reggae
Staff Captain
Warning! This is very long...and about a dog...so don't read any further if "not your thing"....
When it rains...it pours...
Well, back a couple months ago, our neighbor (Vet tech) mentioned that she was concerned about Rudee's occasional limping. Could be growing pains?? ....or maybe something else??
He did grow to 90 lbs. at 9 months old :whistle:
Well, a trip to her vet's office, and several x-rays, bloodwork etc., proved to be a suspicion of fragmented coronoid process....okay...what is that? Well, in this breed of dog, they grow so fast, that a piece of bone breaks off in the elbow. This piece rubs on the cartilage and will eventually lead to bone on bone (extreme pain and cause the dog to be completely lame)
They suggested we got to MSU Vet. Hospital to have an evaluation.
The college is about 2.5 hours from our house, so on appointment day we load Rudee into the van and get on our way.
We are almost there, and all of a sudden the van completely shuts down! DH coasts over to the side of the freeway, and now what? No power what's so ever, and it's about 100 degrees out there!
So we call a nearby dealership and they arrange for a tow. I call a cab company (it is a college town) and ask if they can take me to the Vet. Hospital. No problem...soon they both arrive and DH goes with the van, and I load Rudee into the cab-van. Turns out the cab driver loves dogs! :boogie:
So Rudee and I land in this enormous teaching hospital, and we are led to a room by a student. She examines, and tells us to wait for the doctor. Turns out we get the head of Orthopedic surgery for this exam :doubleup:
She finally comes in and tells me to take the dog out in the hallway. I go down to the end. She tells me to bring him toward her (as she stands with a large group of students). They all watch as Rudee walks toward them. Now the Doctor asks each student to give a diagnosis, and is it moderate or severe....
Well, turns out Rudee does have FCP...bad in the left leg, and moderate in the right....
She tells me he needs surgery ASAP....okay :whistle:...and how much will this cost? $3000 for both legs....YIKES!
She tells me that I can discuss with DH and then set the date for the surgery.....
So, I call my cab-driver friend, and he came back to pick me up. He seems just as upset as me, about the diagnosis...then takes me to the dealership to meet up with DH.
Now the van, is just a little over one year old, and I'm thinking this surely will be covered under warranty...NOPE...
We need a new Alternator and the cost will be around $700!!
Now it's about 120 degrees (felt that way anyway) and I'm standing with a very hot German Shepherd in the Service Manager's office....begging for a little re-thinking of this. Nope...he's not budging.
I look at DH and there is SMOKE coming out of his ears! :madd:
I get him outside and we walk the dog around for about an hour. DH keeps saying that he could replace the Alternator himself if he had his tools, parts, etc. But we are far from home and stuck!
So we just sat it out in the waiting area, and finally another two hours later, van is done. The Service Manager came in and said "good news, I got it down to $550" ...oooh, happy day!
We did finally get home after a very expensive day, and DH got on the phone with Customer Service, did a lot of complaining...why isn't this covered under warranty? and who ever heard of an Alternator going on a one-year-old vehicle??
After a lot of bit***ing...they agreed to split the cost with us, and will be sending us a check.....
So Rudee is scheduled for surgery on Sept 7th....and we are told that this should take care of his legs, and he should be good as new (after surgery and a six-week crate rest):whistle:
Just the way things usually go for us....
When it rains...it pours...
Well, back a couple months ago, our neighbor (Vet tech) mentioned that she was concerned about Rudee's occasional limping. Could be growing pains?? ....or maybe something else??
He did grow to 90 lbs. at 9 months old :whistle:
Well, a trip to her vet's office, and several x-rays, bloodwork etc., proved to be a suspicion of fragmented coronoid process....okay...what is that? Well, in this breed of dog, they grow so fast, that a piece of bone breaks off in the elbow. This piece rubs on the cartilage and will eventually lead to bone on bone (extreme pain and cause the dog to be completely lame)
They suggested we got to MSU Vet. Hospital to have an evaluation.
The college is about 2.5 hours from our house, so on appointment day we load Rudee into the van and get on our way.
We are almost there, and all of a sudden the van completely shuts down! DH coasts over to the side of the freeway, and now what? No power what's so ever, and it's about 100 degrees out there!
So we call a nearby dealership and they arrange for a tow. I call a cab company (it is a college town) and ask if they can take me to the Vet. Hospital. No problem...soon they both arrive and DH goes with the van, and I load Rudee into the cab-van. Turns out the cab driver loves dogs! :boogie:
So Rudee and I land in this enormous teaching hospital, and we are led to a room by a student. She examines, and tells us to wait for the doctor. Turns out we get the head of Orthopedic surgery for this exam :doubleup:
She finally comes in and tells me to take the dog out in the hallway. I go down to the end. She tells me to bring him toward her (as she stands with a large group of students). They all watch as Rudee walks toward them. Now the Doctor asks each student to give a diagnosis, and is it moderate or severe....
Well, turns out Rudee does have FCP...bad in the left leg, and moderate in the right....
She tells me he needs surgery ASAP....okay :whistle:...and how much will this cost? $3000 for both legs....YIKES!
She tells me that I can discuss with DH and then set the date for the surgery.....
So, I call my cab-driver friend, and he came back to pick me up. He seems just as upset as me, about the diagnosis...then takes me to the dealership to meet up with DH.
Now the van, is just a little over one year old, and I'm thinking this surely will be covered under warranty...NOPE...
We need a new Alternator and the cost will be around $700!!
Now it's about 120 degrees (felt that way anyway) and I'm standing with a very hot German Shepherd in the Service Manager's office....begging for a little re-thinking of this. Nope...he's not budging.
I look at DH and there is SMOKE coming out of his ears! :madd:
I get him outside and we walk the dog around for about an hour. DH keeps saying that he could replace the Alternator himself if he had his tools, parts, etc. But we are far from home and stuck!
So we just sat it out in the waiting area, and finally another two hours later, van is done. The Service Manager came in and said "good news, I got it down to $550" ...oooh, happy day!
We did finally get home after a very expensive day, and DH got on the phone with Customer Service, did a lot of complaining...why isn't this covered under warranty? and who ever heard of an Alternator going on a one-year-old vehicle??
After a lot of bit***ing...they agreed to split the cost with us, and will be sending us a check.....
So Rudee is scheduled for surgery on Sept 7th....and we are told that this should take care of his legs, and he should be good as new (after surgery and a six-week crate rest):whistle:
Just the way things usually go for us....
..Um yeah I agree 1000% on the sedatives ( for both of you?)..
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