How to Decide When to Put Your Dog to Sleep?
88Elderly Dogs
It is one of the hardest decisions that pet owners can make- when is the right time to put your dog (or other pet) to sleep. Because our dogs become part of the family, when they start to age and show signs of age, it can be very hard to decide when it is time to let them go.
If you have an elderly dog, you are probably taking all precautions already to caring for your older dog, but if you need a little help, you can check out Caring for an Elderly and Aging Dog for more tips for caring for an elderly dog.
It is a very hard decision to make, especially since out dogs become part of the family. We play with them, exercise them, train them, feed them, and in many cases sleep with them. Face it, we spend A LOT of time with our dogs, so when the time comes when you notice that you older dog just doesn’t have the same spunk as he used to, it may be time to start thinking about the one subject that no dog owner wants to touch until the last minute…
Euthanasia…
Thinking about putting your dog to sleep
If you think about your dog’s wants and wellbeing, ask yourself what does he want?
The answer is actually pretty simple. Your dog wants fun, love, attention, and good health… That means no pain or suffering… Which is pretty much what we want ourselves.
When your dog's quality of life suffers, then you should start thinking about what you're going to do.
There is no set time or limit or one-for-all decision that everyone can make as to when to put the dog to sleep. It is by individual situation and opinion as to when that time is. So, I cannot tell you that today is the day that you put your 13 year old dog to sleep just because he’s 13 because what if he still runs around and barks at strangers and begs to be pet and loved on? Now, that doesn’t sound like a dog that is ready to be put down.
But, we all know when it is time. It is just something that we do not want to have to face when it is that time.
How is it done?
Euthanasia is a very simple and pain free process. You can opt to have your dog put to sleep at the vet, or in many cases, the vet will be willing to come to your home to do it in your dog’s surroundings.
Most vet’s give the dog a shot of barbiturate, or another sedative, to relax the dog and put him unconscious, and then the vet or vet tech will give the dog another shot to actually put the dog to sleep and to stop his heart.
Not all dogs react the same. You will find that dogs with poor circulation may take a little long for the drugs to take into effect, and with some dogs, it may take a little longer for the muscle twitches to stop. In these cases, do not be alarmed or upset thinking that you have made the wrong choice. You dog is not fighting to stay alive, he is already fully unconscious.
Help Dealing with the Grief
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Dealing with the grief of putting your dog to sleep
When dealing with the grief of losing a pet, there are many different means of coping. A few tips can include the following:
- If you know that your older dog is going to need to be put to sleep in the near future, go ahead and get another puppy. This will help you with the emotional pain when your older dog is gone.
- Go ahead and make plans, as to when you will put your dog to sleep (if you know that he is getting worse), where you will put your dog to sleep (the vet or at home), and what you will do with his body (leave at the vet, bury, cremation, etc). This will help with the coping process, having everything pre-planned
- Have someone go with you when you take the dog to the vet, or have someone with you when the vet comes to your home, so that you have someone that you can be with during and after the process.
- And, when the vet or vet tech is preparing your dog, just be with him. Hold him, stroke him, talk to him. This will help you and it will calm him.
If you want more tips, you can check out this hub about Dealing With The Loss of A Pet
Putting Your Dog Down
Many people want to let God take over and decide when is the right time to let the dog pass on, but if you think about it, we have already pretended to be God by preventing all sorts of “natural” diseases and illnesses with regular shots, pills, and other medications. So is it fair to let out beloved pets live in possible pain and agony while we wait for God to take over?
I am not saying that everyone should go out and put their dog to sleep at the first sign of old age, but I believe that there is a point in every dog’s life that if he is suffering, it’s time to let him go.
You don’t want to keep the dog alive and in pain for your own benefit and selfishness. You want to think of what lifestyle your dog is currently having. If he is not happy, sick, and suffering, I’m sorry to be blunt, but it’s time…
Comments
My beloved dog Kona, developed a limp a week ago and I took him to the Vet today for a check up and he was diagnosed with Bone Cancer. First, I couldn't believe what the vet just said and I bursted in tears but then I held myself togather as she showed me the xrays and explained me his situation. He is not in a bad condition at all but after reading a lot about Canine Osteosarcoma, it only seems that his condition will get worse as time passes. I have decided that I will not let him suffer but at the same time I don't wish to lose him sooner. I don't know when will be the right time to make that decision but I know it has to be made sooner than later.
