Is it all right to put down a dog when it's old and feeble?

golok

golok

Joined
Oct 20, 2000
Messages
4,453
Some dog owners put down their dogs when they have reached an age where they are unable to fend for themselves, meaning they are very old and feeble.

Of course, it is of course always done with a heavy heart because that old friend had spent many good years with his best pal the owner. But it really breaks one's heart to see an old dog struggle to walk or just to eat.

Is it usually done at a time when that old canine friend just want to sleep and not do anything? :( :(
 
All of my 4-legged friends have reached old age relatively free of any medical problems, but near the end it's been cancer, kidney problems or liver problems that have affected their quality of living. As long as they are pain free and enjoy taking the walk around the block (maybe not quite that far), have an appetite and seem to enjoy my company we carry on. It's when they won't eat or drink that the time is near to make that last trip to the vet & make one of the hardest decisions of your life.
 
When I worked at a vet clinic, we had these clients with a mini-dachsund that was like a child. Both husband and wife loved this little dog and had had him for years. As he aged, he started to develop back problems (common in dachsunds) that would have him lying on the floor unable to walk if he got out of his doggie-bed wrong. Every time this would happen, they would bring him in and we'd give him pain killers and muscle relaxers to make him comfortable until his back healed up, until finally, after MONTHS of this, they decided that he was just too old. Of course, we at the clinic new this for longer, but the "parents" just couldn't let go. I still remember the husband weeping on the front porch of the clinic after we did what needed to be done.

Yes, it's a very hard decision, but if the dog is in more pain and misery than happiness, it's definitely time to do it.
 
my old dog Taun Taun, was about 15 years old when she could no longer stand up and she started to freeze down to spots in the yard as winter came.

I knew it was time....

My wife and I washed her sleeping blanket, and loaded her into the car.

took her to the vet.

there we were met by two girls , very young, who took my dog and i back to a little room where I placed the blanket down and set Taun Taun down on.

they shave a small area on my dogs leg,,,they gave a shot....I bet the two girls did this all the time...yet I noticed both girls started to cry.

my dog looked at me one last time, then she closed her eyes and went to sleep.

____________________________________________

Haveing a dog is fun,,,its a blessing....but always part of the duty of haveing a dog at the start is the duty at the ending...I wish my dog could live forever...I wish someone else had taken the duty from me of looking into my dogs eyes that last time...

But this is what being the master of a great dog means...

They look to us for love and leadership and protection...and in the last moments of their lives they know that have found what they hoped from us...
 
It is a hard thing to do. I've put down both dogs and cats with my .22 to the top of the skull. I think as a pet owner, it's good to be the one doing the final act of kindness, especially if the animal has been suffering. I consider it a responsibility, but it's never easy.
 
I treat my dog like a member of my family. If she is unable to enjoy life and has no chance of it...I will indeed put her down and make it as gentle as possible. If she can hang around and still be happy then I will let her sleep in my bed until she can no longer jump up there.
 
Very heavy thread.....
I have thought about this before. We have a White American Shepherd named Pagan. She is still a youngster but recently was hit by a truck. I think her youth saved her, but not her tail. She is recovering completely in body and spirit (sweetest dog youve ever seen!) It did make me think though because if she had been damaged bad enough I would have had to put her down. I dont think we wouldve had the money to have the vet do it so It might have had to be a quick shot in the head. Im not trying to be macho or rude but I dont know any quicker more humane way do take care of it yourself. Im glad I didnt have to do this!
Is this even legal? I think a .22 or .22magnum would be the way to go but will this do the job properly? Anything bigger well.... I think we all understand why that might result in unpleasantness :(

Golok, its not your Pet is it? I sincerely hope not!!!!
 
Runsalone said:
Very heavy thread.....
I have thought about this before. ...I dont think we wouldve had the money to have the vet do it so It might have had to be a quick shot in the head.
Click to expand...

Believe me, I hear what you're saying but it wouldn't '...be a quick shot in the head.' That one shot will last you a lifetime of feeling guilty even though you put your 4-legged friend out of his suffering & misery. Hoping you never have to face that situation.
 
I've taken out things with a head shot and watched them flop around and wretch till they gave up the ghost... every one of em deserved it, but as for a loved pet, I'd put in the overtime and give them a nice, calm final moment. I'd sell a knife or a watch, borrow, or even beg it.

I don't judge the shot to the head... but not for my dog...
 
I have had the misfortune of doing both, Vet and bullet. People are quick to forget that you must do what is best for your pet, not yourself. Always difficult to know whether and when it is right to take the life of a close companion, the will to live is a powerful thing and carries a pet through terrible suffering. Loving and caring for a pet includes relieving him of his suffering when there is no hope.

