The official EN World puppy/doggo thread

[payn]

A Good Grrrl: 1/12/2012-7/1/2026

Today we had to euthanize our beloved Border Collie, with whom we shared a roller coaster ride of 14 1/2 years.

While we’re planning on getting another dog (or dogs) as soon as possible, her passing marks the first time we haven’t had a pet in 50 years, and our first dogless house in 40 years. The current quietness is different.
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[Eyes of Nine]

Oh, so sorry for your loss Dannyalcatraz. What a good doggie!

 

[darjr]

So sorry.

 

[Thomas Shey]

Sorry about that, Danny. Its the price we pay (and I hate it) for becoming so emotionally attached to a creature that loves so short a time relative to us. I long since have begun to understand why some fantasy elves avoid contact with humans.

(Regarding the quiet, the way I heard it described many years ago when we'd freshly lost our Malinois Lupe was "that dog shaped hole in the world.")

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Sorry about that, Danny. Its the price we pay (and I hate it) for becoming so emotionally attached to a creature that loves so short a time relative to us. I long since have begun to understand why some fantasy elves avoid contact with humans.

So, so true. I don’t regret the decision I made; I regret that I had to make it.

She’d been in decline since she was accidentally let out of our yard a year ago, and was lost for (thankfully ONLY) 12 hours. And it became obvious to all of us that it was time.

(Regarding the quiet, the way I heard it described many years ago when we'd freshly lost our Malinois Lupe was "that dog shaped hole in the world.")

I’ve caught myself looking for her in her usual resting spots. And on the way home from running errands today, I almost called the house to make sure she wasn’t in the yard so I could park safely.

 

[the Jester]

So sorry for your loss, Dannyalcatraz. I've been there more times than I want to count, and it's never fun, but when you make that decision, it's always the right one. One of my big fears is waiting too long and letting one of my fur babies suffer.

Much love, dude. Virtual hugs.

 

[Thomas Shey]

So, so true. I don’t regret the decision I made; I regret that I had to make it.

Same. We've had to do it five times, and I broke a little more each time.

She’d been in decline since she was accidentally let out of our yard a year ago, and was lost for (thankfully ONLY) 12 hours. And it became obvious to all of us that it was time.

Yeah. Sometime its pretty blatant when the time comes.

I’ve caught myself looking for her in her usual resting spots. And on the way home from running errands today, I almost called the house to make sure she wasn’t in the yard so I could park safely.

Yeah. This is particularly likely when the dog has been unwell, so you've gotten used to checking on them.

 

[Thomas Shey]

So sorry for your loss, Dannyalcatraz. I've been there more times than I want to count, and it's never fun, but when you make that decision, it's always the right one. One of my big fears is waiting too long and letting one of my fur babies suffer.

We--did that--once. Its not a lesson I'll forget.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

We've had to do it five times, and I broke a little more each time.

She was our 6th consecutive Border Collie, a parade preceded by a pair of Maine Coons.

I was out of town when each of the cats and the first BC died, but I’ve been there for all the rest. In fact, I’m the one who has taken all but one of them on their last car ride.

It’s a terrible burden. I almost feel like a traitor at times. But again, my rational side knows I did the right thing, even when I feel like I didn’t.

We--did that--once. It’s not a lesson I'll forget.

One of our BCs died in her sleep. We completely missed/disregarded the signs of her decline. Finding her was heartbreaking. Damn near had a wreck driving to the vet while crying.

But enough bumming out the thread!

With Mom taking up the task, we’re starting to look for a youngish dog (or dogs) to take in. Border Collies & Aussies are top of the “wish list”, but any suitable dog will be given consideration. We do have certain parameters, though.

1) We can’t get anything bigger than about 60lbs, because they wouldn’t fit the doggie door to the back yard.

2) We can’t get anything under 25lbs because they might be able to escape through our new metal fence, AND we have predators like largish raptors and bobcats that could easily access our yard.

Edit:

3) No puppies; no dogs over 3yo.

 

[Thomas Shey]

With Mom taking up the task, we’re starting to look for a youngish dog (or dogs) to take in. Border Collies & Aussies are top of the “wish list”, but any suitable dog will be given consideration. We do have certain parameters, though.

We've had entirely GSD mixes, largely because our Malinois spoiled me on the "smart dogs" level (I kind of avoided Border Collies and mixes thereof, not because they aren't excellent dogs but because I thought the energy level would be too high for us).

1) We can’t get anything bigger than about 60lbs, because they wouldn’t fit the doggie door to the back yard.

A number of mine have been 70+ lbs, but I probably am getting too old to manage it next time.

2) We can’t get anything under 25lbs because they might be able to escape through our new metal fence, AND we have predators like largish raptors and bobcats that could easily access our yard.

Yeah, we'd probably have problem with our gate because of that. As it was, we've been hardware cloth over it when the dogs were very yound as-is.