Vibiana

Sleep sweet, precious baby. Vin: I'm so sorry.

Franchot

Sorry to hear of the passings of Olive and Midnight. One dog and one cat who were lucky enough to have been adopted by loving people. So many cats and dogs in this world that have never known this type of love.

FiveO

Sorry to both of you Never easy to lose a pet...I've had to put a few down over the years...toughest thing I've ever done.

Rival11

Sorry guys

A-aron

I never updated this thread, but about 2 months ago we had to put him down. He was losing weight, and having trouble with peeing. Vet said it was the best choice.

The kids didn't want to go, so my wife and I did. I held him while they did the first shot, and just pet him and apologized to him as he fell asleep. I could not bear to be there for the last, and final, injection.

We had him cremated, and both of my kids are now wearing chains with pendants that have some ash inside. He will always be in our home as his wood ash box sits on a shelf in our front room.

I know there will be another member of our family in time. For now, I have started volunteering at the local animal shelter (walking the dogs and transporting them to rescues as needed).

covenant

Had to put down our 10 old Doberman Neal today. We had three at one time but we've been losing them one by one. 2012, 2013 and now this year. He was the last one standing! He was a beast of a dog when he was younger, 120 pounds at his max.

gcribbs

I feel that because my pet has been a loyal companion for me I owe it to them to help comfort them in their last moments.

Why would you want your pets last moments to be one of surrounded by strangers and afraid when you there talking to them would make it much easier on them.

As hard as it has been for me there is no way I would ever not be with them in their final moments so that they can hear me and feel me as they are experiencing something so final.

Bronkster

I'm practically bawling here seeing all this loss. I'm so sorry to everyone who's had to deal with this.

fumanstan

Yeah, I need to stop reading this thread.

tofferman

In hindsight, I wish our family had put down our smaller dog. Juno was a 12lb Chihuahua that we rescued about 8 years ago and she was my 19 yr old daughter's best friend in many ways. Juno had been coughing recently so I took her to the vet last Thursday, Jan 21st. We already knew she had congestive heart issues, bad teeth, a heart murmur, and was getting old. They put Juno on antibiotics and a cough suppressant for now, as we couldn't afford x-rays. By Friday, her coughing had subsided too, so we felt relieved that she seemed to be feeling better.

About 3pm on Saturday, while resting, Juno let out a high pitched wail (a sound I've never heard before), with her face contorted and limbs going in different directions. I picked her up, and it was clear she was having a medical emergency. She had lost all motor control and was in extreme pain with her heart racing. This lasted about a minute at most, while I panicked, not sure what to do and feeling helpless as she died in my arms. Meeting my daughter at the vet an hour later so she could grieve and say goodbye to Juno broke my heart.

I don't care how tough one thinks they are, but seeing what I saw (and my 11 year old son saw it too) was one of those terrible moments I will never forget. It was simply awful. I don't wish that on anybody who has a heart and loves their pets. If I had known this would be her end, in this manner, I would have put her down prior. She'd be in a better place without the trauma my son and I witnessed.

Pointyskull

Tofferman,

No words, my friend. At least you were there when she went.
That one got me.

Franchot

You can't beat yourself up for this. You did what you thought would have brought more quality of life to your dog. You were not being selfish.

There are many animals who suffer painful deaths in the wild, in animal farming, and in homes. You gave your dog many good years of love which easily overbalanced her brief time of suffering.

Chrisedge

Do NOT feel bad about this. You made a judgement call, and probably made the right decision prior to the seizure or episode on Sat. to keep her around a little longer. Of course it's horrible for you to watch, but she was in your arms and was loved at the time she left.

I had two pugs and when the first was was dying, it was up and down for weeks. Like we thought we had a another day at best, then he was good for a another week or two. After about 3 weeks of "additional time" we got, he went into a full blown seizure in front of me, losing bladder and poop control, and while I knew he wasn't good, I knew it was time. Pets have a way of letting us know it's their time to go. You made the right choice and as long as you were there when she left, it's all good.

EddieMoney

So do humans. Just look at Kevin Smith's new movie.

Hokeyboy

When we had to put our 18-year-old cat Austen to sleep last month, the hardest part of the ordeal was when we were at the animal hospital. Austen was being stabilized in another room while we were going over the lab results with the Vet. Making the decision to end her suffering was unbearably hard.

But it was the waiting for them to bring her in for the euthanasia itself that was the absolutely hardest and most agonizing part. My wife and I were sitting alone together on the couch, weeping to each other, wondering what was going to happen, how this would go down, how Austen would react, if we'd be able to stay in the room with her, scared of the grief we knew we'd face and wondering how we'd be able to survive the entire ordeal...

