Question about older dogs

[SoMDGirl42]

I have an old boy. His litter brother passed last June. He will be 15 in May. I don't think he has much longer, but just curious if anyone has experienced this as well. He hasn't been going up or down the stairs in the last 2 years or so. The last two weeks, he's been making a be line up the stairs and going under my bed. When he and his brother were young, that was one of their favorite places to hang out. What are the chances he's doing this because he's ready to cross the rainbow bridge? I've heard of dogs hiding and passing away peacefully in their favorite place. I just feel like that's what he's doing. Is it possible he can sense it's coming and doesn't want my daughter to be tramatized by finding him in his bed? I just have a feeling that's why he's going under my bed, so I will find him and not her. It won't be much longer, but I do not feel he is suffering at this time. If he gets to that point like his brother, I will have to assist with his crossing. Not looking forward to that again. I did have the talk with my daughter again this morning that he is old and doesn't have much longer with us. I hate this part of being a pet owner!

 

[slotpuppy]

So sorry to hear about your doggie. He may be going as a way of being close to you because his time is short. :shrug: I hope his passing is easy and painless.

 

[frequentflier]

I have an old boy. His litter brother passed last June. He will be 15 in May. I don't think he has much longer, but just curious if anyone has experienced this as well. He hasn't been going up or down the stairs in the last 2 years or so. The last two weeks, he's been making a be line up the stairs and going under my bed. When he and his brother were young, that was one of their favorite places to hang out. What are the chances he's doing this because he's ready to cross the rainbow bridge? I've heard of dogs hiding and passing away peacefully in their favorite place. I just feel like that's what he's doing. Is it possible he can sense it's coming and doesn't want my daughter to be tramatized by finding him in his bed? I just have a feeling that's why he's going under my bed, so I will find him and not her. It won't be much longer, but I do not feel he is suffering at this time. If he gets to that point like his brother, I will have to assist with his crossing. Not looking forward to that again. I did have the talk with my daughter again this morning that he is old and doesn't have much longer with us. I hate this part of being a pet owner!

Have you considered taking him to the vet to see if anything is going on?

 

[SoMDGirl42]

Have you considered taking him to the vet to see if anything is going on?

yes, I've considered it.

 

[ICit]

yes, I've considered it.

that should have been the first step months ago when you started to notice him acting different....

 

[Roman]

that should have been the first step months ago when you started to notice him acting different....

She did say that he is not suffering right now, and she knows her pet better than you do.

 

[ICit]

She did say that he is not suffering right now, and she knows her pet better than you do.

dear roman.... I know SOMDgirl fairly well...

so i know the ins and outs of things with the dogs..


and how does she know he is not suffering.... many dogs with kidney failure never show signs till it too late.... many dogs with joint issues dont show pain..... point is she doesnt!

point is ... as a dog gets older ..VET VISITS should increase.... and as she knows heart failure is common in these dogs... one should keep up on vet visits to know how thing are progressing.

 

[kwillia]

dear roman.... I know SOMDgirl fairly well...

so i know the ins and outs of things with the dogs..


and how does she know he is not suffering.... many dogs with kidney failure never show signs till it too late.... many dogs with joint issues dont show pain..... point is she doesnt!

point is ... as a dog gets older ..VET VISITS should increase.... and as she knows heart failure is common in these dogs... one should keep up on vet visits to know how thing are progressing.

So if the dog is going into kidney or heart failure she should just put it to sleep then and there and not let it prolong? It would be a hard call to make when the dog seems to be relatively content at the time.

 

[vraiblonde]

point is ... as a dog gets older ..VET VISITS should increase.... and as she knows heart failure is common in these dogs... one should keep up on vet visits to know how thing are progressing.

This is a real question:

Why would you funnel a ton of money on vet visits into a 15 year old dog that's on its last legs? Is SomdGirl independently wealthy or something?

 

[ICit]

So if the dog is going into kidney or heart failure she should just put it to sleep then and there and not let it prolong? It would be a hard call to make when the dog seems to be relatively content at the time.

dont take my words and string them out of context!!! damn!

of all the daymn people you want to say that to.... me?? you know how i feel about my dogs!!! and we talked about this as well in leonardtown.


Im the one who kept pushing her to take her other dog in that had heart failure... they can give meds... it makes dog comfortable... and as things progress then the meds can be tweeked...
till the meds dont work anymore then one needs to think about things.

and she did!


i never said to put the dog to sleep... and she knows i have said to take him to the vet a WHILE ago to have a check up done!!!!

 

[vraiblonde]

Im the one who kept pushing her to take her other dog in that had heart failure... they can give meds... it makes dog comfortable... and as things progress then the meds can be tweeked...
till the meds dont work anymore then one needs to think about things.

Again, does she have that kind of money that she can keep a dog on heart meds indefinitely?

 

[kwillia]

This is a real question:

Why would you funnel a ton of money on vet visits into a 15 year old dog that's on its last legs? Is SomdGirl independently wealthy or something?

Not only would I see it as misappropriated funds, but I believe it to be cruel when folks prolong illnesses or put animals through extreme treatments. How the heck do you explain to your cat or dog that "borrowed time" or feeling like crap because of medical treatments is for their own good. You can't... I see it as selfish.

