When to put dog that eats, recognizes, and goes outside to sleep?
Question by DeltaJuliet: When to put dog that eats, recognizes, and goes outside to sleep?
Our 13 year old Golden Retriever has weak hind legs (hip dysplasia) and sometimes barks when he’s lying in the kitchen which has hardwood flooring. Our family is under a lot of stress lately and this issue just adds to the pile. My mom thinks it’s close to that time, but I think otherwise. Our dog hasn’t peed/pooped inside in years and holds it for hours when we’re gone. He also still wags his tail when someone comes home and still eats his food. I’m just wondering if other people put their pets down when they are like this.
Finally people who agree with me! I’ve been told I’m kind of in denial, but I know it’s just not right to put him down now. I couldn’t imagine living after knowing he was put down while still in a decent condition. Thanks for everyone’s input.
We’ve been caring for him his whole life. He has been taking Rimadyl and glucosamine chondroitin for the last year or so. We also have had carpet runners on the floor so that he won’t slip around. We’ve even built him a wheelchair ramp to go outside. I think my mom was just freaking out like she usually does. Thanks for all the replies though. Now I don’t feel like an idiot.
Best answer:
Answer by LifeIsPeachy
Why would you put down a dog that is not suffering or sick?
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Tagged with: eats • goes • outside • recognizes • sleep
Filed under: hip dysplasia in dogs treatment
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This is up to your family. It sounds like he is doing fine right now other than the hip dysplasia, which is quite painful for your dog.
Thats just wrong. Yeah I think the dog is fine and its too bad your mom seems to feel like it is a burden. A dog should not be euthanized unless it is suffering and on its last limb. She thinks killing the family dog is gonna reduce stress??
I think that is SO wrong just because the dog is stressing your family out??? NO way!! tell your mom shes stressing you out, she needs to be “put down”
It is a very difficult decision that is not taken lightly. We had to put our lab mix down last year at 13 (but a friend’s lab is 15 and fine). He had become incontinent, and almost incapable of even getting himself up. Because he could no longer take walks/exercise, his weight had ballooned 30 lbs, making his hips very painful to him. He could no longer come to us for petting, and I am handicapped, so cannot get on the floor with him, or help lift him up to go outside.
His quality of life just wasn’t there. I balled my eyes out before, and as the shot was being administered, but when he was gone, a weight lifted from me. I knew he was in a better place and had understood why we did what we did. I’ve been at peace with the decision ever since.
Discuss quality of life with your family, and your vet. It doesn’t sound like yours is as far gone as ours was.
ALSO, getting a new puppy BEFORE the older dog passes is often a good idea. The old dog will likely teach the new one a bit of how to interact in the pack. It can sometimes re-invigorate an older dog.
I don’t think its time, he is still happy and getting joy out of life, still eating, going outside..
Once an animal can’t move, doesn’t get joy out of much at all, loses its toilet training or stops eating thats when it’s time.
A dog should not be euthanized for convenience. I was just talking to someone in Germany. They have a standard set of criteria to look at before any pet can be legally euthanized. Veterinarians cannot euthanize any animal unless it meets the criteria. They have no kill shelters, so the ones responsible are the vets.
You need to decide on a set of criteria that your dog need to meet before he would be euthanized. Number one should be if he is in constant pain than cannot be helped with medication. Another criteria could be if he cannot get up at all. Maybe add on if he is in a coma. Another one would be if he is diagnosed with a disease or disorder that will be fatal if not treated and the treatment would cause him to suffer over a long time (as opposed to a moment and then it’s over for now).
Also, with his bad hips he will have a lot of trouble keeping his legs under him on a smooth floor. Can you get a carpet remnant for him to lie on in the kitchen? Old dogs need to be cared for, not measured for their final trip.
thats too bad.
you are trying to put down your companion for 13 years just because she is little old.
if she is doing fine, you shouldnt do it.
ask your mom if you feel like that about her when she is getting older, what she is going to do.
if you couldnt have taken care of your dog, you shouldnt have got it in the first place.
i feel so sorry for him,
please dont get another pet in your life….!
You know, I’ve worked in an old folk’s home, but I’ve never worked in an animal shelter. I was there for only about 3 weeks, because I got a contracted job doing what I went to college to do. But while I was there, I noticed that almost all of the old people never got visited by their families, not even on Christmas. It looked to me like they just put them there because they wanted them out of the way. They didn’t even want to have to deal with the ones who could get around without walkers and could still get themselves to the RR on their own. Maybe the problem was they just forgot where they put things, or they got up in the middle of then night and started making noise and it bothered the family. Who knows? However, this told me a lot about why people treat their animals the way they do.
If only few people are willing to put up with their own old people, why would they want to put up with old dogs? It’s a sad world we live in, isn’t it? I never got a chance to put up with my parents when they got old, because they didn’t. They both died very young. I have a bunch of dogs that are getting older though, and I have no intention of putting them down as long as they are functioning at least as well as your Retriever.
You don’t say how old you are, but if you offered to take care of him as he gets more infirm maybe she will hold off on this. It sounds like he needs a soft bed for his painful hips and some pain meds from the vet. Can you find a way to provide him with a few comforts in his old age? Maybe do chores for neighbors, babysit or something?
It sounds like you love this dog very much. Let your mom know how you feel about this and offer to try to solve any problems she thinks the dog is causing. Remember, where there’s a will, there’s a way.
A dog with Hip Dysplasia should be lying on a GOOD dog bed, not on a hard floor…a memory foam bed would be a good idea (Sam’s Club has them for less than $30). Is the dog on a prescription NSAID like Carprofen to help with the pain? If not, he needs to be. If the vet hasn’t assessed the situation lately, I’d take him in and ask for advice on his actual condition.