denmarc
Well-known member
I know many of you have pets. I would assume that those pets become one of the family such as mine do. My wife and I have always been animal lovers and have had at least a one cat or dog since we were kids. As adults, we usually have 2 or 3 cats and a large dog running around. Wouldn't have it any other way. The cats couldn't give a rats butt when we went camping for the weekend. They just figured it would be quieter around the house while they slept the day away. But the dog? If she didn't go with us, there would be Hell to pay!
Over the years, and many cats and dogs later, I have come to realize that for some reason God keeps sending us the animals that have special needs. It's either a special medication, or allergies, or behavior problems, or this, or that...
you get the idea. So we do what we need to do for our pets and move on with life.
Other than cats and dogs, we have had parrots, ferrets, and fish (still have 3 tanks up and running). And I am not talking about little birdies. We had a Moluccan Cockatoo, an Umbrella Cockatoo, a Blue Crowned Amazon, and a Blue/Grey Macaw. The cages were the size of entertainment centers! We also have always had large dogs in the 100# range. All pets were rescues. Except for the birds and fish, the common denominator of the others seems to be Cancer. Almost every ferret, cat (one still with us), and dog (except one) has developed some type of Cancer which left us with the gut wrenching decision at some point as to when they are suffering too much.
Shasta (our current German Shepard) was a young stray brought into our vets office after failing a test for police work (bomb sniffing, drug sniffing, etc.). The dog was to go through a physical before being sent to a rescue. Our vet thought of us after putting our previous German Shepard down due to severe behavior problems (stalker). After the vets phone call, lo and behold, we came home with a new puppy dog.
Come to find out, this dog is allergic to everything but air! It figures. So we do what we need to do. More years go by. And then we notice something just isn't right. A visit to the vet is in order. And the cycle begins again. Cancer. We had the vet remove a tumor. We just found out yesterday that the Cancer has reared its ugly head again in a different spot. The vets professional opinion is surgery could be done but the Cancer will probably just sprout up again elsewhere. It's an aggressive type of Cancer. The poor girl's days are numbered.
I have been through this before. Many times. I hate it! It never gets any easier. On that last day I find myself sitting on a parking stone in the lot at the vets office while my wife is inside as the final injection is made. I can't be there.
I know some of you have cats that bask in the warm sun on the dashboard. Or dogs that quietly sneak up on the couch while you drive down the road. You yell at the dog one minute, then love them up the next. That's how it works. The problem is that the dog knows that! And I apologize for this lengthy explanation of my quandary. I just had to unload somewhere. I just wondered how some of you would handle the decision if you were in my shoes?
Over the years, and many cats and dogs later, I have come to realize that for some reason God keeps sending us the animals that have special needs. It's either a special medication, or allergies, or behavior problems, or this, or that...
you get the idea. So we do what we need to do for our pets and move on with life.
Other than cats and dogs, we have had parrots, ferrets, and fish (still have 3 tanks up and running). And I am not talking about little birdies. We had a Moluccan Cockatoo, an Umbrella Cockatoo, a Blue Crowned Amazon, and a Blue/Grey Macaw. The cages were the size of entertainment centers! We also have always had large dogs in the 100# range. All pets were rescues. Except for the birds and fish, the common denominator of the others seems to be Cancer. Almost every ferret, cat (one still with us), and dog (except one) has developed some type of Cancer which left us with the gut wrenching decision at some point as to when they are suffering too much.
Shasta (our current German Shepard) was a young stray brought into our vets office after failing a test for police work (bomb sniffing, drug sniffing, etc.). The dog was to go through a physical before being sent to a rescue. Our vet thought of us after putting our previous German Shepard down due to severe behavior problems (stalker). After the vets phone call, lo and behold, we came home with a new puppy dog.
Come to find out, this dog is allergic to everything but air! It figures. So we do what we need to do. More years go by. And then we notice something just isn't right. A visit to the vet is in order. And the cycle begins again. Cancer. We had the vet remove a tumor. We just found out yesterday that the Cancer has reared its ugly head again in a different spot. The vets professional opinion is surgery could be done but the Cancer will probably just sprout up again elsewhere. It's an aggressive type of Cancer. The poor girl's days are numbered.
I have been through this before. Many times. I hate it! It never gets any easier. On that last day I find myself sitting on a parking stone in the lot at the vets office while my wife is inside as the final injection is made. I can't be there.
I know some of you have cats that bask in the warm sun on the dashboard. Or dogs that quietly sneak up on the couch while you drive down the road. You yell at the dog one minute, then love them up the next. That's how it works. The problem is that the dog knows that! And I apologize for this lengthy explanation of my quandary. I just had to unload somewhere. I just wondered how some of you would handle the decision if you were in my shoes?