Saying goodbye to a beloved dog

[Lathum]

ah man, that sucks.

[Castlerock]

So sorry. I hate when this thread gets bumped.

[BYU 14]

Man, so sorry my friend, I always hate seeing this thread bumped

[thesloppy]

Goodbye, Gingy. So sorry, PM.

[Thomkal]

Very sorry about your friend PM.

[Sweed]

Sorry to hear this PM.

[molson]

Sorry to here that pilotman. Your act of kindness and compassion 11 years ago changed that cat's life forever, and your family's. It's crazy how animals can end up just fitting in and being a part of everything as if there could have been no other way.

[GrantDawg]

Sorry to hear, PM. That just sucks.

[MizzouRah]

Sorry to hear that PM

[tarcone]

Sorry PM. Cats are awesome. You gave hin a much better life than the streets would have,

[PilotMan]

Thanks guys. He clearly looks like he knows that things are not going well for him. He's been hiding away from us much more than normal and for longer periods of time. He still seeks us out for pets here and there and purrs for us, but with the little he's eaten and drank he just doesn't have long. My boys are both handling it differently. My youngest takes it in stride, and acknowledges that it's life and was only a matter of time, and my middle one, is much more sentimental like I am and is taking it very hard. The oldest has already been through it with some dogs and he's doing ok too. The way they are handling it is making for some issues between them as the middle one gets mad that the youngest isn't taking it seriously enough.

[MizzouRah]

So sorry Sweed.

We had a wonderful Golden Retriever who had seizures and we thought we had them under control and one day he had 9 in a row and had to be put down.

It was horrible watching him go through that.

[PilotMan]

Originally Posted by PilotMan

I'm really sorry to bump this thread.

I just got back from the Vet. My Mom had been pet sitting for us. It was partly due to her being alone and the pets added extra companionship for her in this weird time. But she called us to pick up our cat, Gingy. He just wasn't happy with her. He was sleeping a lot and pretty lethargic. That was about a week ago.

He is somewhere between 12 and 14 years old. A stray that I brought in the house. It was hard to tell if he was normal or suddenly getting old and acting his age. He had clearly lost more weight and was bony. I finally decided to get him in to be seen.

It wasn't good news. Gingy has a large mass in his digestive system and he's terminal. The doctor didn't give us a time. We could decide what was best for him. I feel very sad. My middle son (18), who is the most like me, has cleaned his box for 11 years without complaining, is crushed. Having seen how he's gone downhill the past few weeks, I have to believe that his time with us will be shorter, than longer.

He's been a one of a kind cat. The most patient, chill, fun and social cat I've ever seen. I figured we'd have at least 4-5 more years with him, but it's clear that his time with us is at it's end.

Had to say goodbye to our buddy yesterday. It was brutal. My big teenage boys were in tears, I was in tears, and my wife was holding all of us together. It was so unfair.

He had been progressing downhill and had a really bad night a couple days prior. Then the night before yesterday he finally told us he was in pain and he couldn't walk. We were able to relieve him with some benadryl, but it was clear we had to make the hard decision. My middle son slept with him and wouldn't leave his side all night long. We talked it through a bit and loved on him as much as we could.

This is the 3rd pet I've been through this with, but it's the first for my kids. Afterward we were able to spend some time together playing together and distracted us from our realities. I still looked for him on the couch looking out the window when I came downstairs this morning. His loss will linger for quite a while.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Beautiful boy PilotMan, and I'm sorry for your family.

Been through this too damned many times, I know the anguish too well

[BYU 14]

So sorry my friend, I know you had been dreading this day. Love to you all and take comfort in knowing you meant as much to him as he did to you.

[thesloppy]

So sorry PM.

[Thomkal]

Sounds like you made the right decision here PM as painful as it might be. He knew how much he was loved before you had to say goodbye and that will be a good thing for your family as time goes by.

[molson]

He was very handsome. So hard to lose a member of the family. I'm sure your family was a great comfort to him at the end.

[Dreghorn2]

Never like to see this thread pop up.

Sorry to hear about your loss.

It never seems to get easier.

[Lathum]

Sorry buddy, always tough

[Warhammer]

Yeah, always hate see the thread bumped. As hard as it is, the good times always outweigh the bad though.

[molson]

I posted just 3 months ago in the other dog thread about Loba, our senior foster we took in February. Unfortunately her health declined and we had to say goodbye to her this week.

She was a perfect fit for our home. So friendly, loved the other animals, loved her walks. COVID had paused adoptions for the rescue group we were working with (which requires home checks). The rescue director told us that she was getting a lot of adoption applications for Loba, and I remember just panicking. I knew the goal was to get her stable, evaluate her, advocate for her, let potential adopters know everything about her - and then find her a great home so we could do this again. But not having control over her destiny was a lot more difficult than I thought it would be.

