Woman: She's been having trouble breathing and she can't sleep because when she lays her head down she can't breath. She doesn't want to go outside or anything.
Me: How long has this been going on?
Her: Three days. I kept waiting for her to, you know, pass away. But since she hasn't I probably ought to do something for her.
(Holy crap! Three days of laboring so hard to breathe that the poor dog can't sleep!)
Me: She's in pretty bad shape. Her gums are very pale (and a little blue). With her age (ancient) and her breed (super stub nosed boston terrier) I'm very worried there's something going on that we won't be able to fix. I think you should consider euthanasia so she does't have to suffer anymore.
Her (gets right in the poor dog's face and baby talks): She's not ready to go yet.
(Yes she is. She's halfway there already)
Me: Then I need to take an x-ray of her chest to see what the problem is and decide the best way to treat it.
Her: She's allergic to steroids
Me: Okay. I'm suspecting that her heart may be the problem and that's not treated with steroids. But we need to take x-rays to find out for sure.
Her: You can't sedate her. The other vet and I agreed that she can't be sedated.
Me: She just has to lay on her side for the x-ray.
Her: She'll get too stressed by that. She's already stressed by the car ride. I thought she might die. The other vet said she can't be sedated.
Me: I don't plan on sedating her for the x-ray. She just has to lay on her side long enough for me to click the button.
She looks at me suspiciously
Me: Or we can try Lasix to pull fluid from her chest. But I don't know for sure if there is fluid without an x-ray.
Her: I guess she needs an x-ray.
*OMG! Listen to what I'm saying! Don't bring in your seriously ill dog and throw out every random road block on why things can't be done! Especially when I already strongly hinted that your dog is suffering and you decline euthanasia. If you won't end their suffering, I WILL require diagnostics in order to treat them to the best of my abilities.*
Sadly, even after an x-ray confirming a poor prognosis, the owner insisted on trying treatment for the little dog's heart failure because She'll hate herself if she doesn't try. No, your dog (and I) will hate you for prolonging your poor pet's suffering. Can you imagine struggling for every breath, feeling like you're drowning the entire time? And you already let this go on for THREE DAYS!
In this profession, we are blessed that we have the option to end suffering when there is nothing more to be done to prolong a decent quality of life. I hate it when people refuse for selfish reasons. When you take on a pet, you have to see to THEIR needs, not your own.
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