Ask The Veterinary

I posted a question yesterday, asking if you would say a Prayer, for my Tiny 3.5 pound Chihuahua named Zoe who has Liver Disease. This is very long, but if you have the time, and you can find it in your hearts, Please Read This and tell me what you would do if you were in this situation!
Here is the question I posted!
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AnBNfwcxtc7VQq8ZJWKsOMsazKIX;_ylv=3?qid=20081202073306AA42fc0
Zoe went for some bloodwork yesterday to see if her Enzyme Levels have dropped. Last night, after eating food out of a can of Canidae, which looked and smelled fine at the time I gave it to her, threw up twice for the first time, in the last 3 months. It was the Canidae, which she or any of my dogs will never eat again. My vet said it’s ok to feed Zoe and the rest of my dogs, Wellness, so that’s what they will be getting from now on! I held back on her food last night to give her tummy a break. She’s better this morning! I called the vet when they opened and told them that Zoe had thrown up twice. The vet himself called me back, and gave me the blood results of the tests Zoe took yesterday. The results show, that even after all the Antibiotics and the Demamarin, her Liver Enzyme Levels have gone back up to 3400. The vet says, that there is not a whole lot more he can do for Zoe other than give her some Antibiotics when she has a bad day, and a certain diet. He said that Zoe can live a year or for the next 12 years. There is no way for him to tell me how long she has left. He thinks Zoe has Liver Shunt and tells me that I have 2 choices. He does not think that opening Zoe up to do a Liver Biopsy, is going to tell him anything different than what he already knows, so why put her through that kind of surgery? He said that Zoe is not in pain, and that because she is maintaining her weight, which is a big deal in this situation, and she’s happy, that I could let Zoe live out whatever life she has left or he can Send Zoe to Florida Veterinary Specialists of Tampa Bay and have and MRI and dye injected, to see if she does have Liver Shunt, and if she does, do some surgery where they use a new device that is like a band they put on the Liver Shunt, that slowly closes it off. I’m going to lose my Little Zoe, just like I lost my Angel Gigi, in August to Liver Disease. I am in tears and I don’t know what to do! The surgery costs $5,000. 00, which I would be glad to pay, but I don’t know if that will guarantee that Zoe’s life will be saved. I don’t know what to do next!!! Have any of you had a dog with Liver Shunt and had the surgery to fix it. What was the outcome and how is your dog doing now? Thanks for reading this! I don’t want my Zoe to die! I want to do anything it takes to help her, but I don’t want to put her through agony in the long run. She’s been through a lot, but if there is the slightest chance, that this surgery will save Zoe’s life, I will do whatever it takes, to keep her with me, for as long as I can! Again, what would you do if you were in my position? Thanks Again!
ADD: Would you please STAR this question, so my contacts can see it?

I read your previous post & I have to agree with Michealla.
It is time to give your Zoe back her life. Let her be a normal dog & let her life take a normal progression.
Give her tons of love & let her stop being a pin cushion. She doesn't need all that pain.
Good Luck to you

ive helped out at a small animal rescue centre and have done a week at a vets surgery, what else could i do?

Be a volunteer at a local zoo or animal sancuary.Start a program to sterilize feral cats(catch and release).

If you go to a school with a DMV program would that mean that you would spend less time with the animals OR if you went to a school only with a pre-vet program would this decrease the quality of the education because the school does not have facilities for the best education? Any other information about Pre-veterinary and veterinary programs would be nice too. I live in California also.

Here's what I was told by vets I talked to and academic advisers when I was thinking about becoming one: Most vet schools reserve a certain # of spaces for students who completed their undergraduate career at that University. So, if you want to go to UC Davis for vet school, try to do your undergraduate degree there. If you want to go to Cornell U for vet school, try to do your undergraduate there, etc. The admissions % is higher for students going to vet school the same place they got their Bachelor's degree. Most colleges don't have a set 'pre vet' program, you'll be majoring in something like Biology, Animal Physiology, Animal Sciences, really anything you choose to as long as you take all the required classes for vet school admission. There will be no 'hands on' classes with animals except the livestock-centered ones during your undergraduate education, other than dissecting dead animals, of course. I would recommend that you take the livestock courses, though, they will give you experience handling all types of critters. This site will have links to the admissions requirements for the DVM programs in the US and a few abroad: http://www.aavmc.org/vmcas/college_requirement.htm

Whether the University has a vet program or not should make no difference to the quality of the courses, undergraduate students do not take classes within the vet school or, really, use the facilities there at all. Any internships and such at the vet school will be reserved for actual vet students in almost all cases. The undergrad programs are a totally separate thing from the graduate DVM program. If you're lucky, at a school with a vet school attached, there may be an undergraduate course or two offered by professors from the Vet School, that was the case at Cornell for some of the advanced Animal Physiology courses (I have a BS in Animal Science (nutrition) from Cornell U). Having a good relationship with a vet school faculty member who can write you a recommendation will go far. You probably already know that excellent grades, close to a 4.0 in your undergraduate studies, is a must, so study hard! Get a part-time job during the school year, and full-time in the summer, working with animals, preferably at a vet's office. Get to know your professors in the biology and animal sciences departments, you will want glowing recommendations. Good luck!