She had a history of seizures, and went without them for a while, but they started with us too. A previous vet suspected a brain tumor. Shortly after the seizures started up again, she started losing her mobility in her front legs. It just got worse every day for about a week. They tried some drugs, she was at the vet clinic overnight for some tests, but nothing helped.

At the end, she just wanted to be around us. We camped out in the downstairs TV room where she was. My girlfriend slept next to her. If we went too long without petting her, she'd whine a little. (She was quite dramatic in that way even when healthy). At one point I heard my girlfriend snoring and then also petting Loba at the same time. That was our life for a while. It was nice that we could still give her the thing she wanted most, our attention.

The rescue got her to the clinic and got her back to us so she could see if the drugs worked, or, could at least die at home. Before that, she officially went from being a foster to a hospice. Symbolic, but, she was ours at the end. Fortunately, the at-home euthanasia people were still willing to come to the house, as long as we were all outside and wearing masks. The last thing she did was whimper one more time because I wasn't petting her for previous 5 seconds.

The last week was a pretty brutal experience, but, she has such a great time with us. They thought she was 12-13 years old at the start, but after some time with us, they lowered that estimate down to 10 based on her energy level and excellent mobility before the seizures started. We took 100+ walks by my count, trekked in the woods, had a deer sighting, lots of other adventures. I miss her a lot already, but I feel a great relief that she's at peace, that we were able to gift her a great few months, and also, just a sense of accomplishment that we did this and we went all-in. Something I always wanted to do. It was so worthwhile. And we're going to do it again and be broken-hearted all over again. It's hard, but I feel like we're really good at this and it's just our calling.

On the vet's instruction we kept a seizure journal, detailing all those terrible events. Tonight we're going to drink around the firepit and burn that journal, and say goodbye.

[PilotMan]

Aww man, you're making me tear up. I grew up with Shepherds and know just how loving and awesome they can be. I'm glad that she was able to be with you guys for that time and felt the love and care from you that she wanted. You did good and you're life was more full because of her.

[thesloppy]

Awww, she looks like a sweetheart, Molson.

[Dreghorn2]

Goodbye Loba.

[Thomkal]

Very sorry to hear about Loba Molson. Bless you and your girlfriend for taking her in and giving her all she wanted in her last days.

[Sweed]

So sorry Molson to hear about Loba. What a great thing you guys did for her, they only look for a little love and affection and return it a thousand times over.
God bless you and your girlfriend for giving her a place where she could feel happiness and love.

[spleen1015]

Had to put our dog down today.

We got this dog for my daughter for her 4th birthday. She's 17. I always joked that we got my wife a dog for my daughter's birthday.

I've talked a lot of shit over the years about this dog because he drove me crazy. I always said I hated the dog because of who he was, but in reality who he was made him a really great pet.

What drove me nuts was he was very much into routine. He knew that when we came home he needed to go out. If my wife came home 5 minutes after I did, he still thought he needed to go outside. Every time anyone came home, he had to go out. Just the way it was.

He slept with my wife and I. My wife typically goes to bed around 9pm. Every night around 9pm he would sit in the middle of the living room and whine until my wife decided to go to bed.

Every time we would go some where and he would see us putting on shoes, etc., he would go sit in his crate because he knew that's where he was supposed to be while we were gone.

Since COVID started, I have worked from home every day. Every day he would hang out with me in the office while I worked. He would sleep at my feet all day.

I'll never forget the day we brought him home and took him out into the backyard. He went nuts. He circled the backyard for 10 minutes just running his little ass off. It was because he had never had freedom like that before.

I haven't had too many pets in my life. He was awesome.

We gave him a great, long life. Joey would have been 15 in September.

[Lathum]

Sorry to hear. They really are better than us.

[molson]

What drove me nuts was he was very much into routine. He knew that when we came home he needed to go out. If my wife came home 5 minutes after I did, he still thought he needed to go outside. Every time anyone came home, he had to go out. Just the way it was.

He slept with my wife and I. My wife typically goes to bed around 9pm. Every night around 9pm he would sit in the middle of the living room and whine until my wife decided to go to bed.

Every time we would go some where and he would see us putting on shoes, etc., he would go sit in his crate because he knew that's where he was supposed to be while we were gone.

That's the sign of a dog who took great comfort in his home and family and the stability and care you gave him.

Very sorry for your loss. I'm sure he, like millions of dogs in the U.S., greatly appreciated the opportunity COVID gave to spend some extra time with you. They didn't understand what the hell was going on, but they loved it.

