Help me help my dog get to the other side... ( a little update)

[Isis]

how do you do it?????????? My 9 year old German Shepherd, Rusty is not doing well. He has the doggy version of MS (quite common in Shepherds). His back legs have been weak for about a year now but yesterday he couldn't get up- it took him a long time to get up. He seems to do better in the AM and worse as the day goes on. We're taking him to the Vet on Sat. My heart is aching soooo badly. This dog means the world to me. He saved my life, emotionally and I just can't let him go.

How do you feel good about making a decision like this??????


(Cross posted with PETS)

[nillawafer]

isis,

how sad. my malamutt(half malamute/half mutt), rolfi, had serious physical problems when he was 14. every morning i thought, i can't standto watch it anymore, i'm taking him in. and then he'd get a little better. finally a few days went by and he didn't bounce back at all, but he wouldn't let go either. he was so loving and special. i think he didn't want to abandon us. i finally made the decision and cried all the way to the vet. when the shot was administered to him he just laid his head on his paws like he was going to sleep. after doing everything in my life the "natural way," i felt like i was doing something wrong. yet, at the moment of his passing a powerful feeling of peace and warmth and love filled me and i knew he was telling me he was okay. i didn't even cry then. it felt like all was right with the world in my soul.

hope your furry friend gets better. hope you are given direction in your soul about what is right for him.

nilla

[SunShineSally]

Hello!

I am so sorry you are going thru this With my pup Jack he was a peekapoo peekanises poodle. He was my first baby I had him from when I was 3 until I was 21. He was sick for about 6 months no one was able to let him go. He had doggie alzhimers (sp??) he still knew me and my Dziadzi (grandpa) also my mother. and his legs would give out once ein a great while. I layed with him and talked to him thanked him for everything told him how I loved him and sotries of growing up with him and things we did. Over that night when I did that we layed in bed cuddled like every night he loved to cuddle. as he was passing I woke told him it was okay and I loved him that I would be okay and we was gone. I also begged him to go on his own he hated the car and I knew that it was his time. So I didn't want his last few moments to be frightning. Tell him how you feel that you will be okay everyone will be okay. How everyone loves him. Like he is a person not an animal they know and understand more than we think.

I hope this helped some
Karen and Baby Joe

[shanagirl]

Oh, my. I shouldn't have opened this thread. But what beautiful stories! What a privilege to share our lives with animals.

[Isis]

Thank you guys. I'll keep you posted. He goes to the Vet on Saturday- maybe they can give him something that will make him more comfortable- in my heart- I don't think it's time but I also might be in denial. Thank you so much for the support.

[Isis]

Update

As I suspected, there is nothing they can do for my love, Rusty. The Vet said the good thing is that he's not in any pain- he's just going numb in the back legs. Eventually he will lose them completly and at that point, we will have to say good-bye.
The Vet did give us the option of weekly sessions of acupuncture but of course it's no guarantee, it's not a cure, at the very best it will prolong the onset of it but it WILL happen and there's nothing we can do about that. I decided against it- he's spent most of his life going to the Vet (lupus, 2 surgeries, etc) and at this point, I think his time is better spent in the comfort of his own home than being stressed at the Vet. It's such a hard decision but I am going to have to find a way to let go. I don't want to give up on him but looking at him today at the Vet- he looked older and just not happy. I can't do it to him week after week. Keep us in your thoughts--- I don't know how I'm going to say good-bye to the most amazing creature I've ever met.

[SunShineSally]

Hello Mama I came to this forum to see how your pup was. I am sorry to hear what the vet had to say. Keep giving him love and try to be strong for him. You both will be in my thoughts. He will let you know when the time is right for him to go. Many people say no one (animal or human) goes before their time or after their time. So whatever you choose to do is the right choice

Karen and Baby Joe

[Isis]

Originally Posted by TomorrowsChild

Many people say no one (animal or human) goes before their time or after their time. So whatever you choose to do is the right choice

Karen and Baby Joe

Thank you. That helped me get through the night!

[Quirky]

We had to put our 13 year old Labrador Wellie to sleep in 2002, right before my son was born. He had crippling, degenerative arthritis and despite everything conventional and alternative medicine could do for him, it finally got to the point where his bad times were outnumbering his good times and we had to let him go.

My best friend, who is a vet, made a house call to put him to sleep for us. We spoiled and loved him as much as possible the couple of days before - he ate chicken three times a day, we played catch (at that point, rolling the ball to him on the floor and he would nudge it back to us with his nose) and just petting and hugging and loving him as much as we could.

