I'm sorry for your losses. We lost two of our pets within a short amount of time and made the decision to be pet-free for a while. I miss them and would love to have a pet around, but we work a lot, travel often and rent a home, so not having a pet gives us more flexibility. It also saves us money and time. If I were in your situation, I think I could commit to not having a pet for two years. Give yourself time to grieve your pets and see how you do with no pets. Time will go by quickly.
I don't have any advice as I haven't lost a pet (yet), but I wanted to let you know how sorry I am to hear that you lost your dogs. I'm not sure what I would do in your situation.
I am so sorry. We lost my dog, Sammy, a couple months ago to adrenal cancer. He had perfect blood work six months prior so I can relate to the sudden loss.
I can't imagine loving a dog more than Sammy but I also can't imagine my life without a dog in it. Our plan is to wait a year and then start looking to adopt.
I am sorry for your loss. I guess that's what my Bella had. How long was Sammy sick? It seemed to hit Bella like a ton of bricks and we decided to put her down the next day My other dog had lymphoma so at least we had 7 months to get used to the idea of him being sick/not being around. Adrenal cancer is awful.
Oh, you - and a few others - might be convincing me. lol. I wouldn't trade the happy times I had with them to avoid feeling sad now. They were worth it, even with the heartbreak.
Maybe we should just stay put and see how we feel down the road. I'm so conflicted!
First off I am so sorry for your losses. I haven't lost a pet yet, well I did when I was 5 but I don't remember her. I do now have a cat and a dog. We actually got our cat because when dh and I moved in together the rental we were in allowed cats not dogs and dh has never lived without a pet before and he hated not having a furry friend. (When he grow up they had 2-3 cats and 1-3 dogs at all times)
I have no idea what I would do in your situation. But is it possible to sign a 6 month lease so that you can stay there for a be and see how you feel? (Depending on the rental market there that might not work.) I kinda wish you lease was up in 2-3 months so you could figure it out.
Thank you. Unfortunately, places around here rent basically ONLY starting in August. I mean there are probably some exceptions, but I don't think my landlord would want to start renting her house out at off times (I wouldn't if I were her, either). I do wish we had a few months to decide. I feel like this is really quick.
After talking more with FI last night, I think we've decided to look at the one place we have lined up to view tomorrow, and if that doesn't work out we are going to stay put. I'm the bigger dog person in the relationship, but we both agreed it's much nicer coming home to a pet and we are worried we'll miss it too much if we move. So, if this place tomorrow is awesome we might take it, otherwise I think we're fine where we are.
I am sorry for your loss. I guess that's what my Bella had. How long was Sammy sick? It seemed to hit Bella like a ton of bricks and we decided to put her down the next day My other dog had lymphoma so at least we had 7 months to get used to the idea of him being sick/not being around. Adrenal cancer is awful.
Hugo went from bouncy boy, going on runs with me to being put down the following week. His cancer was incredibly aggressive and we were totally in shock.
I'm so sorry. I remember Hugo as one of my favorite GBCN dogs of all time. He was so stinking cute.
I am so sorry. We lost my dog, Sammy, a couple months ago to adrenal cancer. He had perfect blood work six months prior so I can relate to the sudden loss.
I can't imagine loving a dog more than Sammy but I also can't imagine my life without a dog in it. Our plan is to wait a year and then start looking to adopt.
I am sorry for your loss. I guess that's what my Bella had. How long was Sammy sick? It seemed to hit Bella like a ton of bricks and we decided to put her down the next day My other dog had lymphoma so at least we had 7 months to get used to the idea of him being sick/not being around. Adrenal cancer is awful.
It happened so sudden.... we moved and had a vet visit to meet his new vet and had routine blood work. We were doing blood tests every 6 months since he was older and had previous tummy issues. His blood work in November was perfect, he was eating, playing and acting fine so we were shocked when the vet told us that his results were bad. He had no symptoms that made us think anything was wrong. The blood work results led to an emergency ultrasound and we found out he had a tumor growing on his adrenal gland and fluid in his abdominal cavity. Further testing revealed that the tumor was wrapped around a major artery and the fluid was blood- he was bleeding internally. They think the tumor was releasing cortisol and that is why he wasn't acting sick- the cortisol was masking any signs.
