Oh, trust me, he's got me wrapped around his little paws. I constantly watch to see if he needs anything and, damn, I wish I got that much attention! :) But seriously, he knows he's loved SO much and taken care of as best we can.

There's never really an answer you can come up with on your own for this one...clearly you value the life of your dog, so you should take him to a vet to figure out what's wrong, how long until you should expect certain things, and if the creature will be in pain and/or lose all quality of life if you don't choose to end it while things are still relatively normal. It's a hard decision one way or another, but something that every pet owner has to take into account.
I'd suggest that if the animal isn't in any severe discomfort or pain, to keep him/her with you for at least a while - the vet will be able to tell you whether or not this is a viable option. However, if he/she says it's not the best idea, listen to them, as hard as it is, spend one more day with your animal, an make it a good one, then say goodbye...because if you think that's hard, it's nothing compared to seeing your animal die in pain.

That's called "hip dysplasia", or something like that, ...happens to a lot of dogs, and it's a defect theyre born with and basically makes it hard and painful to walk. I know a dog that has this, and it presented itself at a very young age...of course with YOUR dog, it might have something to do with age as well, dogs get arthritis too. Both conditions can be at least eased with anti-inflammatory and pain meds. This might sound ridiculous, but there's also "wheel" setups, something like a small cart you can attatch to the back of the dog, it'll sit down in it and make it so it doesn't have to use it's back legs...sure, it's not an ideal situation, and doesn't allow for any GREAT amount of portability, but it will take a lot of the pressure off the legs, and you'd be surprised how well dogs adapt. All the same, something should be able to be prescribed.

Putting down animals in general is a real bitch of the task...I weigh it up between having their friendship during their life, but it's still hard...something everyone has to face, but I think it's important not to let your own personal feelings get in the way, if your animal is sick and in pain, and it's something that's been diagnosed as unfixable, the only thing you should be thinking about is even though it might make it easier on you to have them around a little longer, it's just going to get harder and harder and harder on them, and as I said...having been through both, it's far easier to witness a "controlled" death, than the alternative.

Thank you Cheeba and everyone, I know what you say is true, I just needed to hear it from other people. I'll keep him going as long as I can without him suffering. Please be there for me when the time comes, cuz I know I'll be a complete basket case (even more than normal :) ) Sorry, I use humor to deal with things. Again thank you. He's all snuggled up in a blankie and looks pretty comfotable now, so that good!

It's more of a rule of thumb than a fact really because in the first year of their life, dogs age more than 7 human years. I think they hit their teens by the end of year 1 and then their aging slows down a bit.


This is my understanding of it...

Year 1 - The dog ages to early teens.
Year 2-??? Dog ages approx 6.5 dog years to every human year.

So when you factor in the first year with the rest of their life, it averages out to probably about 7 dog years per human year, but like I said, it's more of a rule of thumb.

Thanks for doing the math for us! :)

Doggie update - he's still with us, he and I had a nice long nap on the couch together. He looked very comfortable all snuggled into me. And he's awake now (took a healthy piss outside and no I won't update you every time he takes a piss). But I couldn't get him to take any water, I'm gonna try again with the eyedropper, he'll usually take it that way. If he doesn't snap out of this bad time...well I'll let y'all know. Thanks for being there for me all of you.

Mona, I'm so sorry that you're having to go throw this. Our Griffen is diabetic and he's still a puppy. We worry about him all of the time. I think that you might even know when the time is right based soley on your dog's behavior, but certainly, a trip to the vet to discuss the options is in order. Just keep loving on him.:)

Also, let the record show that dogs are actually puppies until they are two years old. Bwind's assessment is actually pretty correct. I found all of this out when Griffen was diagnosed.

Here's an answer to the question from Cecil Adams on 'The Straight Dope'

I've seen various formulations for this over the years. One of the simplest and most sensible goes like this: The first year of canine life is equal to 21 years of human life--in other words, the puppy grows to adulthood. Every additional dog year is equivalent to four human years. Thus a 10-year-old mutt is the equivalent of 57 human years old (9 x 4 + 21). Likewise, the Alpo dog is not 98 (14 x 7) but 73 in human terms (13 x 4 + 21).

The formula jibes reasonably well with the known landmarks of canine life. Dogs reach middle age when they're 6 or 7, which works out to 41-45 in HY. Life expectancy for most is 12-15 years (65-77 HY); occasionally one manages to creak along until age 20 (97 HY). That makes a lot more sense than saying a 20-year-old dog is 140, and it sure saves on the candles, too.

--CECIL ADAMS

I made "the appointment" for Friday. Maybe he'll snap out of it again or they can find something treatable that's wrong with him. Probably wishful thinking, but whatever.

This is so sad.
My heart totally goes out to you. :(
From what i know about pets is..they
won't die naturally...like just give up the
ghost and pass away.
Its some kind of loyalty to thier master (especially dogs).
You have to make a painful decision to
put him out of his agony or watch him suffer knowing he is in alot of pain.
Not the easiest thing to do..trust me.

My girls dog was riddled with cancer and i had to make that final decison..
(fuckin hero of a husband left it up to me to be the bad guy)

Anyways ..my daughter packed her clothes
and wesleys fav toy and tried to run away with him..the day before he was to be taken to the vet.
They only made it as far as the letterbox cos wesley was in too much pain and couldn't run very fast....
was one of the saddest days of my life seeing my kid bawling her eyes out ..trying to protect her dog.

Have never ever owned another dog since..don't ever want to go thru that again

I have good news! BenGee is doing much better today, he started being more active and eating last night. I'm still bringing him to the vet tomorrow to get him checked out, but I don't think it's time for the big sleep quite yet. He's peeing and pooping today too. I know, too much information, but it's good news none the less. :)