My older Dog has some mole like growths, one on his back and one on his paw. One vet wants $500 to remove the one on his back. Went to another vet that wanted about $400 to remove both but felt cleaning his teeth was more important. She gave me quotes on everything . So if I had the growths removed since he was already out they could clean his teeth for another $200. So on the low side it is $600 for everything but on the high side it could be $1000 if teeth need to be extracted. My dog is 11 years old and besides dog breath has no problem chewing. I spent $53.00 on the vet visit and $48.00 on a tube of cream to put on these things. My main concern is my dog had Glacoma and an eye removed about 21/2 years ago but there was no other way to stop the pain of glacoma. I tried eye drops and cream that cost over $ 100 a month. I paid extra for a fake eye rather then sewing it closed. The Vet wants to deal with his teeth? I have had at least 10 dogs besides these two and they never had there teeth cleaned or died from anything concerning there teeth. I love both my dogs so much and when the older one got Glacoma he was suffering and it was removing the bad eye was a 99% for sure fix. I am scared if they mess with his teeth could cause him pain and infection. If he was a younger dog I might feel different. I am scared this could cause more problems when none exsist now. I just can't decide what to do. I really can't afford any of it but I will do what I need to if I could be sure what that is. Anyone out there have advice to help me?

which vet do you go to?

Dogs are the fucking best. They love unconditionally, which is how we all should.

The vet is not very concerened about the growth? The teeth seams to be the newest concern to these vets.my dad had his dogs teeth cleaned and they pulled out 13 teeth. His dog was the same age as mine. The dog died less then a year later? My dad was hit by a car on his bicycle two days after.We lost him as well and put him to rest Oct 1st 2011. The day before he was hit he picked out another rescue dog. We talked and texted that night to pick out names. My dads wife is so happy to have that dog that my dad picked. What is so funney is he said he would never get another dog. The next day upon bring his other dog to the SPCA for creamation he called me about this dog he fell in love with.

MB: I last went to Belmont Pet Hospital. My best friend has gone there for maybe 15 years and she has found them to be reasonable and caring. I felt the same upon my visit.

RM: I feel the same way about the teeth cleaning. I even told the Vet that. There was no high pressure but like new research teeth cleaning for dogs is now important? Like you I have had dogs all my life and never even heard about having there teeth cleaned? My dog going on 12 years old just scares the hell out of me that something bad could happen. I may have his moles removed with the stipulation they check out his teeth to see if any need to be extracted. He chews fine and I don't want to put him through a l lot of gum scraping. This whole teeth thing just scares me for a dog at his age. I just don't know what to do except as much research as I can on line as well as talk to other dog owners.

Gloria, my pitbull zoey just got an ear infection, 90 bucks for visit, shot and ear drops....

I think she got allergic to the drops, she started getting these little bumps.....

I took her to the vet again, asked if it was cancer but I was thinking more of an allergic reaction to the drops....anyways, the vet said it wasn't cancer, thank god, she changed drops and gave antibiotic pills, another 55 bucks....

I went to spca and the people there are wonderful.....

I am also scared that if my zoey gets severely sick, I will also not be able to afford the medical....I would rather put her to sleep than have my dog suffer....

So try spca for a better price, tell them ur situation, they might be willing to work with you.....

Oh yeah, the bumps started disappearing yesterday, so happy....gosh, how we love our dogs....

I really understand what you did and I would do the same. The thing about dogs is they just love you . They need care and love back. They want to protect the people that care for them. As I am walking my Bichon's I have had off leash big dogs come after us in which case I have picked them up or covered them with my body. I have been bitten twice but no harm to my dogs. The owners have fled both times and I had to get many shots. There was one time my neighbors Collie ran towards us and my younger dog bit him in the nose. The Collie was so suprised he yelped and ran back to the owner. I just left and she never said anything about it. Her dog was off leash and I understand many owners think there dod will never do wrong. These are always big dogs. My dogs feel threatened when seeing a big dog coming at us. My little dogs will protect me but a big dog could kill them that is why I will cover them and take a bite myself. My Family thinks I should carry pepper spray for protection. Things happen so fast that I would need training in how to use it and if not used right I could spray me or my dogs? I just stay within my Condo complex
Now because I know all the in's and out's to get away. After two dog bites in the last five years and nobody that owned these dogs have helped me I may get pepper spray because people just do the wrong thing and leave. This is the world we live in now. I just don't want to believe it but I guess it is time I do?

