Paralyzing Fear
Since Wednesday night, my right-hand man Busta has suffered from a severe limp. I checked his paws and legs thoroughly and found nothing, but by Friday, my boy could barely stand. By Friday night, Busta was spending much of his time lying down. My premonition said that it was serious. I mean, he wasn’t pulling away or reacting to my inspecting his legs and yet he couldn’t sustain himself on his back paws. Saturday afternoon, right after Caspar and I had our cars inspected, we rushed Busta over to the vet where the prognosis left me shocked, disheveled and with my stomach in knots. Busta is suffering from paralysis of his hind quarters – possibly brought about from his jumping off of furniture and having several of his discs compressing key nerves in his back. The doc gave Busta a steroid shot and gave me anti-inflammatory pills to give him for a week. His future depends on how well he responds to this treatment. You see, if the inflammation around his spine does not subside and allow him to walk again, Busta will require risky surgery that may render him completely paralyzed. As I stated to the doctor, I will not subject my trusted friend to that type of torture. So, my fingers and toes are crossed in the hopes that my baby will respond to the treatment. The cost-prohibitive treatment of having my son cut open without any guarantees is not something I will undertake. I couldn’t do anything else after the vet appointment outside of coming home to spend time with Busta and cry. The funny thing is that Busta found the strength to come off his make-shift bed to lick my hands and comfort me while I cried. I picked him up and carried him around all evening.
On Blast
Is it inhumane to subject our pets to grueling and uncertain surgical procedures to keep them around or should we do everything possible to keep them in our lives?
Keep passin’ the open windows…
9 comments:
I pray that Busta will will respond well to the treatments.
He is in my prayers.
Thnx Kensilo...
That's kind of you.
Awwwwwwwww Cocoa....I know how difficult this is. My dog Browny was hit by a car, and one of her hind legs was mangled. We had to amputate and this was difficult for all of us. I don't pray too often but I pray Busta recovers....mwah!
Thanks Joey...you're a saint!
man i'm so sorry to hear about your bad news. hopefully Busta will rebound and make a nice recovery. i know it's hard, but try to maintain and think positive thoughts. GOOD LUCK BROTHER!
why would u make the dog live through that?? would you make your mom live through that reduction in quality of life is she chose not to??
My cat is family and given the same choices, I'd have to say goodbye. I guess the quality of his life would out weigh my selfish need to keep him around if he were in pain, but damn that a tough choice.
Uh Ponoono... like I said, the surgery and other more severe treatments are not an option. Did you read the story? And to answer your question, yes I would have my mother live through surgery to her spine if it meant saving her life. Unlike other pet owners, I see the value of human life - and that of my mother, more importantly - as one that I would attempt to salvage at virtually any cost. I hope you weren't equating the value of my mom to that of my dog.
I'm catching up on your blog entries and this tugged at my heart. Is Busta ok? I have pet insurance, quietly I have TWO types of pet insurance for my sweet pup, so I know how you're feeling.
Post a Comment