Would you spend 2,500 on a 9 year old dog?

This summer my puppy got bit by a rattlesnake. Her chances were very slim, big snake, little dog, 45 minutes before treatment. My family and I rushed her to the closest vet. (We were in the mountains) They said one vile of Anti-Venom would be 800 dollars. Most dogs only need 1 vile. They said with the IV and everything else, ingluding 1 vile of anti-venom, would be atleast 1,000- 1,500. My dad said we had to talk about it. As soon as the vet left the room my mom, my bother, and I burst into tears and started begging dad to pay it. (We could aford it my dad has a good job, he is in the Marines) He said ok and they began treatment. We were taken to the back to see our dear puppy. ( a 2 year old mini aussie) She was very swollen and atached to aan IV. She ended up being ok after 2,500 dollars (she needed 2 viles), many prayers from friends and family all over the US, three days at the vet, and many tears and sleepless nights. After we picked her up my mom poped the question, "You would all do that for Lady Bug right?" (We had all told dad that we would pay part of the vet bill. we split it in 4ths 625 each.) I didn't know what to say. Me and Lady Bug don't get along, I am not very fond of her. All she does is sleep and eat and she is 9 years old. Fuji, on the other hand is a young 2 year old puppy, that improves the life of many working as a Therapy Dog, is a winner in agility shows, and is my BEST friend. I said NO I probably wouldn't pay that much for Lady Bug. She doesn't do much she wouldn't miss much if the did die. She probably only has 1-4 years of life left. Plus if is not fur sure she would die without treatment. Many dogs survive without it. So what would you do? Would you pay 2,500 for a old, lazy dog? Would you pay 2,500 for a puppy with about 13 years of life left?Jackofonetrade: They are dogs not peopleSammy Gabbie GO VEGAN: We would pray for the old dog! We would pray just as much as we did for the 2 year old! I love her even though she is old and lazy! I am wondering if you guys would PAY that much for her. We would try everything else without blinking a eye, but paying 2,500? And I did pay 625 from my own money, not my allowance.Thanks to everyone else:)My dad is an officer!

No unless you like it a lot I mean a lot.

maybe, i don't know , it's a tough situation though,

I would hope that your parents wouldn't think twice about paying for treatment for you for a disease when your sister is younger...would live longer...Family....One for all all for one?You get the point?

I would pay for what ever it took to make my dog better you cant pick and choose what dog you treat ,you have a dog and it needs treatment you get it treated .I would always take into account age quality of life whether the treatment had a Good chance of working and what the future prognosis would be before doing anything...

I am sorry to tell you but you are finding excuses. You don't need to do that, you think you will feel guilty and selfish if you said directly. I wouldn't spend it on that dog, and i presume you are looking for approval. Is that right? If not lemme know...Anyways... i think that each life is worth living, and worth infinite money. You can't know that your older dog has 1-4 years left... as far as chances are concerned, your younger puppy has a greater chance to jump under a car then the old one... lets be honest here. Unless you chain that mo fo inside the house... but thats your business... May i ask you not to diss your dog like that? "would you pay 2.500 for an old lazy dog?" It would rather seem that i respect your dog more then you do... i think that its not fair from you... here a comparison...Who would you kill first if you had to... your mother or someones baby? I know this is a terrible choice but still? You would probably choose your mother to live because you find yourself more connected to her. I think you don't really refuse to pay 2.500 for your older dog cos he is old but more because you don't get along with him...I personally think that is not fair.So basically my answer would be YES i would pay 2.500 for either a puppy or the as you call it OLD LAZY DOG....

No, and No.btw, a 2-year-old dog is not a puppy.=======---------==-------========Dusty, the best dog I ever knew (may he RIP), got bit by a rattlesnake on a camping trip, he was in the prime of his life. Took maybe 40 minutes to find a vet in a nearby town, this guy knew a thing or two about snakebite. 20 minutes or less after a fatal rattlesnake bite, a dog's major organs begin to fail, starting with kidneys. He doesn't even recommend antivenom for rattlesnake bite, not even to his champion bird dog patients -- the side effects are worse than the poisoning, and don't increase the odds of survival by very much.Adult rattlers can control the amount of venom they dispense with each bite, and are likely to give a warning bite first, a "dry strike" without venom, to an animal they don't intend to eat, saving their venom to use in hunting for food.My dog was treated for pain & infection, his muzzle swollen up like a football, but he was fully recovered within 2 days.If my guy was right, your dog might've had a better chance of survival without the antivenom.

You do what your heart tells you.

My owner would certainly spend that kind of money on me. Nine is beautiful. My older brother a chocolate lab is 7, and my even older sister Freckles is god knows how old. My family has paid thousands of dollars for Freckles and in the end its all worth it. Even though she has a heart murmur, collapsed trachea, and always breaks her legs, its so worth it just to keep her alive.

nope

never assume parents can afford things. You really don't kniw their finances. Income, maybe, but what about expenses?But you all didn't do that for the 2 year old dog, either. Your parents did. They paid the expenses. But why wouldb't you pray for tge other dog?I seriously doubt you kids have 625 each.

Yes I would pay for an old dog to get better! My dog is 12 almost 13 and if he got sick I would pay to see him get better, even if it is another year, to your dog that's still another year that he/she gets to live. I don't get along with my dog, I mean I love him and all but we aren't close if you know what I mean? But id still pay for him. The only time I wouldn't pay would be of there was a huge change that he/ she wouldn't pull through surgery. In September I had a 6 week old chihuahua (my chihuahuas pup) and she had a heart murmur and I got told it would cost upto 5000 to get her surgery etc and even then it was a 70% chance of her dying during or just after surgery so I made the decision to put her to sleep, which was hard. So personally I think that yeh pay for an old dog if you can guarentee that it'll pull through and get better, but everyone's entitled to their own opinion hope that helps?

Hell no that's a price I payed for a purebred German shepherd with champion bloodlines from Germany!!. Totally a rip off if you pay that price for a dog that is 9 years old.

man I hop you never have kids as selfish as you. and yes you are selfish that you would pretty much talk that way about a dog that you pretty much grew up with. So you don't like the dog so fucking what, she is still a family pet just like Fuji. Here's a question reverse the roles. Say fuji was the nine year old dog, retired from all her current activities. Would you still feel the same way? So she's old and lazy, so what? plenty of dogs get that way so will Fuji quite possibly. Of course depending on your age you will likely be out of the home and she'll be living with your parents still. You would go through the ROOF if your parents decided not to try and save Fuji's life or ease her pain once she's an OLD DOG. And don't say you wouldn'tin a situation like this YES I would pay that much for an older dog. I'm not going to deny treatment just because she's old and lazy. The ONLY way I would not shell out money for treatment is if treatment wouldn't improve the dog's overall quality of life.

lets see i spent over 500 dollars on a 10yr old dog i only had for a month so i quess i would and i would spend it on my 4yr old whom i had her whole life i don't pick and choose

Military men don't make good money unless they are officers( I have a family full of military men and women). If your dad could afford it why did the rest of you have to pitch in your own money. Yes, I would spend it on the older dog. It is our responsibility, as dog owners, to provide any and all medical needs of our pets.

Yep, I have paid that and another few thousand as well for a 14yo dog and was very happy to do so. It enabled her to live free of pain.She had an indolent eye ulcer and treatment from a a canine opthalmologist.Surgery for a mammary tumor.Surgery for tooth extraction and a general dental.Surgery for a small tumor on bottom eyelid.Vet treatment for an intestinal problem that remained undiagnosed despite specimens being sent to pathology.I happily paid the fees to see this girl live out the rest of her life in comfort.

Age is only one factor I would take into consideration when deciding if a proposed treatment was in the best interest of the dog and I could reasonably afford to finance it.For example the life expectancy of a working Bedlington Terrier is fourteen years, so at nine would typically still be exercising well and taking a very active part in everyday life, so if the dog was otherwise healthy I would find a way to finance the treatment for a nine year old dog.In contrast the life expectancy of the Dobermann is ten years, so a nine year old would it would be in its later senior years, *but* if the treatment was in the dog's best interest and I could finance it with pet insurance, low interest credit card, bank account, a payment plan agree with the veterinary practice, asking relatives to chip in toward the cost who would be repaid, pawning/selling luxury items, that is what I would do.It has been my experience that the longer I have owned my dogs, the deeper the bond that has developed and the harder it is when they die. Evidently that isn't the case for you and Lady Bug.

Yes, as long as the outcome is mostly positive. I don't care how old or how not affectionate the dog is, it has a right to live as well. I find it a bit... To put it nicely, nonsensical that because one outshines the other, its life suddenly has less value.If the prognosis looks incredibly bleak, I'd opt for euthanasia though.