Gloria, one of the toughest pills to swallow is the cost of veterinary care. If I had it to do all over, I would have bought insurance for Daisy when she was a puppy. But we have to do it, even if it means going into debt. I have spent thousands upon thousands on Daisy's care, Yes I hate spending that money but it has to be done. Ask your vet to work out a payment plan, or check into Care credit. They will nail you with interest though. I wish I could advise you on what procedures to do and not to do, I can only say we have had very good experiences wit Pets Unlimited but they are not cheap. I wish you the best of luck.

I really don't care about the money because I love my dogs and there is no amount of money that is more important.what I am concerened about is the truth. This is hard to find when it comes to pets. They can't tell you what they feel. With the Glacoma eye
It was an easy decision
After trying the $100 eye drops
That did no good.my dog does not act sick. These moles have gotten bigger and I need them removed. It is only an extra $200 to clean his teeth.
The problem I have with that is if they feel some need to be pulled
And he has no problem eating
Milk bones or dog food they
Must be ok? This is what I think. I am going to talk to this vet and tell her I need some reason to
Pull out any teeth. My dads dog went for this and they pulled out 13 teeth. He was never the same and died
About 6 months later. This scares me.

I would be scared too. That's why it is so important to trust your vet, and that's not always easy. I really like Dr. Kim @ Pet's Unlimited. She cleaned Daisy's teeth but Daisy was only about 6 and kept her teeth. I do trust her opinion.

Sharon J: what town is pets unlimited in?

Gloria, Pets Unlimited is on Fillmore Street in San Francisco

yelp.com/biz/pets-unlimi…

My old fella has these type of moles too.  
My vet said they are nothing to worry about...

I am going with my gut. The moles are no big deal and cleaning his teeth at this age I just don't feel good about it. I have had several dogs throughout my life at this point and I see him having no problem chewing milk bones or kibbles. Two years ago I had to have his glaucoma eye removed because he was in pain. It was about six months before he was himself again. The operation was perfect including the replacement eye I had put in. We went for a follow up a year ago and they did really nothing and charged me $90. A couple days ago I got an e-mail for another check up. Are they kidding? His eye is fine,but I am going to waste my money to have them tell me this? We are talking two years now? The one year check up was a waste of money and they charged me $40 more then a regular visit. Nothing against this place but I know all the signs of a problem with this eye. There are none and never has been. Why bring him back unless there was a reason? Thank god for vet's these dogs can't talk, how would they make so much money?

I was told by my vet that poor dental cleanliness is linked to heart issues. I'm not sure what the connection is. He recommended the same for my 12 year old Labrador but he's severely overweight/arthritic and I doubt he would survive being put under. Go with your gut, but if you have the $200 to spare, I think it's worth it.

Gloria, how is ur dog doing now, hope all is well....

I also haven't taken my Zoey for teeth cleaning, which I think is due.....

Don't worry about the teeth, you can buy a water additive at Petsmart or Petco, forgot the name but it helps reduce the plaque build up, you can also just use a rough cloth and just warm water to clean the teeth about every other day.  Vet push teeth cleaning because it's a short 15-20 min cleaning and they can charge a lot for it.

my dog has hip dysplasia, surgery this summer will be $5000, I don't feel bad for you at all.

Ok, vets are business people. Sure they have the pets' interest sometimes in mind, but they also are concerned with their mortgage, car payment, etc. they'll try to sell you on things which could be done but make them sound imminent or necessary.

I took both my dogs in a few months back and my oldest(13) had grown some moles too. She recommended biopsy rather than total removal. I declined.  He also has gum disease which has recently developed and told me he needs oral surgery costing $700. Know what? He's THIRTEEN! Both my dogs are rescue dogs which means they've enjoyed an extra 12 and 9 years past their life expectancy already, and they've been good years.

