Bye bye Loki

[tjg_marantz]

He's been with us for just over 9 years. Lived in Montreal with us. Made the move to Regina with us. He's been such a huge part of our lives. We don't know what we're going to do without him. I haven't fries this much... actually ever.

The last few months, his anxiety has climbed severely. Trazadone, prozac, adaptil and cbd oil. We've tried everything and it's getting worst and worst. We can't leave him without him obviously being so scared by himself. Today he broke through our screwed in baby gate and also through the backup gate. On top of that he pooped by the gate and walked all over it and just made a mess everywhere. He's so scared of something and we weren't able to figure it out.

We don't want him to suffer anymore, but we just wished it had been something physical and easy to see when it was the right time. Unfortunately, it isn't and is tearing us up.

Our vet is coming to our home tomorrow with a tech to do the procedure so that at least he can be comfortable in his own home one last time.

He saw Portland Maine and dipped his paws in the Atlantic. He saw Hilton Head South Carolina and the amazing beach there. He walked the beautiful hills around Rigaud Québec. We traveled Quebec with him while he got his championship and stayed in so many motels and he was always such a good boy. He made the journey west to Regina in a car with two cats and never gave us any trouble. He played with boxers and labs and kids and always stood still when a crowd of 20 or so people would come up to us in old Montreal to talk to us about him. He is our only child but we've lost him to his mind and we don't want to make bad memories and we don't want him to suffer anymore.

Noonb or so tomorrow, we'll say our goodbyes even though Mrs tjg and I really don't want to. Thankfully we have an awesome vet giving up her lunch hour to come to our home to give his mind peace.

This is horrible and I can't stop crying.

[Xmann]

said goodbye to our good boy last month.

so sorry to hear this. you gave him an incredible life, be proud of that.

[McNutt]

I'm very sorry to hear this. That's a tough thing to go through. Give him a hug for me too.

[GreenGoo]

That's a good looking dog and 9 years is too few on this earth. That's a tough decision and you did everything you could to try to prevent it's necessity.

Keep those happy memories nearby and they will help you in your grief.

I'm sorry for your loss. Deciding to end a beloved pet's suffering is one of the toughest decisions a owner has to make, but know that you are doing what's best for Loki.

Much love.

[dbt1949]

My condolences.

[DD*]

9 years is a good run for a big fellow like that. My sympathies to you and your family - RIP Loki.

[Daehawk]

Wait I dont understand. You are putting your dog to sleep because he is nervous?? I dont get that. Sounds crazy to me. Not trying to hurt you. Just dont get it .Does he have some untreatable deteriorating mental disease? Have you thought about giving him to a new home? Someone older who would be home with him all the time?

[Z-Corn]

Sure don't want that last post to be the last one in the thread...


I remember when you got Loki. Such a big boy!

He'll always be your big good ol' boy. Sorry you gotta go through this.

[tjg_marantz]

Wait I dont understand. You are putting your dog to sleep because he is nervous?? I dont get that. Sounds crazy to me. Not trying to hurt you. Just dont get it .Does he have some untreatable deteriorating mental disease? Have you thought about giving him to a new home? Someone older who would be home with him all the time?

Yes. He is losing his mind.


I posted my original post this on my phone. If the pictures are screwing everyone's margins, I'm sorry. I'll fix it when I can later.

[Little Raven]

Ugh, that's terrible. Sadly, humans aren't the only ones to suffer from dementia. Fortunately, he has you to make sure his suffering is minimal.

I hope you can all find what peace you can. My deepest condolences.

[WYBaugh]

I'm so sorry. Never, ever easy to say goodbye.

[Daehawk]

Wait I dont understand. You are putting your dog to sleep because he is nervous?? I dont get that. Sounds crazy to me. Not trying to hurt you. Just dont get it .Does he have some untreatable deteriorating mental disease? Have you thought about giving him to a new home? Someone older who would be home with him all the time?

Yes. He is losing his mind. Thanks for assuming the worst though.


I posted my original post this on my phone. If the pictures are screwing everyone's margins, I'm sorry. I'll fix it when I can later.

Im sorry.
I didn't mean anything bad by it. I was afraid you might take it hard. I understand. When it comes to animals I really understand that more than people. I only meant to offer suggestions to help you, your family, and the dog. I figured you probably thought of it all but wanted to try anyways just in case. Times like these you sometimes miss stuff when the thinking is so upset.

