putting my dog to sleep.

[leela]

I took on my grandfathers golden retiever when he had two strokes earlier on this year.

Her name is Crumble and she is nearly 8 years old, she is a rescue dog. We knew that in the past she had a few epileptic fits but my grandad being old never wanted to admit something was wrong, so didn't take her to the vets.

It wasn't long after we took her on that she had a fit so we went to the vet who said that she more than likely has a brain tumor that is causing the fits. The only way to confirm it, was to have MRI scans which we couldn't afford and my grandad didn't have pet insurance. So the vet has her on anti fitting drugs but the fits have continued we have had a few severe ones but we have them semi under control but she still fits about once every three weeks. The medication costs and blood tests are costing a fortune and i can't afford it much longer, plus she seems to be always catching some sort of illness. I have spoke to my family and my grandad can't afford to pay for her any longer. i am now in the awful situation that i have to consider putting her to sleep but i can't stop crying and feeling so guilty. Please can anyone give me there thoughts or advice?

[fairkatrina]

My nan inherited a minature daschound who she adored, but he started fitting when he was about 9 or 10. It eventually transpired that he had a brain tumour, and that he'd been having mini fits for years - we just thought he was dreaming because his legs were twitching and he looked like he was asleep. The fits eventually became frequent and very distressing to him, and we decided (and the vet agreed) that putting him to sleep was the best thing for him.

Something like a brain tumour is almost certainly inoperable, and although your dogs isn't 'old' she isn't young either, and rather than financial implications you have to think what's best for her - is it really worth trying to prolong her life when these fits no doubt leave her confused, disorientated and afraid, and are only going to get worse? If you believe she still has a good quality of life then by all means try to keep her alive (the PDSA may be able to help you with financial costs), but if not then put her out of her misery. It seems cruel, but putting an animal down is sometimes the best thing you can do for it.

[kita1]

Agree with the above answer.

You may find this link of help:

http://www.canineepilepsy.co.uk/

[kita1]

Also:

http://www.canine-seizures.freeservers.com/

Sorry I cannot be of more help.

[eyeshade]

Doesn't the Blue Cross help with these sort of things for people who cannot afford medical bills. I just thought the MRI scan would confirm it for you and you would not be left thinking whether he did or didn't. It is a thought only they seemed to everything on the series. My mother in law had someone come from the Blue Cross to give her Rotty an injection at no cost to her. It might be worth a try but sadly it may be time to consider the alternative.

[paddywak]

Leela I hope every thing works out for the best, but if the worst happens please don't feel to bad about it because this is a situation that virtually EVERY pet lover has been in at sometime or other, whether to try to prolong the life of a much loved friend or to let them go in a painless dignified way. So what ever you decide please remember that most of the subscriber to this site sympathise with you because they will have been there themselves

[kita1]

This is the link to the PDSA.
http://www.pdsa.org.uk/eligibility.html

Even if you could have an MRI scan how is it going to help? OK you will know the cause of the fits, but to be honest it is unlikely that anything can be done about a brain tumour (especially at that age). And would you want to put the dog through all that stress just so you know what is wrong?

If you do have to make the final decision, be aware that you can call the vet to the house, or go into the surgery. You can leave the dog with the vet or you can stay and hold her. It is very much a personal choice, I have always stayed with my dogs, but I never condem anyone who cannot face it. I usually place the dog in a down position for the injection and they usually literally just go to sleep.

What you don't want is an experience like a friend had who had an old spaniel. The dog started to have a prolonged violent fit one night, she rushed it to the vet (a car journey 20 mins. long) the dog screamed all the way. At the vets they tried to bring it out of the fit for two hours. It took three people to hold the dog down. Three weeks later the dog had another fit. This time the owner just let it be and the following morning took it to be put to sleep. She said she wished she had done that the first time as she believed that it was unbelievably cruel to treat the dog the way it had been the first time. In the three weeks she had the dog back it was costing her 50 pounds a week in medication, the dog was nearly blind and deaf and was not enjoying his walks - really he was just existing.

Sometimes it is best to let go while you still have good memories and the dog has a good quality of life. Better too soon than too late. I have never regretted letting a dog go. Sadly it is part of owning a dog, but we owe it to them for all the years of love and

[bensmum]

My old dog had a fit one evening followed by another a couple of hours later. We rushed her to the vet who gave her valium which did the trick for a few hours but as soon as that wore off she started fitting again and the only thing I could do for her was to have her put down. It may be better for you to consider doing that now before the dog becomes really poorly as a dog going from one fit to another is truly dreadful. As everyone says here it's not an easy thing to do but they do go very peacefully - I have always stayed with my animals as I felt that I owed them that much and it gave me time to say a last goodbye. But as kita1 says don't feel bad if you can't face it - you can say goodbye to your pet beforehand and I have found that vets are very dignified in the way that they do it so your dog will be well treated. Good luck
XX

[Pete,A]

I had a dog with the same complaint, but when she was 11 she had another illness and had to be spayed, we almost lost her, she was on a drip, but managed to pull through. But it was a blessing in disguise, as she never had another fit during the rest of her life. She lived to 15. I later found that fits are often triggered by hormones.