...On the loss of a dog....

Yesterday, while I was enmeshed in meetings with US Airways management in Tempe, AZ, my wife and daughter were faced with a horrible decision. Our dog, Shelby, who had been having a hard time getting around, was totally unable to stand up, or support her own weight. They took her right to the vet, who told them the time had come to let her go.......it was one of the hardest decisions JoAnn ever had to make, but in the end it was the right one--Shelby had no quality of life left, and to keep her going would be unfair to her.......

I felt terrible that I was not there for this, and in reflection of the 16 plus years I had with this wonderful dog, who got me through a divorce (I actually gave my ex 100,000 AA miles to keep her in the settlement) , being alone for a while, and then shared the happiest times with me and our family, I kind of felt I let Shelby down by not being the one to hold her as she drifted off to the big doghouse in the sky.

It's amazing how attached we get to our pets...what really put it in perspective for me was my wife telling me she was having a harder time losing the dog than she did when she was diagnosed with cancer....

Anyway, I just needed to vent and to share a little....sorry for the rant.

Art,
My Condolences for your dog. It's always hard to lose a loved one.

Hang in there.

Art

I am sorry for your loss.


I put my dog to sleep years ago, I probably cried more over the loss of my dog, than I did for my father.

I'm sorry to hear of your loss. I've been through that a few times, and it's never easy. It's amazing how those furry little things find their way into your heart.

Sorry to hear Art, I've got two that are getting up in age, and I know the day is coming, and I don't know how I am going to face it.

I am very sorry for you loss Art. Dogs are defineately a family member. I do not know what I will do when my pooch passes.

Art, I am very sorry for your loss. I recently went through a very similar experience, my dog of 8 years was extremely sick and almost passed away but pulled through in the end.

Awww man, as soon as I saw the thread title, I got that sinking feeling. Gosh, I think we last saw her in October.

Our condolences Art to you and the family.

S+M+S

Sorry Art, the other Art here (Mr. Brett) recently lost one of his Pugs after 15 years. Padi was a great Dog and I miss him a lot. We do get attached to our pets. Main thing is we do the humane thing for them.

Sorry for your loss Art, loosing a pet is always a horrible thing.

Friends,

Thank you all for your kind words of comfort. It's good to know you're out there--even though I haven't met all of you as yet.

We're slowly but surely doing a little better--we are handling this much worse than any of us thought.

Again, thanks for all the messages--

Best,
Art

Yeah, sorry to hear that Art. I can't say that I know what you're going through because I've never dealt with it, but my grandma's dog died a few days ago and she's pretty broken up about it, too.

"Pets" certainly do become family members, and thelost of an innocent creature can be more devastating than the lost of a human.

My condolences, Art.

Art this is terrible news and I'm very sorry to hear about your loss. Dogs become such a close part of the family and it hurts when you lose them.