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So, it's been a rough year so far. My wife and I have had four dogs for the past 11 years. The last of our original pack just came back from the vets with really bad news. We are hoping he lives through the weekend. I'm really devastated by this news since he's not had any problems recently and always is the one pulling hardest on walks.

His name is Percy. He's half black lab and half corgi. Most people see him and go "what is that?!" In a humorous delighted tone. He looks like a black lab with stubby legs and pigeon toes. My wife says he has sea otter feet. He's a great dog despite a bit of old man grump here lately. He's always been playful and sweet. All of the various nieces, nephews, and friends neighbors kids love Percy the best (although we'd never tell the newer Dogs!) . To see him just lying there really makes me sad. He's in no pain (on some gooood drugs) and seems fairly clear headed. It's just hard on us.


Percy and The Girls

One great thing about Percy is he has his own pet! We have a big aquarium in my office and he loves to getup on a nearby ottoman and look at it. He particularly likes one of our fish that stays on the bottom (right at his nose level) and will chuff and half bark when he sees him. I've caught him in there by himself up on his ottoman and just gazing into the aquarium.


Percy was the only boy dog we had when we had "The Girls" our three yellow lab mix females. They all treated him like the beloved annoying little brother he was. We've lost all The Girls now as things do and now it looks like ol Percy's turn. It's still day to day, and the vet said there's a chance of recovery, but it seems like we've been down this road too much lately to really have much hope. We have two younger dogs now but this feels like the end of a really good era.

Help me out DAKKA, tell me your stories of your wonderful pets!

Ps if you could spare a prayer, mention my Percy to God for me.

Thanks in advance, DAKKA!

I feel your pain. 10 years ago I bought a house, and right after I wanted a cat. The local PetSmart had a 2-for one special, and I couldn't stand to break up two brother kittens.

One ended up having kidney disease and died two years ago. Kept him on an IV bag three times a day for two months, but it only prolonged the inevitable.

He was an ultra-long haired Maine Coone and weighed 14 pounds. Possibly one of the dumbest cats I've ever met, but also one of the friendliest and most caring. He ended up fostering another kitten we found abandoned and MUCH too young to be without a mother (too young to even walk).

No matter how bad my day was he'd try to make me feel better by being just close. When I was sick with the flu he refused to leave my side for 2 days.

I love all my pets in different ways, but there will never be another like him.

I have had pet rats and mice. You have time enough to love them, then they die. You mourn them bury them and move on.

Dogs are no different, but you don't look at the end from the beginning.

 Orlanth wrote:
I have had pet rats and mice. You have time enough to love them, then they die. You mourn them bury them and move on.

Dogs are no different...

I've heard some pretty absurd ideas on this forum, but the idea that a dog you might own for 16 years is about the same as a pet mouse or rat with a 18 month lifespan is perhaps the new low point.

Think more clearly then, Ouze. Who are you to say that someone cannot love a rat as much as someone else loves a dog? These are emotive comparisons and thus cannot be limited by arbitrary judgements.

Rodent owners learn that their pets do not last long, there is no less (or more) love there, but anyone who collects rats develops a fatalistic approach to them.
Some cannot or will not collect more rats after losing their first ones. Others replace them, the latter have it right IMHO.

In terms of human-animal relationships, the lifespan of the animal determines the length of the cycle, nothing more.
Now most dog owner will have a single dog, while a rat owner will normally have a colony of several, rats should not be kept alone anyway. Numbers help, but people who own several dogs can feel the loss as much as losing their only dog. People who love their rats come upon the stage the OP is in earlier and more frequently. The lessons of life are harsh and dispassionate: life ends in death. We have to move on with our own journey, which ends the same way for us. As life is a cycle one ends one begins there is nothing wrong with replacing a lost pet and passing on the relationship, albeit with changes to account for the new animals personality. The OP might believe that this is a betrayal, it is not, it's the natural order. Namely:

Aquire pet, love pet, pet dies, mourn pet, aquire replacement pet, love pet....

Nobody says you have to forget what was before.

Please take this tangent (dog vs rat) to PM if you want to discuss it further - thanks

To the OP, that's the only thing giving me pause about getting one (seeing my parents go through this a few times) but I think the joy is worth the pain!

