A man and his dog.

[Mikeyb619]

I'm happy that I was there till the end.I watched him take his last breath and would not change that for the world.

I did the same thing with my last dog and will do it for them all. I want them to feel comfortable and safe with someone familiar til the end, its not easy to do but for every time they've been there for me, in a heart beat. At the end of the day the biggest comfort is knowing you did the right thing.

After having my GSD I have now Ozzy, I'm almost sworn to the breed they are such incredible dogs.

 

[ZIMxxZUM]

I'm truly sorry for the passing of your friend. I seriously would not know how I would carry myself if I were put in this situation. I think of this as I know one day my dog would have to leave me and it chokes me the hell up. I dedicate this little poem to your buddy.

Although I have moved on, don't cry for me
Remember all the good times we spend together, not the bad
If you are ever lonely, call me and even though you will not see me
I will come, just listen with your heart.

I hope this helps a very tiny bit at least.

 

[canibus]

Damn Barry, that's rough. You're a brave man that made the decision we all dread. RIP Sebastian.

 

[nlterminator]

Dont ever doubt your decision, you did the right thing. I watched my father die of cancer last year and there were times that I know he would have chosen the same for himself if he could have. Watching a dog go to the final stages of cancer would be something you would regret more in the long run.

 

[charba951]

So sorry to hear this My GS Abby just turned a year this month. Hopefully time will heal your wounds. Made me go and squeeze the hell out of her.

 

[SWAMPMODULAR]

Very sorry to here about your best friend, my heart goes out to you and your family. Dogs are truly a mans best friend.


Sent from earth to space and back using my iPhone 4S

 

[vettez062002]

Damn thats really sad. I dread the day ill have to put down my dog.

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2

 

[Jack Burton]

Barry, all I can say is I feel for ya man. I read part of your OP and had to stop. I haven't read any other posts in this thread. When it comes to dogs, it's a weak spot of mine. It kills me to hear sad stories.

All I can say is, you did the right thing. The easy way to tell that you did, was by how hard it was to do it. I wish nothing but the best for you and the rest of your dogs, and I hope that happy times come back to you and your family as soon as possible.

Take care man. You've had to bare a burden (that any true dog lover will tell you), is more than most any man can bare.

 

[ShadowGT]

I am so sorry for your loss, I put my dog of 12 years down in April. It was the hardest thing I have ever done in my life. Only those who have shared the special bond will understand. I don't post here much, usually only when something really hits home, and this one did. My eyes definitely swelled up reading your story, it reminded me so much of my own.

My dog lived throughout the most important parts of my life. We got him shortly after my 8th grade graduation and he was there throughout my high school graduation, college graduation, career changes, and my engagement. When you look back at lifes milestones he was at everyone. He transformed our house, in a way only he knew.

As Riley neared 10 and 11 years old, he NEVER showed signs of aging. He literally would outrun, jump, and swim dogs 1/3 of his age. The ongoing joke was he was Benjamin Buttons. We took Riley to the vet for the weekend as we were going to a wedding in NJ, a place he loved, and where he was loved by everyone there. He was his normal self, in fact he was getting his lyme and heartworm during his stay. He ran around the yard, jumped in the car that morning etc, 45 min after dropping him off we got a call that he had 106.7 fever and could not use his back legs. Needless to say we were at the vet the whole weekend with him.

As the weekend progressed he was tested for everything, lyme, full bloodwork, x rays etc. Everything showed up normal, in fact the vet there said he was a picture perfect example of health at 12yrs old. Although his fever fluctuated and decreasd to 102 it never went away. He had 4-6 hours of mobility here and there just to dissapear again. He was put under the care of a neurologist. Fast forward to early yesterday he could no longer use his legs at all and was loosing control of bodily functions, still running almost 106. A third blood chart showed CPK levels of 30,000 and sodium off the charts. 12 hours previous everything was normal. He was diagnosed with necrotizing myelopathy 3 hours before we euthanized him. We lost a perfectly healthy dog in 72 hours, heart breaking and gut renching dont even begin to describe the emotions.

Looking back at everything one fact stands out, my father 60 years old was diagnosed with a strange disease 25 years ago. It was Myositis. The exact disease that took Riley. How such a rare disease can show up in a family, then in their dog almost seems to have a profound message. Only a couple thousand people have the disease, and in dogs its even rarer. Our whole family was touched by this, my father especially. It is those times in life which really make you think about a deeper meaning.

RIP Sebastian, say hello to Riley at the Bridge for me.

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[WireEater]

**** man, you made me tear up when you talked about crying... It makes me realize we are all humans with feelings outside of this forum. Sorry to hear of your loss man.

 

[STAMPEDE3]

I would like to thank all of you for the support and PMs.

I actually took several days off of work and off of the forum.

I've been spending lots of time with Journey and for myself.

 

[Nanner]

Sorry about your loss. We have had to put 2 down. There are no words, I'm sorry your going through this tough time.

 

[Robert Francis]

When I put my Jack Russel Terrier to rest, I took some time off work too. My sister, who never missed a day of work in probably 35 years, had English bulldogs and when one of hers died several years ago, she took 3 days off just taking down his pictures and gathering up his toys, etc. And when she went back to work, one of the first persons who talked to her, another work-a-holic, said he was sorry for the passing of her dog, She thanked him but she said she felt odd for takign three days off - but this guy told her that's not unusual as he took a week off when his cat died.

Whenever you lose one of your close friends there's a grieving process to go through, and it takes time, and you have to allow yourself to go through it.

 

[WireEater]

The ONLY time I had ever watched my dad cry in the 25 years at that time was when one of his dogs died.

Dogs are truly mans best friends.

 

[Blk04L]

I know the feeling of losing a GSD too soon.

At least you had the chance to say goodbye.



Also, one of the few times I've seen my dad cry was over a loss of one of our GSD.

 

[Parts-is-Parts]

Man Im so sorry.
Ive been through it before and dread the next time (because I will always have dogs in my life)

Im not ashamed to say I cried reading this.

So so sorry.
RIP Sebastian.

 

[truebluedevil02]

Man, this was rough to read. I have 2 dogs, rudy will be 3 on March 9th and Apollo will be 3 in October. I feel like crap now as the last thing I said to rudy was "Bad dog" before I went to work. Now I just want to go give him a hug and lay by the fire place and rub his belly. This afternoon is gunna suck now.

 

[Tickle]

I'm relatively new here, but I'd like to offer my condolences. Putting down a best friend is the hardest thing I have ever had to do in my life. I had to take time off from work as well to heal a bit. It hurts now, and always will but I promise better days are ahead.

I'm gonna go home and play with my dog a little extra today.

 

[SteedaGT9150]

Sorry for your loss man

 

[CobraCarrera]

Barry

I am sorry for your the loss of your best friend....Man this is hard to type....At least he will be with you always, looking over you and being your angel and watching over his sister...

Take care and take it one step at a time.....Time will help heal...it just may take a little while....