Putting down pets, gun vs a needle
Not asking for sympathies, losing a dog is just part of life.
A little over a month ago we had to make a decision with our Shepard. He was 13 years old, his hips were gone to where he would slip and fall doing a split unless he was on carpet. His last week he would not eat, on his final day he wouldn?t eat a Milk Bone, something that dog would charge through the gates of hell to get at. It was time.
All my life when I dog needed to be put down it was usually a quiet walk, no stress and when the time came a .22 handgun would be discreetly placed to the back of the head and in an instant it would be over. No pain, no fear, just over as if someone flipped a switch. Sadly I had a good bit of practice at this, I was asked several times by others to do the deed so between them and a few of my own putting a dog down was easy.
This time things were different, any other time I could flip a switch on my heart and pulling the trigger was easy. With my new family and being that this dog was loved a lot I made the choice to take him to the vet. We went as a family, our little girls said goodbye and waited in the waiting room where the receptionist kept them entertained. We took Ford to that room that is reserved for this, Ford started to flip out, he knew this was a bad room. The vet came in and it took 3 of us to hold him still for the first shot, it took several minutes for him to settle down. Watching my buddy fade away, it was rough, trying to sit up but falling back over like he was drunk, fighting the effects of the medicine, it tore me up to watch this. I cried, Bry?ann cried, it was too painfull to watch. When he finally settled down I gave the nod to the vet for the final shot, in less than 5 minutes he was gone.
It took almost 30 minutes, he weighed in at 88#s so it took a little bit for the medicine to work. The fear he showed, fighting against the medicine, trying so hard not to fall asleep, watching him slowly lose control and finally giving in, that was too much.
If there is a next time I know what I will do. Sure, just the though of putting a dog down with a gun just sounds friggin horrific and people conjure up images of a brutal torturous death with blood and mayhem and they want the person to rot in prison forever for shooting a dog. Well let me tell you something, it is faster and a ton less stressfull on the dog and the person doing it. Using a .22 is quick and painless and no, there isn?t a giant mess. No offense to the vets and those who choose that method, I will never do it again. For me that was far worse than shooting.
Now cats, I can?t do that to cats. I cannot bring myself to kill one of my kitties.
A little over a month ago we had to make a decision with our Shepard. He was 13 years old, his hips were gone to where he would slip and fall doing a split unless he was on carpet. His last week he would not eat, on his final day he wouldn?t eat a Milk Bone, something that dog would charge through the gates of hell to get at. It was time.
All my life when I dog needed to be put down it was usually a quiet walk, no stress and when the time came a .22 handgun would be discreetly placed to the back of the head and in an instant it would be over. No pain, no fear, just over as if someone flipped a switch. Sadly I had a good bit of practice at this, I was asked several times by others to do the deed so between them and a few of my own putting a dog down was easy.
This time things were different, any other time I could flip a switch on my heart and pulling the trigger was easy. With my new family and being that this dog was loved a lot I made the choice to take him to the vet. We went as a family, our little girls said goodbye and waited in the waiting room where the receptionist kept them entertained. We took Ford to that room that is reserved for this, Ford started to flip out, he knew this was a bad room. The vet came in and it took 3 of us to hold him still for the first shot, it took several minutes for him to settle down. Watching my buddy fade away, it was rough, trying to sit up but falling back over like he was drunk, fighting the effects of the medicine, it tore me up to watch this. I cried, Bry?ann cried, it was too painfull to watch. When he finally settled down I gave the nod to the vet for the final shot, in less than 5 minutes he was gone.
It took almost 30 minutes, he weighed in at 88#s so it took a little bit for the medicine to work. The fear he showed, fighting against the medicine, trying so hard not to fall asleep, watching him slowly lose control and finally giving in, that was too much.
