My worst and best christmas

[nobbyathome]

My lab Abbie swallowed a tennis ball sometime before Monday  and none of us saw her do it. she was sick in her crate overnight just bringing up bile but seemed ok as she is a notorious eat anything she picks up it didn't worry me at the time.  she didn't eat anything all day but drunk water ok on Tuesday my thoughts were I should take her to the vet but she is drinking I will see what she is like in the morning  Wednesday morning still the same but drinking I called the vet and they said as she has a track record of eating socks she should pass it soon Wednesday evening she went downhill quick I took her to the emergency vet in Beckenham and he xrayed her and there it was a tennis  ball???  he did an emergency operation within the hour of getting

there he phoned me at four in the morning to say it had been done but said there were complications as some of the intestine had died due to the ball she had jaundice as the ball had stuck near the pancreas the following morning he told me he was worried she might not make it and referred me to North downs referral in Bletchingley she was there until today I picked her up tonight as she is eating and drinking ok and is a lot stronger I love my Abbie more than I ever knew and the thought of losing her is awful  but so far so good she is with me and seems to be getting better quick this was my worst and best christmas just hope she  just keeps getting back to normal on the downside is the vet bill £ 3500 for the operation And £2000 for the referral vets to me she is worth all the money in the world but when you step back vets certainly pull your pants down when you are in a crisis 

[Grandalf]

Sorry about the bills but glad about the outcome.   Hope she goes on OK mate.

[marsh man]

That sound like a very expensive tennis ball , as much as I think the world of my dog , there is no way I could afford £5,500 so I dread to think what the outcome would be if I was in your position .

Anyhow , I hope your dog make a speedy recovery with no lasting effects , and a big well done to you for putting your dog first before the large expense of the vets bill .

[team tractor]

My cats not well at my mums and they want £150 today just to see her without anything else.

they gave my mum a lecture about animal cruelty if she’s not seen quick. 

My mum said she’ll wait until it’s £35 tomorrow as she’s 21 anyway so we know the outcome. 

We both said the nurses and vet won’t earn anymore but the managers are greedy .

[JohnfromUK]

My lab ate some fishing line (as you say, they will eat anything) in Scotland about 10 years ago when she was about 9 or 10.  Unfortunately, the vet couldn't get it out and although no hooks were visible on X ray, it was necessary to operate at once as there appeared to be possible damage occurring.  There was a complication because the X ray showed an enlarged heart (unrelated to this incident) that would raise the risk of anaesthetic.  To complicate still further, I was due to return south the following day.

She made a full recovery and lived to a good old age and thanks to an excellent vet in Pitlochry all was well.  My vet down here at home thought the charge (can't remember exactly, but a few hundred pounds) very reasonable.

I hope Abbie makes a full and complete recovery.  It is amazing how resilient they are when in good overall health (as is usually the case if these 'ate something' incidents are caught quickly).

[nobbyathome]

so far so good she has been eating and drinking for the last 2 days  and seems to be on the mend unfortuanatly I can see me having to muzzle her when I let her off the lead  and pet insurance is going to have to be a must  dogs eh?

[Mice!]

Nice to hear she's on the mend, did you not have insurance to begin with then?

[marsh man]

1 hour ago, nobbyathome said:

so far so good she has been eating and drinking for the last 2 days  and seems to be on the mend unfortuanatly I can see me having to muzzle her when I let her off the lead  and pet insurance is going to have to be a must  dogs eh?

Really glad your dog could be over the worst and hopefully is now on the mend , fingers crossed.

I have kept working dogs for just over 50 years and touch wood I have never had any serious problems or large vet fees come to that , a few in the low hundreds but nothing compared to your bill .

Up to now I haven't insured any of my dogs , but insurance is a gamble with working dogs , or any dog come to that , and for the time being I will give the insurance a miss and hope my luck hold out.

Hope both you and your dog have a Happy and Healthy New Year

[GingerCat]

3 Christmas days ago my cat decided to come home with a large hole in his side. Bug enough to put your finger right in (the vet did). 

He seemed totally fine about this gaping hole however I rushed him to the vets. 

The vet saw him and stapled him  up to the tune of £200. He' been forever known as the grinch since.

We think he fell from a tree or fence and impaled himself. Most expensive free cat I've ever had. 

[marsh man]

1 hour ago, GingerCat said:

3 Christmas days ago my cat decided to come home with a large hole in his side. Bug enough to put your finger right in (the vet did). 

He seemed totally fine about this gaping hole however I rushed him to the vets. 

The vet saw him and stapled him  up to the tune of £200. He' been forever known as the grinch since.

We think he fell from a tree or fence and impaled himself. Most expensive free cat I've ever had. 

Was it a Ginger Cat by any chance , Ginger Cat ?  , do you know what , I recon you could have bought a staple gun a lot cheaper than that and done it yourself .

