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I'm not made for this....

Kaos

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I'm not made for this....
« on: November 05, 2019, 01:32:24 PM »
My dog -- sometimes my only friend -- had a seizure Sunday.  Vet didn't seem worried, just watch him.  

He was okay until last night about midnight.  Between then and seven he had about four more.  Took him to the vet at seven and he's had one or two there.  

He had a cancer in his eye several years ago.  They took that out and he recovered.  They found a huge tumor in his shoulder about three months ago.  Took it out, said it was malignant but contained and they had it all.  

Now they say they think he probably has a brain tumor.  Either that or a blood clot in the brain.  

My options are:
1)Send him to LSU or Auburn (and he will likely have to be sedated to keep from having more seizures along the way) for an MRI which will (doctor says) only confirm what he has and offer no real avenues for curing it
2) Try seizure medication which will only prolong it -- and he will still have seizures as they increase the dose until it finally stops working (or if it's a clot, he will die here regardless) 
3) Let him go


When I got divorced, this dog was just about my only friend.  I'd sit on the back porch for hours talking to him.  And he always listened.  Never judged.  Even now, when I've got a lot on my mind I'll sit out there with him and he helps me sort it all out.  

I've always had dogs around.  My kids have dogs, my parents had dogs.  But I'm not an animal person really.  I've only really loved two dogs in my life.  My first one and this one. 

His name was supposed to be Barkley, but he was so fat when he was little he'd walk three or four steps and then just fall over asleep.  So we called him Tucker -- for Tuckered out.   Tucker Barkley is his official name.  

I know what I've got to do.  I can't watch him suffer like this.  But I think I'd honestly rather it were me.  

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Snaggletiger

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Re: I'm not made for this....
« Reply #1 on: November 05, 2019, 01:52:27 PM »
I posted about 4 months ago that we had to put one of ours down.  It was the first time for us as all our previous pups just picked a night, a good spot and checked out.  This was much tougher because we knew exactly when it was going to happen.  We had an appointment.  But we didnt hesitate because we knew what the right decision was.  In fact, we prolonged it out of selfishness.  You know what the right call is if you know your buddy.  
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My doctor told me I needed to stop masturbating.  I asked him why, and he said, "because I'm trying to examine you."

Kaos

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Re: I'm not made for this....
« Reply #2 on: November 05, 2019, 02:05:03 PM »
I posted about 4 months ago that we had to put one of ours down.  It was the first time for us as all our previous pups just picked a night, a good spot and checked out.  This was much tougher because we knew exactly when it was going to happen.  We had an appointment.  But we didnt hesitate because we knew what the right decision was.  In fact, we prolonged it out of selfishness.  You know what the right call is if you know your buddy. 
The dog he was between seizures last night wasn't my dog.  He was in there, but buried in a mass of confusion.  

He'd have a seizure that lasted a minute or two and then he'd stagger to his feet and start pacing around the house. 

At one point he went through the whole house, sniffed every single plug outlet and then came back and stood by me, staring me in the eyes with this intense look like he was saying "well, all those are good. You're welcome."  And then he went and sat on the Roomba.  He did all kinds of odd things I've never seen him do.  

What's weird is my other dogs were/are now scared of him.  If he went near them they growled and barked at him.  

I know I've got to let him go.  It's just not easy.  
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Buzz Killington

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Re: I'm not made for this....
« Reply #3 on: November 05, 2019, 02:34:11 PM »
Sucks to hear that, brother.  I know we have all been there at least once, but it doesn't make this any easier.  You know what you have to do, but just don't want to.  
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Now I may be an idiot, but there is one thing I am not, sir, and that, sir, is an idiot.

Re: I'm not made for this....
« Reply #4 on: November 05, 2019, 02:42:23 PM »
Sorry to hear this, brother.

We had to put down our Jordan last year.  Wife and I got him about 2 months after we were married.  Little guy had been through everything with us.    
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Snaggletiger

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Re: I'm not made for this....
« Reply #5 on: November 05, 2019, 02:49:43 PM »
There will be a time when the one we have now heads to fur baby heaven.  Let me go ahead and forewarn everyone.  There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth.  We've always loved all our pets equally and each one has it's own, unique personality. But this one.....

 
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My doctor told me I needed to stop masturbating.  I asked him why, and he said, "because I'm trying to examine you."

CCTAU

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Re: I'm not made for this....
« Reply #6 on: November 05, 2019, 03:59:10 PM »
I know what I've got to do.  I can't watch him suffer like this.  But I think I'd honestly rather it were me. 
You answered your own question. Keeping an animal alive while it suffers is a inhumane.

