Anonymous wrote:It's time, OP. Your dog doesn't deserve this misery. Call the vet in the morning.

This

Time for nursing home.

Anonymous wrote:OP - the right time is when you are ready

thanks. yes. i guess i know this. i am not sure i would "know" when this is though. like another person said, i am afraid to find him deceased at home. he actuallly seems pretty good today, ate/went for a walk, tail is thumping. just very slowly.

i don't want to harm him or abreviate his (albeit already very long) life. you really feel their trust when they look you in the eyes. i am perhaps doing some mourning, and thinking about the look he gave me when we made eye contact at the shelter from which i adopted him as an injured pup.

tough... thanks for comments i am reading all of the comments. sad for the dog who got put to sleep after the owner passed away, although maybe no one would care for the dog as well as it's owner. i remember being a kid and my dad leaving with our old family dog and not coming home with her. this was horrendously sad for me, as a ten year old.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am actually so conflicted about this issue. We had two cats and put them down, one had feline panleukopenia, we did everything to save her, but she was maybe going to live few hours more. The other was bleeding everywhere... And now with my cat and dog, as I am older I am being ethically conflicted if we have that right. I don't even kill bugs, for the most part. I will pick a bug and take it outside, spiders too. I think the reason I am all weird about it, is that the vet who put the last cat down came home, and I held her, and it was awful. I think jerk didn't put enough medication in and she suffered terribly. So, all that made me mostly against euthanasia in pets. Anyway, sorry about me being all weird, and posting about my dilemma.

NP , that sounds painful and I'm sorry you had to go through that.

Thank you!

OP - the right time is when you are ready

I diapered one small dog for a friend dying of cancer. He was put down within hours of her passing.

When they lose control of their bowels or can no longer rise and walk without aid. We had one with bone cancer who was obviously in excruciating pain, so we put him down sooner.

If you arent doing so already, a harness or sling under his rear legs will help him get up.

Anonymous wrote:If it were me, I would wait, and maybe make some changes to accommodate him.

Maybe he needs to be walked more frequently, so that he has time to make it outside. Maybe he needs to be confined to one floor, or he needs a different (more supportive or maybe slightly elevated) bed. Maybe there are some medicines or supplements he can take to ease his joint pain. Simple stuff like that.

I wouldn’t want my life ended just because I am slow and arthritic.

I think this is the kindest approach, especially given the dog’s role in the family.

If it were me, I would wait, and maybe make some changes to accommodate him.

Maybe he needs to be walked more frequently, so that he has time to make it outside. Maybe he needs to be confined to one floor, or he needs a different (more supportive or maybe slightly elevated) bed. Maybe there are some medicines or supplements he can take to ease his joint pain. Simple stuff like that.

I wouldn’t want my life ended just because I am slow and arthritic.