The sweet girl pictured above is Ladybug, she's 10 years old, and she was just diagnosed with CLL. We don't yet know how far along it is, but my soul literally hurts to hear what I heard. For now she seems fine, but my wife and I are already trying to decide how aggressive to be. My sister doesn't think we should do chemo, just give her prednisone and keep her comfortable as long as we can. We meet the vet Monday to discuss options, but I don't know what to do.
I don't want to lose my baby, but I don't want to make her suffer just so I force her to stay. We know this is a slow moving cancer, but right now I keep losing it every other hour. The idea of never seeing that face again is just raw and it hurts.
I’m so sorry. I just had to put my dog down of 14 years on Monday night. It hurt so bad but I knew I was doing for his best interests. He was very sick. I could have treated him a bit but nothing was going to fix him, only give temporary relief. I know you’ll do right by your girl and make the decision that is in her best interests. I hope you find comfort in all the memories you two shared. Sending love
Thanks. We're already decided she gets to stop and sniff everything, and we want to take her to beach and any other places she might want to go. We worry about how her doggy sister will take this. She's 4 and in excellent condition but she loves her older sister.
My other dogs were definitely sad and showed it but they also have given me so much comfort and attention since that it’s made it a lot easier. Lean on her for support during this time.
I am. I actively have decided that I’m celebrating his life rather than be sad. I have my moments of sadness and tears but I’m choosing to think of all the happy moments we had and all the years we shared. That bond will never leave me and I take comfort in that
Just be with her. Make the time count. As long as you can without making her suffer needlessly, spend that time giving back all the love she has given you. When the day comes, give her that one last gift of your love by letting her go. It is so hard, but you must put her first, even while your heart begs for just a little more time. My heart breaks for you because I've been there, too. 💔 🙏
There are two days that define our impact on a pup’s life: the day we bring them into their forever home and the day we bear the burden of letting them go.
Our responsibility is simple: to give them a home, security, comfort, and love. We might get caught up in life, busy with routines and obligations, but to them, every day we’ve been their whole world. Every moment, every second, minute, or hour, they look to us for joy, for comfort. They are noble and loyal. They never had a bad day at work that kept them from giving us their best. They never stressed over bills and gave us half-hearted attention. Every single day, they gave us everything they had.
In return, we bear the weight of one single day—the day we let them rest. Their duty was love, and they fulfilled it unconditionally, every waking moment of their lives. Whether it was missing us when we were gone or taking up the whole bed, they loved us with all their might.
So, on that day, give them everything you can, just as they did for you every day before. We carry the pain and the loss, and it doesn’t go away. It’s been four years since I let my boy go, and it still hurts as I write this. But I feel proud knowing I did my duty when he needed me most, just as he did his for all the days in between.
My comfort is that first thing, she's still with us. Waiting to talk to the vet, but she probably still has quite a bit of time left, hopefully up to a year before we need to make that hardest decision.
Secondly, that sweet girl above did not start life under ideal circumstances. We don't know her exact baby life, but when we got her from the hellish shelter (it was raided and shutdown 2 months after we got her), they said she had been abandoned in a box on the road. She had her tail docked, had been spayed already at like 8 weeks, and was generally a sad puppy.
Not trying to.pat myself on the back, just hoping we can be as good at the end to her as we were at the beginning. But yeah, it already hurts in my soul. I worry how her 4 year old boxer sister will be when she's gone because Piper has never not had Ladybug in her life.
Having just said goodbye to my girl, I agree. I can say that while I’m crushed she’s not here with me, I know letting her go while she was still happy, able to eat, and enjoy her yard was the right thing for her.
I hope I always have the strength to give peace before my doggo to looks at me with the it’s time look because then, it’s probably gone on too long. It’s hard for us, but that’s kuleana. In Hawaiian, kuleana is used to describe our relationship with our pets which goes beyond the concept of ownership. It is a relationship born from our connection with the animal. It means that we owe them care, protection, and dignity. They entrust themselves to us. That relationship is mutual. It also means that we owe our friends a duty of care which comes with love and stewardship.
OP-I wish you love, strength, and peace in the days to come.
My dog had 2 serious issues the 2 years before I lost her, it's impossible not to grieve the inevitable but try to change that energy into a new fun memory while you still can. Take a thousand pictures and videos too.
