"elaine" > wrote in message >...
> Yesterday I put my dog of over 15 years down. It was the gentlest of
> goodbyes. The vet and his assistant were wonderful. I held her as they
> tenderly jabbed the vein in her front leg -- 10 seconds later it was all
> over with an overdose of anesthetic. Oh we, as humans, could have that
> option!
>
> So for all you pet owners in this group who probably wrestle with the notion
> of putting pets down - please know, it's not a bad way to go.
>
> Went home and cooked liver for my family. Now that was bad -- I usually
> love liver but the meal just didn't taste the same, as I suppose any meal
> would under the circumstances.
>
> Elaine


I'm so glad you were able to do that for your good friends. Put them
first, always.

One of the ways I have kept the wolf from the door in the past few
years is to move in and look after old, ill dogs while their owners
travel -- in one case elderly people traveling to see relatives in
Germany for the last time -- or while they work relentless hours, for
example in a huge ICU.

It is the most rewarding thing I have ever done. The dogs are so
grateful for the attention and love (and so am I), the owners pay me
because they haven't figured out yet I'd pay them, and when it's time
for the dog to be put down, the owner knows it didn't spend its last
hours pining. I give meds, shots, take to vets--the whole nine yards.

I've seen six dogs to the end of their lives this way. Each I met when
it was over 10 years, and ailing from one thing or another. Once I
start taking care of a dog, I do until it dies, so in a time of stress
it doesn't need to go to a kennel, or get used to strangers, or be
left alone.

Zee