At what point do you put an animal down?

[FIDGAF]

Here's the situation.

I have a 16 year old Shepperd-Malamute mix dog. In Dogie years that's somewhere around 105. He is well loved and lives with 8 cats that he hasn't killed. Obviously a very tolerant, personable dog.

The problem is that he is in pain. You can tell because he doesn't want to go out to the bathroom anymore, eating is "Whatever" at this point. He doesn't make a mess but holds it until one of us (People) Walks out and re-assures him he can make it back up the stairs.

The vet said he might have torn a ligament in his leg but doesn't want to do anything "Exploratory" because of the dog's age. This is a well loved pet and has been part of the family for as long as my daughter has been alive. At what point to you need to make the decision that the animal is suffering and needs relief (IE: put to sleep)?

I'm hoping he can hold on through the holidays and we'll deal with whatever because I feel we owe him that (We always give our animals "Gifts" for Xmas). I'm of the mind that I should try to get him the least-most pain and get him through one last holiday season so he can enjoy being a "Puppy" on last time, including all the fuss that goes with it and then possibly putting him down so he suffers no more pain. And it's GOT to be BAD pain because this dog NEVER has NOT listened to a command until now.

One last season to see the kids and enjoy the family. What's you're take on this? I'm pretty sure this is the way to go but some feedback from other animal lovers would be appreciated.

[Robert Sharp]

I think it's somewhat (SOMEWHAT) subjective. In cases like this, you know the dog better than anyone else. You already gave an example. You have to decide whether it's Quality of Life is worth it. I've had to put a few animals down over the years, and it's VERY hard. But it was a different reason every time. Some of them weren't even old, but they were definitely doomed. Truth is you have to weigh how much longer he will live anyway (2 years tops, statistically speaking) vs. the pain he will feel in the meantime.

[Athryn]

Did the Vet recommend any pain medication? You can get some suppliments (the same kind as for old humans, condroitin and such) that might be able to help.

There are some people that can't bring themselves to put their animals to sleep and let them suffer a lot of pain because they don't know how to let go. I would say that if your pet is truly suffering, and there isn't much that can be done, it's probably time, and it's a terrible, painful decision to have to make.

From a technical side, and I know this from assisting on euthanasia, the process is as pain-free as it can possibly be.

[Robert Sharp]

From a technical side, and I know this from assisting on euthanasia, the process is as pain-free as it can possibly be.

seconded. The animal feels no pain, as far as I can tell. It literally goes to sleep first.

[arctangent]

My wife and I had to have our fifteen year old cat put down - she was in pain and got to the point where she could not walk up and down the stairs. It was a very difficult decision to make. We were there with her when the vet euthanised her. She's buried in the back yard under a tree.

You will feel very very bad when you have your dog euthanised. I don't think it's something you can prepare yourself for in advance. You just have to hurt for a while.

[christopher]

The vet said he might have torn a ligament in his leg but doesn't want to do anything "Exploratory" because of the dog's age.

Why don't you just have the vet put the dog under and check the leg anyway? If it dies on the table, isn't that the equivalent of putting it to sleep, which you're thinking of doing anyway? At least this way it has a chance of getting better, even if it's remote.

[Athryn]

Why don't you just have the vet put the dog under and check the leg anyway? If it dies on the table, isn't that the equivalent of putting it to sleep, which you're thinking of doing anyway? At least this way it has a chance of getting better, even if it's remote.

No, the anesthesia used to put an animal under is a much different process, and would be a more traumatic death than euthanasia.

[bloo]

I don't know if it is possible, but MRI's diagnose torn ligaments very well, without any cutting. You'd probably have to use one of the "open MRI" places, and maybe sedate the dog, that I would think those are hurdles that be overcome.

Vet's are hesitant to put old animals under. I had a 16 year old cat my vet was worried wouldn't make it though an eye removal (his eye asploded - well, it was trying to anyway - he did get a bitchin' stitch scar where his eye used to be though).

[FIDGAF]

He is on some medication already. What I'm thinking is to try to get him something for the pain and see if he shows any sign of healing. The vet said that he's afraid that he's too old to put under at this point and would possibly expire.

We did discuss the possibility that one of the family members might be able to contain him long enough for an MRI but the problem is that he can't move while they're scanning him. That might be harder than possible. Even if they do find out what he did to himself, there's the concern over his age that might make fixing it unrealistic.

He's a tough dog but we're trying to measure out what's fair for him at this point. It's hard to make that decision because he's so simple to please. Just sitting with and petting him for 5 minutes makes his week. I don't want to make a decision prematurely so I've been checking out other options for him. I also don't think it's fair to make an animal suffer either so I'm trying to weight quality of life vs. pain. It's hard to tell just how bad he's feeling because once he gets moving he seems OK for a while.

Thanks for everyone that posted and shared.

[Houngan]

It's tough, I had to put down my parent's dog recently, which was around the same age.

