Putting Your Pet Down – When Is It Time?

This Post At A Glance

-Mobility

-Appetite

-Hydration

-Pain

-Incontinence

-Behavioral Changes

-Morale

-Number Of Good Vs Bad Days

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Putting Your Pet Down – When Is It Time?

Deciding when to put your pet down is a tough and very personal decision. It’s easy to identify when the time is near. But when it comes to picking a day, that’s where it gets tough. Sometimes a second opinion can help from a family member who also sees your dog regularly and can make a little bit more of an unbiased opinion. But ultimately, nobody knows your pet like you do.

Having worked with many dogs in boarding and daycare. I’ve seen several dogs that we’re far beyond their expiration date and were suffering. I specifically recall a Bernese Mountain dog that wasn’t necessarily old but had a condition in which she was paralyzed in her back legs. This Berner couldn’t get up by herself and would fall over easily if you could get her to stand up. She would urinate all over herself which put her at risk for urine scald on her skin. The smell was horrifying, and even a good bath didn’t get rid of it. After the dogs stay, we recommended that she board at a vet clinic in the future, as they would be more equipped to deal with a special needs dog. This is an instance in which (though my eyes) there’s a dog that can’t get up and be a dog and therefore is lacking an important quality of life.

I promised I would never let my dog get so far along that his final moments were extreme pain, discomfort, and confusion. I think a lot of people tend to wait until something drastic happens before acting. But on the flipside, people have no way of knowing if their dog still has another 6 months or more left in them. Here are a few things to consider in your decision to put down your beloved friend and be able to tell when the time has come.

Mobility

I think how well your dog can get around is a big one to consider. Most dogs live to run around, sniff, and be dogs. I’d imagine the inability to do that would be a blow to morale. I always said, when my dog can’t get up on his own anymore, that it would be time. I didn’t end up following through on this. My dog got to the point where he needed help getting up and would fall over if he tried to get up himself. However, once he was up on his feet, he got around pretty well. He felt mobile enough to even try and chase deer and such. If he was constantly falling while on his feet, then it would have been more of a deciding factor. He needed to be careful when he was on his feet. Getting bumped by another dog, or trying to trudge through deep snow would put him on his butt.

Appetite

If your dog is normally a good eater, and then starts to lose their appetite and lose weight. That’s a clear sign that their time is coming close. I’m not talking just getting picky. I’m saying if they have a legitimate disinterest in food. If it’s too an extreme where you can’t get them to eat anything for days, that’s likely the bodies way of shutting down. My own dog just got picky with age. A little canned wet food with his meal, and he would eat for the most part. But missing meals on a regular basis began to result in a gradual weight loss.

Hydration

This goes along with appetite. If they aren’t drinking water, then that’s a serious sign that they aren’t doing too well. On the flipside, if you notice them drinking more than usual, that can indicate a health problem too, and you might want to get them check out by the vet.

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Pain

This is a big one to consider when it comes to the well-being of your pet. Are they in pain? Is it manageable? Some main signs for pain include panting, licking hurt area, wincing when they try to get up, can’t get comfortable. Most pet parents can get their pet on some sort of pain management. In my own dog's case, many pain pills gave him horrible diarrhea. This didn’t help when he also couldn’t get up easily to let me know he has to go outside. So, there was some mess to clean up. CBD is growing in popularity for its help with pain. But personally, I’ve never found CBD oil to be helpful. Probably because it's more so helpful with sleep. I did, however, see a difference when I used a tincture that contained both CBD and THC. A small amount twice daily gave my old pup new life and put a little pep in his step. Too much, and he would get soft stool, but we figured out what dose worked for him.

Incontinence

This is a deciding factor for many families as nobody likes to clean up poop and pee in their house all of the time. For my own dog, it was a matter of seeing if we could control it. It started with wetting the bed. So we started withholding water at bedtime. And then with me being a night owl, and my husband being an early riser. I’d let him out late at night to pee one more time before I went to bed (10-11:00 PM). Then my husband would let him out first thing in the morning (4-5:00 AM). So, there was a smaller span of time that he had to hold it.

Then we started to see poop. Mainly when my dog would try to get up, he’d squeeze one out by accident. This would only occur occasionally, and the poops were solid. It’s when he started doing this daily if not several times per day that it began to be it bit much. Especially as we walk him 3 times a day. So, this only added to the frustration of him going potty in the house. Reusable dog diapers can be a life saver for many families.

Behavioral Changes

Whether it’s mild or severe, you will see a change in your dog's behavior. Little things with my own dog seemed to change to where he just wasn’t him anymore. He used to “talk” to me when he wanted something, including going in and outside. He stopped doing that. He also got extra anxious and was always anticipating danger. This is something I’ve noticed with many old dogs is that they get extra fearful over things that didn’t bother them that bad, if at all, before. It makes sense this their more fragile state of being old and more delicate.

Morale

Morale can be a tricky one. I think this is the one that gets many owners to let their pets go for too long. Yes, if your pet is happy and content, this is something to consider in your decision. But don’t let it completely override the other considerations that we’ve just gone through. It’s nature's way for animals to pretend like everything is okay. It’s up to you to recognize whether or not your pet is really okay, or if they are suffering.

Number Of Good Vs Bad Days

All these things to look for come down to your pet's overall well-being. Are they having more good days then bad? Or are they quickly deteriorating. At 14+ years of age, it was time for me to say goodbye to my beloved husky mix Keeneye. It was a tough decision because he still loved his walks. But the bad outweighed the good. Though his tincture helped with pain, he was still hurting. He couldn’t have other pain pills without having bad diarrhea. He couldn’t get up on his own and struggled with laying down. When he was on his feet and outside, many things made him a nervous wreck. This included things like a cloudy day as he associated clouds with scary thunderstorms. He wasn’t always there mentally. He was pooping almost daily in the house, sometimes pee. And the cold harsh mountain Winter was on our doorstep. All these conditions led to the final decision to put him down. I spent a nice final fall day with him. Gave him his favorite goodies . . . And he will forever be in my heart.

Goodbye Keeneye - You're My Best Boy!

Ultimately, it’s a personal decision for you to make. Everybody is going to have their own opinion and bias on when it is or is not the right time. Some people wait until their pet really goes downhill and is in horrible discomfort before finally putting them down. Others like me wait until enough of the signs point to the time being near and choose to have a final pleasant day before putting them down. Hopefully this helps you to better tell how far along your pet is, and how to know when it’s time.

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