[AndynJ]

So if your dogs not too well, is it off to the vets or give it a dose of antibiotics out of the sheep cupboard ??

[SallyintNorth]

I don't risk it unless I know for sure it's okay for dogs. 

What's the problem?

[AndynJ]

no problem, just asking as 2 of our friends have taken their dogs to the vets one is an ancient collie vets kept it over easter its on anti's the other is a broken leg.

So just asking if you had a cow or horse with a broken leg it would get shot, just wondered what people on here do, our dog is another animal and gets treated as such.

[jaykay]

My dogs are my best friends, and get treated as such.

[Mammyshaz]

The legislation for how you treat dogs to how you treat livestock is different. Dosage and compatibility of medications for each animal species is different. What is fine in high doses for one could be lethal for another.
Shooting a dog is illegal under the animal welfare act, shooting livestock is not.

And this

My dogs are my best friends, and get treated as such.

Oops, didn't answer the question: VETS every time

[Bionic]

Vets

[Ideation]

Technically shooting a dog is only illegal if its not been put on your FAC ticket.

I routinely treat my dogs my self for small to medium issues - mostly cosmetic stuff, cuts, bangs etc.

Mainly its skin staples, stitches etc. Give them a bit of metacam if needed. Occaisionally antibiotics if its a clear case of minor infection.

For anything serious or anything internal, I mostly take them to the vets.

I only treat them myself due to experience and the fact that for the most part its happened before, and I know i'll be able to do quicker what the vets will end up doing anyway.

[AndynJ]

Technically shooting a dog is only illegal if its not been put on your FAC ticket.

This will explain why I had it in my head that Dickie the farmer across the way would have to shoot my pooch not me.

I have a friend whom works for Defra he has a cupboard full of stuff and would point me in the right direction, your posts have answered my thoughts "It's about confidence and the unknown" which my friend deals with for me.
Thanks for the replies

Dogs = best friends = flippin heck "not sure if I admire you or am scared for you"
TAS community will be your friends     

[Kitchen Cottage]

Routinely treat my dogs for small things.  With Fred,  I'm have remortgaged my house for more quality time with him  ... I will probably be the same with Misty....

Definitely they aren't "just" animals.  They aren't food producers, their role is companionship.  Unless you are talking about entirely working animals, sheep dogs or guard dogs, I don't see why you would lump them in with the livestock.  You aren't getting a return, why would you have them at all?

[devonlad]

A couple of years ago we were faced with the possibility of an £8000 veterinary procedure for our beloved springer.  In the event it was a misdiagnosis from a slightly over zealous young vet thank god but not before several agonising weeks trying to establish where you draw the line in terms of expenditure.  I think we learnt two things. Everything has a price no mattrt how loved and also get bloody pet insurance.  I remember vaguely reading how animals on endangered lists all have a value, no matter how unsavoury all of us will place a value on a life. How much would you pay to ensure the survival of a pet or the black rhino? £100, £1000, ? 100000 ? We'll all stop somewhere.

[SallyintNorth]

One of the problems with vets and dogs is that they assume these days that we all have insurance, and costs of treatments have escalated astronomically as a result.

When you don't have insurance therefore, estimates can get scary pretty quickly.

And you can't get insurance for working collies  so that can mean some very hard decisions having to be made.

Thankfully our vets are realistic about treating farm collies - not only is there a limit on what a farmer can pay to treat a faithful colleague (better than best friend, often!) but the nature of the working collie being what it is, most of them would rather be dead than on the farm unable to work, watching other dogs go off to do the gather     So spending thousands on a bionic elbow when the dog can't work again is on the edge of cruelty.  (Making that decision was a long hard night I hope never to have to live through again.) Skip says he's happier with the cheaper, rough-and-ready op that left him a bit limpy but still safe to work   What was truly scary was that I was only offered the cheaper, rough-and-ready op when I said I'd decided it wasn't in the dog's best interests to do the bionic one.      Again, a young and over-enthusiastic vet.  I make sure I get one of the farm vets and/or a more experienced one for the collies now

[doganjo]

Common sense would prevail here.  I am not a qualified vet or doctor, nor even a nurse, so unless i was 100% sure what ailed any of my dogs I would contact my vet - for advice in the first instance and a visit if required.  He knows I have vast experience in dogs so is likely to guide me well.  He NEVER asks if the dog has insurance, although three of the four have. 

I had to pay £2000 fro a TPLO on my oldest bitch three years ago and fortunately was able to afford to do so from savings, but would have taken out a loan if I hadn't.  She is not almost 13 and I can't insure her without a mortgage  , but took the decision to insure the 10 and 8 year olds when the pup came along. My 8 year old appeared to have a back problem a couple of weeks ago - I gave him metacam, but asked Ian to check him over just in case it was a spinal problem as he plays with Missy a lot.  That cost me £8

[AndynJ]

We have a collie, our 2nd one, its a guard dog, fox badger deterrent, chicken supervisor, we were meant to be buying a place with more land so we were having sheep, though that's not worked out, he is on the whistle but only just so over the next few weeks we will give him more training around a herd of cows with another collie in tow.
3 local farmers have asked if we will sell him, we never tether him now.
He has exceptional breeding he came from the Chairman of the Welsh sheepdog society, pups were ordered 2 litters in advance and his sister went to Chez.

Last collie went to the vets when she broke her hip, first & last visit
This one went in for the snip, all jabs done by friend & I
Stiches in the foot pad done by the wife (that was interesting without sedation)

[Steph Hen]

I don't take the dog or cat in for anything I am confident I can treat, anything that I'm unsure of is straight in. I wouldn't be paying thousands to have my dog treated. He's a lovely dog, but not worth that much. Same as I wouldn't spend £2000 on a new pair of curtains or £40k on a new car. For me it is immoral when there are people in the world who are starving and dying for the sake of a paracetamol tablet to bring a fever down. This is only my opinion applied to myself. I'm happy for others to spend their money on whatever they want to.
I don't consider a pets welfare to be of any greater importance than livestock. They are animals in my care.

When there have been test results waited for, or reoccurring problems, my husband and I have discussed where the level is, and when that figure is reached the pet is put to sleep (with many tears).

[plumseverywhere]

We've had pets PTS because at point of diagnosis of something that will cost an arm & a leg, we've weighed up the welfare of our children against keeping an asthmatic cat going.   
I do believe in the freedoms though and wouldn't treat an animal without adequate pain relief or if I wasnt' confident that I knew what I was doing!