[GingerCat]

32 minutes ago, marsh man said:

Was it a Ginger Cat by any chance , Ginger Cat ?  , do you know what , I recon you could have bought a staple gun a lot cheaper than that and done it yourself .

I was very tempted. And no. Ginger cat was an old cat from next door that had a habit of inviting himself into my living room and siting on my sofa, he did it once when I joined this forum. Hence the name. 

[team tractor]

12 minutes ago, GingerCat said:

I was very tempted. And no. Ginger cat was an old cat from next door that had a habit of inviting himself into my living room and siting on my sofa, he did it once when I joined this forum. Hence the name. 

So you could of been called “The neighbours cat “  

[GingerCat]

39 minutes ago, team tractor said:

So you could of been called “The neighbours cat “  

It didn't have quite the ring I was looking for.....

 

[nobbyathome]

No I have never had pet insurance maybe it's just an age thing or maybe I am stupid I have had dogs all my life and although some of them have been to the vets for treatment I have never been stung hard like this I personally think the vet bills are so astronomical nowadays because they assume everyone now has pet insurance and they can charge what they like financially I have had a good kicking but I have learned a lesson and insurance is a must for me when she gets better she is only 4 so no doubt things will happen again  thanks guys for the good wishes to me she is worth everything I own 

[nobbyathome]

No I have never had pet insurance maybe it's just an age thing or maybe I am stupid I have had dogs all my life and although some of them have been to the vets for treatment I have never been stung hard like this I personally think the vet bills are so astronomical nowadays because they assume everyone now has pet insurance and they can charge what they like financially I have had a good kicking but I have learned a lesson and insurance is a must for me when she gets better she is only 4 so no doubt things will happen again  thanks guys for the good wishes to me she is worth everything I own 

[bruno22rf]

"Worth everything I own" - RESPECT....your ethics are a credit to you Sir.  

[Saltings]

glad to see its all worked out ok    sadly vets are now hated way more than estate agents as the screw people at their most vulnerable small animals, rare breeds, family pets, all a licence to print money farm vets seem to be doing the job for the right reasons the animal not the wallet

Edited December 29, 2017 by Saltings

[team tractor]

Pet insurance is a joke and I’d never bother. Mist things aren’t covered you’ll findz every time my cats been ill or needs an operation I’ve asked the vet would I of been covered? 

They reply no and remember the insurance set a limit . My mates dog has just had a pace maker fitted at 5 years old( lab) and the insurance only paid £2k out of the £6000

[Mice!]

Reason I asked about insurance is they may ask about pre existing conditions, not sure if you can count swallowing things as that though, it comes up on here regular whether or not to insure, we have always insured for our dogs, not a great deal each month and should have taken the sting out of the vets bill, hope she's soon fully recovered 

[JohnfromUK]

I think that like all insurance policies, you need to read very carefully what is, and what isn't covered - and also look at the maximum payable per claim - and the (voluntary) excess per claim.

I don't have an animal now, but when I did I was earning quite well and decided to 'take the risk myself, mainly because most policies wouldn't pay any more than I was capable (albeit with some pain!) myself. 

What might make sense is a policy with a high voluntary excess (maybe £500 or £1000) and cover above that to say £10,000, or even more.  I don't know if such policies are available, but that is what I would be looking for now I am retires if I was to get another dog.  This would cover the risks of major illness/accident, but would free the insurance company from the more 'routine' illnesses and mishaps.

[Mice!]

We've never claimed for small stuff up to a few hundred, given your excess it just pushes up your premiums in the years to come, its for piece of mind if something bigger happens 

[Deker]

4 hours ago, Mice! said:

Reason I asked about insurance is they may ask about pre existing conditions, not sure if you can count swallowing things as that though, it comes up on here regular whether or not to insure, we have always insured for our dogs, not a great deal each month and should have taken the sting out of the vets bill, hope she's soon fully recovered 

 

I'm just about to renew mine and asked a similar question as my dog had a fibrocartilaginous embolism (FCE) which is a blood clot on the spinal cord (which it turns out can clear itself) and his back legs completely stopped working pretty much paralysed, the insurance company said he'd be fully covered for any other issues on his back and legs and it wouldn't be treat as a pre-existing condition, UNLESS the same thing happened again and there was an actual underlying cause, they also said if it didn't happen again within 24 months then it wouldn't be classed as a pre-existing condition anyway.

 

The vet I spoke too doesn't have insurance only a credit card sat empty just in case, however after only having my dog 2 years I've only paid around £320 in insurance and it's already covered a £2000 visit (due to an MRI requirement) so I can't complain.

 

11 hours ago, bruno22rf said:

"Worth everything I own" - RESPECT....your ethics are a credit to you Sir.  

+1

 

Deker

Edited December 29, 2017 by Deker