Pet-Owner Heartache & Hefty Vet Bills

If you’ve been a reader for a while, you know that we’re mildly obsessed with our rescue dog Teddy. You may remember that he’s been the star of several blog posts the last few years (most recently when he locked us out of our car again in September and when we celebrated his “Gotcha Day” in April).

Teddy is back on the blog today because he’s been causing a bit of heartache the last 10 days or so.

Last Saturday out of the blue he was struggling to jump up on the couch. For a little while I just thought he was being lazy and wanted to be picked up, but I quickly realized that something was up. Fast forward to last Sunday morning (November 15th), and he woke up a total wreck. To make a long story short, he could barely walk, eat, drink, or use the bathroom. As soon as he’d get outside to the grass he’d lay down on his side as if he had no energy at all. I semi-panicked because I’d never seen him like that.

Of course it’s a Sunday morning, and the only vet open is the K-State emergency vet. Add “emergency” to add veterinary needs and you’re talking money money money. I waited a couple hours to see if he perked up a bit, but he continued becoming more lethargic.

After consulting Dr. Google, I realized that his symptoms matched a life-threatening back disc disease, and the emergency vet on the phone suggested I bring him in immediately. Waiting until Monday could potentially mean paralysis or putting him down, according to the vet.

Obviously a disaster, Jamie calmed me down over the phone and we agreed to individually think about how far we would take things with Teddy if things were as bad as we feared. Not only could  vet bills add up to thousands and thousands of dollars, but we also were concerned about Teddy’s quality of life should a life-threatening injury and surgery option be discussed. Those were a few rough hours.

After five hours in the waiting area of the vet, we were told that Teddy’s knees, hips, and back are very weak due to his weight and breed (chihuahua/pug mix) and that he’d need to be confined to a crate for eight weeks in order to strengthen those bones. We were so relieved that his injuries weren’t anything that required immediate surgery, but I was so worried about how on Earth I was going to “punish” Teddy to a crate 24/7 (except to be carried out to use the restroom). I knew we had to do what we had to do though.

Four days later, Teddy’s condition regressed again. He woke up violently shaking and unable to eat, drink, or use the bathroom. I was a wreck all over again because I’d let him accidentally jump off the couch the day before, and I thought surely that mistake put his injuries over the edge. Back to the vet we go.

I politely demanded x-rays because he’d never had them done before. I wasn’t convinced that something else wasn’t going on with Teddy or that his bones were in worse condition that we though (up until this point the vet made her calls based on his reactions when touching certain areas). They agreed, and four hours later we received results that he was 100% in the clear except for his knees. His back knees are weak, which explains why he’s been randomly in pain and struggling for brief periods to walk. They confirmed that crate confinement was a much better alternative than surgery, so I left feeling more confident that crating him for eight weeks was an absolute must.

Boy, it’s been hard though. As of today Teddy is acting 100% fine… 1000% fine! He’s the happiest little guy and wants to go back to normal. He still cries occasionally in his crate, which is really tough. I know he feels like he’s being punished because you can’t reason with a dog why you’re doing what you’re doing. It’s a challenge.

You can see him in his crate in the upper righthand corner of the picture above. SO PITIFUL!

For now we’re just hoping to take it day by day and do the very best we can. Some days we’ll surely do better than others, and as long as he appears pain-free I don’t want to sweat this too much.

Teddy’s in our retirement plans, so we just need to make sure he stays happy and healthy for several more decades. 😉