What to expect when a dog is PTS??

Lauragoesmad

My beloved king charles Cara (14) is due to be put to sleep on Monday. (We are waiting for my parents to come home.)

Do they just drift off to sleep or should I be expecting something more traumatic?
If anyone has had a dog PTS I would really appreciate you telling me about your experiences.
Thanks so much.
Laura.

cowzerp

he wont even know and it will be very quick, just pet him and he'll not be any the wiser..sorry for you..dont worry for him/her though, painless..

animalcrazy

I'm so sorry, I have never had to have a dog put to sleep, but I know it is painless and they feel relaxed and just drift off. Just have everyone there he loves to pet him and talk to him and if you can, get it done at the house he lives in, it will just look like he's going to sleep.

Lauragoesmad

Yeah, we have the vet booked to come to the house on Monday. We are all taking the day off work.

Its so upsetting. I've had her since she was 10 weeks old.

Jules

What the vet will do is clip a small about of hair on one of her legs so he can see the vain. Give her a little wipe with some surgical spirits, and give her an injection into the vain. Basically the same thing he would if she was have a surgery done, he just gives her too much. And she goes off to sleep, she doesnt think anything bad is happening. You will be given the option of keeping her and burying her or letting the vet take her back to the practice. Its normally cremation and you can get her ashes back but it is expensive, but worth it. I will warn you that, just like humans, she may lose control of her bowels and may tremor a bit so i would suggest putting a towel under her and over her. I'm sorry but i think its something you need to know.

Its never easy letting a pet go but if its the best thing for her you have to be brave for her and make it as normal as possible. She needs to be very relaxed and just make sure you keep talking to her, petting her and telling her how much you love her and what a good friend she is. And never stop letting her know how much she is loved. And never, never, ever forget her. Your in my thoughts op, i had to do the same thing a few months ago.

Jules

EGAR

My vet injects a sedative first into the scruff of the neck so that the dog will be very sleepy and relaxed when the leg patch is shaved off. In both cases the vet had to tell me that the dog was dead as I still thought it was asleep. No struggle, no fight... I wished all humans could go as easy as that...

My thoughts are with you, I just had to let my ancient RW x GSD Sally go and although I know it was the right decision for HER, I still find it hard to cope with having to make that call on her behalf.

Lauragoesmad

Thanks, everyone for all your replies.
We got her leg shaved today when we were at the vets because I want him to be there for as short a time as possible. I know as soon as she sees him she will know something is up.

Sashy

So sorry to hear your news, tears coming out of eyes already.. We had this done to wee dog of ours a few years ago, so so sad..

It showed on eastenders a couple of weeks ago how it is done, when they were putting wellard asleep, tears streaming down my face.....

It really is so upsetting, a person can get very attached to their dog,,some people dont and never will know how much...

Talk to him gently and stroke him gently and make him as comfortable as possible, they love to hear your voice..

That was a good idea to get his leg shaved today so as it make it less stressful for him on monday.

Dont know what else to say, my heart goes out to you.

mydarkstar

I'm so sorry to hear about this, this must be a very sad weekend for you. I had to have my 13 year old Cavalier K Charles pts last summer. It was a very upsetting decision as, like you, I had her since she was a few weeks old.

It honestly was just like seeing her drift off to sleep. It was over so very quickly, and I cuddled her & told her how much I loved & would miss her while the vet did the injection.

When it was over the vet asked would I like to keep a lock of her hair (she had the most beautiful fluffy white tail which I kept a lock of). I was surprised, I hadn't had much time to think of anything but I'm very glad now that I have a little piece of the real her as well as her ashes.

Stheno

I've had any of my dogs who had to be pts sedated first with the injection in their neck, it does help imo, as they get sleepy.

If you do get your Cara cremated, just be aware that getting the ashes back may be upsetting, personally for me it is, as it's a real reminder that they are gone.

best wishes to all of your family and Cara on Monday, I hope it goes peacefully for you all.

x in the city

aww, thats sad. We have a king charles also and the guy is around 10. He seems to have been around forever but we love him to bits, such a racsal.

off topic.

do people whose pets have passed away, ever get similar breed dogs again.?

I love king charles dogs, must be the best pets ever. that program on bbs a few weeks ago raised serious breeding issues with these dogs and it seems worrying.

whenever I am driving I see all these people walking king charles dogs and I always have a wee look.....:)

Lauragoesmad

We aren't going to get her cremated. My Dad is back today and is going to build her a doggie coffin. We're going to bury her in the garden and I'm going to buy a rose bush to put at the spot. Theres no way I'd let the vet take her from the house.

Sashy

We did the same with ours. Put him in a wee box and put a wee blanket around him first. My mum planted a rose bush on top of it and we have a wee ornament of a dog on top of it aswell. My mums best friend had it delivered with a rose by the local flower shop, when it arrived everyone burst into tears aswell. Some people might think this is a bit extreme but it was just my my mums friend way of saying sorry as my mum was in bits over it, she cried solid non stop for over three days!! 3 years later she still talks about him..
That is a good idea, at least you know they are always close...

So so sad.......

merryhappy

I'm so sorry for your loss, I have two cavaliers they are great dogs. 14 is a great age but I suppose it makes it even harder to say goodbye. Here is a link to a website especially for cavalier owners were you can read about other peoples bereavements and talk about your own.. http://board.cavaliertalk.com/forumdisplay.php?f=53 Good luck tomorrow..

Sashy

Yes and same here, goodluck for tomorrow, this is prob not the right term..., hope it is not too hard on you or your family..

BlackCat2008

I'm so sorry to hear, but I'm sure you know it's the right thing to do for her, it sounds like she had a great life with you and your family and will be sadly missed. You are doing the kindessed thing for her and she will pass away quietly and with dignity and she will always remember you for that.

You are in my thoughts.

lostinnappies

not meaning to be morbid, but i just wanted to make you aware of one thing so you dont get upset. Having worked as a Vet nurse for a number of years, after they inject the overdose of anaesthetic into your dogs arm, some dogs will then have a nerve reaction (to simplify it). It means the nevers in the brain are still firing and may cause your dog to breath afther he has passed. Please dont worry its perfectly normal and is expected by the vets. It dosnt mean he is still alive, it is just nerves.