Dawson
Chef and I have decided that the best thing to do is put Dawson down. We have an appointment to take him to the vet tomorrow at 4:00 P.M. We talked over all of our options and what would ultimately be best for him and for us.
Surgery is VERY expensive and only 60% chance of guaranteed recovery. For a dog as old and as big as him, just living through the surgery and a full making recovery would be highly unlikely. If we had his back fixed, his hips would still be bad and that would aggrivate his back again over time. This is not really an option anyway since it would cost at least $5,000. We just don't have the money to spend on it and with all the negatives on his side I don't think it would be a wise decision to do it.
Trying to give him away to a Rott rescue or something would not be good for him either. He is too old for a change like that and he's been with only me since he was about 2 months old so that is very unfair to him. He would not be happy around a lot of other dogs either, he gets very nervous and can turn aggressive. The likelihood of a rescue operation taking on a dog with his injuries is low anyway. A non-profit organization like that can't take on that amount of cost.
Keeping him as he is is not an option either. His front legs are already becoming incredibly tired and slow from having to carry all his 140 lbs. Without the use of his back legs there are large risks for disease issues from his bowels and bladder not being able to be properly drained because of the bad position in which he stands to potty. He is peeing and pooping inside the house already and this would only get worse with time. Right now, we have to carry him outside every 4 hours to avoid accidents. This includes in the middle of the night. A doggie happy cart is not a good option either. He is a very nervous dog and would not like the cart trailing around behind him. This is only a fix for when he's outside anyway. He would still have to drag himself around indoors. That's not really fixing anything for him.
Sleep deprivation then becomes an issue for our happiness. I've started having safety and alertness issues when driving and my work is being affected already. Overall happiness is at a low because of this and because of the stress over Dawson and worry for him and everything else. All we think about now is Dawson and what to do for him. The rest of our lives are starting to show effects of not having our attention.
In my mind I know that putting him down is the right thing to do. In my heart, I disagree. I have been fighting over keeping myself thinking logically. I cannot think about what is best for me, I need to think about what it best for Dawson. He needs to have quality of life too. He has none right now.
He is not happy. All he can do is lay around, occasionally drag his butt and hind legs across the room to get a drink and to get food and wait for us to pick him up and take him outside. He cannot enjoy walks with the other dog and us. He cannot enjoy getting his daily "cookie" and taking it and running upstairs to lay on his bed to eat it. He cannot come upstairs at all and this is where he used to spend 90% of his time inside. He gets upset when he has an accident in the house, even though we know he can't help doing it and don't scold him or anything.
Even writing this I think one part of me says I have to put him down and the other side says how can you even think about doing that? I'm not entirely sure I will be able to. I know I should but I don't know if I can. This whole thing is terrible hard. My dogs are part of my family, they are my kids. I hate to see one of them in this state but I also have to think about not having him around anymore. I wouldn't wish this predicament upon anyone, ever.
Surgery is VERY expensive and only 60% chance of guaranteed recovery. For a dog as old and as big as him, just living through the surgery and a full making recovery would be highly unlikely. If we had his back fixed, his hips would still be bad and that would aggrivate his back again over time. This is not really an option anyway since it would cost at least $5,000. We just don't have the money to spend on it and with all the negatives on his side I don't think it would be a wise decision to do it.
Trying to give him away to a Rott rescue or something would not be good for him either. He is too old for a change like that and he's been with only me since he was about 2 months old so that is very unfair to him. He would not be happy around a lot of other dogs either, he gets very nervous and can turn aggressive. The likelihood of a rescue operation taking on a dog with his injuries is low anyway. A non-profit organization like that can't take on that amount of cost.
Keeping him as he is is not an option either. His front legs are already becoming incredibly tired and slow from having to carry all his 140 lbs. Without the use of his back legs there are large risks for disease issues from his bowels and bladder not being able to be properly drained because of the bad position in which he stands to potty. He is peeing and pooping inside the house already and this would only get worse with time. Right now, we have to carry him outside every 4 hours to avoid accidents. This includes in the middle of the night. A doggie happy cart is not a good option either. He is a very nervous dog and would not like the cart trailing around behind him. This is only a fix for when he's outside anyway. He would still have to drag himself around indoors. That's not really fixing anything for him.
Sleep deprivation then becomes an issue for our happiness. I've started having safety and alertness issues when driving and my work is being affected already. Overall happiness is at a low because of this and because of the stress over Dawson and worry for him and everything else. All we think about now is Dawson and what to do for him. The rest of our lives are starting to show effects of not having our attention.
In my mind I know that putting him down is the right thing to do. In my heart, I disagree. I have been fighting over keeping myself thinking logically. I cannot think about what is best for me, I need to think about what it best for Dawson. He needs to have quality of life too. He has none right now.
He is not happy. All he can do is lay around, occasionally drag his butt and hind legs across the room to get a drink and to get food and wait for us to pick him up and take him outside. He cannot enjoy walks with the other dog and us. He cannot enjoy getting his daily "cookie" and taking it and running upstairs to lay on his bed to eat it. He cannot come upstairs at all and this is where he used to spend 90% of his time inside. He gets upset when he has an accident in the house, even though we know he can't help doing it and don't scold him or anything.
Even writing this I think one part of me says I have to put him down and the other side says how can you even think about doing that? I'm not entirely sure I will be able to. I know I should but I don't know if I can. This whole thing is terrible hard. My dogs are part of my family, they are my kids. I hate to see one of them in this state but I also have to think about not having him around anymore. I wouldn't wish this predicament upon anyone, ever.