Had To Say Goodbye To An Old Friend Today

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
1

After bringing one of our cats back a week ago, this was a bit of a shock to us. Squeaks, the cat I saved, is doing great. This is about our dog, Luke.

This morning, I noticed that Luke wasn’t feeling quite right. He was had some sort of breathing problem. Then, a bit later, he had some sort of seizure, and lost control of his bowels and bladder. He was too weak to stand up. Even too weak to hold his head up for long. I immediately called our vet, told him that I thought it was time to end his suffering, and took him in.

Our vet gave him a thorough exam, and the prognosis was very poor. He had congestive heart failure, pretty much. His lungs were filling with fluid, and he was so very weak. This stuff happened almost overnight, it seemed like. Given the fact that he was ‘elderly’, we figured that his slowness was because of arthritis, for which we have been treating him for years. He hadn’t eaten much the past few days, and it seemed like he was just moving a lot more slowly. It all came to a head this morning.

Our wonderful vet told us what we suspected. Yes. It was time. So, we did it, and had him put down. My Og…after having a pet for 14+ years, it’s just so damned hard to let them go. But, we knew it was the best thing for Luke. We loved him enough to not let him suffer.

We have been taking all our pets to this same vet for at least 25 years. Our vet had Luke’s records, and reminded us that he was 14+ years old, and that he’s had a long, and very good life. He was loved, and he knew it.
He had been with us for almost his entire life. Our daughter found him many years ago, as a starving, stray, slightly older pup.

We brought him home when it was all over, and my daughter and I buried him. Luke weighed nearly 70 lbs. at the time of the vet visit this morning. The ground was saturated, which was a good thing, as it made the digging much easier for us. The only problem is that the dirt was amazingly heavy, being saturated like it was. But, we got the job done, and Luke is now at rest, beneath the fringes of the old oak tree out in back. My husband is an OTR truck driver, and left for his run on Sunday afternoon. I had to call him and break the bad news to him. He was as upset as our daughter and I were. He really regrets not being here.

Rest well, Luke. We miss you terribly. It won’t be the same around here with you not with us.

2

I’m so sorry about Luke. Maybe it will be a comfort to know he rests in your backyard. I have little tufts of fur from each of my bygone cats, but since I’m a renter, I always let my vet take care of the remains.

My heart goes out to you.

3

Good night, Luke. You were a good dog.

4

Thank you both for the kind words. They mean a lot.

TMC, that’s a wonderful idea about keeping the tufts of fur!

5

Oh, I am so very sorry. Saying good-bye is the worst part of owning a pet. Luke had a good life and owners that loved him enough to do the right thing. He’s one of the lucky ones.

(((hugs)))

6

Thank you, PapSett. That’s pretty much exactly what our vet told me, too.

7

I’m sorry that you lost your dog today. Thanks for being a good owner and being kind to him. Take care of yourself.

8

Thank you, Alice.

9

I’m so sorry that Luke is gone. You truly were a good owner to him and I’m sure he knew how much you loved him. I hope you’ll find peace in the upcoming days ahead. {{{nonacetone}}}

10

I am so sad to hear your news! Sending supporting thoughts your way.

11

Thank you, faithfool and Khadaji.

12

I’m sorry for your loss. I lost one of my dogs last week. It’s so hard to do the right thing sometimes. We give them all of our love and they give us all of theirs. You did good by Luke.

13

I am so sorry for your loss.

My dog is… late middle-aged – with a rescue, you’re never exactly sure of age, but she’s at least eight – and I’m already starting to worry about little things, like if she is panting too heavily after a walk.

14

Good job (again), nonacetone. I’m sorry to hear about Luke.

15

Thank you Hockey Monkey, lisacurl, and Dung Beetle.

We worry, too. Our remaining dog is around 10 years old, and she’s taking the loss of her buddy rather hard, we think. She doesn’t even want to play. She’s eating, though, so at least that’s normal. We also have a couple of elderly cats that we worry about, along with the dog, so it’s a never-ending thing around here. But, that’s ok. They’re worth it.

16

I’m sorry for your loss. It’s always hard to say goodbye to a dear friend.

17

We only get to have dogs for such a short time.

It’s a cliché to say that he was loved and lived a good life, but the thing is, with dogs, that’s really the point. A dog is here to have that relationship with the pack/family.

Dogs know when they are loved and what they want most is to be with you – it may be a cliché but it’s one every dog believes with his or her whole being.

Luke knew.

18

Sailboat, that is a beautiful, touching post, and OH! So true.

I’m gona go hug my dogs now, thank you.

19

My condolences, nonacetone. Losing a friend is never easy. I’m sure he’s very thankful that you gave him such a wonderful life and were strong enough to do what was needed to usher him out of this world when the time came.

20

I’m sorry you lost your good friend, nonacetone. I know the pain.
When we lost Cassie after 16 years I swore I’d never, ever have another dog.
Putting her to sleep was one of the most difficult things I’ve ever done. It’s enough to make a grown man cry.
Looking back we probably should have done it sooner but it’s hard to let go. In the end you know you’ve done the right thing, but that doesn’t make it any easier.
Can you share a picture of Luke?
I hope you find peace in the fact that you gave him a wonderful life and he gave as good as he got.

Oh, and my “never again” lasted about 2 years. Adopted a puppy mill rescue. :smack: