u/romagnalakedog

Just got back from the vet. Spent another $600 on his ears. We're probably up to about $2K on just ear stuff since his birth at this point. Desperately need some help...

Specs

• Male, 2.5 years old, 37 lbs
• Diet: Purina Pro/One Lamb & Rice
• Treats: yak chews, beef cheeks, beef liver
• Otherwise very healthy and happy!

Problem

He's always itching. Always getting yeast infections. Sometimes bacterial infections. And just has way too much hair in them...

Things we've tried

We make sure to keep them dry all the time. We do weekly cleaning with MalAcetic acid (seems to help). And we've tried about 4 other cleaners (that haven't been as good).

We tried to not do plucking. And then we tried to do some plucking (at home). But now he's gotten so sensitive about his ears that he basically needs horse tranqs at vet for them to do the deplugging (pull out 2 inch cigars of matted hair)...

Path Forward

The vet thinks we'll have to do this dance once a year to stay on top of this problem. While I like the vet, I hate the idea of having to sedate him every year for the next 15 years (he's so smart I don't wanna mess with his head like this).

None of his siblings seem to have these issues, so I'm just at a lost.

Help!

View Poll

We just celebrated the second anniversary of bringing our boy home today. While we had a challenging first year, he's become the best boy in this second year. We consider ourselves just so fortunate to have him in our lives.

I know can't put a price on love... but, out of morbid curiosity, I went back through all of our receipts and tried to at least put a price on how much he cost...

Here's the damage:

	Year 1	Year 2
Purchase	$4,500
Food	$800	$500
Grooming	$1,200	$500
Supplies	$1,500	$300
Toys	$200	$150
Treats	$1,500	$1,200
Training	$1,000	$50
Insurance	$1,300	$750
Vet	$5,000	$1,400
Dog Sitting		$700
Miscellaneous	$500	$100
Total	$17,500	$5,650

Thankfully, way less than last year (!!), but perhaps still more than what a non-dog owner might expect (we do spoil him though, see: "Treats").

The punchline: at $5,650, all-in, for 365 days of cuddles and smiles and laughs and adventures I'd say he's very much worth it!

Bonus points if it's been sticky for over a year and has nothing to do with their actual name!

As in: the dog breed that you would have gone with, if not for Lagotto, when you were first trying to decide?