No I'm not talking about the "Oh I forgot my phone bill was due" or the "Ugh I have to buy presents for my sixteen nieces and nephews because my family are dumb and can't organize a Kris Kringle" type of unexpected, I'm talking about the ones you truly cannot see coming.
Like the $4000+ vet bill we have looming on the horizon.
Last week, Sprocket pulled up one of his back legs and refused to put any weight on it at all. He limped around the yard with giant puppy dog eyes. Which isn't hard since his natural eye state is puppy dog eyes. Considering it was my gardening prowess that removed the weeds from the lawn, the first thought was that I'd missed a spot and he had a prickle stuck firmly in his foot, but we couldn't find anything obvious.
The next day we took him to the vet because he was refusing to walk on it. I'm not entirely sure what I was expecting them to say but it certainly wasn't that poor Sprocket appears to have torn/ruptured/done something to his anterior cruciate ligament. Just like a footballer. Meaning the next bitch he is seen next to at the park will be papped as a wagging WAG.
Our vet has said it was a predictable injury considering he has slightly dodgy doggy hips. He takes after me, obviously. On the bright side, he was having a bloody good time on a 'doggy date' when it happened. If this was
He's not in much pain and we are waiting it out to see if it is ruptured or just a bruised badly knee and gets better by itself. Daily anti-inflammatories seemed to be helping for the last week but his improvement has stalled now and he's still not walking properly. On the up side though, for an outside dog he is thoroughly enjoying the vet's order to keep him inside and comfy.
Next step? Handing over a cool grand of cash for scans under anaesthetic because bastard animals can't just hold their breath and keep still like humans. If they find something, they fix it for an extra $3K+.
Since it's the second time our pound puppy has required surgery (first time he had a motherfucking abscess form in his throat - just like I had when I was 16, see I told you he takes after me!), I'm now regretting not getting pet insurance.
Christmas is most definitely canceled.
Ugh. That really does suck :-(
ReplyDeleteHoping that puppy manages some self healing in short order ... and that Christmas can sneak in there somewhere.
Awe, that sucks. Poor bub!!!
ReplyDeletePet insurance was super common when we lived in the UK and it was tied in with my car insurance for only $4 per dog, per month. SOLD. When we moved back to Canada, the concept was pretty much non-existent (or astronomically high), so we're risking it. I take Stella out for walks wrapped in bubble wrap. haha. Ugh.
Oh puppy!!! What a crap time of the year to fork out gazillions. We have pet insurance, as if something goes wrong with a Berner, it goes super wrong - but it still pains me every time I see the money go from my account. Hefully he will have super healing powers without the need for surgery xxx
ReplyDeleteI can feel your pain. Two years ago we had our dog decide to roll in prickles when the kids took him for a walk. He ended up with them in his ears and some imbedded between his paws which we missed. The ones in his ears that we didn't even know existed until he got sick ended up requiring surgery $2000+. The day after he came home our cat got his tail stuck somewhere and ended up needing a tail amputation - $1500. This all happened two weeks before Xmas,,,,,nice to know we funded the Vet's Christmas fund that year!
ReplyDeleteOh dear!! That is a huge bill!! I've got two dogs but we have been lucky with minimal vet costs. I hope you manage to have some christmas, I hope you aren't forced to eat Pal or My Dog out of the can for your chrissy lunch.
ReplyDeleteOh poor Sprocket!! :(
ReplyDeleteHopefully things start picking up again and he doesn't need the op. Xx
Oh no! Poor sprocket!
ReplyDeleteI hope he receives some christmas magic and heals all on his own xx
Ps. I cant spell that freaking word either!
That sucks!
ReplyDeleteI've heard about this Christmas giving idea where you declare it a free Christmas. Everyone still gets a present, but no one is allowed to spend any money. So you could make something, re-gift something, steal something, etc. I'd love to try it but my family are too LAZY and not creative enough. Get on it.
Animals! I've paid around $4000 for my Mister Frodo this year, probably about $8000 his whole life, fur babies certainly aren't cheap! Sending my love to Sprocket!
ReplyDeleteGive yourself a Christmas present; pet insurance for the next year. I hope Sprocket's leg heals on its own and doesn't need $3000 spent on it.
ReplyDeleteOh, poor Sprocket! Handmade christmas gifts?
ReplyDeleteNwaaw, I'm glad he's inside and comfy.
ReplyDeleteOuch. I just signed up for pet insurance yesterday actually, after two knee operations on the Jack Russell this year cost about $3k. My husband would argue very strongly against any further operations, so it's actually more like life insurance for her :) Or :(
ReplyDeleteOuch! For both you and the dog!
ReplyDeleteHe's loving it. Especially since it's nearly 40 degrees today!
ReplyDeleteI think so!!
ReplyDeleteThat's a fabulous idea!
ReplyDeleteOH bloody hell that is a lot. Sprocket's last operation was $1000 and I thought that was expensive.
ReplyDeleteAwesome idea, Kelly!
ReplyDeleteHehe I was channeling Kim Jong Il in Team America :)
ReplyDeleteThen he can meet Frenzy, yes?
ReplyDeleteIf I put a sprig of holly with the Pal then it'll still be good, right?
ReplyDeleteBLOODY HELL! What a Christmas the vet must have had!!
ReplyDeleteWe are stupid, will probably buy it now... and never need it.
ReplyDelete$4 per dog per month?! Hells yeah!!!
ReplyDeleteThanks love, me too x
ReplyDeleteOuch! I hope it's something that heals itself....
ReplyDeleteOur Pitty cost us over $5000 with a 9 day [I think it was around 9 days] stay in the ICU unit of Murdoch Uni Vet about 5 years ago. That's the most money we've ever dropped on a pet. People said we were crazy but I didn't regret it and yup would do it again if I had to. x
OUCH! Though I'm actually surprised it wasn't much more for ICU!
ReplyDeleteI hope doggy doesn't need an operation! Pet insurance is NOT as good as it's supposed to be. You only get insured for certain circumstances- eg. the dog was on your own premises; you haven't had a claim for 12 months for X; you couldn't have an X-ray instead of a scan...etc. Several well-intentioned friends have got caught. It makes sense- like human health insurance, you usually can't get both wonky knees done in one year or more than one dental crown. The insurance companies run for profit, not for your benefit. If doggy can get by on one cortisone injection per month, take that option. Humans need money too. Having said that, we had our 21-year-old Burmese's teeth out 3 months ago at the cost of $1100 and we've just finished paying it off in 3 monthly chunks! We figured if the infection hadn't killed her, she deserved a year or two more of life in comfort.
ReplyDeleteOh wow Kay I had no idea -only yesterday was a friend suggesting cortisone injections because her dog has been having them for a few months now instead of surgery too. Didn't realise how common it was!
ReplyDelete$1100 for cat teeth?! YEOWCH! But I totally agree if it gives them a good life, then it is worth it x