Have just experienced a sad distressing day through having the local vet put down two of my dogs on his advise. My 9yo German Shepherd has suffered from a serious skin condition for years & over recent times his hips have deteriorated to the extent that his rear end swayed alarmingly when he walked & with the slightest pressure on his back his rear end just collapsed. The vet recommended that he also put down my Pembroke Corgi aged 14. While he had minor health problems the vet thought that fretting over missing his mate the Shepherd would not be good for him. The vet visited my home to perform the deed & offered to arrange cremation, returning the ashes to me. I preferred to bury the two in the corner of my vege., garden where they would sit & watch me working. I have made a cross this afternoon & will paint it tomorrow & write an appropriate inscription.
I have shed many tears today & while we tell ourselves it is a kind thing to do to end their suffering it is heart wrenching. I still have a 5yo Pembroke Corgi & my cat to keep me company but the other two i will sadly miss.
Jimbo

JImbo, I know exactly how you feel and you have my deepest sympathy. When I had to call the vet to do the same for my beloved 14 yr old samoyed Khan a few years back we buried him and placed a laminated photo with his details on his cross. My cat Cody still spends a lot of time just sitting on his grave as if talking to him and keeping him company, so don't be surprised if yours does the same. They just seem to know where their old mate is. Cherish your memories.

Jimbo, Just to let you know I am thinking of your loss. I know what it feels like.

Please accept my condolences as well Jimbo. I have a collage of photos on the wall plus Mitzi's 12 dog tags and collar hanging below.

Oh jimbo. How very sad..a double grief. .

Jimbo. I know how you will be feeling. I had to put my best mate Bod-e down on 7th June this month. He was a foxyx.He was only 7. He had bad dermatitis, and a very bad ear disease. They said they could operatefor$1500,but no guarentee of success.So I did for him the kindest thing.But how I miss him. I see him in my mind dashing every where, being so alive and such good fun. The house sure is quiet without him. My rottyx has pined for him, and now seeks the company of the Springer spaniels.They are all so docile by comparison.So yes Jimbo it's been a sad month, and that's why I haven't felt like contributing on here.I wouldn't get any more animals, too old now,but I'll enjoy the dogs I have left.

I feel for you, we had to do that a few years ago, it is very hard to do, sure we knew it had to be done, more so because his kennel mate died 10 months before, they do miss the other dog in the family.

Jimbo, that's really sad. We love them so much, don't we? - but then they return the favour in bucketloads! I have a quote on my wall "The hardest job in the world is to be the person your dog thinks you are." So true.

I still shed tears sometimes for our beloved Afghan hound, Shad, who left us in 1993, and our ginger tabby, Hinge, who joined him 10 years later. Hinge had diabetes for his last year and I injected him twice a day with live insulin. He was well worth it though, the cuddliest, sweetest cat I've ever known. Bless.

Jimbo, My heart goes out to you. It's never an easy task to put your beloved animals to sleep. 9 years ago, we had to put our beloved little 11 year old Foxy X, Cassie to sleep. She had diabetes that we couldn't control and then I think she developed cancer. Then, 2 months later, our darling German Shepherd, Shona, unfortunately had to join her. She was 16 years old and couldn't walk, see very well or hear. I so wanted to hang on to her. But we knew that was not possible. I too still cry for both of them. But we got another two "little darlings" - a Beagle, Brodie, and a Collie X, Holly, and boy were they a handful!!! But we love them to bits now and will be just as sad when we lose them. I can't live without my "kids". A new dog can never replace the one you have lost - they just bring something else to your relationship with them. Dog is God backwards!!

We always hope for a peaceful end (like us), the end of one of mine below, its still tough.

The years went by and life was good, slowly he gained a few grey hairs but still chased ball and swum like a fish, one day I came home and found him standing still eyes ticking like a clock, off to the vet, a stroke he said. He gave him an anti inflammatory shot and said chances were slim, think about putting him down. He had improved by the next morning, eyes normal, staggered rather than walked, day by day he improved, I had to lift him into the truck but he still enjoyed the ride, we walked by the beach, but he never went for a swim.
A month went past, he was doing well, one evening one of my daughters called in with her kids, one by one Space (His name) went up to the kids and made a fuss of them, this unusual as he was not very trusting of kids, liked to keep away. The next day I was repairing a drawer in the bedroom, Space came in and nestled in to me, I gave him a fuss and said I would be there in a minute, it was almost his dinner time.
It would have been 15 minutes later I went into the kitchen, got his plate down, that mostly made him appear, no Space, I went outside looking for him, he was on the path dead. I had tears, and mixed feelings, we had 15 good years, it was his time.
The following day I buried him in his basket, that basket he slept in so often beside my chair. I planted a standard rose on his grave, that was 5 years ago, I get the most beautiful blooms.
I’m sure he waits by the Rainbow Bridge.

On the subject of dog friends, here's a cute saying I saw last year on a billboard outside a bookshop: "Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog, it's too dark to read." !!!!