when is it time..?

Question

ok so my brother has a 14 yr old terrier dog, she has had diabetes for the last 2 years however she has been ok during this time as they have just about managed to regulate her blood sugar levels. she is now pretty much blind and walks into things a lot and pees on the floor almost daily. last wk she developed an ulcer on her eyeball and has had to have eye drops every 2 hours which means my brother or his gf have to leave work to come home and do this. they dont mind which is fair enough but i just feel the time is right to have their dog put down. the vet suggested removing her eyeball if the ulcer doesnt improve, which it doesnt seem to be but my brother said he wouldnt put the dog through this at her age. i speak to my bro daily and i just feel its time to relieve the dog of her pain and have her put down but he doesnt want to. i know its an awful thing to have to do.. but surely u have to think of the animals pain and suffering 1st? what do u think? any1 had a similar predicament?

Answer 1

i think if the poor dog has suffered through so much, it should just be put to peace. i'm so sorry :(. but it's the best thing you could do. but if you think the surgery would work, you could do that, but at his age it's better to let him rest.

Answer 2

It all depends on "quality of life" of the DOG not the OWNERS.

If the dog is still happy and reasonably contented, and the source of pain removed, then there is absolutely no reason to euthanise the dog just because it is old.

Diabetes is manageable and a dog can live very happily when blind.

If your brother and his partner are willing to provide the extra care required, then there is no reason to put the dog down.

When the time does come, it is always best to be there for your animal, right to the end. The process of euthanasia is always less stressful for your pet if you are there to hold it and reassure it that all is well - even if you are lying through your teeth. Yes, it's traumatic, but to leave your pet, dying alone with strangers, especially as those strangers are VETs, is not something I would put any pet of mine through. It is, after all the last loving act you can do for your animal.

Answer 3

I recently had to put down my chow due to Valley Fever. She was the first dog that I owned (not including growing up), so the decision for me to put her down was very hard. It boils down to quality of life. It sounds like this dog's quality of life is going downhill and won't get better. The ulcer must be painful. I know when people have severe diabetes they have muscle cramps, trouble sleeping, and just don't feel good. I'm sure it's no different for dogs.

Dogs weren't meant to suffer and be sick for long periods of time. In nature this would be the point when the dog dies. It would be different if the dog were going to get better, but she isn't. There is no point in keeping her hanging on when she is sick and old. Sometimes people keep their dogs alive for their own sake, even though they feel they are doing what is right.

My advice to you is to keep talking to your brother. When you are the dog owner, it feels like taking loving care of your sick dog is the right thing to do. That is how I felt. And I'm glad I had family there to help me decide that is was time to let go and end my dog's suffering. It was a difficult decision, because it is so permanent. However, in the end, I take comfort in the fact that I tried to make her better (which your brother has), but once hope was gone, I put her to sleep so she wouldn't have a painful death. This is what your brother needs to do. Keep talking to him.

I was with my dog while she was being put down, and I am glad that I was. But it's a personal decision. For some people being there could be traumatic.

Answer 4

It is such a difficult decision to make and being on the outside looking in sometimes makes it easier to say it's time to let go. It is important to think of the animal and the suffering. The vets who were treating my own dog were giving me things to do to try when I finally realized that they were making money and she was getting worse by the hour. I ended up taking her in two days in a row before I found the strength to have her put to rest. She was the second dog I had that ended up having to be put to sleep. Some may disagree but I found comfort in holding her as they administered the drugs. I felt her relax after the sedative and then the other drug was given. Somehow it gave me peace to see she wasn't suffering.

Answer 5

It is a very difficult thing to have to do. I had my 15 yr old dog put to sleep a few months ago. She was blind, couldn't hear, and had just slowed down alot. After 1 month of running to the vet office every few days and being given different stories from different vets, I realized that I was the one who couldn't let go. Her kidneys were failing and it was time to end her pain. I made the decision that even though I was not ready for her to be gone, I knew she needed to be out of her suffering. I miss her but I also feel she is no longer suffering.

Is your brother's dog eating-are her kidneys function properly? There are alot of things to consider and he will have to make that decision.

Answer 6

Will, if the dog is having pain. To me it sounds like it is time, but it's realy up to your brother about it. If this was my dog I would because of all the pain but it is realy hard to let a pet go (as in put down). I have never have to put a pet down but I know that it is realy hard. If your brother decides to then he should be there when they do it and cry after so the dog does not worry about it and also give the dog the best last bit of life as possible.

Answer 7

If I were in this situation, I would euthanize the animal.

Unfortunately, many people don't see it this way. It is VERY hard to put your pet down. If your brother has had this dog for its entire life, it will be even harder than I can imagine.

I would suggest the idea to your brother. See what is reaction is. You may end up hearing what you don't want to hear. Even though you have the dog's best interests in mind, it isn't always easy to see 'what is best' when the 'best' involves losing a beloved pet.

I wish you, your brother, and his dog the best.

Answer 8

I had this trouble with my own mother. We got a rescue dog when i was 8, she was 10 months old, she had seen us through some really tough times including a family speration, she stayed our constant companion throughout, and even when new family members appreared she took it all in her stride. When she was 12 she started getting really bad arthiritis, i begged with my mum to get her some medication, but they managed by trimming her waistline and cutting her excercise down, she did better for a while, then last year she took a turn for the worse, she had no bladder control and couldn't hold her bowels all night so my mum would have to get up in the night and let her out to the toilet, she had to be restricted to the kitchen when they went out or at night because of her accidents. I tried to talk my mum into having her put down as she really wasn't getting much out of life, just pain and the loss of dignity with her accidents. It wasn't until summer this year when medication had stopped helping and the poor dog woke up one morning and couldn't move. My mum finally made the decision to have her put to sleep.

I thought it was long overdue, but it was my mums choice. She would love to have another dog around, but my stepdad misses suzie too much to get another dog.

In the end its down to the owner. All you can do is tell them that you support them in their decision, put give your opinion, if they choose to listen to it, then thats fine, if they don't , do not pester about it as it will make it harder when the time comes to have an ' i told you so' hanging over their heads

Answer 9

Dog is already too old and can't live more than a year in any case. Why allow the poor dog suffer so much ? Let him have never ending deep sleep. U have to shed tears for it which u can do now.

Answer 10

I personally would have the dog put to sleep. Out of respect for the animal. Sometimes the hardest thing to do is realize you cannot be selfish and keep an animal alive just to spare yourself the pain. Im sorry to hear about this.

Answer 11

Yes as a dog owner who's been through this kind of a predicament, all I can say is it's up to your brother. You have told him your opinion and he has to do what's right for the dog first...him second. Ultimately, it's his choice. Just be there for support if he does make the decision to put his pooch down.

Good luck