The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh. When it's their time, I'm gonna make em a Xanax chocolate milkshake and let them take a nice long hot tub session, call it the Whitney Houston special.

You say that now Sean but when they are really sick and dying you will run to the vet and that is what you should do. But your dog is in pain, and they can live to be 18.

The one thing vets do that really annoys me, and this happened with my cat, is they had me keep the cat on steroids and fluids and it was wrong in many many ways. Wrong to try to prolong the life of a sick, incurable and suffering very old animal for starters. You don't recover from kidney failure. I hate that vet to this day and when I figured out what was really happening, I kidnapped my cat and had it euthanized, only several weeks later than I should have and I will never forget what my poor, incurably sick, suffering 18 y o cat went through, nor did I pay that greedy vet.

Sharon, I hear you completely. I remember being angry that they kept my bunny overnight for fluids & observation and she died alone. At least I could have been with her. Wrong wrong wrong.

No Sharon. I love my dogs, but I acknowledge they are dogs. They've had a great life, are very happy and full of energy still. But, if they ever need chemo, major surgery, etc...it'd be much less humane to put them through that in their teens rather than let them peacefully go.  So choco/Xanax milkshake they get.

Gloria, just wanted to say hope your furbaby is doing ok

I have a 13 year old dog with similar mole or wart-like bumps on his body. As he's gotten older, he's developed more of them. He has about 6 or so of them now. I've taken him to several vets and none of them seem to think these bumps are a problem - it's just something that older dogs get. A friend of mine has a senior dog with the exact same bumps, and her vet said not to worry about them either. I would be concerned if they are changing size/shape/color - otherwise it's probably just a normal sign of aging. His teeth however, are probably a bigger issue than you think. Especially if they've never been cleaned and you don't brush at home. Just like in humans, infections in the gum line can seep into a dog's bloodstream and cause serious illness. General advice from groomers and vets is that you brush your dogs teeth at least 3x/wk. That said - it's not the first thing we think of when it comes to taking care of our pets, and it definitely takes some practice and getting used to in order to develop that habit. I can't honestly say I do it that often either....but I'm trying to make it a priority as my pup gets older.

If you live in the Bay Area, there is a great place that will clean your dog's teeth without putting him under. My vet told me that, while it's not as thorough as a teeth cleaning at a vet's office, this service is preferable to no treatment at all. The first time you go it's about $110, but after that, you can get on a 'sustainer program,' and it's very reasonably priced! I'm taking my dog once every three months, and it will run me about $65/visit. It's even cheaper than that if you go every-other month...I think down to about $20 if you go on a monthly basis. The difference in my dog's teeth before and after was unbelievable - and they cleaned them in only 20 minutes!! The business is called Canine Care, and they travel around to different pet stores/ grooming salons each month. You have to book an appointment, but it's completely worth it. It will even fix that bad breath problem. I got my dog's teeth cleaned at a pet store in Los Altos called Pet's Delight, but you can fine Canine Care at other locations all over the area.

If your vet isn't worried about the bumps, but is concerned about his teeth, and you're concerned about the price - give CC a try. I was skeptical at first, but the difference in his teeth after one visit sold me on their service for good. We'll be bringing our two other pets to see them for a regular teeth cleaning, too.

N.H. that's a great idea, thanks for that info. Gun disease and tooth decay are terribly painful and can cause life threatening secondary health issues.

Sean I agree about not putting a small animal through chemo, I would not do it to Daisy, and just about everything I've read agrees that. Little dogs don't do well. But certain surgeries have positive results, Daisy recently had surgery to remove the scar tissue from a chronically infected ear canal and she did well. She also did very well with tumor removal.

If you are self sustaining enough to euthanize your animals alone with no medical professional involved, good luck to you. I couldn't do it.

NH: I read your post and will look for canine care in my area. $110 is a good price and they don't put them out. I am really concerend about my dog being put out all the way because for an older dog it is a big risk. As far as his growths go the vet saw no imediate concern . She even said upon removing these things that sending them out to be tested would not be worth the cost. My dog went through so much with his glacouma eye operation that it is hard for me to put him through anything else. I would hate to loose him when he feels and acts so good now. His eye removal was a must because he was in pain. It has been two years now but his total recovery was about 6 months.