 

[ICit]

Not only would I see it as misappropriated funds, but I believe it to be cruel when folks prolong illnesses or put animals through extreme treatments. How the heck do you explain to your cat or dog that "borrowed time" or feeling like crap because of medical treatments is for their own good. You can't... I see it as selfish.

then let the dog suffer..... im sorry you dont understand....

there is a difference in prolonging the dogs life... and making the dog comfortable....


then letting it suffer is the better thought???

 

[kwillia]

dont take my words and string them out of context!!! damn!

of all the daymn people you want to say that to.... me?? you know how i feel about my dogs!!! and we talked about this as well in leonardtown.


Im the one who kept pushing her to take her other dog in that had heart failure... they can give meds... it makes dog comfortable... and as things progress then the meds can be tweeked...
till the meds dont work anymore then one needs to think about things.

and she did!


i never said to put the dog to sleep... and she knows i have said to take him to the vet a WHILE ago to have a check up done!!!!

Regular elder care blood work is hundreds of dollars repeatedly and pet meds have side effects too. I think you are being unfair berating her when 15 is most certainly end of life expectancy for a dog.

 

[kwillia]

then let the dog suffer..... im sorry you dont understand....

there is a difference in prolonging the dogs life... and making the dog comfortable....


then letting it suffer is the better thought???

Not at all... If a dog is having trouble breathing, sleeping, eating or any other signs of low quality of life I'm a firm believer in putting them to sleep. That is why I said what I said about test results coming back... I said it would be hard to put the dog to sleep based on a test result when it seems to be okay.

 

[ICit]

Regular elder care blood work is hundreds of dollars repeatedly and pet meds have side effects too. I think you are being unfair berating her when 15 is most certainly end of life expectancy for a dog.

too bad you dont know the whole story..


and if you cant afford to care for a pet the right way for its whole life.. then maybe some should not own one... (and that is a general statement not directed towards a single person...)

 

[ICit]

Not at all... If a dog is having trouble breathing, sleeping, eating or any other signs of low quality of life I'm a firm believer in putting them to sleep. That is why I said what I said about test results coming back... I said it would be hard to put the dog to sleep based on a test result when it seems to be okay.

just wondering
so if your dog was diabetic... you would just put it to sleep?

 

[kwillia]

too bad you dont know the whole story..


and if you cant afford to care for a pet the right way for its whole life.. then maybe some should not own one... (and that is a general statement not directed towards a single person...)

Nice theory, but not reality. A person's financial situation most certainly changes in the course of a decade plus years. Heck, many of us have had changes in financial situations within the past couple of years. Taking whether or not someone has the funds out of the equation, I accept that growing old and dying is a natural process and I see nothing wrong with not intervening at the end of life of one's pet unless their quality of life warrants putting them out of there misery by lethal injection rather than letting them die outright naturally. It doesn't just go for pets... My mom made me her medical advocate because she knows I am willing to pull the plug when the time comes...:shrug:

 

[ICit]

Nice theory, but not reality. A person's financial situation most certainly changes in the course of a decade plus years. Heck, many of us have had changes in financial situations within the past couple of years. Taking whether or not someone has the funds out of the equation, I accept that growing old and dying is a natural process and I see nothing wrong with not intervening at the end of life of one's pet unless their quality of life warrants putting them out of there misery by lethal injection rather than letting them die outright naturally. It doesn't just go for pets... My mom made me her medical advocate because she knows I am willing to pull the plug when the time comes...:shrug:

i do understand there is line were you need to keep things real... as i have been there with ONE of my dogs....

but when you take on a pet...it IS UP TO YOU to take care of it finacially as well and if it gets sick (within reason because you cant predict cancer or things as such) ....

try this....

person gets dog... never gets dog its shots because they dont have the money... dog gets sick due to it.... and NOW the dog dies...

whos fault is that?


owner never puts dog on heartworm meds... dog gets heartworms... dies a horrible death .... did the dog deserve that?

 

[kwillia]

i do understand there is line were you need to keep things real... as i have been there with ONE of my dogs....

but when you take on a pet...it IS UP TO YOU to take care of it finacially as well and if it gets sick (within reason because you cant predict cancer or things as such) ....

try this....

person gets dog... never gets dog its shots because they dont have the money... dog gets sick due to it.... and NOW the dog dies...

whos fault is that?


owner never puts dog on heartworm meds... dog gets heartworms... dies a horrible death .... did the dog deserve that?

Of course I believe in the yearly check-up, the necessary vaccines and heartworm preventive is a must because not having it is most likely a death sentence in our area. If you have been doing it and can no longer do it than you should find another home for the dog or if that isn't feasible than there would be no other choice but surrender to the pound. But I see all of that as another subject.

This thread was started about a dog that is soon to be 15 and asked for opinions on whether or not the dog going under a bed is a sign of distress and possibly nearing the end. I would probably just keep an eye out for signs of pain or severe discomfort and at that point ready myself for the trip to the vet knowing it would probably be it's last. I believe in putting the dog to sleep peacefully if the vet agrees there is distress.