Saying goodbye to man's best friend - My best friend

[Brother_Bliss]

 

My dog Cookie is just over 14½ years old. Over the last two years, she would have some occasional behavioral changes that were concerning. Usually in the winter. But she would always rebound and return to her frolicky happy self. She's been having leg trouble and arthritis, but managing it with medication. 

 

Here's a pic from a few years ago...

 

 

Well, last night when we returned home from the meeting, she was happy to see us come in. We played and ran around for a bit, and then let her outside. After she did her business she came frolicking back to the house, but didn't make it up the 3 steps and fell down. 

 

I had to pick her up and carry her inside. She walked, poorly, for a while and looked like she couldn't sit or lie down. Eventually she did, but she hasn't been able to get up since. 

 

As of this morning, she won't eat, and looks miserable. She managed to move to the kitchen last night and messed on the floor. I carried her to the carpet since it's easier to get up on her feet there. Eventually she got up and came to me in the dining room and i let her outside. She went to the bathroom then collapsed and nodded off on the grass. While she lay there seemingly asleep,  she defecated while in a lying position outside.

 

I'm trying to figure out if she just needs some time to heal, or if this is the beginning of the end.

 

We took her to the vet for a shot of methodone, a narcotic that should help with the pain and get her high, lol. Hopefully it'll help with the pain so that she eats. If she won't eat, we can't administer her pain meds that she usually takes.

 

Tomorrow we have an appointment for a steroid shot. She couldn't have the steroid today because it would conflict with one of the meds she's on, so we need more time to pass. 

 

Basically, we're monitoring the situation. If this is bad inflammation, she should show gradual improvement. If she injured herself seriously, then it's time to put her down.

 

Problem is, I'm not ready to say goodbye.

[Sylv]

I am so sorry to hear this. Our pets really mean a great deal to us, don't they? Jehovah created us with the desire to take care of them, and part of taking care of them is letting them go when it is time, whether we're ready to say goodbye or not 💔. My heart hurts for you.

[Doak]

I'll never forget how my parents' old cat died. When I was a teenager and still living at my parents' house, one day we went to the Kingdom Hall to attend the weekday meeting (Wednesday). When we returned from the hall, the poor cat, old and almost blind, was lying upside down in the laundry basket. We still don't know how long he was in that position, whether it was 10 minutes or 2 hours. In the meantime, we picked him up neatly and put him on the ground, but he could barely stand up. We also noticed that his body was very cold. So we laid him on a bed with a blanket over it and we figured he wouldn't last that night. When I woke up in the morning, I heard crying coming from the kitchen and I automatically understood that the cat had died. It was my mother crying because she had seen him die during the night. From what she tells him, he was lying down and out of nowhere his body shook violently and he died. She is very fond of animals and carefully placed him in a cardboard box so that in the morning I could say goodbye to him before they buried him. I didn't even go to school that day because of the huge heartbreak. The cat was my grandmother's and became ours when she passed away. So I had a great sentimental attachment to him.

[Qapla]

Bob, I feel for you. Living on a farm I understand. We have lost dogs, cats, horses and several other pets. Even though I have seen it many times, it never gets "normal", nor does it get any easier.

 

There does reach a point where you have to think more of the animal and take the needed steps. Yes, it hurts, and we are not yet ready to say goodbye - but ...

 

If you would like to talk - I will be having my Zoom Chat tonight - if you don't really feel up to it, I understand.

 

 

[Brother_Bliss]

2 hours ago, Sylv said:

and part of taking care of them is letting them go when it is time, whether we're ready to say goodbye or not

All signs + my gut feeling is that tomorrow mornings appointment to get the steroid shot is going to quickly change to simply deciding to put her down. 

 

We came back from the vet and the methadone shot today. I carried her from the car to the front yard and set her in the grass. We spent hours outside with her. My parents and the neighbor came over. We had pizza. The dog had absolutely zero interest in eating any yummy people food. She would drink though. After the sun set and everyone left I had to lift her up and bring her inside and set her on her bed. She hasn't moved since.

 

It drives me crazy that everything changed in an instant of time. One moment we were talking about how well she is doing and that we are feeling positive she will make it to 15 (in January), and then one literally mistep, mishap later and she's suddenly down for the count. If only I could turn back time and let her out the back door instead of the front. 

[Qapla]

Bob, it's not your fault or even which door you let her out - it is just that time has taken its toll and we know that animals are not built for everlasting life.

 

It was nice chatting with you earlier ... get some sleep  

 

Edited August 6, 2022 by Qapla

[Sylv]

I understand the pain. In February 2021 we took our almost 13 year old German Shepherd in for an ultrasound. An hour later the vet called to say she had a ruptured hemangiosarcoma and was bleeding internally. Thirty minutes after that we said our goodbyes and held her for the last time. 

