Having a hard time with putting my dog to sleep..please help?
I am so torn up about this. I have a Labrador who is 11 years old. We rescued her from the pound literally hours before she would be put to sleep when she was 10 months old. She was always a pretty healthy dog until two summers ago when she was 9..she lost her sight almost overnight from SARDS. Originally her vet told us that she might go on for a few more months; usually SARDS dogs died within a few months from various complications. Well she surpassed our fearful expectations. She seemed to adjust as best she could without her sight and has always maintained a hearty appetite even until now. Over the last few months, she has started this destructive chewing on herself so we have had to have her wearing a cone 24-7. She still wanted to play a bit but then started to slow down gradually. We are in a hotel right now due to some stupid termite tenting and since we are here, she has reached a new low..she has barely moved the few days we have been here and this morning, she did not move even an inch from where she fell asleep last night. I know in my heart that it is time to let her go. I always said that if her quality of life were drastically reduced, I would not let her suffer. Now that it is time, it is the hardest thing ever. I have an appt. to have her put to sleep this evening but I don't know how I can bring myself to do it..I feel so guilty and worried "What if..??" I tried to give her a nice evening with all her treats last night and make it special but I just can't get all the things done that I wanted to do with her one more time. Has anyone been through this? Am I doing the right thing? Should I wait? This is just so painful, I feel like I am losing my mind..
Has anyone out there ever feel bad about putting their dog to sleep?
If you are dreaming about your dog, perhaps you feel guilty about what happened. If he was sick, well it was the only way to stop him from suffering and you have to understand that and go on with your live. I'm not saying to forget about him; but to understand that it was for his own good.
Does getting another dog ease the pain of losing one?
First, I am very sorry for your loss- putting one's dog down is both the hardest and yet the most unselfish thing- the last act of kindness- he can do for her. In my opinion, do not bring it up to him. I had to do the same thing last year, so I understand what he is going through-generally, of course, as no two dogs are ever the same. It is not that your idea is wrong- it isn't. In fact, getting another dog was the only thing that made me get out of bed in the morning at that time. But, the only thing is, you can never know when would be a "good time" to bring it up to him. I know you know him and care about him, but, believe me, this is something that you cannot interfere with- despite your best intentions. He may think you are being insensitive if you say it too soon, or you don't understand, or you don't care (all untrue, we know, but it won't matter at that time). I would get mad if someone told me to get another dog, and I would get mad if someone told me not to get another dog- it didn't matter. I had to make the decision when it was time. I think just be there for him for now, and let him grieve in his own way. But remember, no matter what you decide to do, or what advice you choose to follow, what you say- about his loss, another dog, that dog, etc.- he will remember for the rest of your relationship- good, bad or indifferent- he will remember- so choose your words and actions very carefully. That's thebest advice I can offer you. Godspeed.
Has anyone had to put an elderly dog down for incontinence?
A family member passed away a few months ago, leaving their 14+ yr old dog. The dog was taken in by us...had a health check and all blood work normal. The dog has had ups and downs with pooping AND peeing in our home. Some good days then several bad. The bad have become more predominant and the pooping and peeing has increased. Please don't tell me to have the dog checked for bladder infection....as that does not cause fecal incontinence. The dog has already finished one round of antibiotics for UTI and it didn't really help with the incontinence. We have tried EVERYTHING we can, to solve the problem. Tying the dog outside during the day in the shade of our porch helps-during the day. But, what kind of life is that? The dog was never used to being outside with prior owner. Just last week we got a crate, but now today, while we were out for 2hrs, pooped in the cage-and so of course there was poop ALL over. Wall, dog, blanket, crate-it was a mess. We have tried closing the dog in a room but still pooping and peeing on the floor, does not go on the peepee pads. Diapers didn't work. At night is a problem too. Leaving the dog roaming in our bedroom while we sleep, the dog poops and pees. Please don't say to let the dog out more. We DO. We also remove water from the dog after 6pm at night. And feed the dog early in the morning hoping the dog will get all it's pooping out in our waking hours. It does not work. We are at the end of our rope. And are contemplating putting the dog down. For the dog's own quality of life.The dog is fairly active, semi-blind and almost completely deaf. The dog is skin and bones regardless of how much we increase the food, the dog does not gain wt. Anyone had to put a dog down solely for bowel/bladder incontinence? Don't want to give the dog away as then the next owner might abuse the dog for the pooping and peeing mistakes...thanks. This is heartbreaking.
If my dog needs to be put down, I have thoughts about shooting her instead of having a vet euthanize her. What are your thoughts?
