We lost our dog earlier this week...

[Ohio Guy]

Sorry - I had this long post about losing our puppy this weekend. It was horrible and we're all reeling from it, but after re-reading my post, I decided against sharing it. It just really sucks.

I wasn't sure how to outright delete this post - if a mod wants to delete, please feel free.

 

[zeke4ahs]

So sorry to hear this. You should have left the post. Writing about it and posting pictures of my dog when I lost her last year was my therapy. It sucks and it really takes awhile to get better.

 

[Ohio Guy]

So sorry to hear this. You should have left the post. Writing about it and posting pictures of my dog when I lost her last year was my therapy. It sucks and it really takes awhile to get better.

Thanks - I may rewrite it. He just passed - very unexpectedly - on Sunday and I felt it was just too raw.

 

[zeke4ahs]

Thanks - I may rewrite it. He just passed - very unexpectedly - on Sunday and I felt it was just too raw.

Unexpectedly is even worse. But making the decision is hard too. It's funny what makes people feel better and it's different for everyone. Some people put things away immediately, I waited months to do it. I posted lots of picture on social media etc. Some people get another pet fairly soon. It's been over a year and I'm still not ready. Do what makes you feel better. You feel like you've been kicked in the gut for awhile.

 

[Marvin the Martian]

Sorry to hear about your loss. You mention both a puppy and unexpected and I am sure that is very difficult. I have only lost older dogs, from that I know eventually the pain mostly heals. But it is difficult.

 

[Ohio Guy]

Thanks fellas.

Here's a version of what I wrote.

When we rescued Mac back in the first week of March, we were told he was a black lab/border collie mix. Some people would ask us if he had pit/terrier in him. He may have, but he was clearly mostly black lab. The shelter we adopted him from said that their best guess was that he was 2-3 months old and while we faced typical puppy challenges, we all fell for him hard.

After about a week or two, we felt we had really lucked out because he seemed so mellow (this was our first dog). When we discovered he wasn't eating we got worried and took him to the vet. It turns out he had parvo. After a few touch and go days (about a week total) we were able to bring him home with a clean bill of health. The vet said we were fortunate to catch it when we did and she expected him to be just fine.

And fine he was. When we first brought him home, he barely tipped the scales at 20 lbs. The most recent time he was weighed he came in at 51 lbs.

He was also amazingly friendly. He may have barked at you, but it was only to get your attention so you'd come over to pet him. Sure he was active and high energy, but as long as we exercised him in some way, he was fine and would usually tucker out. Essentially this was a healthy, happy dog that had seemingly put a real health scare in his rear view mirror.

Or so we thought.

This past weekend my wife and I took a long-scheduled trip to Chicago. My kids went to my sister and brother in law's house and we boarded Mac. The vet's office also boards dogs and cats and we know some of the people who work there so we felt comfortable leaving him in their care for a couple of days. Since he had been there in March and back for well/shot visits, a lot of people knew him and he was as happy and as energetic as could be as we checked him in. We checked him in on Friday night with plans to pick him up early Sunday afternoon.

Around dinner time on Saturday, the vet called us saying that they noticed he was a bit lethargic and wasn't really eating. Given his history, she said she'd like to run some tests but didn't seem overly alarmed. We went to a play Saturday night and headed to Midway Airport for our flight back to Columbus, OH with plans to go get our kids in Columbus, go pick up Mac and go home (we live in Athens, OH).

As we sat in the gate at Midway, the vet calls us and says that we need to get to her office ASAP. She said Mac needed to get to Columbus to an emergency clinic as soon as possible (that drive is essentially the same drive on 37 between Bloomington and Indy). We frantically tried to reach friends - I even posted a plea on facebook for help - and finally a friend picked Mac up and sped up to Columbus. We were supposed to meet him in Columbus at the emergency vet clinic, but we were too late. He was gone by the time we got there.

We talked to the vet after the fact and she said that she's never seen anything like it. She didn't understand how a puppy could go from being so full of life on Friday evening to passing away roughly 36 hours later. While not 100% certain of what actually killed Mac, she and some of her colleagues she consulted with determined that either he was simply born with a weak immune system or the parvo did more damage to his immune system than they could detect. She said that on Sunday morning, he had almost no white blood cell count and his temperature was 105. Her guess is that he died of some sort of viral infection that probably would have been relatively easy for a dog with a stronger immune system to fight off.

She did reassure us that it's highly unlikely that he died from ingesting a toxin, which was mildly reassuring because we were racking our brains trying to figure out what he might've accidentally eaten or gotten into.

All in all, this week has really sucked. The kids pretty much have cried on and off since. My wife and I have too. Having him with us for just over 5 months seems so short, but it was just long enough for all of us to fall for him hard.

 

[zeke4ahs]

Thanks fellas.