[BYU 14]

So sorry for your loss my friend. I always hate seeing this thread bumped

[MizzouRah]

Sorry for your loss.. sounds like both of our dogs who are very into a daily routine.


One of our dogs barks at me around 10pm because he knows it's close to bedtime and is waiting for me to get into bed first.

[Sweed]

Sorry for your loss spleen Sounds like a great dog and as molson noted his behavior was a good indication of how comfortable he felt in his home.

[PilotMan]

Sorry spleen. You were trained to those routines so well, you're going to notice when you don't need them anymore. That is almost as hard as the loss itself. I'm glad that you were able to share all that time together. I'm sure it's hard on your whole family.

[JPhillips]

Looks like I'm taking our dog in for surgery Friday. He has a tumor near his anal glands. Hopefully, it's benign, but we won't know for sure until next week.

[Ksyrup]

Sorry to hear. We will be going through something similar soon, although our oldest dog is a fighter. Diagnosed the bone cancer in March of 2019 and given 3-6 months, she's lasted until now with a bone growth on the top of her head, a cyst bulging her left eye out and now a mass on her spleen. She just keeps on truckin'. We got a puppy last summer and now another one last week and it seems to be making her somewhat more active.

Vet gave her weeks to live after finding the spleen issue, but the same vets also gave her 3-6 months, so...

[Thomkal]

Joey sounds like he was a great friend spleen. So sorry for your loss. My thoughts are with anyone who are dealing with this right now.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Always very tough days and I'm sorry for your loss

[spleen1015]

You guys are awesome. I appreciate everything from you guys.

[Warhammer]

Sorry to hear that. Our second dog, Duke, is very much like yours. Every night at 9 PM, he will whine until my wife sits in the office where he will climb up on the bed and chill out while I am on the computer and my wife reads.

In the morning, when you wake up, he has to go out. When you get home, he has to go out. Great dog, but don't get him out of his routine.

[tarcone]

So sorry to hear. I was walking our pug and thinking about Lucy my lab. I still miss her. The loss of a family member is so hard and long lasting. Take comfort in the life you gave Joey. He will be chasing bunnies and getting treats waiting to see you again.

[PilotMan]

Lots of emotions right now. Had to put our last family pet down today, our beloved, broken little beagle, Dixie. A pound dog, who was supposedly 7, then 5, then maybe 3 after we adopted her, lived with us for 10 years. She had been abused, didn't trust men, or anything above her head. Was timid, kind, patient, and overly submissive. She smelled awful and was our 'bridge dog' that helped my old dog, Echo, rebound after her buddy, our racing greyhound passed. She gave Echo another year with us, and then she and our kitty (who we said goodbye to in May) graced us together.

She was the family dog for our boys while they grew up. Even though she wasn't your typical dog, she slept most times, was generally aloof to most everyone, but she would always have a little nudge, a tail wag, or a quiet lick. She rarely barked, but would look for any reason to sneak out of the yard and rummage through the neighborhood. Thankfully, she always found her way home and didn't get into too much trouble, unless you count being completely covered in mud.

She was a buddy for my wife, as they both had trauma in their pasts and understood one another. My middle son took her into his room, and loved on her like nobody else in the house. He's leaving for college in just over 2 weeks, and now he's had to say goodbye to his two best buddies.

Today sucked. She had been going downhill the past few years, but we were convinced that she was just going to live forever. Even two days ago, she was bouncy and excited and ready to play at the ripe age of 14-15. She started having seizures the past few days and the one yesterday she never seemed to recover from. Today was a miserable experience for her. She was in a constant state of hyperventilation and couldn't get comfortable. We all knew.

The doctor said that her heart was failing and while we could try, that it wouldn't be an easy process and there was very little hope of much. We all knew it was time. So tonight we become a family with no pets. A great sadness has fallen once again, and we are stunned. The world is a bit more grey today without her.

[thesloppy]

So sorry PM

[Atocep]

That was tough to read. I'm sorry for your loss. It sounds like Dixie was an amazing animal and you were blessed to have each other.

[Sweed]

Sorry for your loss PM She looks like a happy dog. Take heart in the fact your family gave Dixie a loving home.

[Edward64]

Read it as my dog was gently snoring at the foot of sofa. Had to give her a belly rub.

Sorry to hear PilotMan.

[MizzouRah]

Sorry for your loss

[BYU 14]

Oh man, that is so sad, so sorry brother

[Warhammer]

Sorry to hear. I dread when I will eventually be posting in this thread. As tough as the next few days will be, your days were certainly brighter having her a part of your life just as the family brightened hers.

[GrantDawg]

Sorry for your loss.