Really sad, just need to talk.

littleredfish

So I have a Corgi who was a rescue dog and has been a fantastic dog. He is awesome with DD, loves her to death and lets her climb all over him and pull his hair; he even seeks her out. He's pretty old, best guess we got from the vet is 10. Last summer we took him to the vet for his shots and routine blood work that came back abnormal. After more expensive tests, she determined he has the beginning stages of cancer. She could see some odd masses on his scans. He wasn't seeming to be in pain, or affected yet in anyway, so we decided we'd lt him live his life until we determined he was in pain and it was unfair to continue.

Well, since march he's been having accidents and seeming like he's forgetting where he is. Like he gets this glazed look in his eye like he's lost in space. He's also been showing a lot of fear and sometimes aggression (growling) at DH like he forgets who he is. DH just stopped feeding/walking/playing with him, and they've co-existed for 3 months now.

Jump to last night, there were fireworks going off which make him nervous. He went and sat next to DD and was shaking. It was time for DD to be changed so I went to pick her up and with no warning (I'm a vet tech, so I'm familiar with a dogs subtle body language) he turned and snapped my hand. Like HARD! I have 3 deep tooth marks in my hand and wrist. It's all bruised and sore this morning.

Ugh, now we're at the discussion to put him down. I'm concerned either his age is the cause, or maybe his cancer has moved to his brain, either way he's not the same dog. It's so sad for me because DD is his best friend and it breaks my heart. I just CAN'T take the chance he'll "forget" who she is and take a bite.

Ugh. Crummy Mondays I'm so upset, I've never had to put down a pet for behaviour problems and it bothers me that I can't "fix" this. Not looking for any real guidance since the decision is obviously made, just letting it out trying to come to terms.

selockar

That is such a hard decision to make. I'm sorry you are dealing with it.

Dwinalsinlove

I'm so sorry you are going through this. It does sound like his cancer has progressed. I think if he is acting this out of character it might be because he is in pain. Try not to beat yourself up. I truly think you are doing the most humane option in this situation. ((HUGS))

stemms8810

I'm sorry

najzomax

I had to put down my 10 year old dog in November and it was so hard. Even knowing it was the best thing for her it still broke my heart. Try to remember you are doing what is best for him, that's what helped me. Big hugs!

EMOmamma

I have a corgi-shiba mix who's about 7 and I'm starting to see him slow down.  Makes me sad since he was my first "baby"

Sounds like your dog is scared and hurting so I don't think you're putting him down for behavior as much as overall health failure.  Sorry for your loss

GromMom

I'm so sorry to hear your old friend is sick!  I know how you feel since my dog is 12.5 now and she's starting to show the signs of age, for a while she was leaking pee every time she laid down until we got her on dog estrogen (at first we thought it was a UTI) and had that treated first.

 Although it's a hard decision, sometimes I think the best thing to do is to consider how much pain your dog is in and think about how that is changing your dog into someone you don't know.  It may be best to put your dog to sleep because you love your dog, and want to end your dog's pain.  Sometimes I wonder why we don't allow ourselves to decide when we're at our end like we can humanely and lovingly do for our pets.

 My thoughts are with you in this tough time! 

bellelamb

I'm so sorry!! Hugs