I posted earlier about my boxer. His name was Bugz. I had him put to sleep today at 3:45pm. I feel lost and empty without him by my side. The vet said I was doing the right thing. He said he had cancer and joint disease and was in pain. He said he held on this long because he wasn't sure I would be all right. He went easily and seemed to be at peace. I am just having a really hard time being without him. I had him for 12 years. He was 14 years old. I just miss him so much. Thanks for listening.
I have decided to have ny beloved boxer put to sleep today.He has been by my side for 12 years. I love him so much. He has trouble walking and constantly loses control of his bowels. This is one of the hardest things I have ever had to do. I will miss my best friend forever. No dog or person could ever replace the friend he has been to me.I will always miss him.
I have a 2 1/2 yr old min. schnauzer who I love deeply. 6 mths ago she developed KCS dry eye..absolutely no tears and also little saliva so she is not a candidate for surgery. Her eyes are ulcerated and now, cloudy. A week ago she started urinating blood and she needed emergency surgery to get stones out. Best I can tell, she is going to be in pain with her eyes for the rest of her life and possibly repeated bladder problems. Really don't know what to do. She still eats well, is happy to see us come home, sleep cuddgled up to us and plays occasionally. Such a difficult decision. Really don't know what to do.
My dog is a rotty mix. He is 14 years old. He has bad arthiritis and can barely walk. His appetite has recently decreased, although he still gets excited when we offer him table food. He sometimes whines and can barely get up. I'm having a extremely difficult time deciding on whether it is time or not. Help!
to mssbuckley: I don't have an answer for you, but wanted to share in your dilemma. Our shitzu is 14. She is blind, deaf, incontinent, has bulging red eyes, a badly curved spine. She wanders and walks in circles when she is awake. She sleeps most of the time, and wakes to poop or pee and eat. She wants to eat and drink a lot. The vet's advice was that you know the time has come when they stop eating. But my dog has a strong appetite. She is quite pathetic otherwise. Does not seem to be in acute pain, but what quality of life does she have? I'm told the wandering/pacing is a sign of senility. I wonder if she's suffering in silence. I hope someone more knowledgeable can help us both come to a decision.
My dog had a heart attack tuesday morning, and by noon the vet told us she couldn't feel anything from her neck down :C ... they gave her medicine because she was in pain. her body wasn;t responding any more and they had to put her to sleep :(. Is just sooo hard, she was literally like my lil sister. though she was 13 years old I just can't get over the fact that she is gone. I didnt get to say good bye. All I can say is that love and enjoy your dog as much as possible.
I have a 13 year old Lab with tumors all over her body, and now my other labs are picking fights with her. How do you know that is time, she is very skinny but still demands her dinner, wants attention and can still make it up on the sofa. My heart is breaking because I can't do what is right for her.
had my dog put to sleep today it was horrible, cant stop crying, vet said his kidneys had stopped working and he was suffering, only thing is when the time came he cryed and tryed to get away i now feel so guilty i cant sleep or eat. why did he do this? he couldnt even walk or hardly lift himself i hate the thought that he was afraid i held he and tryed to calm him feel so horrible.
I really appeciated this article although I am still unsure about what to do. We adopted an 11 year old Cairn Terrier in May, after her owner went into hospice care. We knew she was special needs at the start (she has had a lifelong eye condition), but since the weather has gotten colder she just seems to being going downhill. She can't see well or hear and
is becoming incontinent as well. She gets up in the night and wanders around and when I go to see her, she is so dioriented and upset that I can't seem to do anything to help her settle down. She is so sweet and does occasionally still get playful, but she sleeps the better part of most days and just does not seem to have any spunk left. Because we've had her such a short time, I don't feel qualified to make this decision... I didn't realize it would come so soon. She has become grumpy and has occasionally snapped at us in her confusion, which she never did when she could still see some. I think maybe it is time, but I am torn.
