AIBU to consider putting dog down?

[ConfusedDogMum]

Our dog has an undiagnosable condition affecting her side which is creating sores and pushing small lumps of (apparently deep) tissue to the surface.

She scratches and licks at the area constantly. She’s had mutiple specialist vet visits, scans, lab testing etc plus two very big operations removing large amounts of dead tissue with no answer as to what is causing it. Obviously the area gets infected and antibiotics have cleared it up temporarily but it keeps returning, after a few months at best. She is healthy in every other way but she absolutely hates going to the vets.

The last time we took her to the vets they were pushing to do another very expensive operation but obviously could give us no reassurance it would help. We don’t have insurance unfortunately as we felt we could afford anything she would have needed at this stage (she’s now only 8) but were clearly naive about what might happen and what it might cost (£11k plus and counting so far!). We pushed back and they gave us a longer prescription for the antibiotics to also cover the next time it returned instead. Of course now it’s come back and the antibiotics aren’t helping. She’s still very active wanting to go on walks etc and no other signs of physical problems but she has started seeking out quieter, more comfortable spots (sofa, all our beds!) which is becoming problematic as the sores are weeping and she’s very smelly and she growls at us and snaps when we try to move her. She’s clearly unhappy and we’ve tried a cone but she still bashes at her side with it and uses her back leg to scratch so it doesn’t really help (it’s definitely an underlying condition and she isn’t causing the problem).

We will have to return to the vet soon as we are nearly out of antibiotics and they don’t seem to be working…. And I’m at a complete loss as to what to do… they’ll push again for another scan and operation at great cost (c£5k minimum - money we don’t have) but the alternative seems so unfair, cruel and irresponsible on our part to have an animal and then not do everything to cure her…. Are we even able to have her put down if the vet is saying they believe (wrongly in my opinion) they could still try to help? Is anyone on here a vet that has any ideas what this is or other dog owner who has experience this?

It would be absolutely awful to have to have her put down (we have young children who also love her very much and we’ve had her since she was a puppy) but we cannot afford to keep spending such vast sums on money on things that do not help her. It’s become a really stressful situation even just managing where she can be in the house, whether the dog walker will still take her etc. I just don’t know what to do anymore and my husband is burying his head in the sand about it.

Any insight or advice greatly appreciated and thank you for reading so far!! X

is it worth speaking to a shelter to see if she can be re-homed instead of being put to sleep? It sounds like she has a lovely personality and is loving her life still even if the sores are making her uncomfortable. I'd speak to the Dog's Trust to see whether they can offer an alternative which isn't 'final'.

Sorry, just saw in a later post your pup has already seen a specialist. I would ask them if they're able to refer you to anyone else more specialised or potentially a veterinary university - they sometimes take unusual cases as case studies and will treat free of charge.

Trying to re-home a dog who's already had thousands spent on a condition without resolution? Really?

I don’t think you said the breed of your dear dog? . Some people think 8 isn’t old but it is, some dogs’ life expectancy is less. The condition sounds absolutely horrendous. Poor poor dog. I love dogs, I’m surrounded by 3 sleeping woofers, but I would pts. And you shouldn’t let this experience stop you having another dog in future, maybe a healthy mutt from a shelter, when it feels right. 💐

You would be more upset than her.

She won’t know it is happening. They can even do it in your home.

I would like to think I would make the same decision but it is so hard I’m not confident I would be as responsible and unselfish as you.

For what life @Sorrentino ?

More painful and stressful surgeries? More endless vet treatment which she already hates? Stinking sores that keep getting infected and are probably painful? Would you choose that? Because I know I wouldn't.

An 8 year old dog at that. Dog would be so upset at going into kennels etc it would be cruel.

I really believe that pet insurance alongside shows like supervet have really messed up our relationship with animal care. I hear constant stories of elderly animals put through intensive treatment or animals having big scans at the first sign of an issue or animals having lifelong treatment with low quality of life. It wouldn’t of happened before because vets would not suggest £11k worth of treatment outside of things like a bad accident on a young animal where full recovery was possible.

your dog is in pain and sad. She cannot consent to have more operations and other painful treatments. Maybe give all the things like diet and air freshener a try if you haven’t but after that I’d put her to sleep poor thing .

I’d get a second? third? specialist opinion, OP. The fact they haven’t even tried steroids wouldn’t fill me with confidence at all. I think there’s more than likely an answer to what your DDog’s condition is. I wouldn’t want to PTS until I was damn sure I knew what it was and the prognosis.

Our neighbours had a cat that looked like something out of a horror film. It had hardly any fur and a lot of large suppurating wounds. They were going to put it to sleep, but by chance a locum vet saw it, diagnosed an allergy (I want to say it was to flea saliva, but I might be misremembering - point is that it was a rare reaction and the poor cat was hypersensitive) and the cat was given medication and looked completely normal after a few months.

So, I would keep PTS on the table, but just get some more investigation from elsewhere before making that very final decision. Not only does that give your dog a chance of being helped, but I think it would make the decision easier for you if it needed to be done.

