Preparing for the impending death of a beloved pet

[bushies.girl]

Last Mon my gorgeous GSD Charlotte was diagnosed with an incurable disease, she may have a few weeks perhaps a few months before I will need to make the heart breaking decision to have her pts,  will depend on quickly the disease progresses.

I know there are many dog lovers on CS, so I was wondering how others faced with this type of situation, have dealt with it?   To say I am heartbroken, would be an understatement and I admit I am not dealing with it very well atm

[lyndal1838]

Bushies I am so sorry to hear your news....I can quite understand how you feel.

I went through the same thing twice, with our Westie and our Himalayan Cat.

Jock, the Westie, came back from the groomers with a sore leg which I did not take too much notice of as he was a bit of a squirmer with the dryer....I just thought he had knocked it.  After a week there was no improvement so I took him to the Vet and was horrified when the diagnosis came back that he had cancer.  We were told that it was almost impossible to say how long he had....it could be weeks or months.  Another dog who was diagnosed at the same time lasted 6 weeks...our little fighter lasted eleven months.   He was on chemotherapy as well as some pretty potent tablets (I had to wear gloves to give them to him),

The whole time he was being treated you would not know he was sick....he bounced out of the Vet surgery after his chemo like a puppy (he was 13).

I found it very hard to accept that he was so seriously ill.  I really was in denial until the last week.  We had gone through a very hot summer and he usually bounced back after a hot day better than I did.  After a very hot weekend he took longer than usual to bounce back and after 4 days I decided to take him to the Vet even though he was due to go at the end of the week for his chemo.

When we got there he could not even walk up the 3 steps...I lifted him up and put him on the top step where he just collapsed.  The Vet just looked at him and said "I think it is time".  We were all shocked at how sudden it had been at the end.

At no time did I feel he was just being kept alive....he was obviously enjoying life right to the end and the final decision was very easy to make.

On the other hand, Abby was just the opposite.  She came back from the groomer and did not speak to me for the usual couple of days but when it went on for a couple of weeks I realised something was wrong.  She was off her food and losing weight.  The vet could not find anything definitely wrong despite numerous tests.  She could not eat her usual biscuits and we had to resort to tinned food and even puree that.  The vet referred her to SASH where they tested her for everything you could imagine.   $4000 later all they could say was that it was a lung problem.  There were a few other tests they could do to tell them exactly what it was but as it was terminal anyway we decided not to put her through any further invasive tests.

She had a cocktail of tablets which she hated but she was so good about taking them.   Our vet was wonderful....he checked her regularly at no charge and gave us the tablets at cost.  I was certainly not in denial as she was a full time job with her tablets and pureeing her food.  After 10 months she died in my arms.  Looking back I regret not making the hard decision a week before she died.

The last night she was restless and had trouble getting up onto our bed where she had her own blanket.

The only advice I can give you is to follow your instincts.  Do what is the best for Charlotte.....you will know when the time is right to say goodbye.

[kopenhagen5]

I think the best we can do as a carer of our little four legged friends is to determine if they are in pain or suffering mental distress.

And if so, the decision is made for you to relieve the pain or suffering as sad as it may be.

When putting to sleep my cat several years ago I knew it was beyond me and I wasn't really making the decision.

The cancer had arrived and it was time.

She had lived a wonderful and long life and I treasure having had her as a best friend.

[springyzone]

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@bushies.girl wrote:

Last Mon my gorgeous GSD Charlotte was diagnosed with an incurable disease, she may have a few weeks perhaps a few months before I will need to make the heart breaking decision to have her pts,  will depend on quickly the disease progresses.

I know there are many dog lovers on CS, so I was wondering how others faced with this type of situation, have dealt with it?   To say I am heartbroken, would be an understatement and I admit I am not dealing with it very well atm

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I am so sorry to hear it.

I just wish our pets had the same life span as we do as it is so hard to lose them.

You can't do much except make their time as comfortable and happy as you can.

