Rotties...

[Cowgirl_Up]

hi guys, i just wanted to tell you guys about my grandmas rottwiler problem... ok my grandma owns a 13 year old rotty. well about a year ago he suffered a back injury wich made it so he can no longer use his back legs. well some swelling occured in his leg (one of his back ones that he has no feeling in) so she took him to the vets. it turns out he has a fracture iup by his knee, also they found a lump around the fracture. it turns out that he has a tumor which was most likely the cause of the fracture. he also has cancer. he is really happy and everything but should they put him down? i mean she has to wrap a towl around his legs and carry him to go outside, give him pills every day, and the cancer might have spread. i was just curious what you all thought. isnt 13 old for a rotty? oh yah and the vet said that he can go on for a long time but the cancer could have spread. Thanks for listening!

[Dax]

13 years old is old for a rotti. My determining factor would be quality of life. Is the dog enjoying his later years. Is he in pain. I would tell your grandma to look at the dog and if the situation was reversed what would she want. I would want to leave this world on a good day. A BM, a decent meal, some love and cuddles then the long sleep sounds like a good way to die.

[Cowgirl_Up]

thanks, he still enjoys ppl petting him and stuff its just he has to stay indoors until he has to go to the bathroom and he has to scoot around(cant feel his back legs) thanks for your opinion this is very hard for her.

[dobermom]

I understand how hard it could be for her. She has to consider quality of life. The dog cant walk. Dax gives very good advice on this one.

[SouthPaw]

I agree with Dax too having just gone through a very similar situation with my old pug this summer. I think your grandmother will know when the time is right. It takes our hearts a bit to catch up with our brains.

[ChandraRae]

I'm with Dax... The one thing is the dog may survive a long time even with cancer and the back leg issue.. but would he want to? Does he ENJOY life? Sometimes we have to let go of a dear friend to make sure they aren't in pain, its hard to do but its better than forcing them to live on just so we don't have to say goodbye!


Best of luck to your gramma as she makes what will be a hard decision either way!

[Luvit73]

Good luck with such a tough decision - let us know what happens .

[joella]

I'll chime in with everyone else and say it completely depends on his quality of life. If he is suffering in any way, then the most loving thing to do is end his suffering. I shudder to think of the time when I'll have to make these types of decisions with my own pets, so I wish you and your grandma much strength and peace in this difficult decision.

[erdog3]

I just went through this terrible decision myself a couple of months ago with joe our poodle.
She was staggering everywhere, had to be taken to do pee, poop etc. virtually carried around. She was a ripe old 18 just about.
When I took her to the vets, it was actually her heart causing the problem. I thought it was her back legs and arthritis. So there you go. The best thing for that little baby was peace in Gods Realm.
I don't feel guilty at all, she had a great life, but her time was comming to an end, she was suffering in more ways than I really did fully understand.
Talk with your vet, they do help in times like these.

[Cowgirl_Up]

he is still alive, she is kind of in denial. i fully understand what shes going through, when my horse died i didnt want to beleive it. but she is going to put him down. he keeps licking his leg like there is cancer in it cuz thats what he did for his back leg w/ the cancer. also previously he had a toe removed due to cancer so most likely it has spread. my g-ma wants to wait as long as possible b/c she wants my uncle to see him (its really his dog but hes in the coast guard so he couldnt care for him) but flights are so expensive. i think she is going to do it soon though, i will keep you all posted.]
*also i think another problem of letting go is that about 3yrs. ago she lost her horse, then her mom and now shes going to lose a dog. i can only imagine how hard loosing all that can be. well thank ALL of you for your support and opinions i really appreciate it.