Huh, I would have never thought this thread would grow my ignore list. Life's full of surprises!

Cuda, thanks for sharing, I had a big Lab like that (front right in the group shot above) big dumb and sweet as Hell!

RTides, I like to think of it as a balance. The extra delights and cuteness you get when they're puppies balances out the heartache when they're older.

Update! Percy went to the vet yesterday and the vet liked what he saw. His steroid shot has either stopped or lessened the internal bleeding. My wife and I decided this would be Percy's Best Weekend Ever! So we took him to the park and he swam in the creek then had lunch at Sonic (20 tater tots!) then after a nap and down time watching my nephew play Legos we hit another park so he could be with my best friend and his daughter. Afterwards we went for ice cream! He got a cup of whipped cream and almost everyone at the place wanted to pet him because he's just that cute! Teenage girls for days oohing and cooing over him. He's such a Mac.

He's sore this morning and waddling around but alert. More to come, hopefully!

 SlaveToDorkness wrote:
Huh, I would have never thought this thread would grow my ignore list. Life's full of surprises!

Cuda, thanks for sharing, I had a big Lab like that (front right in the group shot above) big dumb and sweet as Hell!

RTides, I like to think of it as a balance. The extra delights and cuteness you get when they're puppies balances out the heartache when they're older.

Update! Percy went to the vet yesterday and the vet liked what he saw. His steroid shot has either stopped or lessened the internal bleeding. My wife and I decided this would be Percy's Best Weekend Ever! So we took him to the park and he swam in the creek then had lunch at Sonic (20 tater tots!) then after a nap and down time watching my nephew play Legos we hit another park so he could be with my best friend and his daughter. Afterwards we went for ice cream! He got a cup of whipped cream and almost everyone at the place wanted to pet him because he's just that cute! Teenage girls for days oohing and cooing over him. He's such a Mac.

He's sore this morning and waddling around but alert. More to come, hopefully!

Aww... That is one well cared for dog.
Give him a yummy steak and he be a very happy dog!

I had this cat, I got him when I was 20, almost as an impulse buy when I made a bit of money, and my girlfriend wanted a pet at my place. She couldn't have one, because her brother was allergic (so am I, what'll we do for love, eh?)

Loooooong story short, the girl left me a few months later, I kept the cat, and he was my only stable companion for almost 10 years. My current wife met him and she was able to break through his curmudgeonness, no one else ever had. In 2014 he was diagnosed with diabetes, went from this massive feline to a gaunt, tired cat in the space of 2 years.

I knew the end was coming in 2016, but I had hoped he would make it to summer, I wanted him to be able to lounge in the sun a couple of times, he always enjoyed that the most. But the weather wouldn't cooperate and we had to decide to end his suffering on May 4th. As a Star Wars fan, I don't quite enjoy the day as much as I used to.

But that weekend, oh boy. We gave him flaked ham, tuna straight from the can, I cooked him a nice steak that I then cut into tiny pieces... he was my big boy.

I hope Percy makes it for a little while yet. I don't pray, but I'll think of you guys.

 SlaveToDorkness wrote:
Update! Percy went to the vet yesterday and the vet liked what he saw. His steroid shot has either stopped or lessened the internal bleeding. My wife and I decided this would be Percy's Best Weekend Ever! So we took him to the park and he swam in the creek then had lunch at Sonic (20 tater tots!) then after a nap and down time watching my nephew play Legos we hit another park so he could be with my best friend and his daughter. Afterwards we went for ice cream! He got a cup of whipped cream and almost everyone at the place wanted to pet him because he's just that cute! Teenage girls for days oohing and cooing over him. He's such a Mac.

We did something like that with my last bulldog. At one point, it became pretty clear that the end was nigh, and I have to say, I think it was better that way. We had plenty of time to prepare. I mean, it still hit like a ton of gakky bricks, obviously, when she died but... at least we did the best we could to make her time painless and special.

I love bulldogs but the truth is, their relatively short lifespan definitely lets me see the charms of those little ratty dogs that live more than twice as long. A decade just isn't enough.

 jhe90 wrote:

 SlaveToDorkness wrote:
Huh, I would have never thought this thread would grow my ignore list. Life's full of surprises!

Cuda, thanks for sharing, I had a big Lab like that (front right in the group shot above) big dumb and sweet as Hell!