Then they brought her in. And she looked so beautiful, lying on a stretcher in a pink blanket, looking like a sweet little princess. We went over to her, rubbed her ears, stroked her face, talked to her. We knew we were making the right decision. As the doctor gave the final shot I kept stroking her face, kept looking her right in the eyes, telling her to keep listening to our voices as she transitioned to the next world, to keep our words and our images with her as she entered immortality.

And she never stopped looking at us. And she never closed her eyes. After the vet put the stethoscope to her chest and told us "She is a beautiful little angel now" I cried hard, but I could smile a little knowing she wouldn't have to suffer anymore, and that her last moments on this Earth were spent with the two people she loved the most. She was stabilized, comfortable, at peace.

Those tears stung, man. But I had a nice long 18 years with my little girl. She went out peacefully, surrounded by love. It was painful, but beautiful too.

I still miss her. But I don't tear up when I think about her anymore.

mickey65

I had to put down my 10 year old cocker spaniel Chester yesterday. I had taken him to the Vet yesterday morning since he wasn't eating very much in the last week since I had taken him there for his yearly vaccinations and thought he was having a bad reaction to them.

I thought he had some sort of stomach ache due to it all and also noticed his breathing was labored recently - which usually indicates a dog is in pain.

The Vet also noticed his discomfort when she pressed on his sides and did an x-ray and a full blood panel.

It was nothing to do with the shots he had, his blood panel showed he was very anemic and the x-ray showed a huge mass on his spleen. I had to take him right away to a specialist for a sonogram to look at his spleen better and they found out he had HSA (a very aggressive form of blood cell cancer) and that mass was about the size of a baseball on his spleen.

There was really nothing that could be done and I knew I had to do the right thing for him, altho he still seemed to have that bit of "life" left in him and I almost felt guilty that I was putting him down "too soon". But the Vet warned me his spleen could rupture at any time due to the mass on it...so I had to let him go.

He was the sweetest dog, such a good boy and smart. Everyone loved him. I'm just so heartbroken by it all since he was all I had for all this time here with me at the house. My house feels so empty and quiet right now - as if he's just away at boarding and Ill be going to pick him up soon...

Bronkster

I'm so sorry. I think we all go through the "too soon" thoughts because it's just so difficult to make that final decision. Our pets trust us to take care of them, and -eventually - the reality will set in that we did the best for them by letting them go. But the immediacy of of where you're at now causes you to doubt that. It gets better with time and you'll accept that your love for your little buddy guided your decision.

But it's hard right now. The emptiness of the house will linger. I was slow to remove my dog's stuff - toys, dishes, blankets - because I couldn't face the idea of his presence vanishing all at once. I still have one tennis ball out in the yard in his memory. You'll handle it in your own way. And you'll miss him terribly. And you'll always have the memories of how much he loved you.

A-aron

I suck a photoshop, so figured I'd put the request here. I want to get a small tattoo of a pawprint, but instead of the main pad area, I want to have KHAKI in that shape ... Anyone skilled enough to do this for me?

Vibiana

mickey65: it wasn't 'too soon.' If his spleen had ruptured he'd have suffered horribly. You saved him from that. I'm so sorry for your loss.

superdeluxe

That was our decision, our dog HATED the vet. Not only did we need to be with him, but we felt we owed it to him to do it at home. It went as well as something like that could have gone.

Still miss his presence in the house :\

superdeluxe

Feeling for everyone that has had to put down their pets recently. They really are a part of our families aren't they?

VinVega

Mickey, sorry for your loss. It will get better with time.

Hokeyboy

It does get better. And while there's always gonna be a sting, it gets easier to look back and smile and be happy and thankful for your time together.

JimRochester

I am crying like a fucking baby today. I think I'm crying more than when my father died. My little girl dog died last night. She apparently hurt her back probably jumping down off the couch. The vet said she was partially paralyzed. I was going to have to take her tomorrow for the big shot anyway but she passed last night.

We had one last movie together. On Saturdays my wife goes to bed early. I stay up to watch my shoot em up movies. She always jumps up on the couch next to me and we watch a movie. So last night we saw Captain America 1. When I woke up in the morning she had passed. So that was our last moments together.

Pointyskull

So, so sorry, Jim.

If it is any sort of consolation - and I know it's probably not - is that you were there, right next to her, sharing a favorite, comfortable routine at the end. We should all be so lucky.

I have the same sort of routine with my little guy...