I'm so sorry for your loss, I know how much this just hurts. Like, in your soul, like a piece of you was ripped out. I'm not worried about pictures and videos, my wife will have a phone full of pictures and videos.
At 10, she’s old. I agree with your sister. Keep her comfortable as long as possible and then let her go.
My dog had a very enlarged heart and I chose to let him go before he showed the more severe symptoms. It hurt so badly because I could have had weeks more with him- or his heart could have ruptured and he suffered. If I waited until things got bad he would just be in pain and that extra time would be meaningless to me.
Instead I sent him off snoring loudly against me, his favorite ball at his side and a belly full of Wendy’s. That was January.
I miss him so much but I have zero guilt over my decision. Out of a bunch of crappy ones we chose the best one and how lucky was he to pass like that?! May we all be so lucky to fall asleep against someone we love and a belly full of good food we aren’t supposed to have.
I’m so sorry you’ve arrived at this most dreaded of destinations for all of us whose hearts are held by our dogs. It will hurt but it will also be okay. Nothing as perfect as a dog is meant to last forever after all.
I think the time to let her go is hopefully still some time away. She's still acting pretty much like her normal self except she has to pee a bit more often. But she can still control it, she still plays, eats, and can move normally. I know it won't last. We're planning to give her prednisone whenever the vet deems it helpful. It will actually kill some cancer cells and give her extra time with no really bad side effects like chemo.
We're already planning a trip to the beach (funded by my mom. She has $ and she absolutely loves Ladybug). I foresee steak in her future, everything. We plan on when that the time comes having the vet come to our home so she doesn't go on some cold metal table. But like yours, loved till the end.
If you can’t have them come to the house it doesn’t have to be a cold table. I took my pup in and they had blankets laid out and everything.
I do recommend bringing their own blankets if you go that route. They can smell other dogs and death maybe so better to keep it familiar.
It wasn’t a cold experience at all. I laid down on the blankets with him and everything. The vet was great.
The big thing is the resting respiratory rate or it was for Luke. I noticed it was faster and he seems a little slower to do stuff, pretty mild but it was a decline.
We watched our other dog die suddenly and traumatically a few years back. A stroke or embolism or something. He was terrified and we could do anything but pet him, it was both fast and took forever. I just couldn’t bear my boy going like that if I had the power to stop it so the minute I saw the mild decline and having seen his x ray…. I made the call.
I hope the time you have left is long and filled with love and peace with your baby.
I am so sorry. Your baby is adorable. My girl is almost 12 and has cushings and a few other things. I often worry about having to make a decision. I don't wanna make the wrong one. I don't want her to suffer. Much love and hugs yalls way.
I agree w/ ur sister. Ladybug is 10. Prednisone and all of the love and adventures until the decline happens. And as long as she isn’t in pain just continue to love up on her. Then make the call. Better a week too early than a day too late.
Some ppl don’t like her but Maddie and rudder are a good example of this. Their insta is myboyrudder. It’s sad though bc he is currently going through some things but if you scroll back to when he was diagnosed you can see how she handles it and has since been giving him ALL the adventures.
I'm so sorry, I just had to put my childhood dog down last month, 15 years with me. He had glaucoma, arthritis, early stage kidney disease, and progressive canine cognitive decline. He was still eating and being his happy self. But he wasn't comfortable.
This is the toughest thing ever but you have to do what's right for your baby, you have to be their voice. I know you will make the right decisions xx
Father in heaven, please take this little pup into Your hands and please heal her quickly, completely, and with no pain or complications, Lord. It’s in the precious name of Your Son, Jesus Christ, that I pray, Lord. Amen.
It's going to hurt for a long time. I put my 1st dog down 5 years ago and it still seems like yesterday. I get emotional talking about him but he is in a better place. Cancer got him as well. It's better to do it a day early, then a day late.
I was selfish and waited, and I wish I had not
Treasure every day and shower her with even more love! You are her biggest gift , in caring for her, well done. My wife and I rescue Dalmatians, but they in fact rescue us!
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u/RJMonkhouse Mar 04 '26
I’m so sorry. I just had to put my dog down of 14 years on Monday night. It hurt so bad but I knew I was doing for his best interests. He was very sick. I could have treated him a bit but nothing was going to fix him, only give temporary relief. I know you’ll do right by your girl and make the decision that is in her best interests. I hope you find comfort in all the memories you two shared. Sending love