Here's a version of what I wrote.

When we rescued Mac back in the first week of March, we were told he was a black lab/border collie mix. Some people would ask us if he had pit/terrier in him. He may have, but he was clearly mostly black lab. The shelter we adopted him from said that their best guess was that he was 2-3 months old and while we faced typical puppy challenges, we all fell for him hard.

After about a week or two, we felt we had really lucked out because he seemed so mellow (this was our first dog). When we discovered he wasn't eating we got worried and took him to the vet. It turns out he had parvo. After a few touch and go days (about a week total) we were able to bring him home with a clean bill of health. The vet said we were fortunate to catch it when we did and she expected him to be just fine.

And fine he was. When we first brought him home, he barely tipped the scales at 20 lbs. The most recent time he was weighed he came in at 51 lbs.

He was also amazingly friendly. He may have barked at you, but it was only to get your attention so you'd come over to pet him. Sure he was active and high energy, but as long as we exercised him in some way, he was fine and would usually tucker out. Essentially this was a healthy, happy dog that had seemingly put a real health scare in his rear view mirror.

Or so we thought.

This past weekend my wife and I took a long-scheduled trip to Chicago. My kids went to my sister and brother in law's house and we boarded Mac. The vet's office also boards dogs and cats and we know some of the people who work there so we felt comfortable leaving him in their care for a couple of days. Since he had been there in March and back for well/shot visits, a lot of people knew him and he was as happy and as energetic as could be as we checked him in. We checked him in on Friday night with plans to pick him up early Sunday afternoon.

Around dinner time on Saturday, the vet called us saying that they noticed he was a bit lethargic and wasn't really eating. Given his history, she said she'd like to run some tests but didn't seem overly alarmed. We went to a play Saturday night and headed to Midway Airport for our flight back to Columbus, OH with plans to go get our kids in Columbus, go pick up Mac and go home (we live in Athens, OH).

As we sat in the gate at Midway, the vet calls us and says that we need to get to her office ASAP. She said Mac needed to get to Columbus to an emergency clinic as soon as possible (that drive is essentially the same drive on 37 between Bloomington and Indy). We frantically tried to reach friends - I even posted a plea on facebook for help - and finally a friend picked Mac up and sped up to Columbus. We were supposed to meet him in Columbus at the emergency vet clinic, but we were too late. He was gone by the time we got there.

We talked to the vet after the fact and she said that she's never seen anything like it. She didn't understand how a puppy could go from being so full of life on Friday evening to passing away roughly 36 hours later. While not 100% certain of what actually killed Mac, she and some of her colleagues she consulted with determined that either he was simply born with a weak immune system or the parvo did more damage to his immune system than they could detect. She said that on Sunday morning, he had almost no white blood cell count and his temperature was 105. Her guess is that he died of some sort of viral infection that probably would have been relatively easy for a dog with a stronger immune system to fight off.

She did reassure us that it's highly unlikely that he died from ingesting a toxin, which was mildly reassuring because we were racking our brains trying to figure out what he might've accidentally eaten or gotten into.

All in all, this week has really sucked. The kids pretty much have cried on and off since. My wife and I have too. Having him with us for just over 5 months seems so short, but it was just long enough for all of us to fall for him hard.

I lost a puppy once too and never really got a definitive answer. It really is awful, because you assume you're going to have this pet in your life for 12-15 years and to lose them that early is heartbreaking. The only comforting thing is knowing that him several months of a really great life he otherwise wouldn't have had.

 

[Ohio Guy]

I lost a puppy once too and never really got a definitive answer. It really is awful, because you assume you're going to have this pet in your life for 12-15 years and to lose them that early is heartbreaking. The only comforting thing is knowing that him several months of a really great life he otherwise wouldn't have had.

We've had a similar conversation. We didn't expect to have say goodbye to this dog until our kids were moved out. I vaguely remember saying that to my wife when we were considering adopting him.

I also hate that we didn't make it to say goodbye. A lot about this keeps me up at night, but that's a big part of it. I just wish I could have been there for him.

 

[zeke4ahs]

We've had a similar conversation. We didn't expect to have say goodbye to this dog until our kids were moved out. I vaguely remember saying that to my wife when we were considering adopting him.

I also hate that we didn't make it to say goodbye. A lot about this keeps me up at night, but that's a big part of it. I just wish I could have been there for him.

I had some guilt with my puppy I lost too, think that's common. I can remember like yesterday the last look she gave me and that was 20 years ago. He was probably sick enough he wouldn't have even known you were there , but I know it's hard not having closure. I got a puppy paw tattoo when I lost my last one.

 

[DrHoops]

Sorry for your loss, Ohio. People who aren't dog owners sometimes don't understand how difficult it is. You're losing a part of your family. I hope you always remember the great times you had. The bad times will fade, I think.