It is so wierd that my other dog that is 2 years younger has never been sick except for a bee sting when he was a puppy. In some ways he just coppies my older dog but he is the same bread but is so different. He likes attention but only to a certain point. If we go away my older dog gets depressed and the younger dog just goes with the flow. I think this is because he was never the only dog and respects his brother? I got a second dog thinking my first dog would like the company. He hated him for at least a year. He didn't ever try to bite or attack him, he just ignored him. I felt guilty but what could I do? They are the best of friends now but if the older one dies first the younger one would find it hard to be alone. On the other hand he really doesn't like very many other dogs out on a walk so he could be aggressive if I got him a friend. I am talking about Bichon Frise's that are not a agressive breed. The younger dog seams to be protive of his brother and me. An un-leashed Collie charged towards us once and he bit his nose. The collie ran away crying when he could have attacked back very easy.

LOLOL^^^

i wish i could be more like Sean and say they are just dogs but i cannot Please Note I'm not at anyway saying you do not love your dogs but when you have a dog that has traveled everywhere with you sleeps at the end of your bed lays with you when your not well
happy to see you when you come thru the door even if you were only gone two seconds the pain your going to feel cause that happy dog is no longer at the foot of your bed the pain you feel when there no longer there greeting you at the door the pain you feel when you look over at there favorite spot where they used to lay and now its empty!  I'm feeling because i no soon that will be me!
Anyone who loves an animal like i do knows what i am talking about! there part of your family!.. i think the next dog i have will be an outdoor dog! maybe then i can say its just a dog!..

Hey Sammy, what does the "D.T.A." stand for in your nickname?

Max "mildly"...

thought you were the teacher who knows all ? with all that smartness im sure you"ll get it figured out!

Sorry Max that wasnt very friendly of me if you really want to know and you can not get it i will give you a hint

Wait a minute if you really no who i am you should no what that stands for!...

Gloria..
Sorry to ruin your post about dogs but for some reason people seem to always change the subject!

Annette, is it 'down to'...something not sure lol

Mo so so sorry to hear about your dog, it's so rough when they get older and we can see the declining. Daisy has her problems too although I did her dental with Pets Unlimited and they did a great job.But she has mammary tumors and she is too old to be put through any more mastectomies. She also has benign lung tumors, my poor baby. But she still loves her walks and her greenie bones and I am just grateful for every day I am given with her.

Just have to say that dogs are pack animals and they need to be with their pack, inside..keeping an "outside" dog would be cruelty.

Let me link to "dogs deserve better" here they know much more about it than I.

dogsdeservebetter.org

I recieved an e-mail about Annette being really Sammy DS. I am not sure what to think? I myself was said to be him sometime over a year ago. A lot of people were up set by this guy because he claimed to be on his death bed. Atl I can say is I as many others felt sorry for this guy and don't really know why a person would need to pull a scam on a talk site? I no longer care as I did back then because this is cyber space, I was new to it and took it all to personal. I now take it as i post things and what ever people reply may not be nice and can really be mean. I did get really sucked in by Sammy DS. but  the only thing he did in the end was make a person like me feel sad and then mad when people that actuly knew him said his whole thing about death was not true. That is what no one liked and were so mad about. All the people that stuck up for this guy including myself felt so betrayed. If he is posting under different names as I have heard at least five times before this Annete, at least it is not this big scam like before. Speaking for myself I appreciate the heads up but I could never be scamed like that again.The only other thing

Gloria - who sending emails out to people about me ?
Now really don't you find that kind of strange that someone would do that to someone they do not even know?
there must be to many children on here playing games I thought Yelp was for people who wanted to no things and get serious advice
not a bunch of game playing!
Don't get me wrong I'm not taking any of this out on you! , but I'm not Sammy I'm a happily married woman with children and i also have dogs that's why i can to this thread in the first place! Maybe i will just keep to my reviews and stop the yelp talk!
Im sorry to hear about Sammy but i honestly do not no who he or she was!.. Sounds like a fake to me that someone made up!