RTides, I like to think of it as a balance. The extra delights and cuteness you get when they're puppies balances out the heartache when they're older.

Update! Percy went to the vet yesterday and the vet liked what he saw. His steroid shot has either stopped or lessened the internal bleeding. My wife and I decided this would be Percy's Best Weekend Ever! So we took him to the park and he swam in the creek then had lunch at Sonic (20 tater tots!) then after a nap and down time watching my nephew play Legos we hit another park so he could be with my best friend and his daughter. Afterwards we went for ice cream! He got a cup of whipped cream and almost everyone at the place wanted to pet him because he's just that cute! Teenage girls for days oohing and cooing over him. He's such a Mac.

He's sore this morning and waddling around but alert. More to come, hopefully!

Aww... That is one well cared for dog.
Give him a yummy steak and he be a very happy dog!

Indeed. Do as much as you can as long as you can, thats my rule.

My boxer developed cancer in here spine that made it so she couldn't walk. We made arrangements for our vet to come to our house to put her to sleep so it wouldn't have to be done there. The last day I made a sled, I could tow her in with a shoulder harness, and took her to her favorite hiking trial on a ten mile hike. that night I slept on the floor with her and she died in my arms. There is not much comfort to give, Sorry. Pets, especially dogs are a wonder and their lives are too short. Every time we loose one I tell myself no more. I Take it harder than losing a family member or close friend! Then six months later we have a new edition (or two). Enjoy the time you have with them and I guaranty you will remember every one like you were with them yesterday. Now everyone at work is wondering why I'm crying!

That's awesome, CH!

Fraz, I knew you'd weigh in here, I appreciate it!

Ouze, thanks for sharing! Try a Pitbull. We got one eight months ago and it scares me how much I love that sweet goofy girl!

Update! We took Percy to the vet today and he's doing better! It's still a matter of time, but he's doing well now. I'm really hoping he makes it another twelve days. We have custody of my nephew every other weekend and he LOVES this dog. Broke my heart last night watching him tell him what we assume was bye forever. Like most 10 year olds he's optimistic and told me Percy might live for a few more months.

We spent the weekend making Percy available to all the nieces and nephews and friends to say goodbye. Hard, man, very hard.

Thanks for the input and sharing people, keep it up and I'll keep updating!

Agree on the Pitty. Our current Family includes Stanley an American Pit we rescued, and Molly an English Mastiff, and they are both the most lovey dogs. If you let him Stanley will kiss you until it goes way past creepy

Man im not looking forward to my dogs going.

one is already half way there and it bumbs me out :/

 SlaveToDorkness wrote:
That's awesome, CH!

Fraz, I knew you'd weigh in here, I appreciate it!

Ouze, thanks for sharing! Try a Pitbull. We got one eight months ago and it scares me how much I love that sweet goofy girl!

Update! We took Percy to the vet today and he's doing better! It's still a matter of time, but he's doing well now. I'm really hoping he makes it another twelve days. We have custody of my nephew every other weekend and he LOVES this dog. Broke my heart last night watching him tell him what we assume was bye forever. Like most 10 year olds he's optimistic and told me Percy might live for a few more months.

We spent the weekend making Percy available to all the nieces and nephews and friends to say goodbye. Hard, man, very hard.

Thanks for the input and sharing people, keep it up and I'll keep updating!

You are doing it right my man. Keep doing it-and give that doggie steak every day!!!!

When I was a child, we had a cat named Mimi. She was an old scrapper; my mom use to collect strays, nurse them back to health and find them a home. No one wanted Mimi though, so my parents decided to keep her. Her life was a long list of misfortunes; my mom had once accidentally stepped on her while making dinner because Mimi ran into the cramped kitchen (in china, we didn't have a lot of room. the kitchen literally only had about 4 square foot of walking space in a straight line) and my mom tripped, stomping on her leg. The vet said that she would never recover from it, and Mimi would walk with a limp for the rest of her life.

She also once had a pair of twin kittens. However one night she was trying to hug them she instead rolled over and....squashed them. My dad told me they woke up and found her crying over her children.