 

We are now nearing the time that we have to let our other old girl go. Maybe she'll make it to 13 in December, but I am doubtful. She has a heart condition and nasty perianal fistulas. Because of the heart medication there isn't much that won't interact with those pills that would be effective for the fistulas.

[Miss Bea]

The thing is, when humans die, we understand why, and look foreword to them being resurrected.
We are in a position that we should not be. If we didn’t inherit sin, and were living as Jehovah initially intended, we’d be in a position to understand and deal with animals dying. 
 We are not. And, we do not cope with loosing them to death. Our heart is broken. 
I tell myself Jehovah knows how much I hurt, and the hurt will lessen, but, somehow, just somehow, Jehovah will make it right. Again. He will. 
And, I’m so sorry for the hurt right now. But you have to care about them enough to let them go. It’s thinking more of what’s right for them, and, not what you want. We know what we want, and, it’s not going to happen. 
Only humans have the hope of living forever. 
One day, this hurt and pain will be something, “that doesn’t come to our mind, or heart again”. We will be able to enjoy the animal part of Jehovah’s creation, as He meant. 

[Friends just call me Ross]

[leoperales]

So sorry @Brother_Bliss for what you’re going through. It’s not easy to see a faithful companion suffer and not be himself. It will be a difficult decision, but you’ll get to the point where you will remember all the great memories that made your dog such a nice pet. I had to put my miniature poodle of 17 years down a year ago, and while I miss him every now and then, I always remember all the great times we had when going out for our daily walks. 

 

[Brother_Bliss]

6 hours ago, Miss Bea said:

One day, this hurt and pain will be something, “that doesn’t come to our mind, or heart again”. We will be able to enjoy the animal part of Jehovah’s creation, as He meant. 

It is hard to fathom not feeling pain of loss when losing beloved animals in the new system. I imagine it will still happen at first, and then maybe after having had to do this a few times, one will become accustomed to it. Friends of mine who have to make this decision, who are older and been down this road multiple times, seem to handle it better, at least on the surface.

[Qapla]

Trust me, Bob, just because you are older and have experienced such losses more times - it does not callous one to the effects of the loss ... it still hurts.

 

However, in the words of some, when it comes to enduring the pain of such loss, "This too will pass"

[Brother_Bliss]

So Cookie started eating this morning. She had a half can of dog food. She also got up on her feet by herself and walked on her own. The vet said that yesterday may have looked bad because when we had taken her there earlier that day, she had a shot of methadone, so she was heavily drugged yesterday. Methadone is a potent opiate apparently.

 

The vet's advice was to try the steroid shot and a ketamine shot first since we're seeing signs of improvement. It might just be severe inflammation that needs to go down. We will reassess the situation with the vet on Monday.

 

We came home. She's moving around on her own, and we treated her to her favorite tasty snack... tacos from Taco Bell.

 

 

 

[Qapla]

[Brother_Bliss]

Pardon my play-by-play journal entries, lol.

 

We stepped out and went to Home Depot to buy materials to build a dog ramp for the front and back porch. Upon returning, she got up on her own to go outside. I didn't let her go down the steps without assistance out of fear, but when she got to ground level, we walked around significant portions of the yard. She's still not interested in her dog treats at the moment, but I am more than willing to get her more tacos later, lol. 

[Friends just call me Ross]

58 minutes ago, Brother_Bliss said:

Pardon my play-by-play journal entries, lol.

We don't mind a bit.  "How welcome are the posts of one bringing GOOD news."  👍

[Brother_Bliss]

SO yesterday seemed like things were looking up. She would get up on her own. Walk around. Did some eating (people food). 

 

This morning I woke up and she was lying on the kitchen laminate floor. I opened the screen door to coax her out and she couldn't get up by herself because of the slippery surface. I helped her up and she went outside and drained herself. Then she went to lay down in her favorite part of the yard. Sadly, she defecated again while in this lying position. I helped her up and she went over by the pool to get a drink then found another place to lie down. She remained there for at least 10 minutes while I went inside to get some slippers and feed the cat.

 

I returned to her position outside and tried to coax her to get up but she either didn't want to or couldn't. I hoisted her up, then she walked on her own to the house, up the back steps (they're shorter) and inside. She then lay down in one of her spots behind my recliner. I opened a can of food and put it before her but she isn't touching it. 

 

My theory is that the steroid has worn off and the inflammation is returning, and/or the ketamine has worn off and the pain is returning. We reassess the situation with the vet tomorrow, but my hope-o-meter has gone way down again. 

