Are Greyhounds A Very Health Expensive Breed?

[greytpups]

I find vets are more expensive here in Ontario then anywhere in the US...but so is everything else so I guess it's all relative.

 

Bailey was 6 when we adopted her and Katie was 7 and Bailey was more expensive health-wise but I imagine that can also contribute to adopting older pups. Katie cost us 5k as soon as we picked her up from AR because she had hookworms, something not common here. Perhaps if our vet knew what we dealing with right away we could have reduced the costs somewhat, but since she was so sick, we did everything (tests, 24 vet care) possible to save her.

 

Ben and Brooke, both adopted as 3 y/o have been realtively healthy. Brooke has not had any emergency care, just annual exams. Ben, at 12.5 years is starting to incur more costs because we do acupuncture ($60) when required and he gets monthly cartrophen injections which cost $35.

 

My point is that age may have an impact as well.

[a_daerr]

If you're concerned about catastrophic expenses, I would definitely suggest a pet insurance plan. In my copious amounts of research, I've found Healthy Paws, Embrace, and Trupanion to be about the best. They have the most inclusive reimbursements and very reasonable rates. We have Healthy Paws, and it's around $45 a month for my 6-year-old grey. My younger dog is around $40, and the cat is $20. In the last year, one of my dogs racked up close to $13,000 in medical expenses due to cancer treatment and amputation. I'd never go without pet insurance, because I'd never want to make a decision to give my dogs lesser treatment for a financial reason. It's been a godsend for us.

 

If you're like me and bad at saving for things, the other thing that you might consider is a wellness plan. I've heard that the ones through Banfield (PetSmart) and Embrace are very reasonable and include routine things like vaccines and yearly exams. Some even have additional riders that cover dental health and flea, tick, and heartworm preventative.

 

Any dog can be expensive, but it really is the luck of the draw. Best to be as prepared as possible up front.

[krissy]

You never know. There is a certain degree of luck involved.

 

We got Summit when he was 5 and a half. In the past 4 years he has had fairly limited health concerns. He has pannus, which is an eye condition that requires lifelong medication but doesn't affect him now that it is controlled. He has some arthritis so he gets fed a joint diet and joint supplements (though, to be fair he would get those regardless because it's a good idea for any large breed dog... Kili started on them when she turned a year old), Cartrophen injections and intermittent pain medication. I've x-rayed him a couple of times just to make sure there was no other cause to the limping. He has been "sick" once which was this past summer after we moved across the country. He was really sore and stiff after being stuck in the car for a week and was getting more pain medication than usual and it upset his stomach.

 

Kili was our big spender and she came from a great breeder at 8 weeks old. You just can't know that a dog is going to have a congenital anomaly in its urinary tract. She ran up probably close to $10 grand in bills over 6 months. I have pet insurance on her, and of course being a vet and doing most of your own medical care does save a bit of money (but not as much as most people like to assume). After that major issue was resolved she has run up a couple hundred here and there for more minor issues... diarrhea that didn't want to clear up, soft tissue infection in a leg, eye infections. She is by far the more expensive dog and she's only 2. But fortunately none of these things have been major, lifethreatening issues.

 

So for us... the baby is the expensive one, not the senior (so far anyway... he's only just become a senior recently).

Edited October 30, 2014 by krissy

[cometdust1]

You can never know. My mongrel cost me over $15,000 in vet bills. Tore his ACL, required major surgery, got a bone infection from said major surgery, almost died, needed more surgery, etc.

 

You have to be an educated consumer of vet services. If you're one of those people who gets emotional and says "do whatever it takes to make him better" and allows your vet to subject your dog to tests (many of which often have zero impact on the outcome or treatment--just give your vet information at your expense) and treatments that cost of fortune but do little for your animal, count on spending a lot more than if you ask questions before agreeing to things.

 

One question of my vet saved me a couple of thousand dollars when my George was diagnosed with LSS. She wanted to do an MRI to confirm. I asked if knowing FOR SURE would change his treatment since there was absolutely no way I would subject a dog to spinal surgery, and she said no, it wouldn't. So why would I spend over $2,000 on an MRI?

