Hey, all. Long time lurker, first time poster. Big fan of the site, so I'm hoping to get some advice from those more experienced and wiser than I.
Essentially, I am wondering at what point do you declare the quality of life to be so poor that euthanasia becomes a justifiable decision?
The reason I ask is because I have been given a rather poorly female Redfoot called Maul who is around 30 years old, and has a long list of fairly serious ailments. She was given to my boss under the guise that she was in good health, which was a big lie. I think the worst thing she has wrong is that she is eggbound and has been in such state for her entire adult life. According to her last owners son, she had never once laid an egg in their ~25 years of keeping her.
Since my partner and I are fairly verse in Tortoises and their care, he asked us if we could get her better. We have had her for around 4 months now, and although she has made some small improvements, she is still not doing well and has gotten worse in other aspects. We're fully aware that her condition is not going to improve without medical intervention, however the cheapest we have been quoted treatment for is an eyewatering sum of £880, but were told there was a chance it could be even higher. Unfortunately, they don't accept a payment plan either.
She is also blind due to the last owner keeping her in a 3x1ft vivarium with a basking light at her head level, mounted sideways. She has stomatisis, severe MBD (warped spine, odd gait/posture, deformed carapace) and a bad R.I. She is constantly wheezing and is hardly active. She lays in her hide all day and night, only walking around her enclosure for 10-15 minutes, 2-3 times a week. If we approach her, she barely pays any attention to us. Her breathing is constantly laboured, and her tail/entire rear end is incredible buldged. She seems to have trouble passing urine, probably due to the eggs becoming calcified and blocking her cloaca. I can tell she is in a lot of pain.
Without treatment, I am aware that she is likely to develop further complications that she will eventually succumb to, therefore I started wondering, at what point the suffering is too great to be considered fair on the animal? Is this a personal decision or are there some kind of 'rules' people go by to determine this?
I would love for Maul to have the chance to recover, but I can't see it happening, and I don't see her sticking around long enough for us to save up the kind of cash needed for her treatment. The economy is horrendous and the price of simply living right now is jawdropping, with it looking even bleaker in the coming months.
Any thoughts, opinions and advice is welcome. Thanks for taking the time to read this.
Essentially, I am wondering at what point do you declare the quality of life to be so poor that euthanasia becomes a justifiable decision?
The reason I ask is because I have been given a rather poorly female Redfoot called Maul who is around 30 years old, and has a long list of fairly serious ailments. She was given to my boss under the guise that she was in good health, which was a big lie. I think the worst thing she has wrong is that she is eggbound and has been in such state for her entire adult life. According to her last owners son, she had never once laid an egg in their ~25 years of keeping her.
Since my partner and I are fairly verse in Tortoises and their care, he asked us if we could get her better. We have had her for around 4 months now, and although she has made some small improvements, she is still not doing well and has gotten worse in other aspects. We're fully aware that her condition is not going to improve without medical intervention, however the cheapest we have been quoted treatment for is an eyewatering sum of £880, but were told there was a chance it could be even higher. Unfortunately, they don't accept a payment plan either.
She is also blind due to the last owner keeping her in a 3x1ft vivarium with a basking light at her head level, mounted sideways. She has stomatisis, severe MBD (warped spine, odd gait/posture, deformed carapace) and a bad R.I. She is constantly wheezing and is hardly active. She lays in her hide all day and night, only walking around her enclosure for 10-15 minutes, 2-3 times a week. If we approach her, she barely pays any attention to us. Her breathing is constantly laboured, and her tail/entire rear end is incredible buldged. She seems to have trouble passing urine, probably due to the eggs becoming calcified and blocking her cloaca. I can tell she is in a lot of pain.
Without treatment, I am aware that she is likely to develop further complications that she will eventually succumb to, therefore I started wondering, at what point the suffering is too great to be considered fair on the animal? Is this a personal decision or are there some kind of 'rules' people go by to determine this?
I would love for Maul to have the chance to recover, but I can't see it happening, and I don't see her sticking around long enough for us to save up the kind of cash needed for her treatment. The economy is horrendous and the price of simply living right now is jawdropping, with it looking even bleaker in the coming months.
Any thoughts, opinions and advice is welcome. Thanks for taking the time to read this.