Tough Decision

[Nathans_Dad]

Ok, here's the deal:

We have two labrador retrievers, one is 13 and the other 10. The older one has been a fantastic dog, an excellent pet. The younger one has had behavior problems (incessant barking) for the last 3 years. She also has severe hip dysplasia and arthritis. Her hips have been worsening over the past few years, at this point she has to "bunny hop" up the stairs because she can't bear the full weight on one hip alone. She also has seizures and is on anti-seizure meds. Her barking has really become a problem, our neighbors have sent anonymous notes threatening to call the police, HOA, etc. We have begun keeping the dogs inside all the time because that is the only way the dog will be quiet.

So, yesterday the older one had a stroke. She is having trouble walking and falls over every 5-10 minutes. We took her to the vet yesterday and the vet confirmed that she likely had a stroke and may or may not recover. She suggested we watch her for 24-48 hours and see if she improves at all before making a decision on whether to euthanize her. My wife talked to me this afternoon and said that she isn't getting any better and has taken several hard falls today. My wife (and this is her dog of 13 years) thinks that we probably need to put her down. She made the appointment for tomorrow evening.

Now then, I spoke with the vet yesterday about the younger dog. The vet is well aware of her problems and the issues that we have had with her. My wife and I are concerned that her behavior will worsen even more once the older one is gone. The vet agreed. I asked the vet if she would agree to put both dogs down at the same time and she said she would.

I think that it would be better to have only one event rather than put one down now and the other down in 6 months or maybe a year (she probably won't make it much longer than that). My wife is torn. She says that she agrees that the younger one is getting worse, but she doesn't have any "clear cut" reason to put her down right now. She thinks the older one probably needs to be put to sleep, we would hate to have her fall and break a bone and be in pain.

What would you do?

[Overpaid Slacker]

Both at once. Your suffering/regret will be less than the aggregate of doing it in two separate events, and the younger dog is not "young," nor likely to get better. In fact, you're likely to have to watch the younger dog mourn and get worse.

Sucks. Good luck, bud.

JP

[nostatic]

geez, its an epidemic. Vash's dog, my dog, now yours. I think the older dog is an easy call. The younger is a tough one, but it depends on what *you* can live with. I know my ex really suffered with the thought of putting our dog down, because she thought that she was being selfish. Lucy could still eat and sleep, but not much beyond that. There is only so much time in the day, and only so much energy in everyone's body. I was the one that straight out told her, "make the call, it's the right thing to do." Everything in life is a balancing act...

Make a decision in your mind and "live with it" for a couple hours, or preferably a day. See how it feels. Then act accordingly.

[Rikao4]

Tough days ahead,
tonal collar for the barker might work , but the other issues (health) are only going to get worse. Your so right..tough call to make.
Rika

[rammstein]

Whatever you do, keep your chin up. It will be a hard road no matter what. Dogs are the best and the worst.

[legion]

I'd put them both down at the same time.

I was just thinking that it was about 10 years ago we had to put my dog down. It was a pretty clear-cut case for us. She was 11, had a stroke, and was no longer conscious.

[Rikao4]

Rick, if your so inclined.
Paws in Heaven does cremation here in SA (they are in Canyon Lake)
charge by the pound .last Rottie..85 bucks ,got a nice little Urn and nameplate, maybe make your Lady feel better.
Rika

[scottmandue]

Wow that sucks...

My old yellow dog had arthritis and the vet gave me some meds for her and she got a lot better. A few years went by and we changed the meds and upped the meds... then I took her in to the vets and said "she's having a hard time getting around again and has a bit of incontinence, what do we do now?" The vet just gave me a blank look and I knew it was time.

Then I'm sitting on the curb out in front of the vet crying like a baby waiting for them to finish the paperwork and this guy come by and gives me a long hard look like WTF is wrong with you? I'm not a violent man but in that state of mind I almost got up to punch the jerk.

Anyway I wouldn't want to go through that twice and more importantly it doesn't sound like the younger dog has a very good quality of life so I would put them down together.

