Earlier this month, my SO surprised me by coming home with a puppy, a German shepard/yellow lab mix. Her name is Sunny. She’s about 7 months old and the cutest puppy I’ve ever seen. She barked a lot the first few nights and I could not leave my house without her running up and jumping on me. Active, happy puppy.
Earlier this week, Sunny stopped eating and started throwing up instead. She hasn’t moved much at all. I found a tick on her the other night and I was worried about Lyme’s Disease, so I took her to the vet. She doesn’t have Lyme’s Disease though. Sunny has Parvo TX. Apparently the TX means it’s in an advanced stage and it’s really, really bad.
There’s treatment. A cocktail of antibiotics, vitamins, pain killers, etc. She has to stay there though, for an undertermined amount of time and, at $150/day, plus the cost of supplies, catheter, medicines, and the “isolation room”, I think it’s too much. And they need a $400 deposit up front. There’s an 80% survival rate with this treatment. With no treatment, it sinks to just 15%.
Sunny is real sick, and I can’t help her.
This week has been too, too much. And it’s only Wednesday.
You’re in my thoughts and prayers slvr. I wonder if putting her down may be better than just letting her suffer. Let sunny be at rest perhaps. I know it’s a difficult decision.
So, so sorry to hear about your Sunny. Will they finance the cost of treatment? We have some animal hospitals around here that will finance if you have good credit. It works just like a loan, with interest and monthly payments. If your vet doesn’t offer this perhaps there is another one that does.
It would be awful to lose a dog because of financial hardship. Especially a dog this young who could potentially give you 13-14 years of love.
She’s spending the night at the vet’s office with little to no treatment so I can discuss things with my SO. We have to get back to them tomorrow morning before he goes to work. I have such a negative attitude about things though that I “just know” she’ll be the 20% that dies anyway.
Jesus Christ, and I was worried about Lyme’s Disease. If I would have known this, I would’ve PRAYED for Lyme’s Disease.
I am so sorry, there is nothing to say except that we are all hoping for the best. I am having my own dog drama at the moment (see my MPSIMS thread), so I know how you feel.
I don’t think they have an actual finance plan. The vet told me that he’s currently holding four checks for another Parvo patient, cashing them every payday. I think it’s just a nice thing they do, nothing formal. That’s not really the point though. I would need SO’s help to pay it. I am more than willing to cut my losses if she dies because at least I’ll know I TRIED. I don’t know how he feels about that.
Yes, 80% is a lot. But when I came out of the office to sign the release form, the receptionist saw “Parvo TX”, asked if Sunny was staying, and then asked if she would be treated. As in, treated or put down. This just doesn’t sound good to me.
I hate to be the one to ask this, but where did you guys get Sunny? I mean, was she from a friend, a pound or shelter, or a store?
The reason I ask is because parvo is a standard vaccination that all dogs should receive. Besides, I can’t remember if parvo is contagious, so if she was kenneled with other dogs, you might want to give the kennel owner a heads-up.
If Sunny was a rescue, I can understand her maybe not getting her shots. But if she came from somewhere else, it is disgraceful that she should have a disease that could have been prevented.
Don’t misunderstand me, she should have gotten vaccinated before you got her. It is absolutely not your fault.
We got her from a person who, quite obviously, knows shit about proper animal care.
Sunny had gotten NONE of her shots when we got her. This is my first week since having her that I’ve had two consecutive days off on which I didn’t have school. I guess I just couldn’t get her into the vet’s in time. So maybe it is my fault. Who knows?
In the couple hours that I’ve been home, I’ve managed to completely convince myself that my SO is a heartless monster who, under no conditions, will help me treat Sunny. I have no idea why I think that because he really is a good guy. I just do.
So I gave myself a little math assignment for tonight and I’m going to come up with an actual budget (something I’ve never done before) and I’m going to cut out things I’d planned on getting that I don’t actually need, like a new pair of shoes, a manicure and expensive food items I don’t need. I honestly like macaroni and cheese anyway.
Assuming my meeting with the vet (and one other, on the advice of reprise) goes well tomorrow, I’ll move forward with treatment. If not… Well, I haven’t gotten that far yet.
I’m so sorry to hear about this, Silver Fire. This would have crushed me if it’d happened to my dog. It’s like he’s part of the family. I think you’re making the right decision, and I truly hope everything goes well.
I really hope everything goes well. We lost a young dog once (not quite that young - 2.5yrs) and so I know how rough it can be. We spent the money, but it was apparent, in our case, that nothing could help. You have a chance, a fairly good one at that, and I hope you can find a way to pay for it. Sunny sounds like such a wonderful dog - my thoughts are with you!
Sorry if this doesn’t sound as encouraging as I mean it to be…
I’m really sorry to hear about this. Parvo is a heartbreaking disease. It is carried on shoes, and the pathogens can live in dirt or grass quite a long time. Until fairly recently, it was considered dangerous to go to a dog show if you had puppies in the house. Breeders kept special shoes for people to wear when they came inside. The development of the parvo vaccine was one of the breakthroughs that led to the huge increase in dog sports, gatherings and activities in this country.
That’s enough history, I suspect. You need to know that this isn’t your fault. Vaccination should have happened before you got him, he probably had already been infected when he came to live with you, and there is some evidence that vaccinating a dog who is already sick can be extremely dangerous. I applaud your reordering of priorities, and my dogs and I are hoping this turns out well.
When my pup was six months old, she stopped on a walk to lap up some strange looking water – it just rained, and water was everywhere, but this puddle seemed a bit colorful. I reached down, stuck my finger in, and took a lick.
Yes, a lovely 2000 vintage Prestone. Driving at potentially felonious speeds, I took her to the nearest 24 hour animal hospital, carried her in, yelled “ANTIFREEZE!”, and watched a phalanx of vets in white lab coats emerge, take the aforementioned dog, and amscray. So far, so good.
I was faced with a $1,000 tab, with a huge deposit up front. I wrote the check without hesitation.
I could have thought “Okay, so she’s got a 75% chance at survival, and Portuguese Water Dogs run about $1,500, so fiscally it makes sense to take my chances.” Nope. Bailey isn’t chattel; she’s a gentle soul that the world would miss.
I’m so sorry about it, but there really wasn’t anything I could do. It was so advanced and even if she did recover, she’d still be sick. She’d have damage that could never be repaired, and I couldn’t do that. I feel so, so bad about this.
You don’t ever have to say you’re sorry. It was obvious from your posts that you loved Sunny. Sunny was lucky to have someone who knew when it was time to let go.
:sniff:
I’m so so sorry for you Silver Fire. My beloved Golden Retriever, Friday, was put to sleep a year ago. It hurts so much. We rescued a dog in Friday’s memory, a Weimaraner named Chance, short for “Second Chance” and that eased the pain and helped us heal.
At least Sunny had you, someone who cared enough for her to ease her through the end of her life instead of letting her go through a terrible illness. I know it’s cold comfort, but there’s not much of any other kind. I’m so sorry.
You need to know that this isn’t your fault. Vaccination should have happened before you got him, he probably had already been infected when he came to live with you, and there is some evidence that vaccinating a dog who is already sick can be extremely dangerous. I applaud your reordering of priorities, and my dogs and I are hoping this turns out well.