Mine died in my arms in December. One of the worst days of my life It may help to get another dog. I took a few months and adopted again and it really helped me.

 

[Ohio Guy]

Sorry for your loss, Ohio. People who aren't dog owners sometimes don't understand how difficult it is. You're losing a part of your family. I hope you always remember the great times you had. The bad times will fade, I think.

Mine died in my arms in December. One of the worst days of my life It may help to get another dog. I took a few months and adopted again and it really helped me.

Thanks man. We haven't really talked about it, but I wouldn't be surprised if another dog is in the cards for us at some point. No real timeline on that though.

 

[Ohio Guy]

I had some guilt with my puppy I lost too, think that's common. I can remember like yesterday the last look she gave me and that was 20 years ago. He was probably sick enough he wouldn't have even known you were there , but I know it's hard not having closure. I got a puppy paw tattoo when I lost my last one.

Our vet did a good job at reassuring us that our guilt was unfounded. I told her I was retracing steps, thinking of what he might've gotten into or what he might've eaten and she said that she and everyone she talked to was relatively sure that a toxin didn't kill him - she was convinced it was a rare case of him having a bad immune system based on his low white blood cell count. She said he could have been born that way or the parvo could have caused more damage to his immune system than we initially thought.

She also pulled his record to show us that we were up to date with vaccines and shots and he was growing and gaining weight every time we visited her office. She was really good in that way, telling us that we did everything we were supposed to do. I appreciated it, but really it was small consolation. It just sucks.

 

[zeke4ahs]

Our vet did a good job at reassuring us that our guilt was unfounded. I told her I was retracing steps, thinking of what he might've gotten into or what he might've eaten and she said that she and everyone she talked to was relatively sure that a toxin didn't kill him - she was convinced it was a rare case of him having a bad immune system based on his low white blood cell count. She said he could have been born that way or the parvo could have caused more damage to his immune system than we initially thought.

She also pulled his record to show us that we were up to date with vaccines and shots and he was growing and gaining weight every time we visited her office. She was really good in that way, telling us that we did everything we were supposed to do. I appreciated it, but really it was small consolation. It just sucks.

I lost a puppy a long time ago. She was only 6 months old and had never been sick. She woke up in the morning shivering and vomiting. I called vet and they were busy until early afternoon. She ate and seemed better, so I left her for awhile to run some errands. When I came back, she was obviously worse and I ran to the vet with her. They thought she was stabilized and were giving her fluids. I left after a while. Got a call about two hours later that she had died. I always wondered if I'd insisted on bringing her in if it would have helped. We were on vacation, so the vet sent the autopsy results to my regular vet. He said it wasn't conclusive , but she might have aspirated on her vomit , which made me feel even worse, because that could and should have been avoided. Not sure why I'm telling this story, except I actually had some reason to feel guilt and you obviously don't. It just adds to the sadness.

 

[twenty02]

Thanks fellas.

Here's a version of what I wrote.

When we rescued Mac back in the first week of March, we were told he was a black lab/border collie mix. Some people would ask us if he had pit/terrier in him. He may have, but he was clearly mostly black lab. The shelter we adopted him from said that their best guess was that he was 2-3 months old and while we faced typical puppy challenges, we all fell for him hard.

After about a week or two, we felt we had really lucked out because he seemed so mellow (this was our first dog). When we discovered he wasn't eating we got worried and took him to the vet. It turns out he had parvo. After a few touch and go days (about a week total) we were able to bring him home with a clean bill of health. The vet said we were fortunate to catch it when we did and she expected him to be just fine.

And fine he was. When we first brought him home, he barely tipped the scales at 20 lbs. The most recent time he was weighed he came in at 51 lbs.

He was also amazingly friendly. He may have barked at you, but it was only to get your attention so you'd come over to pet him. Sure he was active and high energy, but as long as we exercised him in some way, he was fine and would usually tucker out. Essentially this was a healthy, happy dog that had seemingly put a real health scare in his rear view mirror.

Or so we thought.

This past weekend my wife and I took a long-scheduled trip to Chicago. My kids went to my sister and brother in law's house and we boarded Mac. The vet's office also boards dogs and cats and we know some of the people who work there so we felt comfortable leaving him in their care for a couple of days. Since he had been there in March and back for well/shot visits, a lot of people knew him and he was as happy and as energetic as could be as we checked him in. We checked him in on Friday night with plans to pick him up early Sunday afternoon.

Around dinner time on Saturday, the vet called us saying that they noticed he was a bit lethargic and wasn't really eating. Given his history, she said she'd like to run some tests but didn't seem overly alarmed. We went to a play Saturday night and headed to Midway Airport for our flight back to Columbus, OH with plans to go get our kids in Columbus, go pick up Mac and go home (we live in Athens, OH).