I think there's two big things at work:

1. You know your dog, and you are convinced he's in pretty bad pain.

2. At 16, he doesn't have much to look forward to. I just don't see him getting "better", and at worst, he'll be in much more pain for the days or weeks after surgery until you decide to get it over with.

Obviously you shouldn't put him down if he's got some more quality living left to do, but from what you've said, that's very unlikely.

H.

p.s. My parent's dog was considerably worse off than yours, wouldn't eat or move for several days in a row, after weeks of general pain, biting my father, malaise, etc. Sorry you don't have an easier decision.

[bloo]

All I can say is I had the same risk with my cat, but it was easier because we knew the source of the pain for certain. So avoiding the surgery was no option.

It's a tough call. Best wishes for your dog and family.

[Lunch of Kong]

http://photo.net/samantha/samantha-I

[ElGuapo]

How come we put animals that we love down, but not humans?

[Lunch of Kong]

P&R, Guapo.

[FIDGAF]

Strangely so, after taking him to the vet, he gave him a shot of cortisone, sent him home with pills and asked us to call him tomorrow. He's thinking of taking some X-rays so we can get a clue as to what's hurting the guy but he's suspecting he's got arthritis of the hips now.

So his take on the situation is "Let's give it a few days and see how he's doing".

As far as quality of life goes:
He's got it like a king. He gets fed, the cats clean him like royalty even though HE thinks he's low cat on the totem pole, he gets our leftovers & the holidays are approaching. I think if I could ask him, he'd say "No, not yet, a little longer".

I'm trying to get him relief for his short-term pain for now because I know one day I'm going to come downstairs and he's going to be gone. It's simply a matter of time, but this isn't what's going to kill him. He's lived through Heart worm and the associated treatment (arsenic the dog until almost dead, no worms left), Raccoon fights, dog fights, Mailmen spraying him with mace, he fell in the creek chasing a ground hog and I had to rescue his dumb ass before he got washed away, etc.

He's a tough little fucker and isn't going down that easy, hence my hesitation. It seems like a shame, after everything he's gone through for his humans to put him down. I guess we wait and see what the vet thinks after the x-rays at this point.

[Robert Sharp]

How come we put animals that we love down, but not humans?

We do that too, but thanks for being profound.

[Andrew Mayer]

How come we put animals that we love down, but not humans?

We have to make a lot of decisions for our animals that we don't make for our human companions.

At least I do.

[Athryn]

http://photo.net/samantha/samantha-I

Reading that link makes me feel both lucky and unlucky about the way I lost my cat earlier this year.

He was perfectly fine, seemed healthy as an ox, but he was old, about 14, I think. I was at home, doing something, and went into the bedroom to visit the cats.

He was sprawled on his back on the bed, looking really comfortable. I went to pet him and realised he was completely limp as no living thing is.

I panicked, and in denial rushed him to the emergency vet hospital, hoping that he might still be alive. I swear I heard a heartbeat when I checked him, but looking back I don't think it was the case.

Vet clinics see this kind of thing, so I think they knew what what happening when I rushed in, crying that he wasn't breathing. They took him back in, and a few minutes later, brought me into an exam room, where they told me it was pretty likely he died of a stroke or heart attack due to his age.

Heh, I thought I was over it, but just writing this out brought me to tears.

He was an awesome kitty, he was there for me when no human was able to give me comfort, through breakups and divorce. He just knew when I was sad, and knew how to cheer me up, galloping around the house like a little pony on crack. It was just such a shock to see him go like that.

But I guess I was lucky that I was spared any kind of long, drawn out illness. But I always feel so unlucky because he was still so alive and vibrant, even at 14.

[JoshV]

My vote is for the painkillers. If its that or putting him down, definitely painkillers. Though keep in mind alot of the stronger pain killers are going to slowly kill him, as they are hell on the liver. My dog had arthritis issues, gave her painkillers for it, she seemed happy and ok for quite some time, and then suddenly, she couldn't get up anymore and was in massive pain. Was really the only we could do at that point, putting her down.

[FIDGAF]

I'm thinking that's about how it's going to end up.

Cats: I lost the only cat that I was actually able to train to a massive heart attack at his age 5. Strange things happen. It was so sudden I had them do an autopsy to make sure it was a natural death.

[Euri]

The dog doesn't know why it is experiencing pain. If you can alleviate it, let the little guy be with you during the holidays. If you can't alleviate the pain, let him go. All he'll understand is pain, and that's no good for anyone.

[FIDGAF]

He understands a dog biscuit too. Attention, affection, etc. A dog needs a job and his is guarding the house. Since he's been on steroids he seems to be doing well. Well enough in fact that he chased a raccoon off the porch and ran down the stairs that he normally limps down.

Hmmm, I wonder if I'm getting played here...
;)

[Athryn]

Cortizone does some amazing things, but it doesnt last, and isn't very good for you in the long run. My mum used to get shots in her knees before she got her knee replaced, and she could practically dance a jig with that stuff.