Was this vet's treatment too drastic?

[Sher]

My neighbor's 10 year old miniature schnauzer got kidney stones for the first time in his life. The vet operated on him to get them out and he also rearranged all his plumbing. He now pees out of a slit further down on his belly. He dribbled blood from this hole for weeks (vet said it was normal). To me the area still doesn't look right. It's puffy and red and it's been months since the operation. She said this cost her a couple thousand dollars, which they really didn't have, and thought long and hard about putting the dog down, but the vet is taking payments. This dog is a very young 10. Looks like a youngster. Gorgeous schnauzer, perfect weight.

It just seems to me what the vet did was overkill on this dog. Do you do that kind of drastic surgery the first time a dog has kidney stones? I would think you would get rid of the stones and then put the dog on special food and try to prevent more stones from forming in the future. Oh and she has to buy the 'special' dog food only from him at $2 a can (Hills special diet). I just wondered if anyone else has had this kind of operation performed on their dog for first time kidney stones or his this vet a whacko? I would really appreciate any replies/opinions. Thanks.

 

[Zoom]

Without knowing the dog's inner workings, but given that he made it to 10 years old without a major mishap involving kidney stones before, I'm going to say the vet took your neighbor for a ride. I've never heard of doing that type of procedure for the first case!

I feel sorry for your neighbor and the dog.

 

[elegy]

i'm assuming they were bladder stones, and really it depends. if the dog was blocked (had a stone lodged in his urethra) and couldn't pee at all and the owners were of the mindset that if he blocked again, that was it, then it might make more sense to take care of the problem in as pro-active a way as possible considering they had to do surgery already.

and yes, prescription food to prevent the formation of more stones is very routine.

 

[Gypsydals]

He may have had stones before now and just passed them. Its not unusual for that type of surgery in males. As far as the Vet was jumping the gun, he might have went that route due to past experiences. Males are more likely to clog up from stones than females. As far as what they are feeding him, I would go for a higher quality LOW PURINE food(meaning food containing chicken or lamb). Remind her to let him have as much water as he wants and then some. Tell her floating his kibble will get more water in him also.

 

[tessa_s212]

Not a dog, but we had a case with a cat that got blocked 3 times in just a couple months time. They did the surgery to "make him into a girl" as the owner described it! Lol

My vet wouldn't do this the first time it happened.. but I guess I could understand the argument about preventing it in the future if an owner said the next time they'd just put it to sleep...

 

[sparks19]

Well... I'm not a vet. But my moms dog (female) has had bladder stones twice at 9 years old (first time was just over a year before the second time) both times required surgery that was expensive and special food to help prevent it in the future.

it's something that definitely can reoccur and a lot of times it is almost CERTAIN it will happen again without a special diet.

 

[Sher]

This was the first time the dog ever had stones. They didn't say they would put the dog down if he got them again. They thought about it when the vet told them how much this surgery would cost, but decided they couldn't put the dog down. I just thought this seemed a little bit like overkill for a first time kidney stone. Don't you think maybe a 'get rid of the kidney stone, put him on a special diet and see what happens' might have been a more ideal approach? I certainly would have gotten a second opinion before I put my dog through that. I think what was most disturbing (and I don't know if this is the norm or not) was all the dribbling of blood for weeks. They had to keep the dog in a confined area so as not to get blood all over the place. This was hard on the dog and the owners.

Oh well, what's done is done now, I guess. It's just that I finally saw the result of the operation the other day and it didn't look very nice. I sure wouldn't want that on my dog. I am just sorry that they didn't get a second opinion because I just really think the poor dog didn't have to have this rearranging of his plumbing. Thanks for your replies.

 

[PlottMom]

perhaps at his age the vet was afraid that if they waited until he blocked again, and needed further surgery, he wouldn't come out of the anesthesia? That would be my biggest concern...

 

[JessLough]

If they thought about putting him down due to costs this time... the vet probably went ahead and did this so he does not get them again and need further operations. Especially if they knew they did not have the money for another operation, it was easier and cheaper for the owners to do it this way.

 

[elegy]

Don't you think maybe a 'get rid of the kidney stone, put him on a special diet and see what happens' might have been a more ideal approach?

maybe, maybe not. it really depends on the individual dog, the owners, and the situation. bladder stones can be a life threatening situation in a male dog. they are much less likely to be life-threatening in a dog who has had a PU surgery done. "it looks yucky" would probably not be at the top of my list of concerns, nor would the dribbling of bloody urine for a short period of time, if at the end of the day, it's significantly improving my dog's life.

sometimes there's not one right answer.

 

[Sher]

Thanks for all the replies. I feel better about this dog's operation now that I have heard some of your responses. I surely don't know all of the reasons this vet decided to do this operation, but if it benefited the dog and maybe saved his life and saved him from pain in the future, I guess that is all that really matters. The dog doesn't seem to mind his new plumbing a bit and still hikes his leg like always... you would never think he is 10 yrs old. He is just a beautiful schnauzer. Again, thank you for the replies. I continue to learn so much from this site...