What to do....

[birdlady]

My chocolate lab Coco is 16 and has been the best dog ever. Over the past few months since I returned to work, she has been having accidents during the day. Even when my dog walker comes between 10:30 and 11:30...she will walk in to a mess...usally diarreha....I started locking her in the sunroom with her bed and some water....at least 3 times a week she messes her bed and I have to wash it. I have wrapped her three foam beds in thick garbage bags to preserve them, so I only have to clean the cover.

She sometimes has accidents at night too. And right on her bed as if she is sleeping and then does it.

I really have no plans on making any decision to let her go, as she is still able to walk around and doesn't appear to be in any pain. Yes, discomfort from age and arthritis, but not pain.

Her mental functioning has diminished a bit...not the brightest bulb in the batch, but she still seems happy.

I am getting people left and right saying that I need to do something...time to let her go, etc...but I dont' think it is time....

So how long do I do this? Until she can no longer get up and walk out the door to go to the bathroom? When is it time? If she were a smaller dog it would be so much easier...but she is a big baby....

This is such a hard thing to think about.....

 

[Billie Faye]

Has the vet checked her for a bacteria infection of the intestine?...If she were peeing...there are meds the vet could give her to help her with that...
I would have her checked out..also you might want to change when/what you are feeding her...could be that is not agreeing with her at this age....

 

[birdlady]

She has been to the vet about three weeks ago for this very reason...everything checked out ok. The vet suggested changing her diet..she is now on a duck based diet and at first it seemed to help....I have been through all the medical checks. She just can't seem to hold it like she used to...she never had accidents before and I know she feels bad.

Oh and once in a while she will pee, but mostly number two.

 

[Jacob]

I agree with Billie Faye. Take her to the vet to see what's wrong and look into her diet. I don't think that these accidents are enough reason to have her put down.

 

[birdlady]

Oh, I agree 100% Herdis and would never do that....I am with her till the end....

And I posted above that she was to the vet....she is healthy...and her diet was changed...

Just found this online....Questions to ask first....

1. Can the dog do "dog things" like run around, walk, play, etc. (Yes, she can walk and trot at times)

2. Is the dog's situation life threatening? (no)
3. Does the dog have a "good" quality of life? (she still is happy and wants to be around us and the action)All of these questions must be answered before making further decisions. (I still think Coco has some time left in her!)

 

[Ranyart]

Leslie - It's a hard thing for sure but you will know, deep in your heart, when it's time. It'll suck but you will know when she (and you) are ready. Until then enjoy her every day - and stock up on paper towels and rubber gloves. Best wishes.

 

[WenM]

Doggie pads and diapers. My sis in law works at a rescue where the animals are really ready for pet hospice (she is a Hospice Social Worker so it makes sense) She is constantly fostering dogs and cats that have no teeth at all, only 3 legs, and many elderly or disabled pets with diapers and who use puppy pads at night.

 

[newf]

I went through the same thing with my 16 year old lab a couple of years ago. He was doing the same thing as your Coco. He had arthritis etc. like large dogs are prone to get in their later years. He was healthy in every other aspect, but was incontinent. The vet did a panel of lab work that came back negative or inconclusive. My vet told me it was just old age. Nothing was medically wrong with him that they could find, but he was 16 years old. That is a very old age for a dog, especially a large breed dog. There was nothing to do but accept that he was old and make arrangement to deal with his incontinence. She told us there are doggie diapers for such problems with dogs. He wasn't going to get better, so we took him home for awhile. He got a bit worse, and wasn't himself. His spirit wasn't the same, so we took him back to the vet. The vet checked him again, and said the same thing. He was an older dog, nothing they could do for him. I knew in my heart it was time to let him go that day. I had promised myself that I wouldn't let him stay here any longer than he wanted to be here. I asked the vet what she would do if it was her dog. She said she would let him go if he was her dog. She left us to discuss the situation with each other, and we decided that it was his time to go. I had Dexter since he was two months old, and I tell you, it was the hardest decision I ever had to make. He and I had been through alot of tough times together over the years. But in my heart I knew it was the right decision to make for him.