We went through this a few years ago with our Zac, a lovely corgi. He had multiple tumours and the vet said 'any time from now on' would be the right time. But it didn't feel right. Not then. The vet was able to give him an injection and tablets and he was back to his old self, getting around, eating well.

One night he was walking along the passage and collapsed & was fitting. he didn't come out of it properly. We took him to the emergency centre and they told us it was probably bleeding on the brain from a  tumour. I knew it was time.

It still upsets me even now to think about it but I have never for a second doubted that that was Zac's time. We did what we could as long as we could but it was time.

Fast forward to Nov 2014. My brother died of cancer in the Aug and we had had his dog for several months. We never told my brother his dog had also been diagnosed liver cancer. He too was doing okay, maybe not marvellous but okay, till one day he seriously wasn't. Couldn't get up. Vet said it was his heart and he was in discomfort & distress. It was time.

If you're asking here how you will know, then it isn't Charlotte's time yet. If she does have a set back, ask the vet how things stand but also ask if there is something that can be done in the short term. That's how it was for Zac-the vitamin injection & other things gave him that extra 6 weeks.

But when things get dire, when it is time, you will know. It's the last thing you can do for your pet-stop the pain.

Don't feel you have to 'deal with it'. It's okay to be upset.

[tasfleur]

Bushie, I am so sorry:  I know and understand what you must be feeling right now as we have lost two cats in the last few months that we had for many years from kittens.

What more could a dog ask given the life you have given them;   unconditional love, a wonderful life with you and sheer happiness all the way.  All anyone can do is say, thank you xx

[enigmabear]

I am so so sorry  ((hugs))

I lost my darling girl, Enigma just over 4 years ago. She was almost 17 and had stage 4 cancer. She did'nt show any signs at all until about 4 months before the awful news came during her routine vet check up. We had her to Australia's top doggy oncologist but there was nothing they could do. We could tell when 'Stiggy' was ready to go,when she'd had enough. I had her buried at a pet cemetary and played Moon River at her farewell

I'm now losing my cat, Enzso. She is almost 16 and has recently developed Alzheimer’s. Trying to prepare myself for another goodbye of another long time friend 

Much,much love to you and darling Charlotte  

[sandypas]

Hugs bushie.

It is sad when we have to ay goodbye to our much loved pets who become an important member of our families.

[not_for_sale2024]

So sorry to hear this bushies.girl. From my experiences, showing her how much you love her in all those special ways and trying to minimise her pain and discomfort is important. And while it is sad, realizing that that final decision will be because you love her.

[bright.ton42]

Bushies I wish I could tell you how to deal with it but I can't, except to say you will have already started the grieving process so be gentle with yourself and allow yourself to feel the feelings.  What the others have said about your beautiful dog are so right, you will know when it's time but for yourself it can ease the pain a little by talking about it,  and you may consider going on to the compassionate  forums at rainbowsbridge.com.  I did this when I was facing two impending deaths, of m ybeloved  old cat and my old dog, and  I was overwhelmed, but did find a lot of comfort on those forums.  .  

The attitude of many people around me was "oh well, you will get another one "  or "it's only a cat"  "it's only a dog"    when it was nothing of the sort and I adored them.

In both cases I hoped so much that they would pass naturally but it wasn't to be and I had to make that awful decision, and put them out of their pain once it became evident, and they passed. within two months of each other. I have no shame in admitting that for me I mourned them as much as some people would mourn for humans, and I'll never forget them. 

Come back and talk about it any time bushies,  we animal lovers are here for you.

[bushies.girl]

TY so much for your lovely comments re Charlotte     ..... I feel for everyone here who has lost a pet that was dear to them. There are some lovely stories being posted on this thread, Sad, yes but also in a way, heartwarming to know how much these fur babies were loved and cared for by  those who loved them.

Charlotte has been diagnosed with a disease call degenerative myelopathy, there is no cure but she is not in any pain.  I will care for her as long as I am able to do so. Being a german shepherd the ( eventual ) complete loss of the use of her back legs will make life very difficult and she will need to be pts. Atm I am trying not to think too far ahead and just enjoy each day I have with her