Four years ago, a senior doberman was dumped near my farm. My neighbor saw the people stop and speed away, then she came into his yard, looking lost. I took her in a couple days later, when I saw her wandering the road. I had her spayed, and the vet heard a heart murmur at that time. She told me just to watch for coughing or fainting. She was 8 or 9 then.
Grace was diagnosed with congestive heart failure about 6 months ago. I’ve been treating her with medication. It’s been a huge struggle to get her to eat. The last two days she’s barely eaten anything. She was out in the fields hunting mice Saturday, but today she didn’t eat her usual breakfast of eggs scrambled with sour cream and ham. Tonight she wouldn’t eat ham, chicken, or left over prime rib. She fell coming through the dog door and had a hard time getting up, and she’s just not interested in anything tonight. If she doesn’t perk up tomorrow I’ll have to make the call to the vet.
The vet said she was surprised I kept her going this long. It’s been so hard to keep her going - $150/month in meds, and tons of money spent trying anything to get her to eat. Although I’ll be sad to see her go, I’ll admit, watching the decline has been very hard.
See my post for “fuck, here goes the cat” or something like that in the BBQ pit for putting down my cat a few months ago.
Long story short, you can have a vet come to your house and have the pet put down rather than taking it the vet and stressing it out. Much nicer for both you and the pet if you can afford a bit more money.
I know you’ll miss her when she’s gone, but think about this: If she had to be unfortunate enough to have lousy owners that would abandon her on the side of the road like that, how lucky she was to end up with you, who gave her scrambled eggs and ham every morning. You took a potential tragedy and turned it into four years of happiness for this dog. Your sadness should be tempered with happiness because of that.
Poor baby. (Both of you.) My old lady Scout had a similar decline, and even though I knew it was time, I must have stood looking at her (lying there so peacefully, head up, eyes alert, yet unable to eat, drink, or rise) for half an hour, tears brimming, before I could speak the words, “OK, it’s time.”
Scrambled eggs and ham? That’s one spoiled dog . . . who deserved every morsel.
At least in the end when she goes, it’s not being abandoned and lost, but in the presence of friends and she had the greatest of time ever since 4 years ago.
She’s refusing all food and water. I did get her out to go to the bathroom this morning, but it took all she had. She’s not in pain, but she’s just ready, I think.