I had a neighbor pass several years ago. He had a dog named Choo-Choo. These two would run all over the community. Miles and miles. Well the neighbor had a heart attack and died in his living room. The ex wife asked if I would "take care" of Choo-Choo. She said the dog had been sick and the neighbor could not make himself do it.
I walk in the garage and this emaciated dog is laying in a cardboard box. The neighbor had to pick it up and take it outside to try and use the restroom. The dog was barely eating.
I took the dog to the vet and explained. They put the dog down out of mercy. How long would the neighbor have let this pup suffer because it hurt him?
As men, and owners, we have to do the right thing, no matter how it hurts.
Love the dog enough to not let it suffer.
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Five statements of WISDOM
1. You cannot legislate the poor into prosperity, by legislating the wealth out of prosperity.
2. What one person receives without working for, another person must work for without receiving.
3. The government cannot give to anybody anything that the government does not first take from somebody else.
4. You cannot multiply wealth by dividing it.
5. When half of the people get the idea that they do not have to work because the other half is going to take care of them, and when the other half gets the idea that it does no good to work because somebody else is going to get what they work for, that my dear friends, is the beginning of the end of any nation.

Godfather

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Re: I'm not made for this....
« Reply #7 on: November 05, 2019, 04:25:48 PM »
I posted about 4 months ago that we had to put one of ours down.  It was the first time for us as all our previous pups just picked a night, a good spot and checked out.  This was much tougher because we knew exactly when it was going to happen.  We had an appointment.  But we didnt hesitate because we knew what the right decision was.  In fact, we prolonged it out of selfishness.  You know what the right call is if you know your buddy. 
Yeah but you have those little purse dogs, it might as well be a cat.  I'm not sure anyone cared.
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Snaggletiger

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Re: I'm not made for this....
« Reply #8 on: November 05, 2019, 04:31:53 PM »
Yeah but you have those little purse dogs, it might as well be a cat.  I'm not sure anyone cared.
You take that back.  He would not fit in my purse.  Wait....I mean.....you take that back.
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My doctor told me I needed to stop masturbating.  I asked him why, and he said, "because I'm trying to examine you."

Kaos

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Re: I'm not made for this....
« Reply #9 on: November 05, 2019, 04:55:26 PM »
He's gone.  

My baby boy -- my only boy -- just drifted off.   

This is mostly for me, but my man has a few stories worth telling.  

I Can't Believe I Ate the Whole Thing
When he was not much bigger than the pup in the attached picture he found a big wooden paintbrush on the floor.  He ate everything but the metal strip that held the bristles on.  For days he crapped wood pulp.  So we decided that if we left him alone, we needed to put him in the closet in the den and we put one of those wooden gates in front of hit so he couldn't get out.  

Should have known.  He ate through the wooden bars. From there he climbed up onto the couch I used to have (stress used to have) and ate both arms completely down to the wooden frame.  When we got home he had opened a gash in the middle of one of the cushions and was gleefully yanking stuffing out of it and hurling it into the air.  

I was pretty pissed off and I yelled at him.  Pointed at the mess he made and told him he was bad.  He was mortified.  I swear I saw tears in his eyes. The dog never tore up anything else as long as he lived.  He didn't even tear his stuffed toys up.  Never even nibbled on a shoe or any of the furniture or anything else. In retrospect, that was pretty amazing.  

You Go Get It, Dumbass

Tucker loved to play fetch.  Once.  Throw a ball or a stick or a frisbee or anything and he would haul ass to go get it.  And he'd bring it right back to you.  He was a little hesitant about handing it over and you'd have to coax him to put it down, but he'd eventually do it, and he'd grin happily.  

Throw it again?  

He'd look at you like you were the biggest moron on the planet.  "I already went and got that damn thing one time.  If you want it, you go get it you dumbass."  

And then he'd trot off and go sit in a chair.  If you were stupid enough to go get it from where you'd thrown it, he'd sit there and watch you play your own game of fetch for his amusement.  

Yes, Officer, That's the Man
When we first moved to Baldwin County, we moved into a subdivision that was just being built.  He had a big fenced back yard where he stayed most of the time.  

Tucker didn't bark much, but one night he kept on no matter what we did to get him to be quiet.  Woke the neighbors up.  As I'm on the back porch trying to figure out what had him stirred up I saw motion over next to my neighbor's house.  

Long story short, I ended up watching out an upstairs window, on the phone with the Sheriff's Office, while a crackhead pried open my garage and tried to break into my car.  In order to try to quiet Tucker, he was scooping up handfuls of Tuck's food and flinging it over the fence.  Tucker wasn't having any of his shenanigans.  

The guy eventually fled, got cornered by the sheriff and they captured him and his accomplice.  They also recovered an asston of stuff these jackholes had stolen from other garages in the neighborhood.  So my new neighbors got their possessions back thanks to Tucker's insistent barking. 

For several weeks people would leave gift baskets on the porch for Tucker.  He didn't want their thanks, he didn't like dog treats,  He would only hold them politely in his mouth until he could dispose of them.  

He was a good boy.  He was MY dog.  Why is all this motherfucking dust in the air?  

