| End of Life |
| When your dog is nearing the end of his/her life, the emotional weight that falls upon you can be tremendous. The endearing habits, the joy, the unquestioning devotion your animal gave you fill your heart as you confront the expected loss. Many of us view our dog as a beloved member of the family to whom we have made a commitment to care for. Unfortunately, there may come a time when this honorable commitment takes a different path. The medical options may be exhausted or the continued care might be unmanageable or too expensive and the best you can do for your dog is to let go. The hardest decision you may have to make is determining when the quality of your dog's life is compromised to the point where it's not worth going on. It's especially difficult to determine when is the right time with dogs because we just don't always know when they are suffering and ready to leave this life. I have been faced with this decision three times. My veterinarian always told me that I would know when the time was right, but I'm not sure that's necessarily true in all cases. You may second guess your decision - did I wait too long? Was my dog suffering and I didn't know it? Could he have had a few more weeks? As long as you do not allow your dog to suffer, you made the right the decision. The Quality of Life Scale contained in the section below is presented to help guide your decision. I hope it will provide you with peace and comfort at this difficult time. |
| While we all hope that our dogs will pass quickly and peacefully at home, this is often not the case. Many dogs with cancer will face a slow decline and at some point a proactive decision may have to be made. Some dogs will exhibit obvious signs that it is time to let go such as whimpering, crying, the inability to move or eat, vomiting and other symptoms of distress. Please do not let your dog suffer. Your veterinarian will be able to help you decipher if these symptoms are just temporary and can be controlled with medication or if it is the beginning of the end. When the decision is made to euthanize, you will need to decide if you or anyone else wants to stay with your dog. Neither decision is right or wrong, it depends upon the individual. I have always stayed with the dogs I had to euthanize because of cancer and found an element in peace in being there will them. Knowing that they were surrounded by love and not with strangers as they took their last breath was important to me. I also saw that they died very quickly and peacefully and that also was a comfort to me. However, I know many people who just can't bring themselves to deal with the emotional aspects of watching their dog die, and that's ok too. Euthanisia is nothing more than the administration of an overdose of intravenous anesthetic. The vet will insert a fine needle into a vein (usually in a foreleg) of the dog and push the anesthetic through the veins. The dog will often take a deep breath, lose consciousness within 5-15 seconds and quickly thereafter, the heart will stop beating. It usually goes very smoothly and quietly, however there have been cases noted where not enough of the drug was administered the first time and a second dose was needed or the dog's body seemed to jerk in a uncontrolled manner. This is a rare occurrence. When you make the appointment for euthanasia with your veterinarian, it is often recommended that you request a time late in the day or at off-hours. This will allow you to spend some additional time alone with your dog for the last time. You will also need to consider what you what to do with your dog after he or she passes. Options include mass cremation, private cremation, a burial at a pet cemetery or a private burial at your home if allowed in your municipality. |


| Euthanasia |
| Rainbow Bridge Association for Pet Loss and Bereavement The Pet Loss Grief Support Website Cornell University Pet Loss Support Website Cornell Pet Loss Support Hotline: 607.253.3932 Tufts University Pet Loss Support Hotline: 508.839.7966 Michigan State Pet Loss Support Hotline: 517.432.2296 Ohio State University Pet Loss Support Hotline: 614.292.1823 The Iam's Company Pet Loss Support Hotline: 888.332.7738 Florida Animal Health Foundation Pet Grief Support Hotline: 800.798.6196 |
| Pet Loss Support |
| Products to Honor the Memory of Your Dog |
| Recommended Reading |
| What I can tell you is that you know your dog best and you are the ultimate decision maker. You'll need to find the strength to somehow detach a bit from the grief of losing your dog in order to make a clinical judgement as to what is humane. Putting your dog to sleep is the hardest and yet the most loving and important thing you can do for your dog as it's caretaker. You must think of your dog's welfare and not of the pain you will suffer in losing him/her. You are not giving up on your dog, you are releasing them to a better place until you meet them again. We at Caninecancer.com understand the anguish you might be feeling if you are reading this section and you have our complete sympathy. Many people have told me that losing their dog was as difficult, if not more so than losing other family members. You are not alone. Grieving for a pet has become much more open and acceptable, although there are still some people that will say, "it was just a dog". Clearly, these people never had the opportunity to open their hearts to the love of a dog and understand the tight bond people have with their dogs. For them, I feel sorry. They have missed out on one of life's great joys. We hope that the memories you have of your dog will fill you with comfort in times of sorrow. If you need to talk with someone, we have listed some pet loss hotlines below and encourage you to call one if you need to talk to someone. Also, please send us a photo of your dog and we will post his/her picture on our Memorial page, along with anything you'd like the world to know about your cherished dog. Many people find great comfort in creating a private or public memorial to their dog or making a contribution to an animal related charity. It may make you feel better to do something positive for another dog in need to honor the spirit of your dog even though a bright light in your life has gone out. |
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