Dave Thank you- your comments really said it all,its been 1 week since my husband and I had to put our dog to rest and it was and always will be one of the hardest things I have ever had to do,She was a large dog that loved laying in doorways so I still catch myself stepping over her or watching my footing so not to trip over her and I still go to the door to let her in or out.Our home seems empty now, But for now I cant imagine having another pet. I was with her at the time of her passing and as hard as it was I know that I could not let her go without being by her side like she has been by mine for 13 years. I miss talking to her the most, I know we made the right decision for her. Like I had stated earlier she deserves peace
READING THIS KILLS ME, i HAVE A MIXED BREED ( SHELTIE /IRISH SETTER WHO HAS BEEN WITH ME SINCE I RECUED HIM IN 1992 AS A YOUNG PUP..HE IS DEAF, BLIND, GETS DIMENTIA..BUT OTHER DAYS HE IS 100 PERCENT FINE..EVEN PERKY, YET THE NEXT DAY HE WILL SLEEP 18 HOURS..HE IS DOWN TO ONLY EATING ABOUT A HALF CUP OF FOOD A DAY , AND LUCKILY THE BRUTUS BOXERS ( I LOVE THEM ) LEAVE HIM ALONE AND REALIZE HE IS THE HEAD OF THE PACK, EVEN THOUGH HE IS NOT EVEN 27 POUNDS ANYMORE AND THEY ARE ALL OVER 100 POUNDS..
THIS MAKES ME REALIZE I HAVE HAD HIM FOR 17 YEARS, HE DOESNT PLAY ANYMORE, BUT HE IS STILL LOYAL TO ME AND IN RELATIVLY GOOD HEALTH, BESIDES THE EVER INCREASING DIMENTIA AND THE HORRIBLE THING OF LOSING HIS BALANCE, WALKING INTO WALLS, AND FALLING FREQUENTLY.
I KNOW THE TIME IS OMING, BUT I HAVE HAS HIM SINCE I WAS A TEEN AND IM IN MY MID 30'S NOW...
WHAT TO DO, WHAT TO DO..
IT BOTHERS ME DAILY
.......... It seems when 'it's time' your heart will still try to convince you 'it's not'. I am 61 and since being a little boy, our family has always been a dog family, sometimes two dogs at a time. Dogs are by all means family members in this family's households. And we have always keep the dogs health concerns at a level with our own. A responsibility we felt could never be compromised. When we accept a pet into the family, we felt a God demanded responsibility to care for that animal as best we could...
and we always have.
In those years, I have had to put many of my animal 'children' down, both dogs and cats.
Sadly, today I had to put our 14 year old rottie-lab mix down. This was extremelty and especially difficult this time around. You see, she was the pet of my adult daughter Tami who lived at home we us...... she was divorced, had no children and moved home with us several years ago.
Unfortunately.... she was very sick ... and she died.... literally in my arms as I held her..... earlier in the year. One of the last things she said was... "Please take care of Autumn for me, dad..."
Today, 9 months later, may have been the second most horrible day of my life...........
Autumn was a living link to our lost daughter.... and it hurts very,very, very bad now..... Tonight when its time for Autumns ritual routies..... wow, it's going to be tough.
You see, all must remember, there is a time for all things under the sun.... and one is when it is the kind and loving thing... to 'let your pet go'. Believe me... I had plenty of selfish reasons not to go through with it today.. plenty of them.. however the poor animal also suffered many health issues.
But Autumn gave me, my wife, my other kids, my grandkids and most importantly my late daughter so much love in life..... It was the only loving thing I could do for the dog.
.........Sooooo Please, dont ever let your own emotions or selfish desires stop you from doing the right thing. Letting them go is the final act of love you can give back to a 'family' member for all the love they gave you in their lifetime.
My heart feels for all who must go through this ordeal in life.
