The wife and I have a sick pup on our hands.  She's a 11 year old Pekashuan at 10lbs.  This dog pre-dates me in my wife's life, and they have been through a lot of BS along the way.  Kailey, dog, has been having bloody diarrhea for the past week.  My carpet is totally Fd at this point.  She was at our local vet for a night last week ($400) and she's gonna be at an emergency vet hospital for two nights ($3000).  The vets don't seem to be making any real headway on causes and keep wanting to run random tests that will quickly put us over $5k.

Where's the line?  She's a good little dog, and doesn't seem to be straight up in pain.  My wife is so very tatched, but she understands the humanity in letting her go if needed.

Added bonus, we are currently in the middle of a $22k surrogacy operation to try to have kids.

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Uh, emergency vet overnights should not run 1500 a night without surgery.

Your vet knows your wife will pay whatever they ask, so will do whatever they can to keep the dog alive.

  I have a hard limit of 1000 bucks on an animal. In the past I have spent way too much saving cats and dogs that ended up dying within weeks or months anyway.

I spent $700 on my 11 year old dog about 2 years ago
I did so because it meant I should be able to keep him happily for another 6-10 years

I would not spend $3000 on any one dog/cat/pet. that is not the pet memory I would want to have.

you need a different vet

For that kind of money they damn well better start having results or they just plain suck and are overpriced to boot. A parasite check isn't that expensive and day to day stays shouldn't be anywhere near $400, hell, my vet ain't cheap but they are 1/4 of what yours is charging.

Dehydration is the real killer, especially for small dogs.

find a better vet

Sounds like Parvo, is the dog vaccinated and current?

As a member of the Veterinary community i have to say that you guys are awfully quick to judge what is going on without knowing the profession or the case.  While i'm sure it can happen, it is highly unlikely that either clinic is running up the bill or charging you more because they know you will "do anything".   Science, let alone medicine, is not black and white.  It's even more difficult when you patient can not tell you what they are experiencing or going through.  It can be very difficult to come up with a definitive diagnosis in some cases, especially in an older dog.   That said, i would have expected some sort of partial resolution to the symptoms at this point.   Based on what you are describing, i would be honest with the client and say that you may have reached the time to evaluate her quality of life and how much you are willing to spend to MAYBE prolong her life.   I'm sure the clinic has ruled out intestinal parasites and Parvo, these are unlikely causes of diarrhea in a geriatric dog.   I wish you the best but if you want an honest opinion....i think it's time to start thinking about quality of life (based on your description of things).

Cschelk2 DVM

It's never been a question of cost for me, it is always about the dog and its quality of life. If the dogs is having more bad days than good, and the medical attention doesn't seem to help, then it is time to at least have a discussion with your vet about this. It is decision that only you and your wife can make (or maybe in this case it is hers to make), try to educate yourself as much as possible about your options and the quality of life the dog can expect moving forward and go from there. While it will certainly be an emotional decision for her, try to look it without emotion or financial considerations and simply what is best/humane for the dog. Hopefully with a dog that old, you have built a trusting relationship with the vet and can discuss options openly...

Best of luck with this one.

I won't put a dollar figure on how much I spent but it's well beyond what the OP is discussing.
My dog had an type 3 IMPA (IMPA with IBD in her case), which is pretty rare as I was told.  She was only 6 years old and for a dachshund, that's not even "senior" years.

If your dog isn't at a specialist already, get to one if you want some sort of diagnosis.  However, sometimes, knowing what is wrong and being able to do anything about it are two different things.  I had my dog treated for her illness but ultimately a birth defect ended her life.

Look for a 24 hour vet instead of an emergency vet... the price difference is amazing!!! I spent the same amount on 2 days of emergency care as I did on the next 10 days ATM the 24 hour spot