Having to put my dog to sleep

Tony H

First a bit of background, up to two years ago dog was great until he reached maturity ,

He then started being aggressive towards my son ie tail up ,staring at and circling him , we brought in a dog trainer and he gave us some strange tips which made the dog worse ,his methods involved dominating him to such an extent that the dog urinated out of fear

We decided to neuter him to see if he would settle down with this , he did not , In fact when he was recovering he gave me a bad bite when I was clearing a treat I gave him around his collar ,

Six months down the line he was settled enough and was sitting near me out in the garden ,I brushed off his back leg and he lunged at me without any warning and bit fairly well into my leg ,

Lesson not learned yesterday I brushed a bit of fur off his hind quarters and he lunged at me and bit me repeatedly on the inner thigh ,

Now Since we have Alfie from a puppy he was well socialised early on but due to illness in my family both myself and father in law , Alfie did not get as much time as he should have ,

But yesterday was bad , the doctor said I was lucky he did not get the femoral artery ,

We have an appointment to have him PTS tomorrow and it's killing me with guilt ,

If we did keep him his quality of life would be severely restricted and we would be forever afraid to give him affection or be close to him again out of fear ,

My wife also attempted to brush him a few days and got immediate growling so she stopped ,

Sorry for the long rambling post but I just needed to get it off my chest

It's the hardest thing. Deciding to end something you love. I did it last year with my best friend who was injured in accident and became aggressive and dangerous after. You are doing the right thing - what if he bit your wife or a child?

It is best for everyone, even your dog.

Elwood_Blues

That's tough man. It's never easy having to get a pet put down whatever the circumstances but in this particular case it doesn't sound like you have much of a choice.

Cyclonius

I'm sorry to hear about your situation Tony. You mention feeling guilty, but there really isn't anything you could have done differently. You've gone out of your way to do all you could for Alfie, but it, unfortunately, hasn't worked. You can't give him away, as he has repeatedly bitten you, and been aggressive with other family members. It mightn't be much help saying it, but there really isn't anything else you could have done. Hopefully that will, eventually, be of some comfort to you.

Hector Savage

Sounds very sad, I do wonder whether he has some sort of tumour that is affecting his behaviour, either way the end result seems to be the same.

Tough choice but seems to be the correct one, too much to risk.

Tony H

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117663401#Comment_117663401

He' had every test apart from an MRI (which we couldn't afford) and all were good apart from slight dysplasia,

It's weird he was perfectly normal 5 minutes after the attack , so it could be a tumour on the brain ,

He was going to be my last dog as I'm getting too old to give them the proper attention they need ,

Never had to put a dog to sleep for aggression and have had 5 of my own ( not family) and to be truly honest this is killing me ,

I would keep him if it was just myself but he's gone way too unpredictable

Sleeper12

That's a terrible thing to have to do. My heart goes out to you but wise decision in the end. At the end of the day something tragic could happen between the dog and a child.

VonVix

Going by what you said, I think it was little to do with how this dog was raised, I'd say there's a strong genetic factor to why he just wasn't completely right.

Please don't beat yourself up about this. Chances are you have helped a dog be at peace who struggled to live a normal "dog life", it is not normal for a pet dog to react such a way to simply having his hair brushed against.

There is an amazing support group on Facebook called Losing Lulu, it is full of people who have had to put a dog to sleep based on extremely severe behavioural issues. They all loved their dog and they all struggle in different ways, many feeling guilt over the decision. Just know you're not alone in your experience.

Tony H

thanks for all the lovely support , really appreciated , VonVix will definitely check out that group .

Ave Sodalis

OP, please don't beat yourself up over this. Sometimes dogs, like people, are just not wired right. There can be a multitude of reasons for the dog being aggressive and by doing tests etc., you did everything reasonably required.

I absolutely despise the idea that there are no such thing as bad dogs, only bad owners. Idiopathic aggression exists, and it's devastating enough without the shaming clueless people do. I'm an animal professional, I would have had quite a lot of dog handling training, behaviour training and I would be involved in the same circles as a host of other animal professionals including trainers and vets. I put my own dog down in March, with randomised aggression being one of the main deciding factors. He was only 1. He was beautiful, and exceptionally cuddly when he was in good form. Yet, he still aggressively bit everyone in my immediate family, including myself on several occasions, with no obvious trigger.

Dogs like that, for one reason or another, are not happy. Unless you can find a fixable reason behind it, putting them to sleep saves their quality of life as much as putting them to sleep for an incurable physical illness. You did the right thing, OP.

Tony H

thanks for that Ave , really appreciate it , its weird because for the last 25 years we have had a dog in our lives and I swore this one would be my last one , expecting to grow old with him and now he's gone and the house is so so quiet ,

Its weird though earlier today my wife got sent a link on facebook showing how many dogs are being abandoned not that the lockdown is over , people getting dogs when they were at home and then realising now that they can't manage them , so who knows what the future may bring .

Stheno

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117680287#Comment_117680287

One small tip for you.

When you arrange the appointment ask if the vet can sedate your dog before the pts needle.

Your dog will be a bit out of it and dosey then

I find it makes the process easier, not that its an easy thing to do.

I had to have a dog put to sleep years ago due to severe aggression issues, its not easy, really feel for you

You are doing him a kindness.

I get it. I once had to have a dog put to sleep due to rage syndrome, (diagnosis by vet, with a second opinion, and dog behaviour professionals, and agreed to by the rescue who originally homed him with me). I felt horribly guilty about it, but he was very agressive and completely unpredictable. I think you're doing the right thing.

horse7

its

Tony H

just an update , we had Alfie put to sleep last tuesday at 4pm , he walked into the vets with no problems as cocky as ever , he was sedated and we spent a little while with him all cuddling him ,(something we could not do normally for quite a while) and telling him we loved him and his was our best boy , the vet then started the process and he went into a lovely sleep ,

Will see you soon on the bridge , love ya my little man

IMG_20200706_161114.jpg

TefalBrain

You had to do what's best for your family. You had obviously exhausted every avenue and should not feel an iota of guilt.

My heart goes out to you as it's an awful situation to be in.

Lewis_Benson

Sorry to hear.

We are in a similar position at the minute, not an aggressive dog, but an old dog sho is now in "palliative care". You want to donwhats best for them, but at the same time it's heartbreaking.

Take care.

Thomhic312

Heartbreaking.

Oranage2

Heart breaking stuff op, but without a doubt you did the right thing, the dog was dangerous and if it hurt a child you'd be distraught. Tough tough decision but ultimately the correct one.

mary 2021

Always a heart wrenching moment when you put a dog to sleep and more so if its a young dog but whatever was troubling him he is at peace now. I have a very aggressive westie cross but i have no kids and manage him myself, grooming is the worst hes like a crocodile but i love him the little devil ! I cant get any reason why he is so bad he had dentals, teeth out scans xrays hes just an alpha dog and hates all other creatures & loves his little kingdom of dominance. He is very obediant walks on his lead and of it on our farm.He sits does everything you could ask and is a street angel. i just dont know whatever happened to him in his 1st 10 months of life has stayed with him & haunts him.