There are a lot of people here who probably aren’t poor, and don’t understand what it’s like to be poor. There are also a lot of people who confuse how THEY feel with how the ANIMAL feels. And who don’t understand that instant destruction of the brain is utterly painless.My first thought is, you need to research your local laws before you even have the thought. It may not be legal to euthanize a dog with a firearm where you live. It may not even be legal to discharge a firearm where you live.Now, assuming you find out that it IS legal, you need to consider whether anyone else is going to know what you did, because it may adversely affect your reputation. As I pointed out above, people are confused, and they will wrongly see such an act as cruel, or assume you’re horrible and dangerous for doing such a thing. Additionally, you need to consider how YOU will feel about it. It’s not any easy way to put an end to a beloved pet — it’s going to have a very, very bad psychological impact for most people. Especially since the only humane way to do this is to look up dog anatomy carefully, and aim for the head in just the right way, from a very short range.If there’s even the slightest chance this will give you nightmares, I definitely don’t recommend it. And it will be very messy, and potentially dangerous (bone fragments, ricochets, etc).Basically, have your vet humanely euthanize the dog unless it’s legal to do otherwise, you have a LOT of experience with firearms, AND you absolutely, positively, cannot afford the vet.From the perspective of the dog, so long as you behave normally and keep your body language normal, they won’t even know anything’s happening. Give them their favorite treat, and there you go — no strangers, no traveling, no trauma. It’s absolutely humane, if done correctly. (It’s also absolutely inhumane if done incorrectly, so keep that in mind, too).
The vet said we have to wait to euthanise my dog?
Our dog has had major food aggression, has bitten a number of people now. While its been incredibly hard for my girlfriend to make that call and put him down, finally I convinced her the danger she puts us, and our friends in, isn't worth it. So at last we made an appointment at the vet, but when we get there, the vet tech asks if he has bitten anyone recently. So we say Yes, he had just got me on my hand 2 days prior, and she says, "Oh, well we cant put him down then...." that if he has bitten, they cant put him down (in case of rabbies) and to come back in 10 days...(and she pretty much suggested that when we come back to just lie and answer No to that question). She said just double up on the tranquilizers she gave us for now. So 2 days later, he bites my girlfriend on the face! He was even more aggressive when we gave him the tranqs cause the dog was so out of it, he didnt know what was going on, and was just really aggressive. Why cant the vet just put him down tomorrow! Is it worth me calling the vet and bitching them out, cause thats really what I want to do. I blame them for telling us to give him more tranqs and making us keep him longer. Can I just go to a different vet? do I really have to lie to answer that question, just to get this dangerous dog put down? This is ridiculous! I can just shoot him in my backyard if I wanted, if my girlfriend would let me...
Should we put this dog to sleep... (2 year old Bernese Mountain Dog)?
My husband and i purchased this gorgeous Bernese Mountain Dog puppy almost three years ago, he was always happy and very friendly, until he hit the age of eighteen months. This aggression of his just happened over night, he doesn't tolerate anyone being in the same room as him while he is eating or playing with a toy, sometimes he even has random out bursts of aggression. His aggression towards us isn't just a "warning", he is in full blown "i want to kill you" mode. The incident i'm about to tell you about was the last straw for my husband... My husband was walking through the kitchen, not paying any attention to Mario, he didn't even know Mario was in the kitchen, Mario lunged at him from behind, latched on to his leg, and my husband had to hit Mario on his muscle multiple times to get him to let go... My husband ended up with 31 stitches... This isn't the first time Mario attacked out of no where, nor the first time he put some one in the hospital due to the injuries he caused. We have taken Mario to the vet for a check up... Blood work, etc.. The last time we were at the vet, Mario was acting completely fine, then with in an instant Mario went after the vet as she was talking to us, completely out of the blue, no provocation. The vet believes that he has some type of neurological condition which is causing him to be so unpredictable and we have discussed putting him down. He is a very sweet dog otherwise, but i just can't trust him.. No one knows when he will attack, he is completely unpredictable. We made an appointment for Friday to have him humanely euthanized, but i am still questioning myself, since i do love Mario very much, but my husband is dead set on putting Mario down... Are there any other options? Should i go through with this or should i put my foot down and say no? ... The only reason i am asking this here is so i can get opinions from people that aren't emotionally involved.
What do you do after you put your dog down a little early?
This is definitely a lose-lose scenario. If you put down to early you lose. If you put down too late you lose. If you put down at the exact right time you still lose because you are making a decision that results in the death of your dog. So in all of this what does your dog have to lose? Too early: well I suppose you could argue that you've deprived your dog of time alive but it's not something your dog would ever be conscious of so it's a moot point. Too late: the dog would most likely experience pain and lose his dignity. Not good. And if you put your dog down at the exact best time? The dog wins. How do you determine that exact best time? Your dog might have good and bad days. The right time is any time after the balance tips in the direction of more bad days than good. Dogs need to eat, play and receive love. If your dog's health starts to regularly impact on any of these needs then it's definitely time to start to consider your options. What matters most is that you were there. You gave your dog a good life and helped him to have a good death. It's natural to feel guilty when making the decision to euthanase your dog. It's also natural to feel guilty afterwards because you don't miss having to clear up faeces or your home not smelling. That's part of the grieving process so please see it as just that and don't beat yourself up.Chin up - it does get easier. :)