Is it time and I'm in denial?

[Anonymous]

*TW: putting a pet down*

We have a 15 year old dog. He's survived a lot. In the last 6 months:

His digestive issues got pretty severe. He can only tolerate chicken & rice but eats it with gusto and is "stable" on this

His mobility has gone down hill a lot. We carry him and he's able to walk around to potty or eat but has no interest in walking further. His vet suspects muscle loss in his legs may be from arthritis or a cancer

He doesn't greet us anymore even when we've been gone for long periods of time. Tail wags are infrequent. No licks or affection.

I suspect he has some sun downers and can be agitated at night (we give him melatonin for this).

He seems to be content when the kids are around him.

I haven't put a dog down before so this is new territory for me. The vet said any time we're ready they would support it.

[Anonymous]

He's still eating with gusto I don't think it's time yet. My vet has always said when they have more bad days than good start thinking about it. To me it's doesn't sound like your dogs there yet.

does he like to go outside? Or sit it in the sun?

[Anonymous]

It's always better to let them go too soon vs. making them hang on when it's too late. Your dog isn't greeting you, doesn't wag its tail, and can't toilet without assistance. That's not a good life. Your vet suspects the mobility is due to muscle wasting, possibly due to cancer. I doubt that dog is comfortable.

When your vets start saying "whenever you're ready", it's time. The last act of love for our pets is giving them a gentle death, ideally while they're still themselves.

I'm sorry. It's never easy to let them go. And yes, it's time.

[Anonymous]

We were in a similar situation this year, and had to carry our 10 lb dog starting in August to go outside. She could walk around when she was out there, but not very far. We gave pain meds/anxiety meds when she started panting and tried to make her as comfortable as possible for as long as possible.

When we finally took her in, the vet said we did the best we could and had she been a large dog we wouldn't have waited so long, simply because it wouldn't have been possible to carry her all the time. The vet said a lot of times smaller dogs tend to have their owners wait longer/too long because it is so easy to carry them and hand feed them and make them comfortable on the couch etc.

All this to say, after the vet told us that, we wished we had done it sooner. Because as others mentioned, her quality of life wasn't that of a dog. She was "happy" but laying in one spot all day, unable to walk or get up for drinks when she wanted. Even though she was happy to see us, wagged her tail etc.

[Anonymous]

The absence of greeting, tail wagging, and affection…those are big signals. I know how hard this is and I agree that a tiny bit too early is better than a tiny bit too late. For our first cat, we waited too long (I couldn’t bear to let go) and the end was terrible. We couldn’t get a euthanasia appointment fast enough, even with a house-call vet, and she died in pain in my arms. We have had to let go of two pets in the years since, and we have been careful not to prolong their life to the point that they suffer needlessly because of our own unwillingness to let go. I always try to remind myself that we knew going in that they wouldn’t live for 20 years…that’s part of the deal.

Wishing you luck with this difficult decision, and wishing your dog peaceful days in the meantime.

[Anonymous]

Sadly, it seems like your dog is ready to go. He is no longer thriving. He is just surviving, for you. Do what is best for him and let him go.

[Anonymous]

It's beyond time at this point. Your behavior borders on cruel. I feel bad for your dog.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's always better to let them go too soon vs. making them hang on when it's too late. Your dog isn't greeting you, doesn't wag its tail, and can't toilet without assistance. That's not a good life. Your vet suspects the mobility is due to muscle wasting, possibly due to cancer. I doubt that dog is comfortable.

When your vets start saying "whenever you're ready", it's time. The last act of love for our pets is giving them a gentle death, ideally while they're still themselves.

I'm sorry. It's never easy to let them go. And yes, it's time.

+1 well said

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's always better to let them go too soon vs. making them hang on when it's too late. Your dog isn't greeting you, doesn't wag its tail, and can't toilet without assistance. That's not a good life. Your vet suspects the mobility is due to muscle wasting, possibly due to cancer. I doubt that dog is comfortable.

When your vets start saying "whenever you're ready", it's time. The last act of love for our pets is giving them a gentle death, ideally while they're still themselves.

I'm sorry. It's never easy to let them go. And yes, it's time.

+1 well said

+2, it's time.

[Anonymous]

I agree it's time. The eating with gusto thing is hard. My cat had cancer earlier this year and was still happily eating but had a lot of other things indicating she was struggling. I was a day too late for another cat I had to put down a decade ago, so I made the appointment for my cat early because sometimes they just really go downhill quickly and I didn't want to be late again.

[Anonymous]

I have only regretted waiting too long.

The eating thing isn’t always true in my experience. My lab was happily scarfing down food until the end, and I think I will be too.

Sending big hugs.

[Anonymous]

Give him a good last day and then put him down.

I waited too long my last time and it was so bad. I'm still a bit traumatized by it. After about 8 seizures that day, my dog went into one massive seizure and wouldn't stop. He made a horrific sound and seized the entire way to the vet. The rest of the family didn't get to say goodbye as they were all at school and work. Such a bad death and I wished i could have put him out of misery myself (I grew up on a farm).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's beyond time at this point. Your behavior borders on cruel. I feel bad for your dog.

Wtf??? These responses here are crazy no the dog is eating happily. Everytime some one post asking this its the same fools responding.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:He's still eating with gusto I don't think it's time yet. My vet has always said when they have more bad days than good start thinking about it. To me it's doesn't sound like your dogs there yet.

does he like to go outside? Or sit it in the sun?

He does like to sit in the sun or with the door open so he can hear what's going on outside. He doesn't seem to be in pain - no panting, low resting respiration. Then again, it wasn't super obvious when he had an eye ulcer which is supposed to be painful. My oldest has an important exam this week, but after that we're ready to tell the kids.

[Anonymous]

Lap Of Love has a quality of life assessment tool on their website. Only you can make the decision, but as a veterinarian, I will only say “whenever you are ready” when the pet is ready. I agree with many who have commented - except for the people who are calling you cruel because I don’t think you are cruel. I think you are kind and naïve, but not cruel. To the poster who thinks it’s OK to keep the dog alive just because it’s eating, the ability in willingness to eat is not the only determination of quality of life. And the presence of obvious pain is not the only reason to put a dog down. If any of my clients are reading this, they will recognize the comment that I usually make. If they don’t like the things they like and hate the things they hate, their quality of life is suffering. I also agree with the sentiment that I have many clients who felt they waited too long to euthanize their pet, but none who felt they did it too soon. I think you are being kind and wheezing until after your child’s big exam just make sure your pet is comfortable until the day. My thoughts are with you.