Im very sorry for you them and Loki. For a large dog it is a full life but for the family it can never be long enough. Easing their pain and suffering must be one of the hardest decisions you can make. Was not trying to make it harder or to be insensitive. Apologies. Wife and myself will pray for you and Loki. If religions are right you'll see him again one day to run and play happy again.

[tjg_marantz]

I adjusted my reply to you as well.

Thank you. And yeah. We're the crazy people who have done everything we could and probably more. It's time.

Thank you all.

[Kraken]

I adjusted my reply to you as well.

Thank you. And yeah. We're the crazy people who have done everything we could and probably more. It's time.

Thank you all.

You are wise to recognize that, especially if his physical health is otherwise ambiguous. We kept a cat alive for a year too long once, and vowed never to make that mistake again. Everybody was miserable during that year.

Euthanizing a pet is one of the hardest things we ever have to do. Condolences.

[tjg_marantz]

That sucked ass.

He went peacefully surrounded by people who loved him. Thanks all for your good thoughts.

He was the bestest doggo.

[Scuzz]

Sorry to hear about your loss.

[Daehawk]

He was still is the bestest doggo.

He'll always be the best in your heart and memories. Very sorry.Our lives are so much improved because of them but it always hurts when they leave before us.

Love the bunny ears and the look at the chicken pics btw.

[Isgrimnur]

I'm sorry for your loss.

[tjg_marantz]

He was still is the bestest doggo.

Love the bunny ears and the look at the chicken pics btw.

True.

He, on the other hand, was not fond of them. LoL

He could always reach anything on the counter or the table. He never once in his life took anything from either. So well behaved.

Thanks

[Holman]

We just adopted our first dog this summer. I'm so sorry to hear this news.

You did the right thing. Your good dog was suffering terribly, and you saved him from it.

[Daehawk]

He was still is the bestest doggo.

Love the bunny ears and the look at the chicken pics btw.

True.

He, on the other hand, was not fond of them. LoL

He could always reach anything on the counter or the table. He never once in his life took anything from either. So well behaved.

Thanks

Hehe yes I can see that lol. We always think they are so adorable in stuff and yet they dont seem to appreciate it.

To go with Loki Ill show you this. This is Timmy in his witch hat. He was also not fond of it either. He is about 14 there and passed 4 years later. Still hurts. Again Im sorry but I do get it. But never pass up chances to make memories



EDIT: Lol his leg is ok there just sitting funny. Never noticed before.

[tjg_marantz]

Aw, what a cutie

[Carpet_pissr]

So sorry to hear that.

Ours is 17 and quite large (not as big as Loki, but maybe Lab size) and I have no idea if he should be put asleep or not. Apparently his blood work is surprisingly good for a dog his age, but he is often quite confused, sleeps pretty much all day in our closet, but still eating regularly. Seeing and hearing is very poor of course. Neither vet I’ve been to recently mentioned anything about it, which I thought was a bit odd.

Sorry, don’t want to derail, but maybe you have some insight. I fear ours may have dementia as well as it’s obvious he doesn’t know where he is sometimes.

PS I’ve always loved Great Danes (but never had one), such gentle giants. Would you get another?

[Daehawk]

Could his confusion stem from lack of sight and hearing more than mental? 17 is an amazing age length for a large dog.

[Lassr]

So sorry about Loki.

[tjg_marantz]

So sorry to hear that.

Ours is 17 and quite large (not as big as Loki, but maybe Lab size) and I have no idea if he should be put asleep or not. Apparently his blood work is surprisingly good for a dog his age, but he is often quite confused, sleeps pretty much all day in our closet, but still eating regularly. Seeing and hearing is very poor of course. Neither vet I’ve been to recently mentioned anything about it, which I thought was a bit odd.

Sorry, don’t want to derail, but maybe you have some insight. I fear ours may have dementia as well as it’s obvious he doesn’t know where he is sometimes.

PS I’ve always loved Great Danes (but never had one), such gentle giants. Would you get another?

That's the thing with brain deterioration, it's not physical so hard to tell what's going on.

