Community Chat

[kingtut]

Has anyone ever had to make a decision about when a beloved pet's life should end? I always hoped that when the time came my little poodle would just go to sleep some night and not wake up. I don;t know whether he is happy to be alive or not. He can run around a little, bark a lot and eat and sometimes come to me. But he sneezes and coughs and seems to clear his throat or something most of the night, sleep almost all the time, and paces the floor and then comes to me to be picked up and almost immediately wants to get back on the floor and pace or sleep. About a year and a half ago we moved to a senior living facility and his new vet seems to think he is ok for his age but keeps wanting to clean his teeth and pull some out He also sometimes mistook the rug for the back yard but now every time I walk across the floor it seems I step in a puddle and if I leave him for a short while, he has left me small amounts of puppy poop all around the house. I don't think he can help it at this age.

My friend thinks I should put him in a large cage and muzzle him so he can't bark. I think that would be cruel at his age. He's always had the run of the house. At this time I would feel guilty if I decided to send him to the rainbow bridge but on the other hand I am really having a problem coping with trying to keep him from barking, keeping the stains on the rug to a minimum and will have to take him out at all hours in a northeast winter.

Help -- I never thought I would even consider this option but don;t know what to do.

Thank you