Annette I think Gloria was saying the same thing, that what a waste of time it is for people to send emails and gossip and worry about who's who, that after awhile you really don't care, you just care about the people who contribute something meaningful and to hell with the rest.

You seem like a nice person, and it's very kind of you to take the trouble to tell the board who you really are.

In my opinion Sammy did a lot of harm to this board, as we are seeing repercussions to this day. Don't let the flaming effect you and I hope you stick around.

Well Sharon I am going to put it behind me and move forward! I did not no Sammy and from the sounds of it i am glad i didn't get to no him!
I'm on here hopefully for the same reason the rest of you are to chat make friends and learn things! Period!

And talk on the threads that interest me like this one about dogs.. my dog is 12 yrs. old and she is showing her age more and more and when the times comes to have to let her go that is going to crush me she is a very large part of my family as i said in my previous post!  i will be sad but i do not want her to suffer! Anyways thanks for showing concern!!

You're very welcome and I know how you feel. I went through that when I had cats and I will never forgive that vet for taking advantage of my grief and naivete and recommending I keep my 18 y.o. cat, who had kidney failure, on steroids and iv feeding. When an animal stops eating, it's that time and the most important thing is to be ready for that day so they don't suffer needlessly. such a sad subject so all I will say animals have no concept of life and death and the only thing they are afraid of is separation from their pack so it is so important to stay with them to the last. Also it might help to find a vet that will come to your home or take them somewhere unfamiliar so they aren't afraid..

also want to post a link to a terribly sad video a young couple created when they had to put down their dachshund, it helped me to make some plans for that day which I hope is still several years off but you never know. Warning: Major tearjerker.

youtube.com/watch?v=uJUg…

Okay now I have to go hug my very much alive and barking dachshund ;+)

What about animal shelters with vet clinics like the one in Milpitas? We've been using a mobile pet clinic for our dogs shots at PetFood Express, they are around every Sunday, reasonable pricing, not sure to what extend they'll do diagnoses though.

I had to put down my first Bichon Frise about 12years ago and I don't think I could ever do it again. I watched the whole thing and to this day I wished I didn't . He was 16 and very sick. It was really the only thing to do but I only hope my two Bichon's I have now that are 11 and 9 don't have to go this way. The one thing I would never do again is sit there and watch. You can't decided to end the life of a person and they can tell you they want to go. A Dog or any pet can't tell you anything. You just know when things are wrong and depend on a Vet to be honest and not jack up the bill. My older dog had these mole like growths on his back and his vet that I took him to for his whole life wanted $500 to remove these growths. Because of his age I took him to a different vet for a second opinion. She said let's try this ointment first and see what happens. It was $50 for this medicine. I put it on for 10 days as directed but saw no results. I decided to try a second round of it because I realized his harness was rubbing that spot and it was on all day. I removed it except for walks and the growths are now gone.

I bring my Dog's to the pet food express in San Carlos as of last Summer and saved over $150 . They are great for shots and heart worm tests. This is all they do so if your dog has any other needs you have to go elsewhere. it just goes to show you that you can save so much money on these yearly shots.

Gloria those are great tips. thanks so much. Daisy is to the point that if we are even in the car in the neighborhood of her vet where she had her surgeries she has a doggy breakdown and god forbid I should park in the parking lot she becomes 12 lbs of inert dog, so that's a great tip because she hates the vets office.

My older dog has developed more mole like growths on him but they are located where he can lick them. The first one was on his upper back and the medicne I got from the vet stoped it. The new ones are on his leg and paw so he licks them a lot. They got bigger My best friend sugested getting a spray called bitter apple. It is non toxic and when applied they won't lick it because of the taste. I bought this product and applied it to these spots. He has stoped licking them I put it on about twice a day and it has stoped him from licking. They already look better and are smaller. This is a lot better then putting a cone on his head and it is good for hot spots as well. I can't believe how wonderful this product works and stops a dog from licking . I still feel the need to bring him back to the vet because I want to make sure these moles are just that. Like a person ageing you get these skin tags that are not harmful but who wants them ? She was not concerned about the first one but now there are three more. They are not tumor like and only on the surface. I am thinking I should have her check them out in the event there is something else going on?