Talking to other pet owners at the vet's.

Alfasudcrazy

When at the vets I like to talk to other pet owners about their pets. Today some people (mother & son) arrived with a very sickly looking Yorkie. I assumed it was some stray they had found as it looked so poorly but in fact it was their 16 year old dog.

Now you would imagine 16 years is a fine old age for a dog and that it should not have to suffer unnecessarily having had a good innings. However the owner (obviously the mother) could not bear to part with it and could not even think about putting him down.

It was just sad to see the poor dog and its owner. The dog - obviously much loved in its old age and with no more love to give and its owner not being able to let go of her beloved pet since 1991.

It just occurred to me that the son (aged about 20) would have been just a toddler when they got him.

So what's my point - there is none - just relating my thoughts on what I saw.:o

franksm

That's the thing - pets become part of the family.

As happened to me when my cat died recently, and I was devestated, you'll get people saying "ah, go have a child, that'll give you some sense of prespective" but even a family with kids are going to mourn when a pet dies.

Jotter

We had a boxer for 10 yrs, my family got him when I was 16 and we all loved him to bits. He developed a problem with his kidneys and started to lose weight rapidly. The vet put him on a special diet and was keeping an eye on him, he had mentioned the possiblility of getting him put down. My poor dad eventually decided this would be the best course of action. It was a hard decision made even harder bec each time my dad would say hes bringing the dog to the vet tomorrow to be put asleep the dog would get up in great form jumping about like a puppy and my dad would back out of it, it was hard to believe there was anything wrong with him except that he looked like skin and bone.
We said goodbye to that dog about 10 times over before my dad finally brought him down.
I got a boxer pup recently and when I brought him to vet for injections they were all asking about my dad and saying what a lovely dog he had and how they were all upset to see him go.
You get very attached to pets, its natural to be upset to see them go, I wouldnt mourn forever I have to admit but they do wriggle their way into your life in a way you dont expect!

Irish-Lass

I know people who have animal who have no quality of life and yet they still hold on to them rather then doing the kindest thing for the animal and letting them go with some dignity. Would you seriously think that the animal would want to suffer, it stops being about the animal and being about them not wanting to let go. Every creature deserves to die with some dignity.

Gillie

We found an old black lab wandering one Bank Holiday weekend. Someone had chucked him out to die! We kept him for two nights and brought him to the vet on tuesday morning.
Turns out he was deaf, partially blind, and advanced problems with his joints.

The vet rang my wife and asked for her permission for the dog to be put down. She was in bits as it was not her dog! She felt she had no right to decide "Luckys" fate. The vet went ahead! In hindsight the right decision was made.

But it shows how attached we became after just two nights with him.

Also shows that the evil bástard of an owner:
a) let the dog get into that state
b) didn't bother getting him put down in a humane way, was willing to let him walk around in agony until he died!

Interceptor

Vet waiting rooms are tough places to spend time in! I like chatting to other pet owners but my Lab is not inclined to sit still and this means having to constantly apologise for her 'introducing herself' to everyone. She always picks on old dears with cats and sticks her nose in their handbags, or up their skirts (she has no manners - just like me...)

It is never easy to make the decision to put an animal down - with advances in vetinary surgery it is possible to prolong a pets life beyond what is appropriate for the animal and this often results in pets having a poor quality of life for their last few years. Unfortunately our pets have such short lives in comparison to us, we want to hold on to them - its human nature.

KITTENADOPTION

And what you see is not always what you get We have a very ancient cat here, she has no teeth, does not smell the best at times and drools and holds her self to the right as she recovered from a stroke. However her bloods are fine, she eats..Mashed of course and you do need to spend a wee but extra time helping her, which is as it should be. We have prepared ourselves 3 times to say goodbye to her, and 3 time she has come back from the vets :rolleyes:
Some folks are not so kind about her and say, that she should be PTS.....Why? Because she does not look good to them. Ya can't have a healthy cat PTS because on occasion she whiffs a bit, I would have gotten rid of me hubby years ago, if that was the case

There is a fine line, and getting it right is the answer, the vet is the person that puts the animals well being FIRST.
If folks have animals that others think should be PTS they should endevour to A..Get the full history. B...Urge or offer to take the animal to a vet for an opinion.

Old Moo Moo will probably out live the lot of us.


I like to chat to folks in the vets too, it's amazing how much people DO care for their pets, as sometimes in rescue you only hear the negative side.
Though I am a bit like the poster above, I tend to be saying sorry a lot if I'm in with my OES.

corkimp

When our old GSD Amy had a stroke she started losing control of her back end, couldn't walk and was in pain when you rubbed her side. It broke all our hearts. I was the only one who could the muzzle on her as she was scared and the minute the vet took out the need I ran cos I broke down. It was for her best interests and we still have brilliant memories of her.
I know someone who had a lab female who was at least 14 years old, very thin, barely able to walk and generally poor condition. She was in pain wen you touched her too. She had so many litters in her life. Yet the owners wouldn't put her down cos she thought it was unfair to her and her family especially since her husband died from cancer around the same time. I felt so sorry for the dog, she was sweet but in pain. People have to think of what is best for the pet not them - we all grieve for our pets but at least the animal isn't suffering anymore.

Nala

I always chat to the person next to me at the vet's, helps pass the time and there's few things I like talking about more than my animals.

Of course the exceptions have been the times I have been there for emergencies, in which case I have been roaring crying and in no fit state to talk to anyone!!! (except the vet. obviously).