Man, this really hit me hard. And it was totally unexpected. He was fine until about 1:00 PM the day before yesterday. Running, jumping on and off the couch to get me up, demanding attention, and just raising hell in general like he always does.
Then he just stopped. And he laid on the living room rug and had a strange look in his eye. I knew something was wrong. He could barely get up and walk. I thought maybe he just pulled something.
I called the vet right away, and just my luck he was away, attending some sort of Veterinary conference meeting, (or at least that's what they told me), and he wouldn't be back until next Monday. At this point he seemed to be resting comfortable, and I really thought it wasn't too serious, and would pass.
I guess that's what I wanted to think. By late last night he had gotten progressively worse. His breathing got shorter, and he couldn't stand on his own. I thought we were going to lose him a couple of times over the night.
By morning it was obvious he had suffered a bad stroke, or something similar. I carried him outside so he could do his business, which he did with lot of difficulty. After that he tried to walk, but his legs gave out and he just fell over. I knew then it was over. He was suffering badly at this point.
I ended up calling most every vet in town with no luck. Half of them wouldn't even answer the phone, with just a recording to leave a message for a call back. I finally got a hold of the Animal Humane Society here in town, and I told them what I was up against, and they said they could see him at 2:30 PM yesterday.
And that was it. Just like that. I don't know what they gave him, but it was over in seconds. From healthy, to sick, to gone, in almost no time. That is it for me. No more dogs. I've had them all my life since I was a kid. But for me as I get older, I just can't take the grief when that time comes. My wife really took it hard, as did I.
They just don't live long enough. I really thought this guy had an easy 5 more years in him, just by the way he acted. But you just never know. Anyway, sorry for rambling on, but thanks for listening.
Then he just stopped. And he laid on the living room rug and had a strange look in his eye. I knew something was wrong. He could barely get up and walk. I thought maybe he just pulled something.
I called the vet right away, and just my luck he was away, attending some sort of Veterinary conference meeting, (or at least that's what they told me), and he wouldn't be back until next Monday. At this point he seemed to be resting comfortable, and I really thought it wasn't too serious, and would pass.
I guess that's what I wanted to think. By late last night he had gotten progressively worse. His breathing got shorter, and he couldn't stand on his own. I thought we were going to lose him a couple of times over the night.
By morning it was obvious he had suffered a bad stroke, or something similar. I carried him outside so he could do his business, which he did with lot of difficulty. After that he tried to walk, but his legs gave out and he just fell over. I knew then it was over. He was suffering badly at this point.
I ended up calling most every vet in town with no luck. Half of them wouldn't even answer the phone, with just a recording to leave a message for a call back. I finally got a hold of the Animal Humane Society here in town, and I told them what I was up against, and they said they could see him at 2:30 PM yesterday.
And that was it. Just like that. I don't know what they gave him, but it was over in seconds. From healthy, to sick, to gone, in almost no time. That is it for me. No more dogs. I've had them all my life since I was a kid. But for me as I get older, I just can't take the grief when that time comes. My wife really took it hard, as did I.
They just don't live long enough. I really thought this guy had an easy 5 more years in him, just by the way he acted. But you just never know. Anyway, sorry for rambling on, but thanks for listening.
