Current Events > Has anyone ever had to euthanize a beloved pet before?

(+) Yeah! (+)

Im really not sure I can do it :(

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yes. old toy poodle. he had always had a heart problem, but near the end he couldn't really overexert himself without developing a wheeze. then one day it got to the point where he couldn't get up without wheezing, he had no energy to move and he couldn't catch his breath. in the end the choice wasn't hard at all.

its sad, you love your pet but you know sometimes that its easier to help them go instead of making them suffer.

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Yes it's beautiful in a way, you see them totally relax and enjoy their sleep in your arms, pain free. It's also a major moment in their life so it's great to be there with them

Also horribly sad, but I found it helped me grieve

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Several times in my life but most recently back in March.

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Yep. Koko, who was with me close to 20 years. I held her head in my hand and put my head on hers so I didn't see anything. Just held her, told her I loved her, cried and kissed her a bunch until it was over

It was incredibly hard but.. it was her time. Don't let your fuzzies suffer

I've had to do it for other fuzzies as well, but Koko hit me extremely hard and it was the first time I had cried in years

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SerperiorThanU posted...

My 11 year old toy poodle has been wheezing every time he got excited for at least 4 years now. He's never had any other physical problems though and is still very bouncy and excitable. Our checkups with the Vets have never indicated any problems with him. Is this something I should worry about?

i honestly couldn't tell you. mine had a heart murmur from birth and it caused some of his issues later on in life, but beyond that he ended up with odd tumor problems.

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I wish I didn't see this topic. I just had to euthanize my 18 year old dog 4 days ago. I'm still upset over Tanner. https://imgur.com/EHJ2w9e
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One time. It was top 2 saddest moments in my life putting my childhood dog to sleep while holding her in my arms. Shes was 16 with arthritis and by the end she couldnt get up anymore or control her bowel and bladder. Its okay to cry. The vet leaves the room if requested to give you a good 10-15 mins to say good bye and again after its done.

Other saddest incident was coming home from a work weekend out of town to find my male cat frozen solid under my bed from a packed bladder. Had to carry him to my car and into the vet to have him cremated. I still regret not being home to catch it in time and idc how much it would have cost me to either save him if possible or have the chance to be there to at least put him to sleep.

Its not going to be easy, but its normal to grieve. You got this, TC.

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It's absolutely heartbreaking to experience, but you don't want them suffering just because you want them around. If you really know your pets, you'll know when it's time and you really don't want to wait too long at that point. Hold them tight and let them feel love - and smell you - in their last moments.

My family had our 8 year old black lab with hip dysplasia put to sleep over 10 years ago. We had his condition managed for the most part until he injured his hip in an accident, and his hip simply hurt too much for him to be able to get up.

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10 year old cat. couldn't let her suffer anymore (she was close to death's door). abdominal tumor was killing her. they could've removed the fluid and bought a week or two longer but it would bring more suffering.

had to put her to sleep.
she lived 9 years with me.

couldn't tame the outside out of her.
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Yes, more that one time, and it is one of the worst experiences I ever had. On the other hand, if your doggy really needs it, you help them leave peacefully.

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JOSGABRIEL posted...

Yes, more that one time, and it is one of the worst experiences I ever had. On the other hand, if your doggy really needs it, you help them leave peacefully.

10 year old dog. maximum is 12-15. i'm hopefully can get a year or two more with her.
her birthday will be in january.
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I've lost many pets but currently my cat I have now is the first pet I ever had after moving out on my own. So he is more mine than any pet in my life. I honestly don't know how I will handle it when it's time. But I hope it's still many years away

I have never stayed in the room. I kinda regret that. I dont think I can avoid it this time. It would be horrible to leave him alone with the vet. I'm going to have to stay. But it might be the hardest thing I ever do

Yeah, I brought my cat Louis to the vet for the last time. He was 15 at the time, and had been sick for a while: he struggled to keep food down and was rapidly deteriorating. My sister came to help me. I remember just before we left, he was walking around and soundly stopped, crouched down, and cried out, like he was in pain. I just pet him and told him it would be ok. Me and my sister didn't even have to try and collect him: he went right over to her when she came in, and we slipped him into the carrier without incident. I drove him.
The vet was concerned, examined him, and took him for a x-ray. They found a bunch of fluid in his chest, tapped that, gave him oxygen, and found a mass in his abdomen. She stopped, and then very quietly broached putting him to sleep, since he was already so ill he wouldn't make it. I knew that was coming, but it still hurt.
They had a side-room for it. We got to visit with him a for a bit before. He was feeling good from getting the fluid drained and get some oxygen. He was very curious and happy to see us. When it was time, the vet and a tech came in. Louis didn't struggle. We pet him and told him we loved him the entire time. He left peacefully. We were allowed to stay as long as we needed to collect ourselves, but the drive home was rough, not going to lie.
But it's our duty to our pets to care for them, and when we can't do that, when we can no longer take away their suffering and their quality of life is poor, we owe it to them give them a swift, painless end to it. I would do it again if I had to.

