Older dog with illness

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Our 12 year old dog has been diagnosed with Cushing's Syndrome. It is an ailment where her body is making too many steroids. The symptoms are panting, weight gain, excessive water drinking, to name a few.
Last Friday she went through a second blood test which cost $150. to verify that she does have Cushing's. The vet and we want to treat her. The treatment will consist of several pills for the first week and maintenance of a pill a week there after. Our vet said the pills cost "a few dollars".
Today she was bleeding from her urethra and was straining to pee. I took her in. She has a bladder infection. The vet took an xray and saw no signs of a stone or tumor. He is 99% sure she has the infection due to her Cushing's which gives a dog higher risks of kidney related infections. The bill today was $91.
We all love this dog. She is part of our family. She has been with us longer than three of our kids.
She is so important to us but at what point do we need to draw the line for her care? My dh is the type of person to do heroic measures for her care...but she is 12?
I, in no way, want to sound uncaring. Which I am probably sounding...I am with her 24/7. I adore and love her. But vet bills are pricey.

I sound awful by worrying about money over our dog's life. Help!

By Mara on Friday, April 2, 2004 - 12:11 am:

I really don't have the answer for how long to provide care, sorry. I guess you just have to listen to what your head tells you. But, I have to say that you don't sound uncaring to me. If you were uncaring you probebly would'nt be asking for our advice I had a pet die when he was 11, he was hit by a car. I did'nt get the chance to go though this, I loved him dearly and understand that it has to be hard on you and your family.
I hope things look up for you.

Mara

By Dawnk777 on Friday, April 2, 2004 - 12:15 am:

We recently lost our dog. She had a liver illness. We spent about $100 on her, including a round of antibiotics. She did improve some, but then seemed to get ill again. She was losing weight and breathing rapidly all the time. After a month, it was obvious what we had to do. Also, she was throwing up at random, too, which wasn't fun. It is hard to have such and empty house, but it was harder watching her suffer. My hubby and I aren't the kind to go to extreme measures because it's expensive and the dog really doesn't understand.

By Bea on Friday, April 2, 2004 - 12:25 am:

I'm not an advocate of paying expensive vet bills for older animals. Usually the quality of life is compromised with the health problem, even with proper medication and/or treatment. I do believe in allowing my pet to be free of pain and discomfort. When that becomes impossible, either medically or financially, I believe in euthanising the animal. But, let me add, that with that decision, I believe my pet deserves to die in my arms.

By Ladypeacek on Friday, April 2, 2004 - 01:43 am:

Well I think you have to weigh the circumstances. Will paying these pricey bills really truly help the dog or just keep him alive? I don't believe in keeping an animal alive if they are not gonna have a good life to live. I know we don't put people to sleep but people can tell us what they are feeling and we can fix it. We can't tell if the meds are working of if they are making it worse with an animal. People have different reactions to meds so its obvious that animals may too. We had a chow, she was my baby, i loved her like she was a child of mine, when she was 13 she freaked out while we were at the store and somehow wedged herself behind the washer, broke her 2 back legs. The vet said it would require putting rods in her legs to fix and since she was so old she would probably never walk again. Well instead of paying 2000 to put rods in her just so she would live bu never walk seemed more cruel. I cried for weeks but i know it was the best choice. Its hard but i don't think you are sounding at all bad. Sometimes the best decisions are the hardest ones! We will keep your doggy in our prayers and we will also pray for you and your decisions!

By Marg on Friday, April 2, 2004 - 06:44 am:

I agree with Bea and Kenna.

I also know when you go to some vets, they don't give you any options, they just say this is how much it will cost to take care of the problem.

We have a wonderful vet, that he tells us honestly what may happen with medical help and without it. He will even honestly tell us what he would do. He did this with my grandfather's dog that came to live with us for 3 years, he told us the medication would cost $XXX and live for XX weeks, he told us the dog would be in severe pain either way. He told us he would put him to sleep (the dog was almost 16). The vet said it was a difficult decision for me because it was my grandfather's dog, my grandfather was passed away, and I may feel guilty for doing this. He was correct on all accounts. We put him to sleep.

By Dawnk777 on Friday, April 2, 2004 - 07:43 am:

My dog died in my arms with all of us around her. I think it was the best way. I still feel bad that we didn't stay with the cocker spaniel when I was 18. At least we gave Honey a better send-off.

By Marcia on Saturday, April 3, 2004 - 01:34 am:

My mom's dad had cushings. The vet told them the dog would die of old age before cushings killed her. He was right. She died a year ago at 15 or 16. She was on a low cal food and meds, but was healthy. I think she did have some UTIs and some allergies, but nothing life threatening. If your dog is still healthy, I wouldn't panic about this diagnosis.