loss of a dear friend (my dog)
 

if you are not a dog lover, this may make no sense at all.

if you are...well...here we go.

this past sunday, I was getting ready for the activities of the day. sunday is a very busy day for my family and I. I had just finished my shower when my wife popped into the bathroom and said "the dog can't walk". madness and hysteria followed.

after we both calmed down, then was the big question. what now? we called her regular vet and they said to take her to the emergency 24 hour vet. I didn't even know there was a thing. she couldn't move her back legs at all. almost like she was paralyzed.

we got to the emergency vet and they took her back for the exam. the doctor came back and said that she had damaged her back. the only option was to operate and to operate fast. she told us that there was a bit of risk in the surjery and that there was a moderate success rate. she also said that there would be rehab as well along with a heightened likeliness that this would happen again.

we ask how it happened in the first place. our dog is a miniature dachshund (better know as a weenie dog). these dogs are known for back problems. ironically enough none of my family has ever had one with back problems. sucks to be the one that does. she said that it was probably from jumping around or going up and down steps.

my wife and I talked about it from a quality of life stand point. she would be in a level of pain for the rest of her life. like anyone that has had back surjery. the difference is, she couldn't tell us that she needed pain medication and we couldn't tell her to take it easy. that combination means that it would probably happen again.

the hard truth in the matter was that she had to be euthanized. we were there when she passed. we both took it really hard. she was 8 years old.

my wife and I have dealt with infertility and she was our baby before our baby. we recently adopted our first child (still working on the adoption). we have been married for 9 years so we barely remember a time without her. she lived a better life that some people I knew. she ate special food because of a calcium deficiency. she had clothes that she wore from time to time. that was my wife's idea. I called her the crazy cat lady but with a dog instead.

the house was quiet for the first time since I could remember yesterday. no barking, no tapping of her claws on the hard woods. it was a strange calm. we haven't talked much about getting another dog but for now, I guess it will be the 3 of us. my wife even took the day off from work.

it seems like hard times are hitting everyone. I am trying to keep moving and keep my head up. that simple task seems to get harder and harder.

if you pray, keep us in your prayers. if you don't, keep us in your thoughts.

You and your wife are brave, kind people to put your pet's quality of life ahead of your own. I wish you hadn't needed to make such a choice.

Thats sad,

but your dog was blessed to have been part of your family.....

and the both of you were blessed to have her bring happiness in your life for the past 8 years.

https://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/AS...kstorenow18-20

it's like chicken soup for the dog lover's soul.

My condolences. My thoughts are with you and your wife.

it's eerily quiet in the house now. we have lamiate floors and her claws would tap, tap, tap on the floor everywhere she went along with the occasional barking at the neighbors.

we're getting there. my wife took it a lot harder than I did and is still trying to cope.

Would you ever consider another pet? I know with a new baby there's less time for everything.

my wife and I have talked about it briefly but if we do get another dog (and we probably will) we are thinking after our daughter is a few years old so we are only training one of them at a time. my daughter is just shy of 3 months old now and to throw a puppy on top of that would be a mad house.

I am considering steering clear of dachshunds. maybe anothe breed. probably still a small inside dog.

Dachshunds have ruined me on all dogs. I used to think I'd like a large, quiet, calm dog...but now I'm sure I never want any dog ever.

I had a similar experience with a cat about 5 years ago. We had to put it down at age 6 due to a kidney issue. Everything seemed very quiet.

We ended up with another cat within a month and we have recently adopted a 7 year old dog. She may only be with us for 3-5 years or more hopefully. anyway! In my experience getting the cat right after the first cat was put down really helped get our minds off of it