The euthanasia was so quick, and so painless - we all held him as he crossed over. Truly, it was the best thing we could do for him and such a gift to make sure his death was as painless and comfortable as possible.

When you know it's time - when you know he needs to cross over - ask your vet to make a housecall, so that your dog can die at home in your arms.

I know it's so hard to let go.

[SunShineSally]

Hey Mama,

I was just thinking of you and your Pup how is he doing? and how are you doing? I am happy that my words helped you!

Karen and Baby Joe

[ernestholmes]

Hi Isis

I just put my beloved dog of 16 years down on Wednesday and it was the worst experience I could imagine. That love we have for them is so deep and special. I have no family - I have been an orphan my whole adult life, and I got this dog in college when she was 6 weeks old. The dog traveled everywhere with me, went through college with me, every relationship, every move, flew with me, and she was there on holiays when I was alone and even the only one who was home when I came home from the hospital with my new born baby. She lay by the bed for two weeks when we first came home and guarded us.

She had gotten her leg amputated last summer from bone cancer she contracted. After that she went down hill at a slow pace. Last Saturday she was apparently normal. Eating, drinking, getting around, flashing me her mischievous grin. Sunday she was paralytic, her ribcage was distended 5x the normal size, she could not walk or eat or anything. Monday got worse, it was so sudden. I was devastated and in denial about it all but I started cooking her rice and salmon and spoiling her like the other poster said. I went to the vet On Tuesday knowing she was done when she could even get her tongue out to taste the salmon in her dish.

I highly recommend taking care of YOURSELF during this time. I was given a holistic remedy to curb my own pain and it worked very well - Ignatia. Get a lot becasue you will eat it every half hour. I gave it to the dog too along with copious amounts of Rescue Remedy and Rimadyl from the vet from her surgery. They are terrified too - they know they are leaving us.

Home will feel so empty when the dog is gone. It will feel terribly empty. I suggest organizing friends to come by as down as you may be to warm the house up with energy. I set up a shrine of sorts to the dog two days after she passed - just out of reflex sort of - I place her photos on our mantle over the fireplace, placed candles around it next to my framed quote from the Tibetan Book of the Dead. Lighting those candles at night next to the paw print they made for her at the vet's office is healing, it brings her in close to us again. My toddler has been having nightmares every night about it. Even though we prepared since the surgery by reading "Dog Heaven" by Cynthia Rylant and praying regularly for the dog. My child kept asking god to glue her leg back on so she could be happy and be herself again.

This is a hard time. give yourself permission to mourn the loss as fully as you would a human loss. The love is a special and irreplaceable thing and I am so sorry for your loss.

Love him with all you got until it's time for him to go. I also told our dog the story of how she came home with me from the pound at six weeks... they love being talked to.

Hugs to you and your family.

[runes]

First of all, hugs to you.

I second Quirky's post regarding having the vet come to your home if possible. We had to make the heartbreaking decision to let our pug, Norman, go. He had a degenerative spinal condition, he was no longer able to walk well. We tried to maximize the last few months of his life by getting him a custom doggie 'wheelchair' for his hindlegs, but once it got to the point where he couldn't go outside and explore and sniff anymore, we knew we had to let him go. The night before we made the decision, I remember Normie looking at me with such big, bright eyes...he knew even before we did and he wanted to let us know that it was ok.

The vet came to our home to administer the shot and we snuggled him and thanked him and sang our silly Normie songs to him as he crossed over. It was a peaceful moment and our vet couldn't have been more compassionate. He gave us a few minutes alone with him to grieve, then he took Normie away to be cremated. We have his ashes downstairs in a beautiful wooden box with some photos around it.

This is such a difficult time and I'm wishing you peace.

PS...Rescue Remedy is wonderful, I took it a lot during this time.

[Isis]

Thank you all.

ernestholmes: I am soooo sorry for your loss. I know how raw your pain is right now. It sounds like you had a fanstastic friend and I know what a loss this is for you. (((hug))) Thank you for your kind words.

Right now, Rusty is doing Ok... I guess. He's getting weaker in the legs and I know it will happen soon- could be a month- could be longer or shorter- there's no real way of telling. He's been much happier lately- he's being spoiled ROTTEN!!

I know this is going to be horribly painful for me but I'm trying to keep positive about it- I know death is inevitable and I know he deserves to go as gently as possible. My dh is looking around for a Vet who will come to the home.