If there is a next time I know what I will do. Sure, just the though of putting a dog down with a gun just sounds friggin horrific and people conjure up images of a brutal torturous death with blood and mayhem and they want the person to rot in prison forever for shooting a dog. Well let me tell you something, it is faster and a ton less stressfull on the dog and the person doing it. Using a .22 is quick and painless and no, there isn?t a giant mess. No offense to the vets and those who choose that method, I will never do it again. For me that was far worse than shooting.
Now cats, I can?t do that to cats. I cannot bring myself to kill one of my kitties.
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You conjured up the exact same feelings, of when I took my last rescue, A Bassett Hound I had owned/loved for 5 years. It tore my heart out to go through this. (as you describe above.)
My heart goes out to you. Never an easy endeavor.
I am sorry for your loss Brother.0 -
Done right, they go very gently. Ours always go here at home with us. We have a house call vet.
Sorry for your loss Lonnie and for his slow going.0 -
Completely agree that it is best to take the walk. I have had a vet put one dog down. Never again. My concept of quick is instantaneous. The vets concept is a few minutes. No thank you. I'll do it myself. 0 -
It's bad enough to lose a beloved pet, as we did one year ago (on the 29th of May). I just couldn't live with myself if I took his life. I just don't have the guts. That's the same as shooting a family member. Now, the tears flow, again. 0 -
I never could shoot a dog. Not to say I think it's cruel because the well-placed shot will put down a dog in a blink of an eye with no pain no. I just never could do it myself. I can't even stay in the same room well my dog passes away at the Vets.
Sorry for your loss, four-legged family members become just as loved as 2 legged family members0 -
My experience with the vet and the needle has not been bad.
Once I made the mistake of leaving the body for disposal with the vet.
Wont do that again.0 -
sorry for your loss
we have had a vet put down more than a few over the years even a few goats my wife had as pets
most go easy we had a wiener dog that was licking my hand as the vet gave him a shot
last one our German Shepard we had the vet come to our house Buddy he was 12 and had issues and the last week of his life went fast bad hips bad heart failure and so on ,
my wife both our sons and I were with him to comfort and say goodbye
it was a sad day the vet had a hard time finding a vein and shaved and stuck buddy at least three maybe 4 or 5 times .
buddy seemed to know it was time but when the vet kept poking him . he surprised me I was holding his head in my lap he bit down on me not hard but enough to let me know it was hurting ( he had never bit anyone in his life .
I know it was fast for him after the shot finily was placed right but sad to see him go thru the trial of being stuck so many times
we have a area out back we have our pets laid to rest
once the vet ask if we were taking our pet home or they would take care of it , he told me they just basically toss them in the trash but some never ask what happens and have them dispose of there pet . we treat them with the same respect as we did when alive I could not see doing anything different0 -
I have had 3 dogs put to "sleep". I tore me up every time. I would rather have a vet do it instead of shooting my pet. I think it would be awful to see my pet being shot, and then clean up the mess and bury it. You can't un-see that. Sorry for your loss. 0 -
Times like this one should be able to score an 8 ball of heroin or ketamine. 0 -
It?s terrible either way.
You have to weigh the pup?s fears is he?s afraid of the vet?s office, or has an inkling of what?s coming. He?ll be panicked and afraid. Do you want to put him thru that... Do you want to put you thru that! Sux for both of you.
You also have to weigh your fears / heartache if you choose to take his life. If you do it, it?s just a nice slow walk with ?dad? and a ?sit boy, I love you.? True, doing it yourself may take more than you?re capable of, but for him, he?s with dad, loving it and all is good with the world.
I can talk a good game, but I don?t want any part of either! I?m 63 and my boy is 5. I wanna go before he does...