Peace to you all, tom takacs
God Bless all of you loving and brave people who have enjoyed the love that only an animal can give you and have had to put them to sleep. That is the single most painful thing, a feeling of what if I did this, or that, would he/she lived longer? Stop making yourself crazy, if you think you should end your dog's life on earth and your vet shares your feelings, then it should be done, without regret, but rather with love, compassion and tenderness. It's the last gift you can give your suffering four legged love of your life. Love to you to all. PEACE.
I think this may help: A dog who only knows his beloved owner goes blind and there is nobody there to explain what has happened. He or she sees darkness and is confused & does not know what has happened to the world. He or she tries to get out of bed only to feel a sharp pain in his back & legs and is unable to tell you how much pain they are in. Food does not taste good and they cannot play. They live in a dark world, in extreme pain, cannot get of bed or walk,& this goes on for months, years. There is no book or tv or someone to talk to, to distract them from this misery. Then one day, his or her most loving companion gently pets him & your dog understands that his companion understands the pain he or she is feeling and that he will make the pain go away. Your dog wants to thank you for this unselfish act on your part. It is time to go for now to dog heaven until they meet again one day and this time it will be for eternity.
If he can see out of one eye, can walk without pain, and still wags his tail when he sees you (a sign that he is still alert and happy), then I would wait. As soon as he is blind and/or cannot walk (where you have to pick him up to relieve himself), that would be the time to give him your biggest act of love (letting him go to dog heaven). I know this from my personal experience and as I always say, when it is his time to go, be sure you are with him when they put him to sleep - I did this for my dog no matter how painful it was to do this but you will regret not being for your dog at his last moment (for owners on this blog who say it was too painful to be there and chose not to be with their dog, I am sure they will regret that). Dave
Thank you to everyone sharing their positions and thoughts on this. My American Eskimo is only 6. She started having seizures 4 months ago. At first they put her on phenobarb. But about six-seven weeks later, she had a long week of several seizures a day. After more extensive testing they determined it was "just" epilepsy (not the brain tumor or cancer we feared). She was put on more meds and sent home. She did great on the meds for five weeks. Then, this weekend, she had 29 seizures in 46 hours. Although, we know that there may be long periods of time when she will be seizure free, they seizures become more intense and with more side effects each time she goes through them. After discussing putting her on more meds, our family decided we could not continue to put her through this each time. Because there are additional meds available, it was very hard to make the decision. We just don't feel like we can continue to put her through this distress. We are also feeling very guilty because we don't want to continue putting ourselves and our kids through this every time she goes through this. It has helped me have peace of mind to read your comments. We are scheduled to have her put to sleep tomorrow.
i know my dog deserves so much more than this she has given me her whole heart and soul. i know she is pain because she
cries alot lately.she has a hard time moving about she is a 13year old shepherd mix,we have decide today go forward a give her the peace and painfree lives she deserves. i dont know one single person who would want to lay in their beds and stuff in pain. even if it meant dying at home of old age.
I am sorry to those who dont believe in euthasia but what if it was you who was in so much pain and there was nothing you could do about it. give them their peace they deserve. i love my dog with all my heart and will miss with my whole being.
Hello,
I came on this site to help me in realizing that my husband and I are making the "right" decision in regards to our 11.5 yr.old Golden Retriever. She has been struggling with a debilitating skin disorder for the past year and a half. We made the decision last night and have an appt. to bring her in to the vet this afternoon. I really do not know how I am going to "get through" this. We've had her since she was 2 and I don't mean to sound cliche, but she has been the absolute BEST dog anyone could ever have. Intellectually I know that I am doing something that will end her suffering and bring her peace, but in my heart/emotionally I cannot let go. It's just too sad. Thank you for listening and hopefully sharing my story of our beloved Shelby with all of you will help me through this process- thanks for listening.
dmarla says:
2 hours ago
We put our beloved dog Lilly down 3 days ago. She was suffering from AIHA and after a month the vet said it was time. We had Lilly for 12 years and our family is heartbroken. She was so sweet and we all miss her so much. Hopefully, time will heal the hole in our hearts.