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Buzz Killington

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Re: I'm not made for this....
« Reply #10 on: November 05, 2019, 05:05:37 PM »
Sorry about Tucker.  Lost our Hammy over a year ago, and I still call our new dog (Pepper) Hammy all the time.  We waited almost a year to get another dog and in retrospect, that was a mistake.  My only advice to you now is to get another dog soon, so you can have the same kind of memories of this one too someday.
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Now I may be an idiot, but there is one thing I am not, sir, and that, sir, is an idiot.

Re: I'm not made for this....
« Reply #11 on: November 05, 2019, 05:05:57 PM »
To Tucker...

:bar:
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Buzz Killington

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Re: I'm not made for this....
« Reply #12 on: November 05, 2019, 05:06:45 PM »
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Now I may be an idiot, but there is one thing I am not, sir, and that, sir, is an idiot.

Godfather

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Re: I'm not made for this....
« Reply #13 on: November 05, 2019, 05:22:23 PM »
Hims watching down on you.  He's in a better place
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Snaggletiger

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Re: I'm not made for this....
« Reply #14 on: November 05, 2019, 05:34:48 PM »
Sorry about Tucker, K.  Take Buzzy's advice and go get another one.  Not because you're trying, or could ever replace him.  It just diverts your attention to the new personality.  Plus, they need us as much as we need them. 

We had 3 for the longest time and are down to the one now.  My wife has been actively looking for another one, first as a companion for our little buddy, but second, not to have that void when he does leave us.  He's as spry and loving and active as ever. But he'll also soon be 13.
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My doctor told me I needed to stop masturbating.  I asked him why, and he said, "because I'm trying to examine you."

bottomfeeder

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Re: I'm not made for this....
« Reply #15 on: November 05, 2019, 06:32:49 PM »
Man, I am so sorry. I have been there and my losses have never fully healed.

When the Norwegian Forest Cat crossed over, it was deeply devastating for the ex-wife and me. He was the perfect cat and trained me into the cat-man that I am today. I still love him and miss him dearly.

He went everywhere with us when we traveled for work. Ohio, Michigan, and Illinois.
He wouldn't eat raw shrimp, they had to be boiled in Zatarain's. lol
Loved tuna juice. So you know the reaction when anything with a can top was removed.

Meet Puddykatt aka Pudder.
« Last Edit: December 22, 2019, 02:03:57 PM by bottomfeeder »
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CCTAU

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Re: I'm not made for this....
« Reply #16 on: November 05, 2019, 09:58:25 PM »
Some dogs are blessed to have a good family. You did that for him. 
Keep the memories and KNOW he had a great life. 
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Five statements of WISDOM
1. You cannot legislate the poor into prosperity, by legislating the wealth out of prosperity.
2. What one person receives without working for, another person must work for without receiving.
3. The government cannot give to anybody anything that the government does not first take from somebody else.
4. You cannot multiply wealth by dividing it.
5. When half of the people get the idea that they do not have to work because the other half is going to take care of them, and when the other half gets the idea that it does no good to work because somebody else is going to get what they work for, that my dear friends, is the beginning of the end of any nation.

The Six

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Re: I'm not made for this....
« Reply #17 on: November 06, 2019, 10:47:50 AM »
Tucker forever...
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"I'm sick of following my dreams...I'm just going to ask them where they are going and hook up with 'em later." - Mitch Hedberg

dallaswareagle

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Re: I'm not made for this....
« Reply #18 on: November 06, 2019, 12:57:10 PM »
I grieve for you and your loss. You provided him with a life that he most likely would have never had anywhere else. A strong bond between an animal and its owner is something some folks cannot understand and never will.

Take your time, grieve and remember. 

When your ready open your heart and home again to another, they all deserve it. 
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A veteran is someone who, at one point in his life, wrote a blank check made payable to 'The United States of America ' for an amount of 'up to and including my life.' That is Honor, and there are way too many people in this country who no longer understand it.'

Snaggletiger

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Re: I'm not made for this....
« Reply #19 on: November 07, 2019, 05:48:37 PM »
I was thinking about this Tuesday night while out at the world famous National Peanut Festival.  Went in one of the exhibit buildings and there was a booth there that had two absolutely beautiful Australian Shepherds.  They had these vests on with pockets you could put money in and the cash is supposed to go to cancer research for dogs.  Cats too, I suppose.  Couldn't help but throw a few bucks in just for the opportunity to love on them for a few.

Aussies are bad ass, BTW.  I lived in Gentilly Trailer Park for a couple of years and our next door neighbor had an Aussie named Mike.  He stayed at our trailer more than his owner's.  Every time I would go jogging, Mike would come out and run with me, staying a few feet in front.  There were all kinds of dogs in that park and it was his mission any time one came running out, to either beat the shit out of them or at the very least, administer a stern but fair lecture. 

Mike was cool. 
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My doctor told me I needed to stop masturbating.  I asked him why, and he said, "because I'm trying to examine you."