[Jeff Higgins]

I have been a dog owner since I was too young to remember. Dang, is it tough sometimes. Tough to do what is best for the dogs and not be selfish about your feelings towards them. Many times we keep them around longer than we should because we will miss them, doing a disservice to the dogs in the name of loving them. How ironic. Put them both down, be done with it, and move on. Cherish your memories of them and move on. Hopefully you outlive several more; that's all a part of this bittersweet relationship with man's best friend. Oh, and by the way, I'm with Will Rogers on this one - if dogs don't go to heaven, I want to go wherever it is they go. Good luck, and hang in there, Rick. I feel for you.

[rfuerst911sc]

Forget the barking issue and honestly answer if you think the younger dog is suffering from the hip dysplasia, if the answer is yes then the right thing to do is to end the pain.

[stevepaa]

Ditto what Jeff said. The last two were put down within days of each other. The small one was basically blind, had had a stroke and was incontinent, and the shepherd could not get up. I had the vet come to the back yard and put him down while I held him. I took the other one down to the office within days and held her while they put her down.

I think you could hold off on the other until it is obvious.

[Nathans_Dad]

I spoke with a couple friends at work and they seem to think we should not put the younger one down just yet. It's tough to tell how much the hip dysplasia is truly hurting her, she is a pretty stupid dog and will run around like an idiot through almost any pain, LOL.

Maybe the best idea is to put the older one down and then see how the younger one does. If her behavior gets much worse or she continues to decline with her hips, then we can put her down at that time. I don't think I would have a problem putting them both down, but I think it might bother my wife.

BTW, our vet mentioned the Paws in Heaven service during the visit yesterday, I think we will have her cremated with them. I know she is just a dog, but I'd hate to think of her just getting dumped in a landfill. I guess the vet was telling us what she thought we should do when she handed us the cremation brochure, huh...

[stevepaa]

Good thinking. Don't need to do it until it's obvious.

I had them both cremated, buried the ashes in the back yard. We bury all our pets when they die.

[Nathans_Dad]

Just to tug at the old heartstrings a little more, here is a pic from a couple minutes ago. The lighter colored one is the one with the stroke.

[stevepaa]

Not that it makes it any more palatable, just have to realize that you will do this many more times in your life, and it never gets easier.

[Jeff Higgins]

For me, it actually gets harder every time. Sure, the first couple of "boyhood dogs" that I grew up with were tough, but that was what any kid goes through, not fully understanding everything. Now that I at least like to think I understand some things better, including what we are in our dogs' lives, it seems to be harder. Their unqualified love, loyalty, and respect is just something else. I have held every dog I have ever owned in my arms as its life slipped out of it. It's really hard to look up and say "sorry boy, it's for your own good". I really hope some day, in whatever comes next, I find myself getting mobbed by a pretty good pack of dogs. Me and Will Rogers...

[BlueSkyJaunte]

Our shepherd is on her way out too...her hip dysplasia is getting worse and worse, she's stone deaf, and now she's starting to lose bowel control.

My wife and I know we're going to have to make a decision sooner or later, but we've been avoiding talking about it as much as possible.

[vash]

i would put the sicker dog down. the younger one, get aggresive and strap on of those antibark collars on. i think i have seen one that sprays something versus an electric shock. my sister put down a fantastic dog just last night. cancer.

it is extra hard when pet ownership becomes pet management. good luck.

[Nathans_Dad]

Yeah, we have tried almost all the different collars. The shock one doesn't work at all, just seems to agitate her more which makes her bark more. The spray one worked for a month or so but then she just decided to bark right through the spraying. I guess she got used to the smell. The only one we haven't tried is the one that emits an ultrasonic tone that the dog can hear. We figured that would not be fair to the older one who would have to hear the tone even though she isn't the one barking.

Problem now is that the dog is maybe sorta kinda looking a little better. She has fallen once today and is still doing the wierd facial twitches and stuff per my wife. We still have the appointment but I think my wife is having second thoughts. I almost wish that the dog would just get worse so we can get it over with. I feel like if we don't do it now we will just do it in another few weeks. It's just hard to put her down when she looks pretty normal when she is laying down. She is still there mentally and will lick your hand when you come up to her. Breaks my heart.

[Rikao4]

It's tough, my Max's seemed to make a come back, hopes high..few days later,well we look for reasons not to. The older one has served you well,
keep in mind that the other one will anoy the older one,
Rika