Mustachians and Pets

[Tai]

I have 3 cats, all came off the street or from feral colonies when they were young. They've been pretty healthy, and I had them vaccinated and neutered at young ages. This winter I had vaccinations and dental work done on 2 of them, they're 10 and 12 now. This cost me maybe 3000 in total. First vet bills since they were young. Cat #3 is not friendly to us. He likes the other cats but avoids us. He's not getting dental care. I told the vet I'm not paying for him, he's a freeloader! We keep him because there is no where else for him to go and he's healthy and not a bother. Cats number 1 and 2 are part of our family, and decisions about them cannot be purely logical and financial because of our strong attachment to them. Oh, and I called around and got estimates to find a reasonable (cheap!) vet clinic to take them to. I also keep them inside and feed a good quality cat food which goes towards minimizing costs.

[Cassie]

did you ever think that Cat # 3 has his own mental health issues through no fault of his own & is just as deserving of good, quality care as the other 2? I do dog rescue so I know of what I speak.

[RetiredAt63]

......  Male cats are much more prone to urinary blockages (very expensive, been there, paid for it, all my cats since have been female).
...

RetiredAt63, I have a male cat and was told at his last vet checkup about possible urinary problems, and to give him some wet food every day to help prevent it.  Did you hear that from a vet?  We had lots of outdoor cats growing up, and they didn't exactly make it to a ripe old age, so it's actually my first time with a male cat I expect to last for forever (he's strictly indoors).  My last boy cat still lives with my mom and he's ~14 and hasn't had any such problems.

Thoughts?  I'm interested to hear what happened with your male cat.

First, this is just for cats, dogs are not built quite the same way (and neither are humans, fortunately).  There is a spot in the urethra (tube the urine goes through) that is narrow, so any crystals in the urine will get stuck there.  And as mentioned, then they start showing strange behaviour, because they will try to pee anyplace they feel the urge, because they are having so much trouble and are in pain.

Our guy had a nice stay at the vet's, 3 catheters, and cost us $800, about 15 years ago. He went on a low-ash wet (canned food) veterinary diet (had to buy at the vet's, not available anyplace else).  He was a rescue, liked going outside, and one weekend he wouldn't come when called when we were going away for a few days, we went away,and he never came home.  We were living in the country, deep woods, and we think he either went to live with someone else, or got eaten.  Not hit by a car, he was very smart that way.

Getting a female cat doesn't guarantee anything of course, our last cat died of a mesothelioma on her liver, but she was at least 18 (another rescue) and had a good life.  We all die of something sooner or later, so I am more concerned about quality of life than prolonging it when there is little hope for improvement.

And I feel the same for me - my Dad was ready to go at the end, and when I hit my 90's my goal is to die in my sleep, and everyone will have a good time at the funeral, just like we did at my grandmother's and father's.  Really, how can you be sad when someone who is in their 90's and has had a good full life and is ready to go (has said so) finally slips away?

[Mortgage Free Mike]

For me, MMM's values are about living a life free of "stuff" that doesn't matter.  Pets are not stuff. They're part of the family.

I am conscious about my spending, but that doesn't mean I don't spend.  If there is something that is a value to me, such as a life-saving operation for a pet, I'm going to spend the money.

Living a MMM lifestyle doesn't mean cutting your expenses to the bare bone at all costs.

[jbmatth]

It has been eye opening to the number of people who have replied to my original post.  I see there are basically three main views, those of us who wouldn't spend over $500 to save an animal, those that would spend $2-$3,000 for a member of the family, and those who really don't have a predetermined upper limit.  Those dollar figures are all based on the amount of money you have to spend, how you view the animal or family member, and the age/expected life expectancy.  I can respect everyone's limits given they are in line with your "free cash", but not if it will put you in financial strain or bankruptcy court.  To each their own, I know this doesn't change my thoughts, and most likely won't change the mind of anyone else either. 

[hybrid]

did you ever think that Cat # 3 has his own mental health issues through no fault of his own & is just as deserving of good, quality care as the other 2? I do dog rescue so I know of what I speak.

Sure, and the next stray cat that wanders by is also equally deserving of what the other three cats deserve. This is the path the crazy cat lady takes.

Way I see it, owner has done very well for three feral strays and gets to set his own arbitrary limits. They have all done better than if left to their own devices.

[iris lily]

did you ever think that Cat # 3 has his own mental health issues through no fault of his own & is just as deserving of good, quality care as the other 2? I do dog rescue so I know of what I speak.

I do dog rescue, too, and I will tell you that we have "tiered care" here based on several factors including species and how important the pet is to us.