How old is she ? Have you thought about setting up a go fund me page to help pay for vets fees. Friends and family may help.

@kerstina shes 8, nearly 9. In answer to earlier questions she’s a springer spaniel. They initially thought it was all due to grass seed/other foreign body in the beginning but never found it in all the tissue they removed or on scans etc.

No, I wouldn’t ever do that. Our family are all worse off financially than us anyway and it’s not like we have any light at the end of the tunnel as they have no idea whether more surgeries will help. If I thought it had a high chance of succeeding this time I would add to our debt to do it as I believe we will eventually have the means to pay it off and it’s no one else’s responsibility but ours…. It’s the combination of what it puts her through with no guarantee of any better outcome plus the steep financial aspect that makes me wonder if it’s time for her to go 😭

@BreatheAndFocus I’ve emailed them some questions about steroids, autoimmune etc and assume they’ll call me tomorrow. I know a few of the vets at the specialist have seen her including dermatology but I’ll see how I feel about what they say and consider another opinion thank you

It’s only on one of her sides and is in the same position each time… plus the specialist said the tissue lumps which protrude are deep tissue rather than surface which seems to be more in line with a problem deeper under the skin rather than skin issues but obviously I have no expertise in this area!

I have done quite a lot of “research” online but nothing I find seems to fit her symptoms particularly the position of the sores and the protruding tissue and no other health issues…

The specialist vet sent tissues samples aww at said 99% of the time they get results which explain what’s going on and she’s that unexplained 1%

A very difficult situation but Yanbu at all. It feels probably the best option. I’d maybe just check in with a different vet for a second opinion first.

The best thing we can do for our pets is give them a good life and a good, and timely, death.

I'm on this side of things to be honest. Not all dogs live to 15 the same way not all people live to 80. Worth waiting for an email reply but if steroids don't help I wouldn't fund another op.

It’s not Alabama Rot is it ? That starts with lesions on the skin .
I hear you regarding go fund me ,only mentioned it as know someone who did it recently and raised quite a lot as it was shared on social media. People like to help out if they can if an animal is suffering.
I have a sprocker more of a springer they are lovely dogs but very active . Nearly 9 is a good age .Am sure she has had a lovely life with you.

You had me at "another exploratory surgery that might not help." Even if you were very rich, you might not wish to put him through that.

If you do decide to try to treat him, perhaps a second opinion from another vet? Maybe they'll have experience that would be helpful.

This is absolutely not what insurance is for. Repeated surgery and the discomfort associated with recovery is not in the best interests of your dog. If you knew the surgery had a very high chance of success and it was a one off, then yes, that is what insurance is for. However, your poor dog has had repeated surgeries and is, I assume, not having much time before the condition returns. He also sounds like he is in a lot of discomfort.

I really think the correct thing to do would be to have him pts. It is ultimately kinder. I know it's really difficult when he still wants to go for walks etc but I firmly believe that doing everything possible can be cruel if the dog's quality of life is poor.

I really don't envy you. I have two older dogs and recently had to make a decision with the 13 year old whether to go for back surgery. We did and for her it was the right decision as she made an amazing recovery. However, if her back goes again, I don't think it would be fair to put her through it again.

Don’t do what we did and that was allow both our dogs to get into a right state because we felt guilty about PTS.

I think it’s scary as a human to actively choose to end a life because we can’t do that to our own species. But in both cases, we should have acted sooner. Both dogs were miserable by the end, as were we looking after them. With the last one, looking after him was impacting our quality of life so I began to resent him.

The whole thing was shit and this is probably why I won’t get another pet. It did a number on the whole families mental health.

@kerstina ive looked into this and I don’t thinks so… the sores on the photos I’ve seen are quite different, she doesn’t have any of the other symptoms and her issues actually started in the very beginning with a really swollen side (hence the assume that a foreign body was under the skin somewhere). I’ll ask the vet when I speak to them though.

We didn't have insurance. The surgery our dog had cost €5k. I think it was still cheaper not to have insurance. Insurance gets insanely expensive and the excess gets higher as the dog gets older.

I was chatting to a veterinary nurse about this. She reckons insurance is essential if you have a breed prone to health problems. If not, provided you can cover reasonable costs, it's really not a financially sensible option.

Have you considered going to see Noel Fitzpatrick? He's very well regarded. I would definitely seek out a second opinion before PTS. 8 really isn't that old at all for a springer.

Oops. Just realised I repeatedly misgendered your dog. For some reason, despite have 2 female dogs, dogs are all male and cats are all female in my mind. Presumably reproduction involves storks...

I was talking about the £11k already spent. That us what insurance is for to try and get the dog better.

Sorry, I misunderstood. However, it generally makes more financial sense, unless you have a breed prone to issues, to just put money aside yourself. Pet insurance is extremely bad value, particularly as the dog gets older.

We've just had our 7 year old have an operation that we would have struggled to foot the bill for even if we had put money aside. The insurance were brilliant.