 

I think we tend to forget that at the vet, we are a customer in addition to the owner of a pet. You don't have to do everything your vet wants to do.

I have asked my vet the same question. Answer to suggested biopsies would not change treatment. Did not do biopsies.

[greysmom]

Since 2003, I've had 9 greyhounds. Most of them have not been overly expensive, but the ones that were, *really* were. One had osteo, which we treated with amputation and chemo. That treatment alone was around $15,000. He lived for 9 months post surgery, which is considered about average. One had PLE (Protein Losing Enteropathy) and, though the course of her disease was short - only four months - with biopsies, medications, and special food it was probably well over $2000. Both these dogs were treated at a specialty hospital in our area.

 

Hmmmm.... Let's see about the rest.

#1 Libby - a few trips to the vet for stitches/staples, plus seizures which neede no treatement until she was 10 years old. She died of kidney disease. Not more expensive than average.

#2 Dude - the dog with osteo. He also broke a toe which was amputated, but was basically very healthy until the end. He'd just turned 9.

#3 Copper - normal vet trips and annual shots and stuff. No large expenditures. He had a stroke and passed at 12 years old.

#4 Cash - two major health issues - a bad seizure post vaccines (hospitalization for three days), and an infected salivary gland (surgery to drain and three days in the hospital), anxiety disorder which is medicated. She's 10 and healthy right now.

#5 Toni - normal annual expenses until recently, with a toe amp and treatment for a nerve issue with medication. She's 9.

#6 Dorie - Our girl with PLE. She was 10 when she passed. We had her less than a year. Otherwise, normal annual expenses.

#8 Whiskey - normal annual expenses though we are dealing with corns now (which are not overly expensive). He just turned 7

#9 Lilly - adopted as a 11 week old puppy so we had spay expenses with her. In addition, she had to have a vulvoplasty (girlie parts surgery) @ $500. And recently had a lump removed, which resulted in hospitalization when she had a bad allergic reaction to penecillin after ward. She also has IBD, and is on special food. There were diagnostic expenses of about $400. Lilly is 3.

 

None of these expenses were more than we had spent on any of our other dogs (except for the osteo treatment). We also don't have insurance for any of our dogs. It's mostly a crap shoot as to whether you get a healthy dog or one that needs more medical care. The numbers say that 1 out of 4 greyhounds will be disgnosed with osteo, or another form of cancer - that's pretty high for any dog breed. But yours may or may not be one of them. And as mentioned, there are less expensive ways to make your dog comfortable than an amp/chemo.

[nessa]

12.5 yr old sheltie = $11,000 for liver disease in his last days

 

11 yr old greyhound= $5,000 osteo in her last months

 

12.5 and 11 years with those dogs = priceless. ...

[Feisty49]

I have one Greyhound. She has one major health problem. It's an auto-immune eye disease called Nodular Granulomatous Episcleritis, a cousin of Pannus. She now goes to an animal ophthalmologist once a year for a checkup. She's on prescription drops for it that cost $45 a month. Without the drops, she would slowly go blind. She also has arthritis in her spine and is on a daily dose of prescription Vetprofen ($25 a month) and over-the-counter Dasuquin with MSM.

I also have pet insurance through Healthy Paws Pet Insurance. The annual premium is $39. It goes up $2-$3 a year. I chose the plan with a $250 deductible and a 90% reimbursement. Once the deductible is met, insurance pays for 90% of all Annie's meds, including the OTC Dasuquin with MSM because it was prescribed by her vet. The insurance does not cover the cost of an office visit, whether it be for an annual visit or a medical problem. It does cover all tests, 'scripts, and treatments, except for dentals. I got it to cover the cost of a serious health issue, such as cancer. I know that if I should have to spend $5,000 on Annie for treatments, insurance will cover 90% of the cost after the yearly deductible is met. No questions asked.