I feel for you...0 -
Mutual agreement with a friend to put each of our animals down. 0 -
My neighbor is my vet and he and his staff took very good care of me and Max when we had to put Max down. They even put him in a heavy cardboard ?coffin? like box so I could bring Max home and bury him 0 -
Dammitt. Sorry for your loss. There just is no easy way. 0 -
I remember being 15 years old and having put down the dog that had been in our family since I was 5. The poor dog had injured her spine and couldn't move. By that time my mother was a single mother. She had no money to spend on an operation for the dog, so there was no option. The only time the dog rode in a car was to go to the vet, so when we put her in the car, I swear that she knew what was coming. When we got to the vet the dog was actually crying- she didn't want to die. The rest, even after all of these years, is too painful for me to think about. A .22 bullet would have been merciful for all parties concerned.
People sometimes ask why I've never had a pet. I could never go through that ordeal again.0 -
That poor dog had it rough, culture shock slowly overcame him!
I got laid off before Bry?ann did so I came home first. It was pretty lonely living out there and not really being a people person going out and meeting new people wasn?t high on my agenda. I did go to the bar in town from time to time but rarely stayed there long.
One day Bry?ann called and said she was looking online and found a place called Heart Of The Valley animal shelter in Bozeman and suggested maybe I check it out. So I went up and found this dog, his name was Ford and I?m a Ford truck guy. Spent some time with him and decided he was coming home with me. The day I walked him out of the shelter he was happy, anxious and jumping around as if he was asking ?which truck is ours?!? I opened the door on my pickup and he jumped right in and looked at me as if to say ?let?s get out of here!?
So for the next couple months it was just me and that dog, bachelors. He went everywhere with me, walker around the property a lot, pals, we were pals. I had met out neighbor, Sharon. Sharon had a couple horses and her pasture was shot, our pasture was overgrown and Sharon asked if she could bring them up, I said sure bring them up, I?ll take care of them.
Now it is me, the dog and two horses.
Sharon had a couple small girls, turned out Ford liked kids and he would sneak off sometimes to go hang out at Sharons with her kids. We were OK with that as long as he didn?t forget where he lived. After awhile we had to break him of that, he would never come home.
So one day Sharon stops by, she told me a friend of hers had this cat she could no longer take care of and he was fixing to end up at the shelter. She asked if I would take him, I said sure, Wally can stay with me.
Now it is me, the dog, 2 horses and a cat. I think Ford actually muttered the words ass hole when Wally showed up.
Later that year Bry?ann got her walking papers and came home. While living in Kuwait we wound up with a cat, this cat was hit by a car and some American picked him up and spent a ton of $$ getting him fixed up. One day after work Bry?ann asked if she could bring a cat home, that is girl talk for ?we are getting a cat?, so we had a cat in Kuwait and he is a Muslim and I feed him pork.
When Bry?ann got laid off her Mom who was still living in CA wanted that cat so Bry?ann spent a ton of $$ flying that cat home and delivering it to her. Bry?ann came hole.
Now it is me, the dog, 2 horses, a cat and Bry?ann. His quiet home is changing.
Then one day, out of nowhere her mom showed up to visit, she brought that Hadji cat and left him with us, they didn?t get along.
Now it is me, the dog, 2 horses, 2 cats and Bry?ann. This poor dog.
A few months later Bry?ann Mom showed up again, with a U-Haul! Her Mom moved in with us.
Now it is me, the dog, 2 horses, 2 cats, Bry?ann and her Mom. This poor dog.
One day to poor Fords amazement Bry?ann had a puppy, Patricia was born.
Now it is me, the dog, 2 horses, 2 cats, Bry?ann, her Mom and now a baby. I think Ford wanted to run away.
A few months later Bry?anns Mom moved to Bozeman, this quieted things down some for Ford but by now little Patty has this thing she does that Bry?ann calls the ?Happy Raptor?. Patty will just squeal and scream for no reason, not angry just happy and she let?s everyone know she is happy. I saw the dog for the first time go to the door and start pawing at it, he wanted out!
Then along comes Evelyn, this poor dog.
As the girls got a little older they took interest in the dog, he was quite tolerant but never really took to them and mostly avoided them. Sometimes though he wpuld get caught and have to allow hugs and kisses. I think by now the dog wanted Prozak.
