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The inevitable is sadly upon us…

T

TrimTheKing

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As all pet owners know, and fear, that sad day is upon us.

Our beloved Biscuit, our 12 year old, one eyed (and blind in that remaining eye), Cavachon will heartbreakingly be taking her final long walk tomorrow. 😢

She’s been a wonderfully stoic little lady since losing her eye in a play fight with her sister about 18 months ago. She took that in her stride, along with then going completely blind in her remaining eye within about 6 weeks of losing the other one!

Sadly her health has deteriorated quite rapidly in the past few weeks with this week’s Vets visit confirming heart disease, kidney disease and a side order of liver tumours for good measure! We noticed things affecting her more over last weekend when her left back leg stopped responding properly.

She’s been taking some heart medication and had pain relief, but this week has shown us that her quality of life will be very poor.

She’s spending all day sleeping at my wife’s feet, needs carrying outside to toilet, and needs her back legs holding up for her to be able to go without messing herself. Spends her evenings sat on the chair next to one of us, panting heavily to catch her breath due to her enlarged heart squashing her trachea.

We made the heartbreaking decision today that keeping her alive with pain relief, just so we aren’t sad, is absolutely not the right thing to do so tomorrow we will take her to the Vets for the final time.

I’m not too proud to say that I’ve aged more than one year today, and I imagine a lot more to come tomorrow. 😢

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Heartbreaking. I had to make the same decision two months ago with my beloved 17 year old Remus who was also one-eyed and who could barely take two paces before stumbling. The vet was a bitch. She tried to persuade me to have more tests run on him before making such a monumental decision. I knew Remus had reached the end and I remembered a consultation with a more senior vet a couple of weeks before who had told us that further tests wouldn’t lead to treatments that might improve his quality of life. Still, I came away wondering if I had done the right thing by the little fella. The next day I spoke aloud that I wanted a sign by the end of the week that I had been right to ease his passing. The next morning I woke up in bed feeling something wrong with the mattress. I pulled back the fitted bedsheet and found a 13 amp fuse on top of the mattress! Was it a sign of some sort? Was it a message from Remus? It was certainly something I couldn’t explain but it gave me a lot of comfort.

Two weeks later my 14 year old Button died in her sleep. I’m left with a 15 year old who is on strong medication for his heart and who could pass at any moment, plus a 13 year old who appears to be in good health. He’s called Biscuit.

My thoughts are very much with you and your Biscuit, Mark, and I hope the grief is soon tempered by happy memories of a loving companion.
 
Thoughts will be with you, we haven't had to make such a journey for many years but the experience is still ingrained.
 
They truly are a part of the family. I reckon we are nearing the end with our 15year old russel
 
Remember the good games, the fun and the cuddles. How happy they have been.
We still talk about our dogs and cats who have passed on, with a great deal of love, remembering things they did.
It's sad they don't live as long as us but they have a good life.
 
Truly sorry, she looks to be a beautiful companion. I know what you are going through having lost 10 of our dogs through the years.
And every time I became an emotional wreck. It is part of letting go as hard as it is.
We have a pet cemetery on our property which we visit almost daily to remember the joy they gave to us.
 
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Really sorry for you Mark.
I've never had a dog, but I'm being nagged to get one. S used to have a Border Collie, before I knew her, and ofter speaks about her. The dog she now has her eyes on is an English Setter, grey and white, very lively, 7 years old. Apparently, in France, wrinklies like us are not allowed to get puppies.
I'm not agin the idea, I just wonder what the practicalities of it will be like.
S
 
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Really sorry to hear that Mark. It really is heart-breaking. We had to take one of our cats (Bramble) last year; she'd been with us for 19 years and it's such a wrench to have to make that journey. Her sister (Treacle) is 20½ now and I'm dreading the day that will inevitably come. Thankfully she's still quite sprightly so hopefully we have some time yet.

You have my deepest sympathies.
 
Sorry to hear that Mark. We went through much the same thing at the start of the year and it’s horrible making the decision even though you know it’s the right thing to do.

They are part of the family. Thankfully it’s the happy memories that pervade but it’s a sad process getting there.
 
Mark, sad day and I feel the pain with you.
I am sure she had a good life.

I was the one who had to take the dogs to the vet.
We have always had dogs from when we got married 50 years ago till the last one passed on in 2012.
No replacement as it it is a lifetime commitment.
 
Thanks all.