A bit off-topic, but typing that last part made me cry. Messy cry! I didn't cry at the time: my tears now are a blessing of my transition.

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My gf and I have had to put the first 2 dogs we've had together down. First one was a 3-legged black lab she rescued from the pound. I was not happy when she brought him home but after a month or so he liked me 10x more than her and he kinda became my buddy. We moved from Ohio, to Maryland, to Iowa with him. Then in the span of about a week and a half he went from seemingly perfectly fine to complete and total liver and kidney failure. That hit me really hard.

Second one was her baby, a bulldog she'd had since we first started dating. We had just got a puppy since he finally was over losing his tripod buddy from above, things were good. Then he started bloating up with fluids. One night when she was out of state I took him to the emergency vet, found out that it was not good. She got back, we spent a couple days together, then she took him to the normal vet. After tests they basically said he could go at any time, had a hole in his heart. That dog and I didn't get along for so many years but I miss him a lot, she took that one really hard but at least we knew it was going to come soonish and wasn't a total surprise.

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Yes, twice.

It fucking sucks.

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I held my sweet Blissenobiarella in my arms while they gave her the shot. Fucking heartbreaking.

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Its not easy, but just know you are making the best choice for them. True love is to not let them suffer anymore.

My dog is blind and deaf and sleeps all day. Otherwise she's in good health. Just waiting for that time I guess. Probably do it once she can't make it up or down stairs anymore. It's weird how fast the last few years ago. It's like one year she's running and catching frisbee, then bam.

-Unowninator- posted...

I wish I didn't see this topic. I just had to euthanize my 18 year old dog 4 days ago. I'm still upset over Tanner. https://imgur.com/EHJ2w9e

dude im sorry 4 ur loss, but try not 2 be 2 sad becuz if she lived 2 be 18 that means u were a really good owner and probably gave her a happy life

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My sister's 13-year-old dog was euthanized back in 2014, but by that point, he was already having health issues for a while and she was already planning to have him put down. But then his health took a sudden downturn and she ended up doing it sooner than planned.

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I was taking my dog to be euthanized and it died in my arms while I was driving.

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Yep...twice. Both had health issues that we just couldn't keep up with trying to make them comfortable.

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Had to put down my rottie about 7 years ago. I'd had her since I was about 11 years old. Probably the most I've ever cried as a grown man

We paid to have someone come to our house and do it, which was absolutely worth the extra money.

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Earlier this year, in February, we put our 11 year old Black Lab to sleep. His name was Buddy, and he was the gentlest, sweetest dog we've ever had. He developed very sudden kidney disease, and we tried a couple of treatments that didn't have any real effect.

We were told he could live another few weeks, but we were also told he would start having seizures and start feeling sick soon...we didn't want that. He had one seizure the next day, and he looked terrified of it...we wanted his last memories to be good ones, so we decided to take him to the vet the day after. We spent the night with him, cuddled him under a blanket, pet him, whispered to him, gave him treats...He was already having trouble moving around from joint pain, so we mostly just stayed with him for 24 hours straight and told him we loved him.

When we took him to the vet, we were all there. We were all holding him. I'm the one who had his head in my arms when he left us. He wasn't scared. He was smiling at me. He licked my face one more time right before it happened, and I told him goodbye and that I'll always love him. He wasn't in pain. He was happy because he was with us, and he knew he was with us.

You want their last day to be a day without fear or pain. You don't want something bad to happen...you don't want to regret waiting. Trust me. I've been on both ends.

Being there with him at the end when he's still alert and happy to be with you is much, much better than the alternative.

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You gotta do it. I've gone through the alternative before, and its no good man.

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Yeah earlier this year. He started breathing funny one morning and when I took him to the vet they advised me that he was having heart failure.

Didnt really have a choice, they did what they could but his breathing became more and more difficult. Still fucking sucked though.

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My miniature schnauzer went crazy at around 13. He'd scream for no reason and started pooping everywhere. Then he started having seizures. It was probably brain cancer or something.