Then I was born. I think Mimi really wanted to be a mother, because she saw me as sort of a surrogate child. She would bring me food whenever I was hungry and would call my parents in whenever there was a problem she couldn't solve (potty emergencies). She was allowed to roam the neighbourhood; everyone knew her and she always returned home. She was my best friend for the first few years of my life.

But she was old. My mom had no idea how old she was when they first found her, and by the time I was born she'd already been with the family for 5 years. So it was no surprise that by my 4th birthday she was slowly dying. But for all the misfortunes in her life she ended up going peacefully. Dad buried her in the field outside our apartment. That was the first sad day of my life. My dad said that she had tried to leave the house before her time, to make us think that she merely ran away and didn't pass, but she was too weak to make it that far.

I still remember her and she's the reason I love cats of all kind. On some level I do consider her a surrogate mother to me, and I hope that makes her happy. However I don't think I'll be able to get another pet like her in my life, I don't think I can handle outliving another one.

Hope he lives out the rest in great happiness. Sounds like he will.

Feel your pain, especially watching Tiger and Max in their last few days (each of them couldn't eat and using the IV to feed seemed not to adequately sustain them after periods of time). We ended up putting them down but remember the sadness of the period after we brought them in, replaying their times as kitties, holidays, Sunday mornings, etc., over and over in my head. After Max we never got another cat, but time does heal the sadness (and getting a 55 gallon fish tank with discus down the road lol).

Hang in there!

 SlaveToDorkness wrote:
Ouze, thanks for sharing! Try a Pitbull. We got one eight months ago and it scares me how much I love that sweet goofy girl!!

Man, I wish - my first dog was a mostly pitbull mutt who I loved, but I can't sell it to my wife and I've been trying for years. I think we're going to go to Pugs next - a few more years but otherwise fairly similar.

Ouze, we got our pitty after she had had 10 puppies. We think she escaped a puppy mill and was homeless when she had the pups. She kept them all alive but almost starved herself. She weighed 39 lbs. when we got her from the rescue. That helped us in introducing her to people because she was in no way scary. Now she's 75 lbs and muscled nicely. People do hesitate now but she's still the sweetest dog we've ever had.

Man, the cat stories are really making me dread losing ours. She's at least 17-18 since she wandered into my life full grown in 01. Not looking forward to that.

Update! Percy is acting totally normal and ate his normal food this morning! Running around and trying to boss Blue and Barney around.

Good to hear Percy has a little pep back .

My mother HATED animals, so our only pets were parakeets growing up because grandma loved birds and mom was over-ruled .

When I met my wife her family had 2 dogs (Sunflower was hers), and an old cat. I’ve never been a big dog lover, but Sunny was a loving lap beagle all 44 pounds of her. If you sat anywhere she would either climb into your lap or nuzzle her head underneath your elbow and onto your lap till you pet her. My wife and I dated only 3months before we got engaged, married 6 months later (no pregnancy , we both waited till we were married) and Sunny lived with us. She became more my dog than my wife’s, especially when she did get pregnant a few years later. Sunny would sleep under the covers up against me while the wife cocooned herself in pillows to find comfort during pregnancy. When our oldest was born we brought her home and set her upright in Sunny’s chair (a club chair) and Sunny hopped right up and curled up next to her and was a great guard dog and warm blanket for Sarah. As Sarah grew up and our twins came two years later Sunny kept them all safe from visitors until she knew they were okay. Now Sunny did have a bad habit of waiting until our backs were turned and then would stand up next to all three while they were in high chairs and get fed what the kids didn’t want , but Sarah was the only one of the three kids that Sunny would lick the food out of her mouth as she leaned over her seat with her mouth open .

As the years went on Sunny slowed down and she developed fatty tumors. We treated them the first time, but it took so much out of her. Then one day we had a contractor at our house giving us a roof quote and Sunny was sitting in her chair licking and gnawing herself ferociously. She had been doing it rather frequently over the weeks before and we gave her multiple baths thinking she had gotten bug bites or something. In the middle of the guy giving us the total quote she started hacking and coughing. We all were alarmed by it and stopped to turn and see her cough up a big bloody clump onto the carpet from her chair. I grabbed a kitchen towel and picked her up as I saw she was bleeding from her back leg. I rushed her to the veterinarian with the chunk in a ziplock bag. The vet took her back and after about an hour came out having stitched her up. The veterinarian explained that she chewed the chunk out of her hind leg because it was a cancerous tumor, and some dogs are able to sense it. Sunny lived for about 6months after that, the cancer spread quickly but did not debilitate her as she was happy until the end.