After meeting with a specialist, we had to make the most heartbreaking decision to put him down. Surgery was just too risky. Adrenal gland tumors/cancer are rare in dogs and since the artery was involved, he would have most likely not survived the surgery and I couldn't have his last day of life be at the vet on a table. If we waited, he would have started hemorrhaging and would have went done hill fast. We are at peace that he didn't have any pain and had no idea he was sick.
I am sorry for your loss. I guess that's what my Bella had. How long was Sammy sick? It seemed to hit Bella like a ton of bricks and we decided to put her down the next day My other dog had lymphoma so at least we had 7 months to get used to the idea of him being sick/not being around. Adrenal cancer is awful.
It happened so sudden.... we moved and had a vet visit to meet his new vet and had routine blood work. We were doing blood tests every 6 months since he was older and had previous tummy issues. His blood work in November was perfect, he was eating, playing and acting fine so we were shocked when the vet told us that his results were bad. He had no symptoms that made us think anything was wrong. The blood work results led to an emergency ultrasound and we found out he had a tumor growing on his adrenal gland and fluid in his abdominal cavity. Further testing revealed that the tumor was wrapped around a major artery and the fluid was blood- he was bleeding internally. They think the tumor was releasing cortisol and that is why he wasn't acting sick- the cortisol was masking any signs.
After meeting with a specialist, we had to make the most heartbreaking decision to put him down. Surgery was just too risky. Adrenal gland tumors/cancer are rare in dogs and since the artery was involved, he would have most likely not survived the surgery and I couldn't have his last day of life be at the vet on a table. If we waited, he would have started hemorrhaging and would have went done hill fast. We are at peace that he didn't have any pain and had no idea he was sick.
That's very interesting about the cortisol. I wonder if that was the case for Bella, too. I did not get to talk to the vet directly (since I was on vacation and my parents were dog sitting) but I do know they said she had fluid in her belly too. She had seemed happy and normal even that morning, and then threw up and collapsed and never really got up again. I'm glad Sammy didn't have to suffer. I'm also glad Bella only suffered for about 24 hours, even though I wish she hadn't at all.
I'm so sorry. We lost two dogs last year about 5 months apart. We had three dogs - two 14 year old pitties and a boxer that turned 10 in Nov. When we lost the first one in March, DH was already itching to get a 4th dog. I knew I wasn't going to be able to hold him off until fall and I wanted to get a new dog adjusted before we would be traveling for summer and gone a little more in the fall (I SAH so I was around a lot) so I gave him the go ahead to look. Within three hours he had applications in for like 6 dogs. We adopted our puppy two weeks after our first dog passed. A week later we found out our other pittie had a tumor in his chest and along his spine. He was old and had arthritis so we chose to keep him comfortable instead of treating it. Our second dog passed in August. I still don't feel ready for another one but I let DH look. We did meet two dogs but our oldest had a leg amputated in March and has just gotten old and crotchety around other dogs. We were going to adopt an adult dog and she just isn't going to acclimate to that well. So we will have two until she passes and then I'm sure DH will be chomping at the bit. Even though dogs can pass at any age our two did at almost the same exact age (they were three months apart in age), so I hope to avoid that again by spacing their ages out a little more.
Again I'm so sorry. I still cry a lot missing them. I just did the other day when I was outside and thinking of how much the middle one loved to swim. It sucks and I can't imagine going through that again but I also loved them so much and they brought me so much joy and I can't imagine living without them.
sxia, thank you for sharing about Trinity. I lost my Buck on May 12th, so we're probably at similar points in our grief over them.
I was the same way as a kid. I got a dog as soon as I was old enough to be responsible for one, since I never got one as a kid. I do think I'm a dog person at heart. Even since I wrote this post last week, I feel a little more ok with the idea of having another dog in the future. It's so hard being home now without them. I think I am more used to Buck being gone than my Bella, who I just lost. I imagine in time it will get easier with both.
I know what you mean in your last paragraph, too - I was thinking about that this morning and how it almost feels like a betrayal to be excited about moving to a new place that doesn't allow dogs (we did decide to move and actually signed a lease last night). I would rather have them in my life than have all the nice places to live, all the dishwashers, all the evenings where I don't have to stop home before going out. They were worth all the sacrifice.
I think for now we're just going to enjoy being able to do some things we couldn't before, and in a few years I think it's almost definite we'll get another dog (or two). The next few years are going to be tougher to have dogs anyway (with FI doing an internship somewhere and then finding a permanent position somewhere else) so logically I think this is best. But it also really sucks.