Richard (OldStager) Posted June 20, 2021 Share Posted June 20, 2021 at what point would you consider terminating a dogs life... i have had many dogs as an adult and only one has ever lived long enough to get into old age,back then i think i let her live for too long as she was just a lump in her bed that did nothing other than eat, drink and toilet, in the latter times her toileting was in the bed she slept in, which dogs generally dont do. my dilemma currently is that my dog is now 14 , he is a border collie, in the last 6 months his movements have become far more restricted and he is now unable to climb the stairs properly or stand for any length of time, falls to the floor with a groan and when he does lie down he then has troubles getting back to his feet. this i know is just old age, and with his sister which i lost to a stroke last year, she ended up on a product called metacam, this did help a bit but she never regained her full movement as she once did. i am not sure if to go back down that metacam road or just wait till he has given up just as my other long lasting dog did. i should add he is virtually completely deaf , his eye sight is still ok and eats as normal and toilets outside normally, although getting there is a slow affair. i hate this part of pet ownership, but i want to do right by him and not let him have a rubbish life. any comments... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jude - The Mad Widow Posted June 20, 2021 Share Posted June 20, 2021 It is indeed a sad question. One I think you already know the answer to. He seems to have come to the last stage of his long life, you are very lucky to have had such a good long life together. I think you will know when it's time. Thinking of you Jude x 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard (OldStager) Posted June 20, 2021 Author Share Posted June 20, 2021 thank you jude, i suppose i do know the answer but i am not always right, hence my post. if this was your dog would you put him down... he still seems bright in his eyes and is playful to a point, chasing thrown toys is a slow process but he does it. hard to make the decision when you see him though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Si.Dalziel Posted June 20, 2021 Share Posted June 20, 2021 17 minutes ago, OldStager said: at what point would you consider terminating a dogs life... i have had many dogs as an adult and only one has ever lived long enough to get into old age,back then i think i let her live for too long as she was just a lump in her bed that did nothing other than eat, drink and toilet, in the latter times her toileting was in the bed she slept in, which dogs generally dont do. my dilemma currently is that my dog is now 14 , he is a border collie, in the last 6 months his movements have become far more restricted and he is now unable to climb the stairs properly or stand for any length of time, falls to the floor with a groan and when he does lie down he then has troubles getting back to his feet. this i know is just old age, and with his sister which i lost to a stroke last year, she ended up on a product called metacam, this did help a bit but she never regained her full movement as she once did. i am not sure if to go back down that metacam road or just wait till he has given up just as my other long lasting dog did. i should add he is virtually completely deaf , his eye sight is still ok and eats as normal and toilets outside normally, although getting there is a slow affair. i hate this part of pet ownership, but i want to do right by him and not let him have a rubbish life. any comments... Sounds very much like how my old girl got. At the point we thought she was in pain and before she got to the point of not being able to get up she went for her last walk and had a lovely tomahawk steak and bone for the day. The worst thing was on the day she seemed to be moving just fine, Its tough but you know your dog the best and will know when it’s time. Its a terrible experience saying goodbye to a faithful friend. My thoughts are with you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard (OldStager) Posted June 20, 2021 Author Share Posted June 20, 2021 13 minutes ago, Si.Dalziel said: Sounds very much like how my old girl got. At the point we thought she was in pain and before she got to the point of not being able to get up she went for her last walk and had a lovely tomahawk steak and bone for the day. The worst thing was on the day she seemed to be moving just fine, Its tough but you know your dog the best and will know when it’s time. Its a terrible experience saying goodbye to a faithful friend. My thoughts are with you. thank you, i plan to do the same with him on his last full day as well, i had planned similar for his sister but she was fine one minute and gone the next with a stroke so that never happened, which selfishly was far easier on me than it was the dog, at least with her there were no decisions to make.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikef Posted June 20, 2021 Share Posted June 20, 2021 It's the only down side to having a faithful, loving pet that is part of the family. I've had to do it in the past and it was awful. My guide was based on my dog's quality of life and only you can be that judge since no-one knows your dog better than you. You will know when that time comes and our thoughts are with you and your dog. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard (OldStager) Posted June 20, 2021 Author Share Posted June 20, 2021 quality of life yes, i have to decide quite how much quality needs to be lost to trigger the last day scenario, he is led down at the moment bright eyed and longing for the scraps from my food plate, ears alert and seemingly ok - until he tries to move that is.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rory's Dad Posted June 20, 2021 Share Posted June 20, 2021 It seems to me that you have to balance his times between happy and sad and when the balance is towards the sad, the time has come. Nothing anyone can say will make this easy. It will be really tough for you. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman) - Club Chairman Posted June 20, 2021 Share Posted June 20, 2021 It’s incredibly difficult. Martin sums it up for me though; when the sad times and the times of pain or suffering, outnumber the happy times, then it’s time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard (OldStager) Posted June 20, 2021 Author Share Posted June 20, 2021 thank you folks, on the face of it my question should be so easy to answer, but its that final day bit that has to be worked out. i do not think at the moment that day is now or next week, but i cant see him seeing another christmas and i am glad to hear from owners and what they did when the decision has to be made, i also cant see me having another one either there were reasons for owning dogs in the past, life changes so do the things we choose to own. thank you all for your kind comments and i may post again on that last day when ever that is. richard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve (sdh2903) Posted June 20, 2021 Share Posted June 20, 2021 Yep it's not pleasant as they are part of the family. And it's all to easy to prolong any suffering as you desperately don't want to say good bye. A couple of years ago our lab was on metacam for the last 18 months of his life and it helped greatly with his arthritic joints. He was happy and still reasonably active. Then he went downhill didn't want to move and the strain was telling and when he looked at you, you just knew he'd had enough. At that point the decision had been made. Heartbreakingly sad but completely the right thing to do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard (OldStager) Posted June 20, 2021 Author Share Posted June 20, 2021 thanks steve, you struck a chord with your first comment, this is what i did with the last dog that was old, i did indeed prolong life because during that part of my life the dog was all i had, this made me hang on too long as i mentioned, i would not to that again as that was quite selfish . also the look in the eyes bit also tells me what to do, i am familiar with that look as my mother had dogs and even i as a child could see the dog really wasnt happy. this was also the look i got on the last day of the dog mentioned above . my current dog has no such look yet, but i am constantly observing how he walks, lies down and then getting up. as jude said earlier on, i will know the day, but i wanted to know how other folks approach the same situation and i thank you all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murraymint Posted June 20, 2021 Share Posted June 20, 2021 It's a very difficult decision to make and so sad...we had a Siberian Husky for 15 years and the last few weeks of her life, she found it difficult to stand up and walk around, we had to let her go. we have great memories of her and the pleasure she brought to the family..it's going to be hard for you... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glen_I Posted June 20, 2021 Share Posted June 20, 2021 Hi Richard, I too feel your pain and emotions as to knowing when is it time... Our first Lab 'Hollie' was also on Metacam and she would have an injection twice a yr to help with her joints (sorry, but can't remember the name now) and this was amazing the first couple off times she had it as it really perked her up, but deep down I knew she was getting old but didn't really want to except it and I kept saying to myself she still wags her tail and being a Labrador scoffs her food down within seconds so she must be okay? I can remember walking her and then having to pick her up to carry her home and a couple of people walking past me and saying "bless her, thats not fair" and this really got me thinking I wouldn't want to be in that position. She went down hill over night and vets said we can keep her sedated and calm and I asked them to do so and see how she is in the morning....I feel bad now as I was prolonging her life for my own selfishness. Our second Lab 'Ella' was an absolute head case and full of beans until one morning she was all in a daze and wobbly and she wouldn't touch her food (only 10yrs old and 2 days prior had been doing 2-3 hrs walks),we took her to the vets who referred her to a heart specialist that same day and within 30mins of being seen too we were told she had internal bleeding from suspected tuma that had burst, they said they could operate and remove her spleen and I was thinking okay then, but this would give her another 6 weeks at best, I knew what to do.... This doesn't answer your question I know, and looking back maybe I was more fortunate than others that they both went downhill quickly so the decision is 'easier' whilst it doesn't seem so at the time. You just want to ask them to say 'have you had enough' and for them to say so. I would love another dog (Labrador again) but with children and their clubs on every night of the week except Saturday it wouldn't be fair on the dog but the main reason for me is I can't go through that final part again. To me you don't come across a selfish person whatsoever so I'm sure you will do the right thing when the time comes and as already mentioned, only you really know your 'companion' better than most. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard (OldStager) Posted June 20, 2021 Author Share Posted June 20, 2021 thanks glen, i too had to carry a dog home once, that was the beginning of the end really, i am almost hoping - in a good way - he has an issue as his sister did just so i dont have choose the day. but as has been said i will know when its right to do it. and like you its this end of life bit i find hard to deal with, but i have done it 6 times so far so i should be used to it by now, but i am not. and your comment on saying they have had enough is so true, if only they could talk. i think you very sensible regarding another dog, i wish more folks thought that way, we would not end up with so many rescue dogs then. all bar 2 of my dogs were rescued, as i felt i had to give an unwanted pet some form of life rather than a kennel for who knows how long. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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