We got two dogs afterwards, but they were not good with the kids so they were given away to one of the workers at the pet training place we went to who loved them.

The kids, especially Sarah still talk about Sunny even though the twins were only 2 when she died. Our house we live in now is not conducive to dog ownership. No way to fence the yard (regular or electric) due to strange driveway and we are right on a busy street. We went without pets for years, but have recently adopted Grandmas cat since Grandma is now in a nursing home. Smokie is a loving demon cat who loves playing Test of Honour
where I found a figure with a cat that got painted up to look like our shaggy grey Oni.

And then we adopted a kitten a year ago to keep now 17 year old Smokie active. Tallulah is such a cuddler when she wants to be, and the kids are jealous that she always goes and climbs up on my wife’s chest and takes a nap while we are watching TV. Just today she helped me start building a new 3’x5’ gaming table.


Edit: Sorry, just realized this was thread necromancy after I posted.

I like the kitty mini. I did an army with woflhead bloodletters. AT the time I painted several special with the hair coloring of past dogs, and named them.

Of course I have two unbound defilers, one with a giant drum representing The Boy and the other with a tiny blond on its shoulder, making it do her foul bidding.

 Orlanth wrote:
I have had pet rats and mice. You have time enough to love them, then they die. You mourn them bury them and move on.

Dogs are no different, but you don't look at the end from the beginning.

Dude... you are just batting for a million this week...


As for OP, we moved back from Japan about 10 years ago. Decided to get my wife a puppy, a border collie mutt, she was the last of her litter at the shelter. We named her Mindy. She was nothing but a giant pain in the ass, took 2 years to get her house trained. She loved to jump, and we'd have to watch her when she was outside because she could clear the fence. Also tore our yard up something fierce.

Despite that, and the fact that she was supposed to be my wife's dog, she bonded with me hard. 10 years along now, she's as much as one of my children as my actual children. Border Collies tend to make it to around 11, so our vet says, and she's definitely showing her age. Arthritis is setting in, and she's starting to lose her vision. I'm deploying again this fall, and I'm worried that she won't be here when I get home.

Best I can suggest is don't drag it out to long, for both your sake's. And when you're ready, look for that new rescue to give a new life to, and help fill that hole in your heart.

I had a rottie awhile back. He was born in the repo yard, was the runt and no one wanted him. I never had a dog so kept him. He was the best dog I could ask for. Really smart, could even walk him without a leash no problem.

Ronin had one odd quirk though. He never barked when anyone approached the house or entered, but when someone would leave he went nuts and wouldn't stop barking at them. Like he never wanted anyone to go.

Man, I miss that guy!

 Mrs. Esterhouse wrote:
I had a rottie awhile back. He was born in the repo yard, was the runt and no one wanted him. I never had a dog so kept him. He was the best dog I could ask for. Really smart, could even walk him without a leash no problem.

Ronin had one odd quirk though. He never barked when anyone approached the house or entered, but when someone would leave he went nuts and wouldn't stop barking at them. Like he never wanted anyone to go.

Man, I miss that guy!

That's really weird. Rottie I had growing up was crazy protective of the house, and would lose her mind when anyone came up. Rottie puppy I'm raising right now is starting to show those traits as well. Never had an issue with people leaving though.

Yea, never understood it. He always let me know when someone was approaching my tow truck though. He'd let out this real low, guttural growl.

 djones520 wrote:

 Orlanth wrote:
I have had pet rats and mice. You have time enough to love them, then they die. You mourn them bury them and move on.

Dogs are no different, but you don't look at the end from the beginning.

Dude... you are just batting for a million this week...

No he isn't; this thread is a year old and got necroed.

 AlmightyWalrus wrote:

 djones520 wrote:

 Orlanth wrote:
I have had pet rats and mice. You have time enough to love them, then they die. You mourn them bury them and move on.

Dogs are no different, but you don't look at the end from the beginning.

Dude... you are just batting for a million this week...

No he isn't; this thread is a year old and got necroed.

Wow, good catch.

Speaking of threadnomancy...

Locked.