If you can get a vet to do a house call, as they used to do, so much the better for your dog to go in surroundings he knows, our collie cross everything was fortunate to go this way. Some time after that my one elderly collie just refused to go to the vet so we heaved her into the car and she died on the table with a look of betrayal. The bullet, some time later was better, when my last dog, immobile from arthritis and a host of other problems, was sleeping on painkillers. We had left it too long for another, even last, painful trip to the vet. He was gone with only a flinch.

Three absolutely wonderful dogs, they grew up with me, slept on my bed and nicked my supper. The bullet lives with me as something that I had to do then and there, my guilt was that I should have gone to the vet earlier but I wasn’t strong enough for another look of betrayal and the pain that his last trip would cause.
 
well....heres the deal with putting a pet down by yourself.

You got to be ready to see a pet you love so dearly, die in a very inexpected way...and it might be hard to see, and there is a worse-case side to this too...

I worked for a boss who had to take his old hunting dog out to the farm to shoot it with his 22 rimfire.

he dug a grave for the dog, he lowered the old dog into the grave, said goodby and shot......5 times?

turns out that sometimes due to unknown factors , a simple shooting of a old pet can turn into a nightmare.....something that my boss found hard to live with at times...

he had to shoot his dearly loved pet 5 times before it went down....

this is very out of the norm,,,,most of the time this will not happen, but you have to be ready for when this does happen. Thats why you try to be very carefull with the first shot, because you know what a Nightmare this could turn into if your first shot is in error.


I took my pet to the vet, the end result was the same. but I am able to live with how things went with more ease than my boss can now after what happend to him and his pet..


The key is to remember that you love your pet, and your pet looks to you for some strong leadership now at this time of ending. Your pet trusts your heart, your pet trusts your love... If you have decided that the time has come for your pet to be put down, then your pet will trust this as well.

If you are able to do this ending by yourself, and understand the care you must take to make sure that the ending is as the ending should be.. Then be carefull in what you do,,,,Dont guess,,,,KNOW what you are going to do, dont let your mind be sidetracked into other things...Pay attention,,,you have to do this last one thing for your pet without error....your pet is counting on your love as well as your aim.


This is all part of the duty we share as the masters of our pets,,,,.
 
I had to put down my pet python two weeks ago.

He had been starved and abused by a prior owner. His health was never the best, but I cared for him well, and he grew and got bigger when I had him.

He developed a malignant tumor, refused to eat and was loosing weight very fast. His skin had become loose and scales were flaking off.

I took him to the Mill Creek ridgeline near the Hidden Springs Cafe and sliced off his head with a bolo. He died very quick.

I am still sad, but he had a good two years with me.


Chris
 
HAving gone through this several months ago, I fully agree that strong leadership and decisivesness is the key. IMO, people wait a little to long sometimes.

IMO a .22 is too small to do the job effectively.
 
One of our local rural SPCA's got into trouble for using .22's several years ago. After an official complaint was filed, a committee recomended the use of a shotgun. Having had a dog put down at a vet, I will avoid the trauma next time,( dogs know that the vet isn't a fun place) and take my dog for a short last walk in the woods she loves.
 
I worked at an SPCA for 5 years and was provincially certified to perform animal euthanasia. I used both Sodium Pentobarbitol and the venerable .22 on animals ranging from squirrels all the way up to very large, city-fed deer. While the needle may seem more humane since it's calmer and not bloody, I found most dogs were MORE frightened and stressed when being put down that way. They have to be held, shaved, and properly injected (not always a sure thing). The bullet is messy and disturbing for the viewer, but it's fast and effective. Our SPCA considered it a humane method, and my experience supported that conclusion. I disagree that a shotgun is better than the .22. I killed literally scores of deer with the .22 and never needed to use a second shot, because the .22 will do the job if put in the right place. I also saw nervous police officers empty their sidearm into a deer, or put several shotgun blasts into deer, failing to kill it. It's all about knowing what you're doing....and have no doubt, the .22 will do the job very effectively...
 
I had to put many animals to sleep myself when I was younger because my father was too chickens**t to do it himself, and we were too poor to go to the vet--dogs, cats, poultry, you name it. It left me in tears several times. Never an easy task, but sometimes it's necessary because an animal is suffering.

My wife and I own one cat, and she is 14 or 15 now. I hope she just passes away in her sleep someday. I can't bear the thought of taking her to the vet and having her put to sleep if/when the time comes, but on the other hand, I definitely won't be doing it myself this time. It would kill me. That stupid cat is like a child to my wife and me.

--Josh
 
i may have to address this in a few years. i plan to take Caille (the dog) to the vet and hold her while they euthenize her.

my father took pity on his old bird dog (long time hunting companion) when he got massive seizures and his teeth hurt too much to eat. he gave him some aspirin for the tooth pain and gave him a steak. then a .45 to the back of the head. there are still flowers where he was buried in the yard (13 years ago).

M
 
Killing a long time friend and family member would be one of the toughest things for me to do. I've yet to do the deed because those that were old enough to die, did so in their sleep.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top