Kids have both been given the day off college/school as they spent all night sobbing after we told them. They agree and know it's the right thing, but our son was only just over 3 when we got Biscuit so he has no memory of life without her and is heartbroken.

I still don't know what to do about afterwards, whether to bring her home and bury her. Whether bringing her home and allowing our other pets to sniff around and understand she's gone rather than just disappeared. Cremation. Can't decide, and need to before we go at 15:20.

Anyone got any experience or advice on the above, pros/cons of each?

We've got another pooch, Molly, who is about 10 months older but in seemingly good health, and a cat (Maisie) who was born in our kitchen after her mum got promiscuous before we could have her snipped. She's our eldest child having been born in the May before our first human child was born in the December. She's led a charmed life having twice been hit by cars on our country lane and both times being predicted to not see out the night, yet here she still is. She's a lot slimmer than she used to be, and not quite as happy jumping up and down to the utility counters for her food, but still as bright eyed as ever. Not sure how much longer she's got though at just over 17 years old, but that's a worry for another day...
 
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Stay strong, Mark. This is always tough.

I have buried both of the dogs we have lost, and will bury Mabel in the next year or two. We planted an apple tree over one, and a plum over the other. I'll tell you that the toughest part of the process is throwing the soil in over your pooch after you've placed him/ her in the hole. That's a horrible moment of certainty, and reality.
 
I don’t think there is a right or wrong way Mark. We went down the cremation route which I think made it a bit easier than bringing the body home for burial. The ashes were collected from the vet a week later and buried in the garden and a bush planted on top.
 
Such a personal thing Mark. You will be a better judge than anyone of how your kids will react to that place in the garden where she is laid to rest, today, tomorrow, next year, in ten years. Who will look after that spot if/when you ever move? Maybe ashes scatted under a newly planted tree would be an idea.
 
So sorry for you and the family. Our dog is 10 now, and the first dog we have had. He had a built of a scare recently with pain which the vets couldn't identify but it did make us realise at 10 years old he's not a pup anymore.

Previousy we have had 2 cats, the first wasn't with us long befire being run over, we had cremated. Our second who was a lovely boy, including sitting through two home births my my wifes side most of the time is buried under an apple tree in our garden. Digging his grave was a horrible thing to have to do but it felt right for the whole family to have him here still in the garden.

You need to do whatever feels right for you.
 
For my best dog Sasha she was cremated and I scattered her ashes in the river we went to for her to swim in most days. When her pups Tess, Cai and Remi eventually died years later I buried them in the garden. We are no longer at that house and on balance I would go down the scatter ashes at a favourite walking spot if we were to have dogs again.
 
Just like Mike G we always cremated our dogs and planted a tree where we put the ashes. To us it felt like we see a bit of them in each tree. But realise that maybe one day you will (have to) move. You can't take the ashes nor the tree (probably) with you then.
 
So sorry Mark. :(

I've only had to it once when our last dog died over 20 years ago, buried her in the fireld and my wife still won't go near. I'm dreading the dayI have to do it again with our 11 year old lab.
 
We bid her a final farewell this afternoon.

While it was horrible, weirdly when the vet gave her the initial sedative to relax her she was, for a few minutes, back to her most excellent self. She relaxed, stopped struggling to breathe and just lay on Julie’s hand and started snoring!

That made things a lot easier when they gave her the proper injection because she just slipped away then, but for a few minutes at least we had her back at her cutest.

Barney is bloody destroyed though! Tilly is too but Barney’s taking it hard.

I was getting ready for the gym (needed the distraction) and he came rushing upstairs sobbing. He’d gone to feed Molly and Maisie and got two packets of dog food out as he normally would, then realised he only needed one. 😢

We decided on cremation and we’ll scatter her ashes somewhere on one of the walks we did, which she loved.
 
My heart felt thoughts are with you and your family at this time.

We have always had 2 dogs with an overlap in their ages so the hole isn't so big when we lose one, down to just one though, now 4 years old, and that will be it, as were of an age that we wouldn't want them to be fostered if any thing happens to us..

Its very rare that we don't have a visiting one or 2 in residence, from friends, whilst they go off galivanting, so never an empty house.
 
Heavy news to hear Mark, looks like she had a good life with ye.
Difficult to offer any advice, as I dare not wish to think a about such, for our pals.
 
A friend of ours really struggled after they lost their dog. They too cremated, My wife made a lovely little necklace of a night sky with stars using some of the ashes encapsulated in resin and silver. Some might find it a little macabre but our friend found it comforting.
 
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