Hellobee Boards

Yes. It sucked beyond words. For me, I worked closely with the vet and went over every scenario with her repeatedly. When my cat stopped eating, the vet was supportive but clear that there was no positive ending, so I made the decision to euthanize. It's so hard and I'm sorry you're in this position.

Awww. I'm so sorry you're going through this. 15 years is a good life lived by your girl.

We went through end of life with our dog but we knew it was time to say goodbye (we had to make a choice) because she was having trouble breathing.

I really believe you know when the time has come to realize your pet has had the best life possible and now she just isn't enjoying it like she used to. I don't know the right answer here, just that at some point, you'll know. And that's the worst thing to hear, I know. It's like telling a first time pregnant lady "you'll know" when you're in real labor.

He was still grazing on food, but not nearly enough to sustain a healthy body weight. He lost like 5 lbs, which is a ton of weight for a cat. We also ran a ton of tests which showed his liver was failing and he spent a weekend in the hospital for treatment,, but there was no real improvement. I could have elected for at home treatments that could have kept him alive for a few more months, but that seemed cruel. It was the worst though, because he didn't appear so super sick.

I went through this in my late teens/early 20's with our family dog. I was at university and not caring for him day to day (he was at my parents house) but home for weekend visits and holidays his health was declining. Accidents in the house, balance issues, confusion, then not eating. We made him hamburger and rice and he would eat that if we laid with him and spoon fed him basically. That's when we as a family made the decision. It was very upsetting and still makes me teary over 10 years later. But we knew he had a good life and it was up to us to make the best decision to end his suffering. We realized keeping him around was more for us than for him as he could barely walk without falling and the vet could do nothing more for him. The not eating, not jumping up to run to the door for us, sleeping all the time, etc. were clear signs to us, even though we continued hopeful for another month or so. Sorry you are facing this decision.

We just went through this with our almost 15 year old dog. He was on a bunch of meds everyday, was incontinent and also had a hard time with controlling his bowels, and frequently had a hard time walking or couldn't walk.
The best advice I got was to make a list of all the things that make him happy, and when he can no longer do or enjoy most or all of those things, it was time to consider letting him go. We made a list, and realize that he couldn't do anything on it anymore. It was then we realized that we were keeping him around more for us than for him.
I still feel bad about our decision, but really think it was for the best. We had a vet come to our house so he could go peacefully and surrounding that he was comfortable with.

I'm so sorry you're going through this. My 11 year old best dog ever was diagnosed with osteosarcoma- she went downhill pretty quickly, but one night she kept trying to stand and her front leg kept giving out, and I knew. We made it to the vet right before they closed and said goodbye. It sucked.

Oh I'm so sorry to hear this

We lost our sweet girl two years ago and I still get teary-eyed thinking about it. She was 17, and in fairly good health until one day she stopped eating, and two days later she passed. I honestly didn't even call the vet because it happened so quickly--it was just her time. It's so hard, but you will know when it's time. This is something I think about often because my other little guy is 17, and while he's in excellent health for his age I know that these decisions are coming soon. Go with your gut, you'll know when it's right.

I'm so sorry, it's so hard to see our furry friends declining. The end came rather quickly for our 10 year old dog, over the span of 2 weeks, she just had such difficulty breathing and eating became less and less, even the soft yummy foods and treats she loves, so it was time. The non eating and difficulty breathing really were the signs to let her go. With the help of our vet to rule out all the problems and options, we knew it was time to let her go. The best decision we made was to bring a vet that specialized in coming to people's homes to put her to sleep--it was a nice option for us to say goodbye to her, and for her to be surrounded by us, in a familiar surrounding, out in the backyard where she loved to frolic and sunbathe all the time. Many hugs to you and your furry friend.

I'm so sorry - I've been there 3 times and it doesn't get easier. We were told that when they stop wanting to eat I'd when you know it's time, so it sounds like yours could be getting close.

I did recently with my family dog- he was almost 17 and kept falling down the stairs, was going blind, and pretty much stopped eating and lost 15 lbs out of his normal 45. My dad had to carry him outside to go pee... it was really sad. I adored that dog but I could tell he was in complete misery. We kept a conversation going with his vet about quality of life and we medicated and did the best we could until nothing was going to make him feel better. The vet absolutely agreed with our decision and was very sweet and supportive with us. My brother and I ended up taking him because my mom and dad couldn't do it. Our dog was very peaceful even throughout the shot and we stayed and held his paws until the end. The vet did a very nice cremation service and returned his ashes to us so we could bury him in the yard.

Yes, and it was horrible every time. The worst was when it wasn't my cat, but a cat I was sitting. We came to check and couldn't find her. She was upstairs, barely breathing. We took her to the emergency vet and there was nothing they could do. She passed in the night. It turns out that she had done that recently and the owners were able to bring her back, but I have horrible guilt about it.