The vet gave me a valium suppository to stick in his butt when he had a seizure. I only did that once and he feel asleep. I just took him to the vet afterwards. He never woke up the whole way there.

They didn't charge anything for it. But I had him cremated and put in a wooden box for $200.



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goddamn, I'm nearly crying while reading this topic. This week has been an emotional mess for me. Luckily our dog is in good health and I really hope he will be for years to come. Can't stand the thought of losing him.
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I didnt personally, but my mom put down the cat Id had for 16 years starting when I was 12, and shed had for the next 2 years. She had apparently been sick for a while and had started really stumbling, losing hair and losing control of her bladder. On the day she was put down, she couldnt stand up and I guess had been having seizures, so my mom asked my permission to let her go and I reluctantly agreed. She was my best friend throughout middle and high school, so that was one of the hardest choices Ive ever had to make.

My mom video chatted with me when they did it and it was actually much harder to watch than I was expecting. She had lost a lot of hair and weight so she barely resembled the cat I had left behind, but I could still see her in her eyes. However, shortly after the vet injected her, that look in her eyes disappeared and I knew she was gone. At the same time, all of her muscles began to seize up over and over again, which I assume was her body trying to restart her heart, but it had the effect of making her look extremely feral, especially with her now cold black eyes. I couldve done without that, but in the end I suppose it was for the best.

It was almost worse with the other cat I left with my mom that we didnt put down. About a year after the first one died, the other started having similar, albeit less dramatic, symptoms. She was much more lethargic, no bowel control and in the end she wouldnt eat often (despite our best efforts, she was a fat cat so this was a major cause for concern). I went on a trip back home after about 2 years of being away, saw her in this state and broke down hard. Unlike the first cat, she had always, always been extremely full of energy, like she was above things like age. I gave her all of the attention I could but two days later we found her in her bed, passed. It was like she was waiting for me to come home before she would allow herself to go. Im very thankful for that.

The problem was that I had come home, in part, to celebrate my daughters 2nd birthday. We were going to a water park resort that day, so we quickly brought my cat over to the vet to be cremated and I tried to act happy for the rest of the time we were at the resort. As a result, I never got to grieve properly for my other good friend who had also been there for me through my formative years. Shit sucks sometimes.

Three times, all cats. If I count the cats my parents had since they moved to Lake City, then bump the total up to six.

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Alex1976 posted...

Three times, all cats. If I count the cats my parents had since they moved to Lake City, then bump the total up to six.

I've had a ton of cats growing up.

And I only saw one of them die. He snuck outside during a snowstorm and we found him frozen to death.

All of my other cats just disappeared. No trace of them was ever found. We lived in the country so they probably got eaten by something unfortunately. If I got a cat now I wouldn't let it go outside unattended.

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Last year, middle of the night in July. My 16-year old Shih Tzu. He was deteriorating all week and when he started coughing up blood I called it in.

What made it worse was that because of Covid only one of us could go inside with him, so naturally it had to be me. I caught a glimpse of that Rainbow Bridge story and that somehow riled me up and I had to ask them to take it away. He didnt flinch or anything, was real peaceful. I told myself over and over again Id never do it, but at the time, it seemed to make perfect sense. I couldnt stand to see him looking the way he did.

I wish I could say that was over that night, but that kinda was the tipping point for me during the pandemic. I was traumatized for weeks and I tried taking a side job to distract me but it didnt help. I eventually had to get prescribed Lexapro and therapy and thankfully the last quarter of the year ended very smoothly.

aside from an irrational fear of the number 16 (same date as when my dad passed a decade ago), I think Im mostly okay now, although naturally on the one-year anniversary I still teared up while cleaning around the spot in the living room where we keep his stuff.

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Yes, my lab was old and sick, could barely move. Like moving was painful for him. I'd carry his big ass around the last week until he also stopped eating and just stared at me with those big eyes saying 'we've had a good run, we really did, it's time'.

Broke my heart

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Middle hope posted...

Oh fuck

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I have.

Its never easy.

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My parents called me one morning while I was on my way to the lab to tell me that they were currently on the way to the vet to put our dog down. I had zero heads up for this and hadn't visited home for like 8 months, but his cancer got a lot worse and it had also made him near blind in the later months

So yeah I didn't get any work done that week. Some dickweed here @bevan laughed about my reaction when I posted about it same day so I'm still waiting for him to faceplant into a tree at a pretty good speed. Don't worry I only remember this or any handful of gimmick accounts from tags from ages ago so it doesn't stay on my mind until it's brought up like this

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