HOW MUCH MONEY should a human spend on a sick critter?
Buddy the Dog, on a scale of 1 to 10, is more than $500 sick at the moment.
He has been to the vet 3 times in the last half-week.
First it was a double ear infection. Now he has what appears to be a tummy ache.
The tummy ache may have something to do with that baby bunny he swallowed whole last week.
But I also wonder if he picked up some kind of virus during the two weeks we boarded him while we were on vacation.
Earlier this week he started gagging, as though trying to choke out a baby bunny fur ball.
In time, he started spitting up something that looked like mucus.
My wife, a nurse, called the vet.
Buddy the Dog’s doc said the gagging sound is actually the sound of a dog vomiting or dry heaving.
Sadly, Buddy the Dog was doing this quite often.
My wife took him to the vet. Three times so far.
Buddy the Dog has been
- IV’d to hydrate him.
- X-rayed to see if he had anything stuck in his throat.
- Tested for pancreatitis – negative on that, which is a good thing.
So, we’re looking at over $500, so far, with follow up to come. That’s on top of more than $600 to board Buddy the Dog for two weeks.
We never really stopped to anticipate the cost of Buddy the Dog when we rescued him after my wife saw him get hit by two cars. We just took him in.
Actually, my wife took in. I just happened to be here at the time.
I was talking with a good friend of mine this week about Buddy the Dog’s situation. My friend, Terry, a native of Trinidad, said that whenever a dog gagged like that, his father used to give the dog some cod liver oil…and the problem passed.
Take that any way you like, and you’ll be right.
I’ve wondered this week if the Bible said anything about how we should treat our pets.
I was sure there was nothing in there about how much money we should spend on them. But I figured there was something about the role humans have with animals.
Here’s what I came up with:
Good people are kind to their animals, but a mean person is cruel.
—Proverbs 12:10, CEV
Let us make human beings in our image, make them reflecting our nature, so they can be responsible for….every animal that moves on the face of Earth.
—Genesis 1:26, The Message
Lord, you keep people and animals safe. How priceless your faithful love is!
—(Psalm 36:6-7, NIRV)
Here’s what I get out of that:
- God loves the critters.
- We are God’s children, which means we should resemble our Father and love critters, too.
- God has entrusted critters to our care.
The Bible is sometimes handy in helping us decide what to do. But I have found that God’s Spirit working within me is no less handy – sometimes more so.
Ironically, as far as Buddy the Dog would be concerned, God’s Spirit seems to talk to me through my gut.
What does my gut tell me?
Sell more books.
I’ve got vet bills to pay.
We get the kids out of the house, through college, and gainfully employed at a time when it’s tough to get kids employed, then my wife brings home a dog.
Ha! Mr. Writer-Man, I see irony here! First, you often refer to “the dog your wife brought home,” but truly you are the “closet” dog-lover! Secondly, I believe I remember you saying in the past that Buddy the Dog gets more hits than your books do, so it seems to me that some of your money is his anyway! Just saying…old friend! 😉
Don’t you hate it when people see right through you. Especially people who’ve known you since you had pimples.
We have had the same issues with Lucy (goldendoodle/and something else). She had o be boarded in doggie ER on a weekend, and we have spent a lot of money too. I worried about “how much is too much to spend on a pet” too. Lucy gags and does the bile thing sometimes too. And the ear infections…floppy ears. She gets inflamed anal glands, which is quite uncomfortable. So I am including Buddy (the dog) in my prayers for Lucy. Ethel the cat should be the sick one, she eats geckos and frogs, bugs, etc. All she does is sneeze and shed. Glad he didn’t barf a bunny part!
Thank you Vivian. I’m returning the favor.
Our Fred has lymphoma. We are spending a ton of money to treat it, successfully so far. My mom is seriously ill as well, Medicare pay for a big part of her hospital expenses, but we don’t have pet insurance, so Fred’s expenses are out of pocket. He is 14 years old this month. He has been a loyal member of our family who has helped our morale and self discipline in amazing ways! I feel like God brought him into our life, just like he brought Jeff and me together. Enjoy Buddy! He’s a gift.
Hey, thanks Debbie. I agree that Fred and Buddy are both gifts from God. But don’t tell my wife.
The sad thing is when you don’t have the money to take care of your pet when it is needed! Be thankful you can do it, even if it means selling a few more books. I know you are. You & your dog are buddies!
Yeah, you’re right Debbie. That’s a tough one. We should fix that problem. Maybe a Help My Pet website, or something like that. I think kind souls would lend a buck.
Here’s a Buddy the Dog update. He’s doing much better today. He hasn’t gagged in a day. He’s up to eating about half his normal amount of food. And as I type this, he’s in the backyard barking at a crew painting a neighbor’s house.
Buddy had much to learn…Took my cat to the vet…..sick sick sick. We found feathers in the hot tub….never found a carcus….she ate it…and two days later very very ill. My vet said our pets just can’t tolerate eatting the wild things they catch….usually end up with a bacterial infection of some sort. Who knows what that dinner had in it. She responded after two days of antibiotics. Expensive as kids.
I’m sorry to hear about Buddy. I’m sure this must be hard, fnot only the dog, but for you and Linda, too. Hoping and praying that Buddy gets well soon so you can go on blogging and posting pictures of him.
I’m glad to hear Buddy is doing better. This is a conversation that has come up many a time in our household, especially when our cat Boo was still with us. She was the expensive one with multiple health problems that required expensive vet visits and treatments. But I’d do it all over again because she was my furry soul mate. Sometimes, it’s worth the sacrifice of a cup of coffee from coffee shop, a skein of yarn, or pushing the sale of a few more books. 🙂