No one can tell you when the "right time" is. Only you will know in your heart when to let her go. As strange as it seems, I believe they will tell you when they want to go. Not in words, but by their actions and their eyes. You will know when she is ready.

 

[BraveheartDogs]

My chocolate lab Coco is 16 and has been the best dog ever. Over the past few months since I returned to work, she has been having accidents during the day. Even when my dog walker comes between 10:30 and 11:30...she will walk in to a mess...usally diarreha....I started locking her in the sunroom with her bed and some water....at least 3 times a week she messes her bed and I have to wash it. I have wrapped her three foam beds in thick garbage bags to preserve them, so I only have to clean the cover.

She sometimes has accidents at night too. And right on her bed as if she is sleeping and then does it.

I really have no plans on making any decision to let her go, as she is still able to walk around and doesn't appear to be in any pain. Yes, discomfort from age and arthritis, but not pain.

Her mental functioning has diminished a bit...not the brightest bulb in the batch, but she still seems happy.

I am getting people left and right saying that I need to do something...time to let her go, etc...but I dont' think it is time....

So how long do I do this? Until she can no longer get up and walk out the door to go to the bathroom? When is it time? If she were a smaller dog it would be so much easier...but she is a big baby....

This is such a hard thing to think about.....

I'm sorry..... I have been there MANY times. What I try to look at is this: is there more good days or more bad days? On the good days is there truly still a quality of life for Coco? Also for me, and I realize that this is completely anthropormorphizing but I try to let them go before they lose what I consider to be their dignity. With one of my dogs he lost use of one of his back legs and we knew it was a matter of time before the other leg would go (he had an untreatable neurological disease), and we put him down before he couldn't walk completely but after he was using only one leg and having a difficult time. Only you can decide, but if you don't feel it's right for Coco, then it probably isn't time. There will come a time when her body just won't be able to work any more and then you will know it's time.

I have a dog that I have been grooming since she was 3 months old and she is almost 17 years old now. She has kidney failure. I groom her every month. She was here on Monday and had dropped a lot of weight. When I groomed her this time I told her what a great dog she is and how it has been such a pleasure to know her and take care of her and I cried and said goodbye to her because I am so afraid I won't see her next month. But, I try to remember that she has had a fabulous life with wonderful parents who adore her.

 

[Danita]

Oh boy Leslie, my heart is with you. People always said that you can see it in their eyes. They are right, I saw Jamies eyes and I knew his spirit was overtaken by his suffering.

 

[WenM]

The only thing I want to caution you about is NOT to wait too long, when it is really you that doesn't want to let go. We did this with our 16 YO Collie Laddie - before Finn. Laddie was the apple of my hubbie's eye - he got him from his brother who passed away so he was special. Laddie was diagnosed with arthritis and during one of his vet visits he was diagnosed with an inoperable tumor behind his eye that made him go deaf and blind on that side. He seemed happy enough, ate, played some, drank, but he was also a bit stiff and increasingly incontinent - although he was an outdoor dog so we didn't have the mess. It lulled us into a false sense of everything being ok. We did wait too long and when it suddenly became really aweful and it was SUDDEN, like turning a corner, there was no vet available for days due to a holiday. Poor Laddie was suddently suffering horribly and we could not stand to see him go through that, we owed him a much better end - It broke my husband's heart.

 

[birdlady]

Awe that must have been so hard to got through...

Coco also has arthritis and has been taking Glycoflex III for years as well as deramaxx for pain.

I just ordered this and received it today to maybe help with the diareah...

Bowel Health Remedy for Cats & Dogs to Support Firm Healthy Stools

I hope I know when it is her time...I defintely do not want her to suffer at all....when she does say good bye, I hope it is here in her bed at home...peacefully....

 

[Birdiemarie]

Leslie, I know how you are feeling. My suggestion is to watch her even more closely than you are now so you will be able to see the 'change in her eyes' because it can be subtle. What helped me with my 14 yr old Goldie was knowing her personality and knowing what was emotionally upsetting to her. I did not want to subject her to that since she was a very sensitive girl. When I saw that kind of distress in her eyes I knew it was time to help her go. It was subtle but clear to us who knew her.