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My wife and I are dog people. We've owned dogs throughout our marriage and made them a real part of the family.

Our current dog is our favorite. Maybe that's because our kids are grown and gone and we've replaced them, emotionally, with a pet. They would tell you the dog is treated better than they were and, except for meal time, that might be true. They were never fed dog chow.

OK, just kidding. That's not the only exception.

We haven't sent the dog to college. And we wouldn't provide the same medical care.

Our dog gets annual checkups by an excellent veterinarian and necessary vaccinations. If some exceptional and unusually expensive care were required, however, we wouldn't automatically approve.

So, when the N.C. State College of Veterinary Medicine announced last week it's preparing to offer bone-marrow transplants for dogs, and it was reported these procedures would cost $15,000, our reaction was immediate: We love our dog, but there's just no way we'd pay that much money for medical treatment.

I'm sure the new procedure is a marvel for dogs diagnosed with lymphoma. It produces a cure rate of at least 30 percent, according to Dr. Steven Suter, assistant professor of oncology -- quite a boost from near zero without the procedure.

To me, though, 30 percent sounds like poor odds for gambling $15,000. Particularly when the patient is a dog with a normal life span of only 12 or 13 years anyway.

Obviously, some people feel differently. If fact, one person felt differently with so much passion and generosity that he donated more than $20 million to making treatments like this available.

In his memory, N.C. State is building the Randall B. Terry Jr. Companion Animal Veterinary Medical Center at a cost of $72 million in public and private funds. It's scheduled to open next year.

Terry, who died in 2004, lived in High Point where he had significant ownership interests in the High Point Enterprise and International Home Furnishings Center.

He wasn't married and had no children. His family consisted of six golden retrievers, some of which were treated at the College of Veterinary Medicine, prompting his eternal gratitude.

I've written about Terry before. His High Point-based R.B. Terry Jr. Charitable Foundation reported assets of more than $142 million in its most recent IRS filing -- more than Greensboro's Joseph M. Bryan Foundation.

While the Bryan Foundation has made a huge impact in Greensboro, the Terry Foundation gives relatively little to projects or organizations in High Point, where Terry derived his income. Its principal beneficiaries are the College of Veterinary Medicine and Woodberry Forest School, an exclusive prep school in Virginia.

The result at N.C. State is the companion animal medical center. It will offer "cutting-edge technologies for imaging, cardiac care, cancer treatments, internal medicine and surgery." For pets.

When so many people struggle to afford basic health care for themselves and their families, devoting resources to cutting-edge (and expensive) medical treatments for pets at a state university strikes me as a misplaced public priority.

That's not all the vet school does, however, Dr. Dianne Dunning, assistant dean for college relations, assured me.

N.C. State is at "the forefront of veterinary medicine, pushing the envelope," she said. It's not only treating animals but developing medical knowledge that could have human applications.

She added that, when an estimated 75 percent of infectious diseases originate in animals, there's a public health purpose in finding out what makes them sick and how to cure them.

Furthermore, vet school concerns range from livestock to endangered species to marine animals.

Yet, the new center will be primarily devoted to "companion animals," which was Terry's main interest. He certainly wasn't alone in regarding his pets as family. There are other people who have the money and desire to spare no expense when it comes to caring for their pets.

That's not everyone's outlook, but "there are no wrong or right answers to the decisions people make for themselves and their families," Dunning said.

So, set your own parameters. Terry gave millions to help provide medical care for other people's pets. I wouldn't spend $15,000 for treatment that might save my own dog's life if faced with that decision. Who's right and who's wrong?

Contact Doug Clark at dgclark@news-record.com or 373-7039.