My Cousin who is very close to me has an old dog. The dog can’t walk more than 50 yards before his hind legs can’t support him.
For Me: A dog has a job. The mutt watches over kids. When the mutt can’t I will take care of it. It hurts but I’ve been there for the end for all my mutts. They take care of the kids and I take care of them…
For my cousin; he loves the mutt to no end (and he is a very good dog). In his mind as long as he loves the dog the dog is happy. It doesn’t matter that the dog can’t be a dog.
My cousin is very emotional and will bear this loss for a long time.
I am, what I would like to think, as pragmatic and a sharp hurt is better than a long one (pull the tape off of me).
Please tell me I’m full of shit. I love my cousin like ‘closer-than-a-brother’ and I don’t want to be the one to tell him his mutt is done. (I don’t have many friends and he is one of them).
I’m twisted. The mutt is happy as long as he doesn’t move around much, and he doesn’t have to as long as my cousin and the family are around. But have you seen a dog who likes to play who can’t?
You’re full of shit. And I don’t even LIKE dogs. If the beast is not in intolerable pain, and it doesn’t seem to be from your description, then it should live as long as that is okay with its owner.
cous, if you were in that bad a shape then i would put you down.
the dog will move to be with people and to eat. is that causing pain then its life is no fun. a dog’s nature is to do those things.
caring for the animal is to not have it suffer. help your cous see it that way. help your cous cope with his sorrow and difficulties. do good for your cous and the dog.
Respect your cousin’s boundaries. It’s not your dog, it’s not your call, as long as there is no mistreatment. In my opinion that’s the only thing that really matters here.
I don’t see that boundaries are necessarily relevant. How do you know what the cousin’s boundaries are?
Some people need stuff like this pointed out to them. They don’t understand that the longest life possible isn’t necessarily the best, or that some animals will be thoroughly miserable if not able to do what comes naturally to them.
Well, I just assumed they’ve talked about it. And now the OP is looking for outside input on what he cousin should do with his dog? That feels like a little boundary-stepping to me.
Everyone has a different level of attachment and emotional involvement with their pets. Don’t assume that “yours” are the right fit for someone else.
I’ve had to make the difficult choice three times to put a family pet to sleep. Hardest things I’ve ever done. I had one person who could advise me on when to do it. My trusted vet. She and I had a deal, when Panama/Mattie/Simon were in a position where they were going to be suffering, she would tell me, and I would make the right call.
If anyone else had tried to intervene, I would have told them nicely that their input was not needed. That would have eventually, if needed, escalated to a “mind your own fucking business”.
Ask your cousin what his plan is for the dog. Have him map it out with you now, so when the time comes, it’s easier for the family. Right now you say the dog is happy, so no need to push for doing it right this very second if your cousin is willing to deal an elderly dog. But raise the issue, so when the dog is in pain, can’t walk at all, etc, it’s been thought through.
For me: A dog has a job. To be my companion. If he also barks away strangers and watches over my kid, that’s a bonus. Possibly that’s what your cousin thinks his dog’s job is, too.
I put my dogs down when their afflictions make for poor quality of life. It sounds like your cousin’s dog still has good quality of life. Just because he can’t do all the things he used to do doesn’t mean he’s not happy.
Re; The Vet
A visit last year that vet told my cousin the mutt had a couple of good months left.
Re; The Mutt
I helped brought him up as a mutt for my cousin. He works out of town and is gone 2 weeks out of 3. This is not to say that my cousin is a bad owner, far from it, as I said he loves the mutt greatly.
I agree that there are boundaries but it pains me to see the dog in pain. He can barely walk, hence why he collapses after a 50 yard walk.
Re; Me and my Mutts
Fuck you all. I’ve only had 3 dogs that I wasn’t there for at the end and that was due to a divorce. Every dog I had had a good life and I didn’t take them out back and end em. I paid for meds and surgery for all my mutts because a good dog is still a good dog. I cried more than my kids did over my mutts. Fuck you all. The only reason I put my dogs down were for health reasons, not because I didn’t care for them. All of their last days were special. Steak chunks, parks and kids before the end came. Fuck you all. I held them when the ‘painless’ meds made the cry. These mutts were not just commodities, they were guardians of my children and were treated as such. They watched over my kids and I watched over them. I seem cold but that is because you don’t know me.
That being said, I consider myself a commodity. When I am no longer useful I hope to be taken out peacefully. Give me time with my family, a good steak, good Irish Whiskey and very good meds and I will go happy. Or as happy as I can be.
Re Friends; I am well liked by a lot of people. I like all the people that like me. I am blessed to know a great many good people. However I only count a few to be friends.
Perhaps our definition of friends is different. I am not lonely and I do not want for company, but there are few that I would call on when I really need help.