The high cost of health care for pets

   I got the idea to do a story about the high-tech - and expensive - veterinary care available today after hearing a lot about it from friends and acquaintances.

   MRIs? CT scans? Hip replacements? Orthodontic braces? Chemotherapy?

   Yes, all that and more is available for pets, and their owners are willing to do whatever it takes for their "luvies," as Kimberly Cudzilo refers to her cats.

   Cudzilo has "joint custody" with her ex-boyfriend of three cats that all have special diets, but her 6-year-old Tyler has serious health problems.

   Tyler had an eye infection, he had most of his teeth removed due to recurring dental infections and he must take a daily pill - mixed by Cudzilo - to help with digestive problems. He also must take three eye drops, two ointments, a steroid and an antibiotic each day.

   "I never complain about it, because I do it because I love them," said Cudzilo, an educational coordinator from North Tonawanda.

   While some pet owners are considering getting pet health insurance, most do not have it and have to pay for the care out of pocket.

   "King of the Hill" took note of the increasing cost of vet care in an episode in 2005, when Hank agrees to care for a cat owned by a soldier stationed overseas.

   Actor Jason Bateman provides the voice for a veterinarian who convinces Hank that he has to spend thousands of dollars on testing and treatment for the ornery cat.

   Veterinarians I interviewed say they don't push their clients to pay for unnecessary procedures, and many devoted owners say they don't care how much the procedures cost.

   After pouring so much of themselves into their pets, many owners take their deaths hard.

   Shelley Cavanaugh, a North Buffalo jeweler, said one dog she owned, a mutt named Henry, was "her soul mate."

   She got the dog in 1995 when he was 5 months old. He survived an intestinal virus known as parvo, but at 5 developed incurable lupus.

   Henry ended up staying at a vet clinic in New York City, where Cavanaugh lived at the time, for one or two weeks at a total cost of $6,000.

   After Cavanaugh found Henry dead one morning in 2000, she laid on the floor with him, petting his body and crying into his fur.

   "I would have done anything for him," said Cavanaugh, who still gets emotional while talking about Henry nine years after the dog's death and has his ashes on her mantle.

   What do you think? Do you have stories to share about your experiences as a pet owner with veterinary care? And how much have you spent to keep a beloved pet alive?

    — Stephen T. Watson

  

Comments

[barbara]

“We kind of mirror human medicine,” said Sheila J. Barr, hospital administrator at Orchard Park Veterinary Medical Center,
Are you kidding? This clinic declaws cats and calls it routine surgery. Would you say that mirrors human medicine? No, nor would I! Oh yes it certainly is high cost and high profit for a dirty deed for the vet who amputates a cat's toes.

[HapKlein]

I have had pets of every description for over sixty years. I enjoy the company of my dogs and cats and admire the beauty of my fish and the one or two birds for which I was responsible.

But I warn people and carry an axiom in my heart that these animals are fragile and someday I am surely going to see them die. I have seen written that it is good our pets live no more than a decade or so since if they lived longer they would be an indelible loss.

I am especially attached to dogs but have noted over the past twenty years a strange phenomena for this active and faithful creature.

Folk seem to love their dogs yet they ignore them. Daily walks are nearly non-existent in most cases and the dogs seem to be some sort of breathing decoration in the home.
Yet, at the same time these largely atrophied canines at he end of their lifespan are subjected to all sorts of medical machinations to extend their lives. It makes no sense to me to virtually imprison an animal for a decade or so then subjecting the creature to extreme medical procedures that prolong yet destroy their quality of life.

I would hope that our society could erect some sort of universal education program that would allow people to be aware of the proper role of dogs in their life. I am aware the SPCA does this already but obviously this is not enough. Ask them.

[Karen Patterson]

My cat passed away last July from lymphoma. I had made a promise to him five years ago that I would not let him suffer the agony of dying from cancer so once the diagnoses was made I signed the euthanasia papers. He went peacefully. This decision was difficult and heart breaking for me but it was the best decision for him.
The promise that I made was during the time I watched my dad suffer with lung cancer. His suffering and death is something I will carry with me all my life. I know that during a particulary bad day he wanted someone to help him die. He lingered for six more weeks struggeling for every breath and finally died in the care of the people of Hospice.
This leaves me to wonder why would people want to put their pets a member of their family through the chemo or surgery to "cure" or give them a few more months to live in pain or with the side effects that comes with the treatments? Its pure selfishness on the owners part. Euthanasia is available to end suffering in our beloved pets . It should also be available to humans.

[Suzan Gridley]

Consider getting your dog the recently approved influenza vaccination (check with your vet about availability). Helping them maintain a strong immune system is also important - just as for humans, that means exercise and good nutrition.
http://findavet.us/blog/2009/07/vaccination-to-prevent-canine-influenza-approved/

[BobbyCat]

To boomers, health care reform is the most important topic in America, bar none. But these NEWS blogs carry not a word about it. Nada.

Health care for animals - you gotta be kidding. Is this somebody's idea of a sick joke?
If so, I don't get it.

[Teeth Whitening Review]

I watched my dad suffer with lung cancer. His suffering and death is something I will carry with me all my life. I know that during a particulary bad day he wanted someone to help him die. He lingered for six more weeks struggeling for every breath and finally died in the care of the people

[MaggieMoo]

To the person who commented on the de-claw.. veterinarians at try to suggest alternatives to the procedure as it can be very stressful to the cat, and is more of a "cosmetic surgery". It is the owners decision whether to try those alternatives or continue with de-claw.

[Patricia]

I recently came across your blog and have been reading along. I thought I would leave my first comment. I don't know what to say except that I have enjoyed reading. Nice blog. I will keep visiting this blog very often.

Patricia

http://largepet.info

[Patricia]

I recently came across your blog and have been reading along. I thought I would leave my first comment. I don't know what to say except that I have enjoyed reading. Nice blog. I will keep visiting this blog very often.

Patricia

http://largepet.info

[margie]

Adopt! and just how do we do this with sky high prices of vets. Oh yes, look for a apt latley.......No Pets allowed. Pet insurance anyone?

[margie]

Next dog i get, im going to first...buy pet insurance and open a buriel trust. Hopefully that should help some. I paid more for my last dog's buriel then my own plot, hellooooooo.

[colon cleanse]

If you care enough to own a pets, you should care enough to read labels and find the most nutritious and safe food possible for them.

[Acai Berry]

This leaves me to wonder why would people want to put their pets a member of their family through the chemo or surgery to cure?

[Cellulite]

Really it becomes difficult to take care of pets because health care for pets is really very expensive.

[MAtias]

Pet insurance and health care is expensive, but then again that is the price to pay if you want to have a pet. It olden times when your pet got sick you let nature takes its course.