by Kim Remesch

Created on: February 28, 2009

"How old was your dog?" the little boy in the parking lot of my veterinarian's office inquired. He and his mother, strangers, had just gotten me through the hour or so it took to do all of the things necessary to have my beloved pet euthanized.

"He was 12," I said, not even trying to stop the uncontrollable tears.

"Well," he thought out loud, "that's a whole lot better than 11."

I laughed full and out loud. I hadn't laughed for a long, long time, as I'd been very wrapped up watching my long-time friend waste away before me.

On this day, I had gone to my vet's office, the third time in a week, all three times anticipating that I'd have to have Trusty-the-Dog euthanized. The first two visits I came back out with Trusty on the other end of his leash.

The third time, I knew I wouldn't be so lucky. That stretch of highway from my house to vet's office had become familiar and long. This day, though, the ride didn't seem long enough. I stretched it out by doing a drive in window visit and picking up some chicken nuggets for Trusty. As he became ill, I took him on drive thru runs with me just so we could hang together a little more. Well, that was my part of it. I think Trusty really wanted some nuggets.

It's not easy to come to the decision to put a pet to sleep. They can't tell you what's hurting and how much. Often animals won't display the pain just to keep their owners happy. As he can't tell you, or even show you sometimes, it's up to you to figure out the right time.

You will question whether you did the right thing many, many times. So, even if you know in your head it's the right time, your heart will keep arguing the point for a long time to come. This is the one time you should listen to your head over your heart, in my opinion.

Here are some guidelines to help you through this traumatic time:

Is it terminal? The vet is the best resource for this. Ask him to be very honest with you as you need to make some very hard decisions. If when a terminal prognosis is given, however, that doesn't mean you have to rush to have your pet euthanized. It means it's probably going to come. When the animal's quality of life has deteriorated and moments of joy you shared turn to obvious agony for the pet, you must let go. You can prolong his life, but that may be the worst thing to do for him if you love him.

At first we looked at several diseases that might be causing my dog's problems. These required medication. The vet then did an x-ray. My dog is a squirmer, so the film was as

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