As time went on his hips went, the first time I saw him do a split I that it was over. The last few months he had trouble getting up, he would struggle to get into a sitting position then rock back and forth to get up on his feet. I was saddened seeing this and would go out of my way to comfort him. Instead of getting a Milk Bone once or twice a week I gave them to him daily when I was home. I felt bad for him because I knew at his age there wasn?t going to be a good fix and he was nearing his end.
Me and Bry?ann talked about it off and on about what to do. Me being a coward and not wanting to ?face the music? I suggested we just keep an eye on him and let him go on his own. Bry?ann went to work the next day and as I observed him trying to get around and refusing to eat, he would not even eat cat food and that was strange because him and cat food has been a problem!
That weekend I cornered Bry?ann and told her I thought the dog was done but I could not make the call. Out of all the dogs I have had he was the first one I got attached to and making the choice was too hard. She told me he was done, we need to do this, OK.
She asked if I was going to do it, I told her I can?t, not this time. You see Ford was scared of guns, he could hear a safety clicking a mile away. I?ve seen him cower when I would bring a gun in the house, he was scared of them bad. There was no way I could get a gun near him without sending him into a panic and I loved that dog too much to risk a shot from a distance and I would not try to get a gun close. That was not happening.
I called a local vet, made an appointment, I sat at my kitchen table all day trying to get the courage to go. Finally when it was time to go I told Bry?ann to load the girls in her pickup and me and Ford would go in mine, just follow us. I grabbed a couple Milk Bones and took him out, I had to lift him in the pickup, he could no longer get in on his own. It was about 20 miles to the vet, it was a long 20 miles. He would not eat his Milk Bones, they are still on the console of that old Chevy.
Checking in at the vet was hard, I was choked up and could hardly speak.
You know the rest of the story.
Ford died in Bry?anns arms while I cried.0 -
this topic makes me very depressed. I can read about people dying of the plague, atomic bomb victims dying from radiation, watching people get squooshed by cars, eaten by alligators, etc and it's forgotten. but this stuff, leaves me depressed all day long.
you know? I was talking to a Bosnian guy who was in the war, at one point he was serving with the U.N. and was part of an ambulance crew. they went to a house where a mother and daughter were planting flowers in the garden when a mortar landed next to them. the mother's body sheilded the daughter, so only one of them died. they arrived and as he was loading the mother into the ambulance the daughter asked if her mother would be o.k. he couldn't tell her she was already dead. and he looked at me, and told me the point of him telling me the story was, this stuff about wars and people shooting each other and blowing each other up, whatever, but the innocents don't need to die, ok?
dogs are so innocent.
it's bad enough when they pass away. I always told myself I couldn't do it, and then I watched 3 of them die and the suffering they went through because I wouldn't do it, and I would have fought with every last ounce of strength to save their lives, and I surely did with all my dollars to the point that no amount of money, or time, or doctors, would have made a difference. after going through that three times, I asked myself did I really make the right decision? what would I do when I'm faced with this again? it's a terrible, terrible decision to make. it's not choosing the "best" option, but choosing the less horrific option. I decided that I would have to at least help them avoid suffering when all else is futile. because it was neither peaceful nor quick. I would trade a terrible burden for the rest of my life so they could avoid that sort of suffering for an hour.
and now this. we are informed that "putting them to sleep" is actually worse than shooting them in the head.
