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False Alarm

April 9th, 2019 · Posted by Skuds in Life · No Comments · Life

Over the weekend our Jack Russell had us worried. He was having trouble eating, looking like he was choking when he had food or a treat. Although he can be a bit of a drama queen it was very disconcerting because that is exactly how I felt last year and that turned out to be cancer of the oesophagus.It would be a strange and sad coincidence if my dog had the same problem as me. It was very unlikely but hard to shake the thought, particularly as I am just getting ready to go in for the operation that should clear up my cancer for good, so it is in the front of my mind – and knowing that a dog wouldn’t have the same options as me.

Today we took him into the vet for some investigations. It turned out that he just had some string or cotton in his mouth that had got tangled round the back of his tongue. It had got tight and was cutting into his tongue. This was not a huge surprise because the dog is always eating things he really shouldn’t like his toys or leaves and sticks from the garden.

It is a huge relief that he is going to be OK, tempered only by the £234 vet’s bill. £234 just for an anaesthetic and an x-ray. It makes me wonder what all my treatment would cost if we did not have the NHS. Those endoscopies, keyhole surgeries, MRI, PET and CT scans can’t be cheap, and all those chemotherapy drugs probably cost a fortune too. Even the machine for doing my feeding through the stomach tube probably cost more than my stereo.

Not for the first time I have found myself enormously thankful that we have free healthcare, but also wishing we had the same for pets. Of course I will eventually get most of the vet fees back from the pet insurance, but just seeing the costs involved in a small procedure is an eye-opener.

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