Our senior dog Titan, 2013
How Titan Was Doing at This Time
Titan was almost 15 years old. Totally incontinent of stool, at times incontinent of urine; and very weak in the hind legs. In fact, what had me sure that back in February we would be putting him down was the way he was so weak in the legs for 3 or 4 days he could not make it outside for walks and he would collapse on hard surfaces like wood and tile floors with his legs spread wide like an awkward starfish struggling; urinating himself and unable to get his legs back under his body. He was still a good 80lbs and impossible for me to lift. I couldn’t stand to see him struggling like that. I also couldn’t stand the thought of living without him. I needed the vet to be the mutual voice of reason.
Senior dog, Titan, 2013
How I knew it Was Time To Put Titan Down
With great sadness, a few days after his eating habits had slowed dramatically, he became really unsettled. Very antsy, he couldn’t rest.. He was up and down, every few minutes. He was usually tolerant and would lay still on the carpet as the children hugged him and dressed him up or tucked him in and sang to him. But suddenly, on that particular day he suddenly wanted to separate himself from them. His restlessness was him trying to stay away from the children and avoid their contact. He walked away from hugs and cuddles. He’d get up and walk to the opposite side of the room every time our three year old took interest in him. Watching his avoidant, guarded behavior throughout the day, made us believe that an aggressive act was possibly looming. There was definitely a sudden change in his comfort level.
But everyone’s experience in this situation will be different. Every dog is unique. It all depends on the specific dog, the dog’s health, the dog’s abilities, and the owners mind and heart.
The biggest learning from this experience is to
not let the public pressure you. Trust me, if it looks like suffering, eventually people will say something, even if the vet can assure you it’s not. And everyone has their tolerance level for incontinence. Many people won ‘t handle any
incontinence and others like us, will go to all lengths to accommodate their dog’s needs provided other issues are not as severe as the incontinence. The main issue is that in these critical situations there are no “take backs”, no “do overs”. Already, that sense of permanency is hard to accept. Keeping the dog around a day, a weekend or even a few days longer is better than ending it all too soon.
