A Dog Down.
Ahh...So.
Emily was put to sleep this morning.
Although she'd been perky over the last day and a half, it was really obvious that a decline was coming. This morning, though still trotting along, her head was down and her gait was weird, again. I gave her her meds and her breakfast this morning and then my mum came to pick us up and we headed to the vet as per the plan.
The vet took some obs, as she does, and pretty much confirmed that it was time. Again, bad heart, collapsing trachea and now this thing with her liver, all along with being -- as it turns out -- 17 years old. It was a great thing that she had some time out from being sick and down, that she got to run around and be a pest and play in the sun yesterday, but time, as it always is, was up. We were asked if we wanted to stay, at which point my mum got all emotional (bless her wee bum) and so I decided to stay too. My aunts wanted someone to stay with the dog and I kind of figured that it might have been a bit more pleasant for Emily if there was someone there who was neither a vet nor super emotional. But I might be anthropomorphising.
Anyway, the vet administered the first sedative which took hold fast and, after a bit of hopping about from the pain and a numb leg from where the injection was, she was still, quiet and relaxed. She didn't look as worried as I thought she would have been (I know it's a bit weird to be talking about a dog like this, but anyone who's had pets will know what I mean). The vet gave us another chance to leave if we wanted to, and I know my mum wanted to, but we both stayed. She then explained that the next needle was going to be the one to put Emily to sleep and that it was an overdose of an anaesthetic, which is how the whole thing works. She shaved a bit of fur off the dog's leg and injected the anaesthetic. There was no movement, no twitching, nothing gruesome or extreme. The vet listened for a heartbeat and told us that, pretty much, it was over.
I've never seen that before, never seen anything die. Not right before my eyes. But it wasn't as awful as I thought it would be. It was really gentle and peaceful. I was calm and comfortable with the decision to do this for the dog and I remain so. She had a very long, great and happy life in which she was spoiled senseless and was loved so much. It's really all we can hope for for our pets, you know? And that kind of end is one, I think, we're all hoping for for ourselves -- quiet, painless and as dignified as death can be.
My mum was really upset. Not about the dog, because it's what my aunts wanted and it was the right thing to do for Emily, but just that this was their oldest dog. Their dogs are like their children, you know? And, as you might expect, they were really upset about the whole thing. Lots of tears, apparently. And I think that was what my mother had a hard time dealing with.
As human beings, as creatures with the capacity for mercy and compassion, it is our responsibility to act mercifully and compassionately towards other creatures -- both human and not -- and give them the life, or end of life, they deserve. I kind of think that a smooth and comfortable end is what we'd want for ourselves, so it makes good sense to treat animals, especially ones that are part of our family unit, the same way.
Mercy and compassion.
Emily was put to sleep this morning.
Although she'd been perky over the last day and a half, it was really obvious that a decline was coming. This morning, though still trotting along, her head was down and her gait was weird, again. I gave her her meds and her breakfast this morning and then my mum came to pick us up and we headed to the vet as per the plan.
The vet took some obs, as she does, and pretty much confirmed that it was time. Again, bad heart, collapsing trachea and now this thing with her liver, all along with being -- as it turns out -- 17 years old. It was a great thing that she had some time out from being sick and down, that she got to run around and be a pest and play in the sun yesterday, but time, as it always is, was up. We were asked if we wanted to stay, at which point my mum got all emotional (bless her wee bum) and so I decided to stay too. My aunts wanted someone to stay with the dog and I kind of figured that it might have been a bit more pleasant for Emily if there was someone there who was neither a vet nor super emotional. But I might be anthropomorphising.
Anyway, the vet administered the first sedative which took hold fast and, after a bit of hopping about from the pain and a numb leg from where the injection was, she was still, quiet and relaxed. She didn't look as worried as I thought she would have been (I know it's a bit weird to be talking about a dog like this, but anyone who's had pets will know what I mean). The vet gave us another chance to leave if we wanted to, and I know my mum wanted to, but we both stayed. She then explained that the next needle was going to be the one to put Emily to sleep and that it was an overdose of an anaesthetic, which is how the whole thing works. She shaved a bit of fur off the dog's leg and injected the anaesthetic. There was no movement, no twitching, nothing gruesome or extreme. The vet listened for a heartbeat and told us that, pretty much, it was over.
I've never seen that before, never seen anything die. Not right before my eyes. But it wasn't as awful as I thought it would be. It was really gentle and peaceful. I was calm and comfortable with the decision to do this for the dog and I remain so. She had a very long, great and happy life in which she was spoiled senseless and was loved so much. It's really all we can hope for for our pets, you know? And that kind of end is one, I think, we're all hoping for for ourselves -- quiet, painless and as dignified as death can be.
My mum was really upset. Not about the dog, because it's what my aunts wanted and it was the right thing to do for Emily, but just that this was their oldest dog. Their dogs are like their children, you know? And, as you might expect, they were really upset about the whole thing. Lots of tears, apparently. And I think that was what my mother had a hard time dealing with.
As human beings, as creatures with the capacity for mercy and compassion, it is our responsibility to act mercifully and compassionately towards other creatures -- both human and not -- and give them the life, or end of life, they deserve. I kind of think that a smooth and comfortable end is what we'd want for ourselves, so it makes good sense to treat animals, especially ones that are part of our family unit, the same way.
Mercy and compassion.