As we sat in the gate at Midway, the vet calls us and says that we need to get to her office ASAP. She said Mac needed to get to Columbus to an emergency clinic as soon as possible (that drive is essentially the same drive on 37 between Bloomington and Indy). We frantically tried to reach friends - I even posted a plea on facebook for help - and finally a friend picked Mac up and sped up to Columbus. We were supposed to meet him in Columbus at the emergency vet clinic, but we were too late. He was gone by the time we got there.

We talked to the vet after the fact and she said that she's never seen anything like it. She didn't understand how a puppy could go from being so full of life on Friday evening to passing away roughly 36 hours later. While not 100% certain of what actually killed Mac, she and some of her colleagues she consulted with determined that either he was simply born with a weak immune system or the parvo did more damage to his immune system than they could detect. She said that on Sunday morning, he had almost no white blood cell count and his temperature was 105. Her guess is that he died of some sort of viral infection that probably would have been relatively easy for a dog with a stronger immune system to fight off.

She did reassure us that it's highly unlikely that he died from ingesting a toxin, which was mildly reassuring because we were racking our brains trying to figure out what he might've accidentally eaten or gotten into.

All in all, this week has really sucked. The kids pretty much have cried on and off since. My wife and I have too. Having him with us for just over 5 months seems so short, but it was just long enough for all of us to fall for him hard.

I had a very familiar situation with a puppy several years back, and it affected me a lot more than losing other pets I've had.

Like you, we adopted this guy. He was about 5 months old, and seemed to be pretty healthy. But we noticed that he was starting to vomit fairly frequently. Several vet trips, with tests and x-rays found nothing. I thought it was possibly food issues, so tried a variety of other foods. Nothing much mattered. Once he got over about a year, it became more frequent, finally to the point he was barely eating.

We ended up taking him up to the Purdue hospital for some advanced testing, etc....turned out he had juvenile renal disease, and his kidneys never developed properly. They said they were so small, it was amazing he'd lived as long as he did.

We also learned that he was really more chow-chow mix than we thought (he looked like a shepherd as a puppy). And those breeds were more susceptible to that genetic disease. He was probably the smartest dog I've ever owned, and only one I have ever adopted as a puppy.

But yeah, the unexpected nature of it hit the family really hard.

It will much better in time, and you'll appreciate that you were able to provide him a loving home for his short life.

 

[Optimist13]

An autopsy at Purdue Vet School might shed more light.

 

[Optimist13]

Sorry for your loss. There are dozens of pets at shelters who would love for you to take them home

 

[Ohio Guy]

Sorry for your loss. There are dozens of pets at shelters who would love for you to take them home

We haven't really discussed it yet, but I would imagine another dog could be in the cards for us at some point. Almost from the day we got him, my daughter told us Mac needed more brothers and sisters. My son is a little different. He told me that he never wants to get another dog again. My guess is that he'll change his mind eventually, but we're not going to push it at this point.

 

[Ohio Guy]

not sure if these will come through or not (they're from a facebook post I just shared), but I thought I'd try to share some photos of Mac here:

It's crazy to look back at the pictures and see how much he grew. When we first got him in early March, he barely tipped the scales just over 20 lbs. When they weighed him on Friday, he was 51 lbs. Given that we really weren't sure what breeds were in him, the vet wasn't really sure how big he would have gotten. Her initial guess was between 50-60 lbs.

 

[zeke4ahs]

We haven't really discussed it yet, but I would imagine another dog could be in the cards for us at some point. Almost from the day we got him, my daughter told us Mac needed more brothers and sisters. My son is a little different. He told me that he never wants to get another dog again. My guess is that he'll change his mind eventually, but we're not going to push it at this point.

Your son is going through what I still am. Not sure he wants to get his heart broken like that again.

 

[hoot1]

Sorry - I had this long post about losing our puppy this weekend. It was horrible and we're all reeling from it, but after re-reading my post, I decided against sharing it. It just really sucks.

I wasn't sure how to outright delete this post - if a mod wants to delete, please feel free.

I friend of mine wrote this beautiful letter to the Indianapolis Star which was published about the passing of his 16 year old dog.

Ohio Guy, you shouldn't feel troubled by posting in regard to your loss. Others such as my friend share your sorrow.

 

[zeke4ahs]

https://www.marinecorpstimes.com/news/2017/07/27/marine-dog-with-cancer-gets-tear-filled-farewell/
Just so I can make this thread a little sadder...

 

[Ohio Guy]

https://www.marinecorpstimes.com/news/2017/07/27/marine-dog-with-cancer-gets-tear-filled-farewell/
Just so I can make this thread a little sadder...

aww man, that was tough to read. Glad that dog got a proper send off though. I agree that is what he deserved. Selfishly, I couldn't help but think that had Mac lived, he might've looked a little like Cena when he got older.