[Brother_Bliss]

So we chose to put our beloved pup down today

 

Yesterday didn't improve. We went to the meeting and then out to lunch with some friends in the congregation. When we returned home, the dog was unaware of our presence until we stomped on the floor a bit so she would feel the vibrations. She woke up and went outside to do her business and then came back in. She is not happy, not wagging her tail, and not eating. She just lays around, occasionally getting up to relocate somewhere else and lay down again. She ended up urinating in 3 of these places, including her dog bed. At this point, I came to the realization that she's most likely already in the process of dying.

 

The kids returned from a weekend trip around 5pm and got to witness her condition themselves and seemed more accepting of the choice we knew we had to face than even my wife and I were. This morning she didn't even care that I got out of bed. She usually wakes me up or is delighted when she sees me move. Eventually she came out of the bedroom an hour later and went outside. She came in, still refused her dog food and dog treats, but she was happy to eat the cat's food, lol. She returned to her bed, and I had to step out but left the kids with her.

 

I made an appointment to have her euthanized around mid-afternoon. All of us went, including the kids. It was painful and sad, yet there was some hard to explain positive feelings in there too knowing that we were doing the right thing.

 

This was in the vet parking lot. Ironically she seemed happy with all the attention she was getting and she does love a good car ride...

 

 

"Plans fail when there is no consultation, But there is accomplishment through many advisers." says Proverbs 15:22. We certainly prayed for wisdom about what the right choice is for our Cookie-pups. And then it was beneficial to talk about it with others who could assess the situation without the fog of emotional attachment that was affecting our judgment along with our natural desire to cling to hope. We also watched some YouTube vides about how to know when it is time. In having these discussions and watching these videos, it became clear that this was the necessary and loving thing to do for our pet. One brother even said it was our "custodial responsibility" toward our pet. She's 14-1/2 years old, and she had slowly declining health over the last 3 years. Even before the accident on the stairs last Thursday night, we had already been taking note and having discussions about how little time we probably had left. 

 

It was worth trying a few shots and giving her the weekend to see if she would improve. We had no idea how serious she injured herself. While we hoped it was minor, we were able to determine over the last few days that it must have been pretty bad, since she was not getting better all. 

 

"Time and unexpected events overtake them all." - Ecclesiastes 9:11

One stupid accident, and things changed forever.

 

 

[Tortuga]

We are so sorry.. Many of us have lost fur babies and we know the pain that you are going through. 

[Qapla]

I feel for you and your family. I have experienced this process many times. We tend to want to hold on because it is better for "us" and not our pet.

 

When Jehovah said we should "have in subjection" (exercise dominion) over the animals we have to realize that part of that duty is knowing when the kind thing to do is end their suffering. Yes, it is a hard decision - but, in the end, it is the right decision.

 

Thank you for caring enough about your beloved pet to do what was best for the dog instead of what was easiest for you.

 

 

[Friends just call me Ross]

A Puppy's Plea

Treat me kindly, my beloved friend, for no heart in all the world is more
grateful for kindness than this loving heart of mine.

Do not break my spirit with a stick, for though I might lick your hand
between blows, your patience and understanding will more quickly teach me
the things you would have me learn.

Speak to me often, for your voice is the world's sweetest music, as you
must know by the fierce wagging of my tail when the sound of your
footstep falls upon my waiting ear.

Please take me inside when it is cold and wet, for I am a domesticated
animal, no longer accustomed to bitter elements. I ask no greater glory
than the privilege of sitting at your feet beside the hearth.

Keep my pan filled with fresh water, for I cannot tell you when I suffer thirst.

Feed me clean food that I may stay well, to romp and play and do your bidding,
to walk by your side and stand ready, willing and able to protect you with my life,
should your life be in danger.

And, my friend, when I am very old and I no longer enjoy good health, hearing
and sight, do not make heroic efforts to keep me going. I am not having any fun.

Please see to it that my life is taken gently. I shall leave this earth knowing
with the last breath I draw that my fate was always safest in your hands.

 

 

[carlos]

Sorry, Bob. I feel sad and I didn't even know her. But she had a wonderful life with a family who loved her. That's the best life a dog can dream of.

[Brother_Bliss]

3 hours ago, carlos said:

But she had a wonderful life with a family who loved her. That's the best life a dog can dream of.

I will say, I don't think any dog ever had it as good as Cookie. We were awesome dog-owners. And she rewarded us by being the best dog I've ever known. She outshined every previous pet I've had. She really raised the bar, and will probably forever hold that title.

[New World Explorer]

I do not have a pet, so it's hard to relate how you feel, but I do sense your sadness (big hugs here )

On a positive note, you gave Cookie best life she could have! 

[Hugh O'D]

Dear Bob , @Brother_Bliss, I'm truly sorry for your loss. I've had five family pets die by now so know each hits differently and I can't know exactly how you feel but I understand this pain. Jehovah made us to love because he knows the best thing we can give others is love. That your family gave Cookie love and she could return it to you means you did as close to what Jehovah intended that we can do in this system. Agape