now I don't know what to think.0 -
We had one in particular,that went to the vet to be put down. I just could not go,Denise took him by herself. I still regret sending her by herself,but I just couldn't. 0 -
maybe just me felling bad about having so many of of pals put to sleep and may be over thinking it ,
I have wondered as the vets have said the shot stops all muscle's to me I would think in the dogs mind is struggling in fear trying to breath bu the chest muscles are not responding to take in air panic for the last minute or three trapped in the mind no way to show the fear or pain
some have gave them two shots one puts them to sleep then a second to stop there heart maybe thats a better way I truly do not know , but last few were a one shot deal . it may be odd but I can imagine me trying to breath or react only to have my body no respond because its not working
a bullet in the brain is instant but a lot more violent and in the pst I have put down sick cats , goats even a pet raccoon and assorted animals but never a dog I just could never bring myself to shooting a life long pal and my wife would never forgive me if I did
I know a couple minutes if that of panic is better than days or weeks of suffering . I guess It comes down to loosing a unconditional pal devoted to us0 -
Most of my dogs have died on their own time from old age. Some have died from accidents or circumstances a dog will get into from just being a dog. As most of my dogs are outside dogs I have no need to put them down because of issues in the house. So most are allowed to die naturally on their own time. Having owned dogs for 50+ years it's inevitable that some would have to be put down for one reason or another. Of the ones needing to be put down I have done it myself. I will not put that off on another person, that is me. I am not suggesting someone is wrong to have another person do it, it's just not how I do things.
On the bullet versus needle issue. IMO, it is much more frightening for the dog to be taken into a vet's office than otherwise. I am not saying someone is wrong to take them to the vet, it's just not what I am going to do.0 -
Chlopoform on a rag and under a wash tub. No pain and no fuss. Buried Candy in the woods. Had carried him home twice from getting injured and once back to the car when hunting. Loved that animal. 0 -
Yeppers!buschmaster wrote:
dogs are so innocent.
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penguin1 wrote:Chlopoform on a rag and under a wash tub. No pain and no fuss. Buried Candy in the woods. Had carried him home twice from getting injured and once back to the car when hunting. Loved that animal.
You can buy chloroform? Ether sure but chloroform? Good to know. Never know when I need to kidnap a porn star.0 -
yoshmyster wrote:penguin1 wrote:Chlopoform on a rag and under a wash tub. No pain and no fuss. Buried Candy in the woods. Had carried him home twice from getting injured and once back to the car when hunting. Loved that animal.
You can buy chloroform? Ether sure but chloroform? Good to know. Never know when I need to kidnap a porn star.
Yes, (And) I am Sure, putting your dog under a "wash tub," was not traumatic to him at all.0 -
penguin1 wrote:Chlopoform on a rag and under a wash tub. No pain and no fuss.
I think that you've read too many cheap detective novels. If you put a chloroform soaked rag over the dogs muzzle it would probably take a full minute to cause it to lose consciousness (it takes adult humans three or four minutes). A chloroform soaked rag placed inside of a washtub? That might take half an hour, if it worked at all. In the meantime the poor dog is trapped in total darkness and suffocating- or at least it feels like it. We don't even execute criminals like that.0 -
many years ago I had a old fellow ( dead now ) tell me him and a couple buddies use to round up stray dogs and sell to some place in indy that used them for testing drugs
dogs they did not want they would bring back run a hose from the car exhaust to a old metal tub and kill them
he said one day he had a group of puppy's as he was putting them under the tub they were all licking his hands . it hit him what a POS he was killing the dogs he never did it again .0 -
Ditch-Runner wrote:many years ago I had a old fellow ( dead now ) tell me him and a couple buddies use to round up stray dogs and sell to some place in indy that used them for testing drugs
dogs they did not want they would bring back run a hose from the car exhaust to a old metal tub and kill them
he said one day he had a group of puppy's as he was putting them under the tub they were all licking his hands . it hit him what a POS he was killing the dogs he never did it again .
Good. At least it hit Him towards the end.
I hope it hung with him, throughout the remainder of his Life. That is some BS, to have done.0 -
I started to read your post and got to the part about holding the dog down. I had to stop because I couldn't see any more.
I don't know the answer to your question , but I have walked in your shoes.
I have only ever had one experience with the vet putting a dog down and that was the heart breaking experience i have ever endured.
when the vet gave my dog the so called calming shot , my dog laid there looking at me shaking her head and looking at me as if to ask what are you doing to me0
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