).

I thought of our experiences with pets, all the memories – and the many expenses – as I read this piece about difficult decisions pet owners often have to make. The authors reveal the health challenges their family pet is going through, and the incredible expenses of potential treatment. It raises the question, “How much can you justify spending on the health of your pet?”

So I wonder if you have a family pet, and if there have been medical problems, how much you’ve spent – or not spent – on helping that animal recover?

Comments

8 Responses to “Pets and Money”

  1. Deborah on November 20th, 2009 1:38 pm

    My Dog Lucky ~ died last Sunday. He was fine Saturday afternoon. I found him Sunday AM taking his last breathes. Please pray for me. Lucky was eleven and half years old. He had diabeties and thyroid disease since 2003. I fed him twice a day ~ gave insulin injections twice a day ~ and a thyroid pill twice a day. All was well! A very health little buddy boy ~ so smart ~ so loyal ~loving, trusting, well behavied. Saturday night I didn’t handle his health situation well, he was vomiting….I should have taken him to the VET ER

  2. Em on November 20th, 2009 4:31 pm

    My husband and I have been wondering this as well! We have a wonderful 2yr old mutt who we love to death! She recently has had some joint issues that concerned us enought to take her to the vet. After taking her in, they recommended xrays that would be at least $300!! We decided to give her some prescribed glucosamine pills, but it sparked a conversation, “How much are we willing to spend?” Luckly, she is doing much better- but that thought is always in the back of our heads.

  3. Melissa on November 21st, 2009 10:28 am

    I had a Cairn Terrier for 13 1/2 years. In April he was diagnosed with chronic kidney failure. He was put on a special diet (which cost more than regular food),a vitamin supplement and a presciption that cost $50.00 for a 21 day supply. His quality of life decreased rapidly and we had to have him put to sleep on July 9. A kidney transplant or dialysis could have been performed in a bigger vet clinic but we decided against that because of his age and the cost involved. It’s hard to decide how much is too much to spend on an ill pet. They do become a part of the family. We spent as much as we could and a little more and kept him comfortable for as long as possible but had to know when to let go.

  4. Karen on November 21st, 2009 6:30 pm

    My husband and I have struggled with this issue. It’s so hard to know where to draw the line on expenses when a pet is ill because the diagnostic tests alone often cost hundreds of dollars. This is also one of the few areas where he and I don’t agree — perhaps because I never had children and I considered my pets to be my babies, and my husband has three grown children and at times couldn’t afford their medical care when they were very young.
    We recently had to decide what to do about an ill cat, and our pastor put the matter into clear perspective for me after my husband and I had spent the amount we had agreed would be our limit and the cat still needed additional tests and treatment. I felt guilty doing nothing, but my husband believed we shouldn’t spend any more of our savings. I called our pastor in tears, feeling guilty for not helping this living creature, and he gently counseled me that my love for my husband needed to be a higher priority for me than my love for a pet. He didn’t diminish my feelings, but his kindly-spoken words showed me that I needed to submit to my husband. He also said that in our society, we do so much more for pets than has ever been done in the past. I felt that the Holy Spirit was speaking to me through him. It only took a few moments for everything to fall into place in my mind.
    I think everyone needs to seek the Lord in this area and search the Scriptures for biblical principles to base these personal decisions on. Pets are wonderful companions and gifts from God, but they are not people and in God’s Word are not accorded the same value as humans have in His eyes (Matthew 6:26).

  5. Pau on November 21st, 2009 8:42 pm

    they are a dime a dozen – people need the help since some people dont live better than pets –especially here in America

  6. Lisa on November 22nd, 2009 12:09 pm

    I had a wonderful Sheltie, Prancer for almost 14 years. In fact, he died just 8 days shy of that birthday. Over the course of his lifetime I lost track of how much money I spent on him but since I work for a vet, it’s not really that much of an issue. My suggestions for people in this day and age of such sophisticated medical care for pet is two-fold. First, when your first get your pet, invest in pet health insurance. It can mean the difference between treating an accident/illness and euthanasia. Pet health insurance is quite inexpensive and covers a variety of issues. Researach carefully and choose the plan that fits the best for your and your pet. The other thing I would suggest is to apply for Care Credit. This is a special medical credit card. Incidently, it works for humans, too. Many doctors, dentists, and vets accept this card. While it does have a high interest rate, it offers several no interest plans depending of the cost of care and how long you plan to take to pay it off. You can qualify for 0% for up to 3 years depending on cost of care and credit history. I think that how much we spend on our pets depends on how well off we are financially to begin with and, I know, for me it also depends of the personality of the pet. Prancer, I would have done anything for regardless of cost becuase he was a personality type that bounced back from anything, including a stroke. I also had a cat that I spent $1100 on when he had an unexpected illness, but he was not stressed by staying in the hospital for the weekend. However, I have another cat that I would not do that for. Her personality is much different. She is extremely stressed by just having routine vaccinations, a hospital stay is out of the question for her….
    As I said, a very personal decision. Would I go into managable debt for my pet? Probably. Would I go into outrageous debt for my pet? No.

  7. Brenda on November 24th, 2009 1:29 pm

    I find it interesting that most of the posts so far do not take into consideration what a consuming culture we are…I have seen many people deeply in debt, upside down on their mortgages, accepting public assistance and yet adding to their menagerie. We all hear about the needs of people all over the world, including the persecuted church and yet we Americans find it acceptable to throw thou$and$ of dollars into our pets. And yes, we have a small dog. Received for free but have put many dollars into him. enjoy him, love him, but wow…to justify the expense from a spiritual perspective? I’m not sure it can be done. I’ve thought this may be the last dog we own simply from a stewardship standpoint. A hard point to come to for a dog lover!

  8. Lisa on December 3rd, 2009 6:16 am

    Brenda,
    I understand your point, but at the same time, while we must be good financial stewards, I believe that we must also take care of others of God’s creatures that cannot do for themselves. God did give us dominion over the animals and admonished us to care for them. We humans have free will, and many people that are in such extreme debt got that way due to poor choices. While I understand the economy is poor and alot of people loose thier jobs through no fault of their own, I also believe that most outrageous debt is due to people not being content to live within their means. I live in a community where that is sadly the norm. I am looked down upon because I drive an Expolorer instead of an Escalade. We rent our small home that sits on someone else’s property instead of living in a house that we own. Well, most of the houses in this community are $500,000 – 800,000 and the families need two incomes just to barely make ends meet, and then still buy the Escalades, Navigators, and BMWs. To me, I think that people, including many Christians, have lost sight of what’s really important…..storing up treasures in heaven instead of here on earth.

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