Last week was $2,500 on dog surgery and he is still not out of the woods. Frankly, I will not spend that much on my cats.

[Tai]

Last stray we found (outside our home) got taken in, fed, watered and bathed then I took him to the local humane society. They put him up for adoption. I know my limits and don't want to end up a crazy cat lady!

[Cassie]

I totally do not understand tiered care.  I can understand having a limit on what you will spend on any pet due to finances but to say one pet's life is worth more than another makes no sense to me at all.

[iris lily]

I totally do not understand tiered care.  I can understand having a limit on what you will spend on any pet due to finances but to say one pet's life is worth more than another makes no sense to me at all.

This is why Congress needs to put me on the death panels for public healthcare. I will have an opinion and can make decisions about these things.

Now, less facetiously I will give an overview of my approach to pet care here although I fully expect that is won't "make sense" to you, and that is ok:

I have 4 dogs, 1 of which I actively sought as a pet. No, I didn't "buy" her, she was given to me by people I've known for 20 years in this breed. She goes to the expensive vet who I believe is better than our garden variety vet; she also went to the board certified surgeon rather than to her own vet for specialized surgery. I feel a higher kind of obligation toward her since I got her as a fairly young dog (4 years old) and there were MANY homes she could have gone to. This is a breed (French bulldog)  that is uber hot right now, unfortunately. ugh I hate that, but that's another issue.

The other 3 dogs were more of a "rescue" situation. Our big boy was dumped into rescue due to severe health problems. I adopted him, not to "save" him, but because he's a fabulous dog and he's a great fit in our house. He puts up with the bossy Frenchies. Frankly, it would have been hard to place him elsewhere, anyway. His medication  costs $1300 annually and a few days ago he had emergency surgery for kidney stones, $2,000 in surgery, I know that he needs another $$$ in entropian surgery. And there is something bad going on with his gums. I'm not sure how much more I will spend on health care for this dog and just as important, I don't know how much more medical care and time away form work I can take for him. His immune system and general overall health is compromised yet he feels great and is happy at the moment, so we will take it day by day. He isn't a candidate for heroic measures. But I already love him more than all of the others combined, I am besotted with him. But I will listen to the little voice inside that says: enough! enough for him, enough for me.

Our 2 remaining Frenchie girls are elderly. They were in a semi-rescue situation and they "had to be placed together." No one is gonna take two elderly dogs. I took them thinking "how long can they live, anyway?" 3 years later, they are still going strong. So, they go to our general vet but they will not have surgery, ever. They are a risk for anesthesia and I won't let the general vet do that. Nor will I pay for a higher end vet. Palliative care is the watchword for these two girls.

One of our elderly girls is a biter. If and when her eyes become compromised, as are the eyes of the others here, I may euthanize her. The idea of fighting with her twice daily for eye meds is depressing to me. Both DH and I have multiple bites form this dog already. That's not a life for either of us.

Which brings me to cats. I will not fight with a cat daily for medication. Dogs, OTOH are easy to pill, just wrap it in cheese.

My tiered approach is a combination of age of pet, ease of caring for them, general overall health and likelihood of complete success in treatment, and my initial obligation in adoption.

[Cassie]

We take all our dogs to the same high quality vet.  Before I knew better I bought 2 but I don't feel more of an obligation to them then the ones that I took in when they were old & sick. However, I make decisions too about how much to spend on vet care usually based by how old they are, quality of life & how long they are likely to live. We had an old dog that would bite but actually we figured out she was in pain and once on pain meds that greatly diminished.   Vet care on the West Coast is crazy expensive so thru natural attrition we will probably go down to just one which actually is a shame because if $ was no object we would continue to have 4 rescue dogs.   I have friends in other parts of the country that pay a fourth of what we do.  I really hate making the decision when to let a dog go but my hubby would keep them alive forever so it always falls to me. I do hate it-kinda feels like murder.  But it is a necessary part of owning a pet.

[Tai]

Cats #1 and #2 I made a decision to keep as our pets. I have paid for all their vet work. Cat #3 I trapped as a young feral from a colony. His same-aged relatives became tame enough that I got them homes. All his vet care then was paid for by the feral cat group I was working with. Cat #3 is not friendly to people, he's not aggressive, more avoidant/scared. Since I could not convince anyone else to give him a home I became stuck with him. Since he has been a healthy cat I haven't the heart to surrender him as he would be euthanized. That doesn't mean I'm going to spend big money on him. Anyone want a big, fat cat btw? Comes with a white moustache already, very undemanding.

[Cassie]

No matter what he has a much better life with you then at a shelter or being feral. It is awesome that you kept him!