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I am so sorry your vet failed to explain the procedure to you, letting you know what to expect. We lost our 14-year old boy a month ago, also to bone cancer, which had been presumed to be bad arthritis until the day he died when X-rays showed cancer.
Our vet thoroughly explained what we would see in our dog and how both injections worked. He said Jimmy's eyes might remain open after death (one did, and one closed) and also that moments after death, they sometimes heave a very heavy last breath. That did not happen. I think our vet made it as comfortable a procedure as is possible, but I don't look forward to going through that again. My condolences for your great loss.
Please don't feel like you failed Coach. That was the greatest and last act of love you gave him.
I'm so sorry for your loss. It's a difficult decision to make but the final loving one all pet owners must face. It sounds like your boy was well loved and I'm sure he knew that.
I, too, have shared my life with a greyhound. We adopted Merlyn when he was two, and he was my best pal for over 10 years. I was the center of his universe, and I was honored that he was a part of my life. He got cancer, and we saved him. Surgeries, blood transfusions, whatever we could do to save him. He lasted a couple of more years, and then started to get really sick. Panting, racing heart, just not his typical sweet self. I was in denial, and refused to see how much he was suffering until he started vomiting blood. We took him in that afternoon to the vet to be put to sleep. He adored the assistant at the vet, so I know he was loved very much in his last moments.
I couldn't be there for him at the end, not in any way that would have comforted him. I tried that once before with my beloved cat, Ollie, who at four years old got lymphoma. There was no way to save him even if we had all the money in the world. I stayed in the room with Ollie, I felt I owed it to him, but I was so upset all I could do was cry hysterically. I don't think that helped him much. The vet had me turn around when the time came, and I heard Ollie cry/scream when they stuck the needle in, and heard it slowly fade away as his life left him. They left me in the room with him after, and his eyes were open. I could see that there was no more pain in those beautiful green eyes. I hugged his still warm body and cried and thanked him for being my kitty. I couldn't breathe from the grief. When I finally left the room I was screaming, and I ran out of the vet's office crying hysterically.
After that, I realized that this was just something I could never do again. The last thing I want to do is make someone I love's last moments more stressful because of my own grief.
I don't think anyone can truly know how it feels for them during the procedure, but I do know that ending their suffering is the right thing to do. I understood that when I saw the peace in Ollie's eyes. I have a great deal of respect for those who can be there with their pets when the time comes, but some of us don't have that strength. That doesn't mean we love them any less.
So sorry for your loss. I believe he is now running the great fields of the sky, happy and healthy, with lots of new friends. My pete and Alixe were there to greet him. <<hugs>>
Why do I continue to read these threads - I am about to start crying at work.
I am so sorry for your loss.
My hubby asks me that about every day.
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