Old pets

[khunsanuk]

Hi,

 

2 of his vertebrae were bumping against each other and his nerves. That meant he could not walk. During the op they pulled them into place again.

 

Picked him up this morning and he's snoring in the living room now. Still pretty dazed, not even sure he recognized me when I picked him up (no barking, no tail wagging).

 

Another 3 trips to the hospital planned

And we should know in 3 weeks how well, or even if, he can walk again. Had not expected it to take that long before we'd know.

 

Sanuk!

 

[Hugh_Hoy]

Wow! The diagnosis and operation and return visits could cost at least 1 or 2000 USD here !

 

I had to put my 15 year old terrier down a couple of months ago. She was going downhill fast. Deaf for quite a while, eyesight going, up for a nightly walk but wanted help being carried home on her last night. Hadn't eaten in 2 days. Could barely walk the last day. Wasn't a difficult decision. But she was a good dog and fun for many years.

 

I got another dog a week later to replace her. Got him from the animal shelter where I've always got my dogs. This one is a gem...a stray which was obviously somebody's former pet. No idea why the previous owner didn't go looking for him or check the shelter. He'd been there about 5 weeks before I "adopted" him.

 

Good luck on the recovery.

 

HH

[khunsanuk]

Hi,

 

Thanks. I guess the total cost here will run me roughly 10K.

The operation itself was slightly less than 5,500 Baht, and lasted ~3 hours.

 

Spending a lot of money on meds though, got another batch this morning which cost 720 Baht.

 

Sanuk!

 

PS Sorry to hear about the dog

 

[Flashermac]

It's amazing what you can rescue from an animal shelter. My parents got our beautiful Alsatian (white shepherd) from one, pedigree animal left behind when an airman got transfered overseas. My sister once brought home a fantastic Malamute. She also brought home a mama cat and 8 kittens to keep them from being shoved into the gas showers. She kept 2 kittens, found homes for the others ... and the mama cat moved in with a neighbour!

 

 

[LizardKing]

The Akita in the pix was from the Humane Society as well...left behind in a rental home when someone moved. Hard to understand that mentality.

 

HH -- sorry to hear about your's. 15 years is a very good run tho.'

 

KS -- here's hoping it all works out as it should.

[Pescator]

My parents had a fox terrier, they got her when she was still a puppy.

I grew up with her and loved her to bits.

It was an incredibly energetic and playful dog.

Clever in it`s own way and not afraid of anything, no matter the size.

My father was an enthusiastic bird lover and in the large garden he hat put up bird nests, feeding stations etc.

He would curse the cats when they entered the garden as they would prey on the bird life.

No problem after "Molly" arrived. It took the cats very short time to realize that there was a new sheriff in town.

Every once in a while we would notice the carcass of a rat laying in the drive way.

Molly finished those ones off. No need for pest control on these premises.

 

Now Molly grew on in age, she was close to 15 years old and in detioriating health. Partly blind, suffering from hip dysplasia and as a result turned a bit grumpy at times.

 

Her cat hunting days were over.

My parents got another fox terrier named Terry.

As it turned out that was a bad call.

They didn`t get along too well.

One day they were fighting and my mom tried to separate them and as a result she accidentally got a scratch on her finger. Nothing bad.

But it turned out to be a serious infection.

She was admitted to the hospital and went into a coma.

I was a that time in Thailand, but received a message from my brother saying in not so many words: If you wanna see mom while she is still with us, you better come now.

I took the first flight home only to find out that mom was still in a coma. Her chances of survival were slim.

 

They had amputated the infected finger and her kidneys had ceased to function.

2 weeks went by and she came out of the coma much to the surprise of the doctors.

She made a slow but steady recovery.

One day she pulled me aside and said to me in a broken voice: I want Molly put down. Not because of what had happened to her, but because she was afraid of what might happen to my child when playing with it.

 

I had during the years on several occasions jokingly declared: Whenever you want this bundle of energy put down, you just call me.

 

I came to regret that smartass remark. As they held me to my promise.

 

That was the darkest hour of my life up until that point. (Yeah, I may had led a sheltered life)

 

Good luck on the recovery of your dog, KS.

 

[Redbaron]

HH - well done on rescuing a puppy from a shelter. Got mine from a shelter almost a year ago (see avator) and while she's not a pure breed (personally I just want a pet, not interested in breeding when so many are put down each year), she's bought heaps of joy to the GL, me and the boy. Heaps of personality!

 

 

[Hugh_Hoy]

You don't see too many pure breds in the shelters, but they are there from time to time. I've had a pure breed a couple of times. (A beagle and an Aussie Shepard.) I personally think that mixed breeds can be trained easier (except for specific tasks) and offset some undesireable traits of purebred dogs.

 

This little guy I got a few weeks ago...he was lucky. Though a municipal shelter under the auspices of the SPCA, it has a policy of not employing euthenasia...unless the dog, cat, or whatever is vicious or very sick.

 

Your pooch looks like he could be a serious deterrent to any undesireable "guests"; but I get the idea he's just a big ol teddy bear. 555555555

 

HH

[expat]

I hope your dog's recovery goes well, khunsanuk.

 

I agree with the sentiment of others that if you intend to adopt a pet, best to go with strays. I got my two cats from a local wat (or should I say, they picked me).

[khunsanuk]

Hi,

 

Thanks. He actually walked about 1.5 steps just now, before falling down again

 

Sanuk!