 

The cost of owning a dog should be taken seriously. Food, toys, beds, vet visits, vaccinations and health insurance don't come cheap, which is one of the reasons I own only one Greyhound. But all the costs are so worth it! A dog is more than an animal. It is family, and I would no more not give Annie the best care possible than I would not for a skin family member.

Edited November 1, 2014 by Feisty49

[Guest alannamac]

I had one greyhound no issues until very late in life and then manageable with medication and not very high vet expenses (except for his annual dentals which ran 600-700/yr because of his bad teeth).

I had another greyhound that I opted not to get insurance for because of the great experience with the first one. He had a surgically repaired fracture and an iffy ACL injury that my vet said might need

surgery so I was socking away money expecting leg and mobility issues later in life....unfortunately issues came very early in life (5 yr old) and completely from left field. GI issues that were fatal and cost 5K (which is what I had socked away thus far). You do have a choice in treatment options for most things but really with any breed of dog at least in their younger years it's a good idea to have insurance. If they blow out their knee or have an illness when they are young, the bills can go astronomical in a hurry, and I don't know a soul that would not try to save a young animal if possible.

They are bred for excellent health, strength and speed while racing in their younger years but unfortunately not bred for great health in later years so that part is a crap shoot.

Do brace yourself for annual dental bills which can be pricey if they start from adoption day with bad teeth. The one common thing many greyhounds get in late life is osteosarcoma. I think it's somewhere around 3/4 of them. That one is an expensive one if you choose to treat. But because of the poor prognosis many opt not to treat as well.

Hope that helps......

[gracegirl]

My parents westie is 15.5 and *never* goes to the vet outside of annual exams. He's had two dentals.

 

My greyhounds need dentals far more often and have far more minor health issues pop up. I felt lucky to get to the end of Grace's life with only $1,500 is costs for her end of life care, but it was an emergency situation that we never brought her home from. I anticipated several days at the e-vet and bills into the $5,000 range. Some days I feel lucky, other's I feel cheated. I never added up her medical bills over the years because there just wasn't any point. She also had spay incontinence and was on a medicine that was maybe $25/month.

 

Fenway is my younger guy. He just turned 8. He's accident prone so he's been to the e-vet for various nicks, cuts, bites over the years. He also had some mystery peeing inside which ultimately was diagnosed as kidney damage after $1,500 in bills.

 

Our airedale (Jackson) has been to the vet about as much as Grace. A few minor things here and there. Most recent was an infected and impacted anal glad.

 

Fenway and Jackson are both insured through Healthy Paws at $100 deductible and 90% coverage. We pay about $55-60 each per month for them. They are both 8 years old. It's there for the catastrophically expensive situations.....bone cancer, emergency surgery, etc.

 

To be honest, I'm not sure we will be a two (or three) dog household again. If we are though, we will definitely have insurance. Even for the minor things it has been well worth it.

[BatterseaBrindl]

Our 3 Greys (9, 7 and 6) are all very healthy, with only normal 'maintenance'.

Ruby had a dental, with 2 extractions last year and that was about $800.

 

We've had multiple large breed dogs for 30++ years......Dobes x 3 , Springer, GSDx, PointerX and now the three 3 Greys.

The Pointer developed a cancerous tumor in her lungs at age 12.... we treated only for pain management for a month.

One Dobe passed at age 8.... she ate something she should not have and had to be suddenly euthed at the E-Vet.

All the other dogs lived well into old age. The GSDx was over 14.

[IndyandHollyluv]

Mine have been nothing but a bottomless money pit! I will have to work until I die and then some. Thousands and thousands of $$$. Would I do it again? Of course.

[Guest Muscovy]

My grey boy cost me a pretty penny. He broke his leg and his kneecap when he was a pup, got attacked by other dogs twice, and was at the vet being stitched up for minor skin tears about once per year. His diagnosis and treatment for hemangiosarcoma cost about $6k over 3 weeks. He lived to 6.5 years old.

 

My kelpie x whippet girl had to have one of her baby teeth removed, but has had no other issues whatsoever. She's 7.

 

Any yet, after my grey boy died, there was never any question in our minds about bring home another grey. Grey love is priceless.