Dollar Limit

[K & L]

How much would you spend?

[aly]

I voted for unlimited.

I don't have much money, but I would do everything possible to come up with the money in any way I had to (legally of course!)

[slick]

That depends on what the pet is in for. For example, if I had to pay $500 or more for tests then I'd find a way.

On the other hand, if my cat had cancer or some other serious disease where the treatment had no guarantee (no matter what the treatment cost), then I would opt not to spend the money. You have to look at both sides of the coin and consider quality of life.

[Samantha Puppy]

Originally posted by slick
That depends on what the pet is in for. For example, if I had to pay $500 or more for tests then I'd find a way.

On the other hand, if my cat had cancer or some other serious disease where the treatment had no guarantee (no matter what the treatment cost), then I would opt not to spend the money. You have to look at both sides of the coin and consider quality of life.

What she said.

Originally posted by aly
I voted for unlimited.

I don't have much money, but I would do everything possible to come up with the money in any way I had to (legally of course!)

And what she said.

[jazzcat]

Last year I spent $900 on Ripley (poor baby almost died), around $400 on Jazz (she was so sick when we adopted her) and about $250 on Disney (she had to have a dental plus a biopsy). So of course I said unlimited. I love these guys too much to say a certain limit. As long as it is in their best interest I will spend what is needed.

I do want to add that I wouldn't do anything to prolong their suffering or drag out their end. As long as I can afford it, though, I will do all I can for them to be healthy, happy and comfortable.

[jenluckenbach]

Can't say for certain. When Amber was 6 months old we ended up paying probably about $700 (a life savings for us, especially at that time) to get her well from a severe URI. But when my older cat Y.Lee was in for MORE tests and treatment due to his diabetes (the disease had not even become regulated during the 6 months we tried ) we chose no more treatment. His was age as well as his attutude toward those tests and treatments helped to make this decision. (my normally sweetest cat on the planet turned into a Taz. devil for the vets and techs) I would have done anything for him but I did not want to do more TO him.

I can tell you this, I would not be as loyal to my pets as some of you here at pet talk have been. I do not love my cats any less than any of these other members love their pets, but I have seen first hand too many cases of people spending enormous amounts of money just to have their beloved pets die anyway and then they question why they put their pets through the horrible testing or treatments making their last days even MORE painful.

[Barbara]

I know that I would spend more than 1000 $, however I would see a connection between how difficult a surgery is and the price. If I had to take the decision to put my cat through a surgery with a low probability of going well and if it would cost money I could not easily afford -then I know the decision would be very painful.

[Tubby & Peanut's Mom]

Originally posted by jenluckenbach
but I have seen first hand too many cases of people spending enormous amounts of money just to have their beloved pets die anyway and then they question why they put their pets through the horrible testing or treatments making their last days even MORE painful.

I agree, Jen. I would spend whatever it takes, but the most important thing would be what's right for them, not for me. Money would not be the issue, but the things brought up by Jen like how the cat takes the treatment, what the quality of life will be, etc would all determine how far I took the treatment, not how much I spent on it.

[Kirsten]

Tough question, because I don't have much money at the moment - and probably never will have...

But I've clicked unlimited, because - if there was a chance an expensive surgery would help my baby - I would do anything possible to make it happen. And I cannot count up the value of a life in $$...

This year I have already paid several hundreds Euro for vet bills - including Luna's surgery and the bills for her UTI.

And alone during the two last years with my Katz I had to pay at least 500 Euro for her treatment - and it has been worth any cent to me as long as it made her life more comfortable.

Kirsten

[K & L]

I"m glad to hear these responses. I posted this out of curiosity because we have spent in the $1000 for our cats and I have had many comments on why would we spend this much on a cat.

I agree, if it's not in the best interest then I would opt for the other (which is what we had to do with Calvin).

[Cookiebaker]

The way I see it, money is NOT the issue. The same way if I had a hooman baby, money would not be key in my decision in treatment for my child.

Even though I have not yet bought any, I really think pet insurance is the way to go. That way if they get some really awful disease (please God don't ever let that happen!) it *definitely* is not about "money", but what will work best and what the best options are.

Hope that makes sense!!

[carole]

I would not have the cash to spend in the thousands, but I would get a loan if possible, it would depend on the outcome of the surgery, age of the cat etc etc,, but I would do my best to ensure my sweet lexie and ole Ash got the best treatment possible, and if it meant' being more in debt for a while well SO BE IT!!

[Tonya]

I've thought about this time and time again. Ron's age is unknown (estimated at 7), he is obese (I'm working on it!), and he always escapes to the outdoors. I love him to death. I don't think I could put a price on him. I would sell my car, get a second job, whatever it took.

[krazyaboutkatz]

I voted unlimited but it also depends on the animals quality of life. When my RB Pepper was sick I spent close to $2000 dollars and I'm still paying it off. I'd do it again though because I really thought that he'd pull through this time because he had been very sick before and had pulled through that time.

Right now I have pet insurance for both Sunny and Storm. It's already helped pay for Sunny's dental cleaning and yearly shots. If my cat had cancer, I'm not sure how much I'd be willing to put them through. I've always said that I wouldn't put my cats through any kind of invasive surgery or treatment.

Some people, including my parents, think that I'm crazy to spend this kind of money on an animal. I try to tell them that my cats are my furkids because I've never had any children. To me they are my family. I also think that animals have ways of letting us know when it's their time to be let go. My RB Pepper let me know that he had had enough and was ready for me to let him go.

[Nomilynn]

I think it's pretty obvious what I clicked

Including the money that was donated to me, and including ALL the vet trips and ALL the ferry trips and ALL the emergency trips, etc etc etc, I've probably spent close to $9-$10,000 on Bassett. Crazy, I know, but I worked it out once. It's at LEAST $8000. However, everything I did for her I did because I knew it wasn't too much for her. I too, would not have opted for her surgery, if I thought she would have suffered from it. But I know Bassett, and I knew that surgery was her best option. I too have limits based on what the cat can cope with. Money, however, doesn't necessarily factor into the equation.