Drunk and sad about my dog

[nukebrewer]

Alright, so my dog (Pembroke Welsh Corgie) has lymphoma and we've currently got him on a round of chemo. He's seems to be doing fine with just some minor bladder issues due to the medication he is taking. I got into a conversation with a woman who thinks we should go ahead and euthanize him without even giving him a chance to recover. We're aware of the fact that even with treatment it could come back immediately afterwards, but we're also aware that this could give him an extra year or so of enjoyable life. Does anyone have any thoughts on this? I don't want to put my dog through any undue pain, but SWMBO is really attached to this dog, perhaps to an unhealthy degree, so I don't know what to do. Thanks.

 

[evolcoms]

I would let your swmbo make the decision, but if the poor guy well be enjoying his last days then yes, but then what do you do if he starts suffering after?

 

[evolcoms]

How old is he?

 

[nukebrewer]

If I ever thought he was suffering unduely then I would make the decision to have him put of his misery. It's times like these I wish animals could talk. So far the worst that's happened is he gets me up in the middle of the night to go pee. Just this afternoon he was playing fetch and tug of war with me, so I feel like he's doing alright. I'm mainly just worrying about when the time does come for him to go, how I am going to handle it. I am kind of scared of how SWMBO is going to take it.

 

[707]

If I were you I would enjoy the crap of that dog and spoil him rotten no matter what decision you and your gal make.

 

[nukebrewer]

How old is he?

He's 8 and a half.

 

[evolcoms]

Either way I'm sure it will be tough. Like said above, spoil him rotten, take as many pictures of him and with him as you can and just try to relize the time is coming. I have had my cat Tink for over 7 years. She was my first pet living on my own. She is only affectionate towards me and I couldn't imagine how I would feel if I was in your shoes.

 

[Hollie]

We allowed our first dog to experience the stages of life. Death being one of them. He died at 16 and we were there for his last breath. Under natural phases of death he will just do it on his own and still be so freaking happy to have his humans supporting him while his life is ending. He knows it and he knows that you know it. We personally could not put our old man down because of him being on his death bed of old age. He did it gracefully. And now I am crying you jerk. Ugggh.

 

[manny1]

Mate my heart goes out to you.
I had a rotty for 12 years and she started getting arthritis in the hips,we tried everything but the day came when she was just having to much pain and we had to make the decision to end here life.The worst thing was her mind was fine,alway happy to see you but her body let her down.
One of the worst days of my life but I stayed with her till the end.
But as time went on I know it was the best thing for her.
My thoughts are with you and I hope all goes well.
Cheers

 

[Glynn]

I totally feel your pain. I had 7 yr old Siberian husky who was my best friend. She came down with some sort of growth in her lungs that caused one of them to rupture. After numerous tests, surgeries and 10,000 in vet bills I sadly couldn't save her. I hated to have to put her down but i couldn't stand to see her suffer any more. I still miss that dog

 

[WesleyS]

It's such a hard decision to make to have a pet put down. They really do become like family. I recently had to make that decision with my boxer I had for 6 years. He was the best dog anyone could've asked for, but he suddenly started acting funny and not wanting to eat. After just a couple days his stomach was swollen so we took him to the vet. He ended up having multiple things wrong with him. The vet told us flat out that he could do all these different procedures, but honestly there was basically no chance it would extend his life, and if it did he would probably be in pain the rest of his time. I would have done anything if I knew there was a chance of him continuing to enjoy life, but I couldn't just let him suffer. Like others said nukebrewer, sorry to hear about your situation but enjoy every day with your dog and when/if the time comes you'll know it's the right decision and hopefully your wife doesn't take it too hard.

 

[SharonaZamboni]

Sorry about your dog. We had to put our 14 year old to sleep a couple of years ago, due to arthritis, etc. It was awful, and I knew that I'd be crying about her all day every day, so I got a puppy a couple months later.
That may sound harsh, and a maniacal Lab pup sure made me miss my calm old dog at first, but he's got a big personality and keeps me busy.

 

[Misplaced_Canuck]

I think a lot of people have different feelings for their dogs. Some see them as best friends, some see them as livestock (my parents were that way).

I think the bottom line is this: Do what you're comfortable doing. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise and get you into guilt trips. Personally, I'm moderately attached to my dogs, but I wouldn't get myself in heavy debt over one.

MC

 

[AMonkey]

IPersonally, I'm moderately attached to my dogs, but I wouldn't get myself in heavy debt over one.

This is how I feel. I love my dog, but my son will always come first. If it will put my family in a hardship the dog will go. We can't afford a lot of vet bills and if there is no guarantee that what we do will even help, or if the problem will come right back we have to do what is best for both. Dogs are good at masking pain as well, so even though they can be playing tug of war and acting normal, they could be in great pain on the inside.

 

[jammin]

Enjoy him while you can.

My two shorthairs (that I raised and trained from pups) passed while I was stationed in Baghdad last year. I'm sure they're pointing Chukars in doggie heaven.

 

[blizzard]

Our cat developed a cancerous tumor and we had to remove her leg. It was a tough call, but she lived like royalty for a few more terrific years. Totally worth it, even though the time right after surgery was hard. When it did come back we were worried about knowing when it was time to put her down, but it was pretty obvious from behavior and mood changes.

If your dog is happy and you can afford treatment, then do it and use this time make some memories and say your goodbyes. Hopefully, you'll enjoy his company a few more years.

 

[onetoeddogbrewery]

Have you looked into the raw food/ BARF diet? It has done wonders for our dogs health. Also my friend who's dog had cancer as well after switching to raw his dog ended up living another 4 yrs. to a grand old age of 12. Which anit bad for a golden.
Once you get your routine down its super easy feeding them raw meat and bones its no different than prepping your own food as far as sanitation goes

Best of luck to y'all

 

[nukebrewer]

Thank you all for the kind words and sharing of experiences. Now that I am sober (no it didn't take me 30 hours to sober up) I kind of wish I hadn't posted that. I can see that it probably brought up some painful memories and for that I apologize.

Have you looked into the raw food/ BARF diet? It has done wonders for our dogs health. Also my friend who's dog had cancer as well after switching to raw his dog ended up living another 4 yrs. to a grand old age of 12. Which anit bad for a golden.
Once you get your routine down its super easy feeding them raw meat and bones its no different than prepping your own food as far as sanitation goes

Best of luck to y'all

SWMBO would probably kick me in the family jewels if I suggested feeding him raw food, but I'll do some research and see what she says. Thanks so much for the suggestion. Cheers!

 

[Hollie]

I always look for excuses to talk about Han Solo. So no worries! Oh and BARF diet is Prolly why our old man lived so long anyway. That and he wasnt exposed to disease and such. Dogs live raw meat and bones. )