Megaesophagus-my dog needs surgery!

I purchased my dog from Petland 1 1/2 months ago. She had Giardia, which is now cleared. But now she has been vomiting continuously. I took her to the vet & she has Megaesophagus. This is an enlarged esophagus. Food does not stay down and empties into the stomach very slowly. I have to keep her upright after each feeding for 15-30 min. I have a consult with a surgeon tomorrow. Who knows how much the surgery is going to cost to fix this. I have already spent about $700 on vet bills this month, not including what I paid for this dog. Petland will only reimburse me what I paid for the dog=$1,100. which won't probably touch the cost of the surgery. Does anyone know of any rescues or charites that help with the cost or surgeries in these cases? I want to keep my dog, but I don't know if I can afford her anymore!!*?!!

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Permalink Reply by Geri & Sidney on August 4, 2010 at 1:38am

I'm so sorry, Crystal. This is very sad for you and your pup. I hope some of the resources the other members here have given will be helpful to you. PLease keep us posted; we're keeping our fingers crossed for you.

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Permalink Reply by Carol Rea on August 4, 2010 at 11:29am

Crystal, so sorry to hear about your corgi! Our Odie had megaesophagus, worse case our vet had ever seen, used his xrays to teach vet students (I always thought we should receive a discount at the vet!) Anyway, Odie never had surgery, in fact it was never mentioned to us (he has been gone for 4 years now) We spent his entire life feeding him on a coffee table so that his dish was elevated and then making sure that he was upright for the 20-30 minutes after eating, became more difficult after we rescued Lucky. We had many major infections over the years - aspiration pneumonia is a biggie and I became very good at giving IV fluids and antibiotics. He would throw up, eat what he had thrown up - it was gross, I have to admit, we chose the carpet color in our new house so you would not see his "puke", we call it corgi puke tan. Anyway, you may not need to rush into surgery!! Odie seemed to be a very happy dog, we loved him knowing that we had him on borrowed time, he lived to be 7 and then could not go on anymore. I hope this helps, knowing that your corgi can live with this condition without surgery - it takes a lot of time and dedication, but we sure found it was worth it! Good luck. Carol

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Permalink Reply by Carol Rea on August 7, 2010 at 2:56am

Crystal, Carol again. I would look into the Baily chair if I was you. We looked into a sack afair, that a doxie owner had rigged up, but would not work for a long corgi. The coffee table worked for us, but was a hassle if you did not have a lot of time to hold the dog while he ate. I do wish you all the best. It is a big commitment, but we did find it "rewarding" as well as time consuming. Whatever you choose, you have our support. I find it interesting that my husband still feels that Odie was the perfect dog, so there you have it!