Loki was fine when we were at home in the basement. Upstairs, it would be hit or miss. Sometimes the heat kicking in would set him off and he'd start shaking until we'd go downstairs. Pawing at us. Whining to go down. And that's the problem. If we weren't home and he couldn't go downstairs, he'd go nuts on the baby gates to the point of blood and drool and a bunch of hair at the gate from him trying to eat/paw his way through. The wall is marked up to hell. But if we let him go downstairs and he'd get anxious, he's rip up the carpet and eat it. Then it would be 5 to 7 days of waiting to see if he'd puke it out or if it would potentially kill him by getting tangled in his guts. We think the noise was getting to him from starting hearing loss. We think he was hearing less and less but then hearing the click of the thermometer would set him off.

If your dog is not doing much but sleeping BUT is not showing any signs of distress, I'd say you're fine. It's when they start freaking out over "nothing" that you really have to start thinking. Imagine him freaking out and you're not home. That's terrifying for them.

Sorry, there's no easy answer.

As for another dog. No clue. The house is so empty. His bed in our room is gone. His stuffies are put away. We're in bed and he's not at the edge of the bed waiting patiently for both of us to call him up. He's not kicking the wall from dreaming. It's quiet. It's empty and yet I can't imagine having another dog. We know he was such an old soul and we're not sure any other dog would measure up. Being a show dog, he was always so mellow, even around other dogs. And that's rare and we're not sure about another dog. I'd say not for some years, if ever. He was such a presence and taking up so much of our space. We're going to enjoy our "freedom" for a while. And I guess our $. He was about a 400$ expense at least a month between meds and raw food and vet visits. This decision wasn't about at all but holy moly was he expensive.

[GreenGoo]

Probably too soon to be talking about another dog. You and your wife will figure it out.

A dog like Loki is bound to leave a big hole in your lives, including living space. He was huge!

[tjg_marantz]

For the first time in months, both the wife and I slept the whole night without one of us having to go sleep downstairs. It's weird.

Not having him in our way is weird. But we're trying to make plans and keep busy.

Sucks but it was the right time and so glad we did it at home. I would suggest that to anyone that has to make the decision. No stress, surrounded by his toys and blankets.

Thanks again everyone.

[McNutt]

My dog had altzheimers the last two years. He would get scared and growl because he couldn't recognize us. When he finally did realize where he was he acted so sorry. Broke my heart.

[Matrix]

Putting down my cat of 13.5 years today, had him since he was tiny kitten. He got cancer, and at this point is spreading through liver and on his face. And operation was very low chance. 4 years ago he had it on his lip and it was getting really bad (skin breaks and bleeding) , but the operation to remove the growth was succsefull so he got 4 extra years. This time around the growth on the lip is back and larger, plus giant growth in the liver they spotted when we planed for lip operqtion. I thought they can do same operatin, but vet was basically saying that it's low chance and I don't want him to go through it, as even last time operation and revocery was very traumatic for him. Sitting in the vet office now.

[Chrisoc13]

So sorry for your loss. Heartbreaking. I can't imagine.

[Kraken]

Sorry to hear it, Matrix. Iggy died of an oral cancer, too, but he was nearly 17 so there was nothing ambiguous about it. I was shocked at how fast it went -- three weeks from diagnosis to euthanasia.

[Daehawk]

Sorry Mat. Again 13.5 seems a long time for a pet but it never is enough.

[tjg_marantz]

Condolences man.

[Matrix]

Sorry to hear it, Matrix. Iggy died of an oral cancer, too, but he was nearly 17 so there was nothing ambiguous about it. I was shocked at how fast it went -- three weeks from diagnosis to euthanasia.

Yes, it moved very fast, the oral took 4 years to grow back, but when i took him to vet to remove the growth and sort of repeat the old operation, they found tumor of 7 centimeters in his liver (which quiet big for medium sized cat), that was early last month, today tumor was 20 centimeters. Very sad, was a great cat, and we got along splendidly since he was 5 week kitten. Full of energy an still liked to cuddle up and be petted, and was good on his own as well. Wish you best in the kitty heavens Kiska.

[Daehawk]

Liver seems to be a sensitive area for diseases in pets. Our little guy up above there Timmy had some spots show up on his liver xray when he was around 14. Luckily they never amounted to anything and after continuing treatment with milkthistle as recommended by our vet his little liver cleared up. But it could have went the other way too. Milkthistle is an amazing thing for the liver.