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Hi, my chihuahua fractured her front right left ...

Sent to Pet Experts February 08 12:01 AM

Hi, my chihuahua fractured her front right left yesterday morning. I took her to the hospital and the vet there was going to do surgery for another animal so he looked quickly at my puppy and told me that he would need to put in a medal plate to keep it in place. He told me this without taking an X Ray. I then got an estimate of $3,065 and I had to pay it all that day. I DO NOT HAVE THAT KIND OF MONEY. I took my chihuahua home and made my own homemade splint for her. I am doing the best i can.. i give her a little bit of tylenol for the pain. I am really heart broken and dont know what else to do. I tried calling different vet offices to get quotes but its all around the same price and no one takes payments. i also called a shelter because i am willing to give her up as long as they get her some treatment, i told them what was going on and asked if they would get her the help she needed or put her to sleep. they said theyd put her to sleep because thy only take pets that R adoptable!

 

Optional Information:
Age: 11; Female; Breed: Chihuahua

Already Tried:
home made splinter, vets, shelter will put her to sleep and humane society charges approx. 160 to surrender and it does not guarantee that they will help her,if they cant they said shell be put to sleep because they are low on money also! what do i do!:(

Customer (name blocked for privacy)
Answer
February 8 1:03 AM (1 hour and 2 minutes and 15 seconds later)
         
ACCEPTEDCheck Mark

First thing you need to do is stop the tylenol. This is highly toxic to dogs. You will actually need to hold off now on pain medications for a few days.

For the leg just contact a regular vet. Tell them you cannot afford surgery and just want an xray and a splint. That is all you can handle. There is a vet who will do this. She is a little dog. The bone will likely heal it just might not heal properly but with her being small she has three other good legs that will get her around. Now she will deal with arthritis later but that is later and at least you can get her out of pain and comfortable tomorrow. You don't have to do anything you don't want to do. By this I mean they can treat it the way you want it to be treated based on your costs. If they do not feel that the bones will heal together or she has loss of feeling then another thing you can consider is amputation of that limb. This is the extreme issue so don't panic as this may not be necessary. A splint and pain meds will still run you into the hundreds but not thousands. She will need the splint check or changed ever week to two weeks. And another xray will be taken most likely by week 4-6. If the leg had to be amputated do to nerve damage or loss of blood supply then your vet should be able to do this and your cost will still be significantly lower and the outcome will be she won't have pain nor will she have to deal with arthritis and she will manage just fine.

Don't give up on her just yet. You will find someone who can cast the leg. We actually had to do this for a girl not to long ago. She fractured her front leg. They couldn't afford the surgery for a pin or plate. We casted it and it healed and you wouldn't even know she hurts at least she doesn't say so. Now the leg is a bit misshapen but she is still fully functional. You haven't reached the end not at all. Pick up the phone tomorrow and start making some calls.

Here are some link for financial assistance that you may qualify for:

American Animal Hospital Association
http://www.aahahelpingpets.org/home
" Through the AAHA Helping Pets Fund, veterinary care is possible for sick or injured pets even if they have been abandoned or if their owner is experiencing financial hardship."

Angels 4 Animals
http://www.angels4animals.org/
"Our services range from financial aid to complete treatment
to those pets and pet owners in need."

Care Credit
http://www.carecredit.com/
A credit card company for health care, including veterinary care.
"With a comprehensive range of plan options, for
treatment or procedure fees from $1 to over $25,000, we offer a plan
and a low monthly payment to fit comfortably into almost every
budget."


God's Creatures Ministry
http://www.all-creatures.org/gcm/help-cf.html
"This fund helps pay for veterinarian bills for those who need help."

Help-A-Pet
http://www.help-a-pet.org/home.html
"Our efforts focus on serving the elderly, the disabled, and the
working poor."

IMOM
http://www.imom.org/
"We are dedicated to insure that no
companion animal has to be euthanized simply because their caretaker
is financially challenged."

The Pet Fund
http://thepetfund.com/
"The Pet Fund is a registered 501(c)3 nonprofit association that
provides financial assistance to owners of domestic animals who need
urgent veterinary care."

Good Luck

Theresa




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Answer
February 8 1:09 AM (6 minutes and 3 seconds later)
         
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