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My beloved Bailey is 15 now and I too have difficulty in knowing if it is her time now. She struggled with a stroke about 9 months ago and gradually improved. She has been deaf for a few years and her sight is limited. She does have arthritis, and weakness in the back end. We treated her symptoms and she did very well but eventually developed a GI bleed with the arthritis meds so we had to discontinue that. She loves going outside but walks very slowly and tires easily and struggles on the couple steps in and out. She can't get up easily on her own and sometimes falls. She has always been very tough as if nothing affects her but i am starting to wonder about her level of pain. I don't want to be blind to it just because she is "tough."
We are moving out of state in a couple months and I'm worried that will be very hard for her.
My beloved Bailey is 15 now and I too have difficulty in knowing if it is her time now. She struggled with a stroke about 9 months ago and gradually improved. She has been deaf for a few years and her sight is limited. She does have arthritis, and weakness in the back end. We treated her symptoms and she did very well but eventually developed a GI bleed with the arthritis meds so we had to discontinue that. She loves going outside but walks very slowly and tires easily and struggles on the couple steps in and out. She can't get up easily on her own and sometimes falls. She has always been very tough as if nothing affects her but i am starting to wonder about her level of pain. I don't want to be blind to it just because she is "tough."
We are moving out of state in a couple months and I'm worried that will be very hard for her.
It sounds like it may be time to let her go. When my 14 year old GSD couldn't take his arthritis pain meds any more, I made the decision to put him down. I didn't want him to be in pain. It sounds like she is in pain and the falls have to hurt. It's hard but sometimes it's the best thing to do for them. I think a move would be VERY hard on her.
I had almost exactly the same situation with my golden several years ago. She was 16, and her arthritis had progressed to the point that her meds were not providing sufficient pain relief. She still struggled to get up and greet us at the door, and wanted to go out for walks, but had difficulty making it down the driveway before having to lie down again. One day, she just stopped eating and didn't want to get up at all. That was when we made the hard choice to call our vet to come to the house and help her go peacefully. It's really tough, especially when you don't have a clear indication that "it's time." (Despite what people say, they don't always tell us, I've found!) I'm so sorry about your sweet Bailey - she sounds like a wonderful dog. If you have a good relationship with your vet, maybe they can help you with your decision.
Our border collie is 13 has trouble with arthritis. My vet just put him on gabapentin, with rymadel and tramadol as needed.
We just started it, but it seems to help quite a bit.
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My Bailey (red heeler mix), is 12-1/2 now and has had arthritis in her knees for a couple of years and our vet just diagnosed it in her hips, as well..... In addition, she is losing her eyesight to progressive retinal atrophy, something cattle dogs can be prone to.....
BUT, she still enjoys laying on the front porch to watch her neighborhood, chasing treats (kibble pieces) and attention from me..... She sleeps more and moves far more slowly than she used to..... can't take any of the NSAIDs because like me, her stomach does not tolerate them..... gets tramadol when she seems particularly stiff....
I have had her since she was 4 months old and know that we are on the downhill slope now..... I intend to enjoy everything about her for the duration.....
Thank you for the comments. I try to provide any little things that make Bailey happy, sitting outside in the morning sun, brushing her and kissing her head, putting pumpkin on her food lol she loves it.
I just want to do anything i can to show her she is loved and i am here for her. Her brother, 7 years old doesn't understand why she won't play with him anymore, so he gets plenty of his own time with me. I am so grateful for the companionship that my pets have provided and just don't want to stretch that too far for my benefit so i am trying to be very aware of what Bailey is going through and make the right decision but it is so hard. One moment i look at her and i swear she is smiling, and the next she is struggling to get up.
I think it's time once they are struggling to get up. It's so hard to know when is the right time, but I do believe it's better to set them free a bit too early than a day too late. I did that once with a dog, and had awful regrets
I feel I was a couple days too late with Kona, a couple days too early with Sophie and had planned the day to put Britty down but she passed in her sleep the night before. It's a awfully hard decision to make and I don't feel that the timing is ever right but you need to try to put your grief aside and her first.
We had a bucket list day with Britty, shopping at Home Depot, burgers on a restaurant patio for lunch, puppacinos at Starbucks and steak for dinner. Pretty great day and memories that last, I highly suggest a celebration day for humans and canines as a way to close a great chapter in life.
Our border collie is 13 has trouble with arthritis. My vet just put him on gabapentin, with rymadel and tramadol as needed.
. . . .
Gabapentin. Rimadyl. Tramadol. Do you realize your dog is doped to the gills? Now, gabapentin and rimadyl, taken alone, are probably comparable to taking a daily dose of aspirin, plus a bit. Tramadol, though, is heavy duty. Take them all together? If a human did that, they would be feeling pretty sweet.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Nicky Taylor
My beloved Bailey is 15 now and I too have difficulty in knowing if it is her time now. She struggled with a stroke about 9 months ago and gradually improved. She has been deaf for a few years and her sight is limited. She does have arthritis, and weakness in the back end. We treated her symptoms and she did very well but eventually developed a GI bleed with the arthritis meds so we had to discontinue that. She loves going outside but walks very slowly and tires easily and struggles on the couple steps in and out. She can't get up easily on her own and sometimes falls. She has always been very tough as if nothing affects her but i am starting to wonder about her level of pain. I don't want to be blind to it just because she is "tough."
We are moving out of state in a couple months and I'm worried that will be very hard for her.
I think you are right - the move will be very hard on Bailey. She has shown enough symptoms that some of the people on this forum would already have put her down. On the other hand, maybe you could wait this out. Maybe Bailey can stand the move. And then getting used to a new place. Maybe Bailey could. On the other hand, maybe Bailey won't. Maybe Bailey will get tired when you are half-way to the new house.
You are doing well to think about this beforehand. You show us that you care very much for Bailey. Think about the worst possible case for Bailey.
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Bailey
