Liberty "Libby" - Page 1

Today, i ended my Libby's suffering.  I struggled for 3 days with the decision as the vet seemed to think that chemo would be a good option, once the biopsy results came back.   I contacted the vet 3 x this weekend reporting deteriotion with Libby and she told me that she was just uncomfortable from the enlarged spleen and it was like being 9 months pregnent.  She told me that again when I took her in this morning.  She said that is why she wasn't eating, and didn't want to walk, etc.   I spent the entire night up with her trying to get her to swallow the pain pills and steriods.  She couldn't sleep either.  She wouldn't eat and had severe diarrehea since Friday night and last night began expressing blood, alot of blood every hour.  My heart broke seeing her this way and I am kicking myself for cancelling the appt yesterday, after speaking with the vet.  Once she left this world, I knew I made the right decision as her beautiful face looked pain free for the first time since Thursday night.  It was just so hard as this vet kept making me feel like it wasn't time, but I couldn't see making her suffer this way for 3 to 4 more days until the results of the biopsy came in. 

This has been one of the most painful decisions I have ever made. 

Cheryl

RIP Libby

May you find peace in your decision to let her go to the Rainbow Bridge.

That is one of the most unselfish acts that you will ever have to do...If it is so hard for us to make this final decision...then we've made the right one...You must now think of the good times you had together...and know that you made the best decision for your girl...

Thinking of you in this very tough time...

~Bob~

You did the right thing, Cheryl.

I'm so sorry for you as I know that your heart is breaking, but you gave her one of the best gifts we have available to give to our friends.
     Dot

So sorry for your loss. You did what she would of wanted you to do. RIP beautiful girl.

Cheryl, you may think you waited a day too long, but I can assure you that you did not--the day before, you would have forever been doubting yourself, wondering if you 'gave up' too soon. I can also assure you that Libby wasn't in pain, though she was uncomfortable in the same way one is if they've eaten far too much and feel 'overstuffed' as a result. The distension of her abdomen was, as you later saw from the diarrhea, accumulated blood that was leaking from the spleen, and I'm sure the vet was expecting the bleeding was going to stop...sometimes it does, and sometimes it doesn't, and there's no way to predict which way things will go. The lethargy and loss of appetite is typical of a dog with a slow internal hemorrhage as well...less blood supply in circulation means less oxygen gets to the brain, and that causes a serious drop in energy, activity and hunger. It's the sole saving grace of these conditions: the dog is really just drifting away, with no pain or fear, which is what we all would like for those we love of any species. You didn't wait too long...you were right on time for Libby, because now no matter what the biopsy report says, you won't feel like you should have given her more time. She told you when it was time, and you did listen--had it been time yesterday, you would have kept the appointment because she would have told you to do so. You both needed one more night together before Libby was ready to leave you in the care of her protégés. I'm sorry the vet couldn't find her own level of comfort with letting Libby go, and it was wrong of her to project that onto you; but I can somewhat understand it, too, as good vets and techs are animal-loving humans first, and vets and techs second, and while we really like 99% of the patients, we also DO fall in love with a few of them nearly as much as we are with our own animals. *Those* are the ones we find it hardest to set free, the ones we hope can hold on until the test results or the biopsy reports come back, thinking that *maybe* it will be something that can be delayed if not cured, because we don't want them to leave either. I suspect that Libby may well have been one of the patients your vet had taken into her heart, given her reluctance to acknowledge this was something all of you weren't going to be able to defeat. I hope you can forgive her for her denial and take it for what it was at it's base: evidence of her attachment to your Liberty girl beyond the usual doctor and patient interaction. I am sorry she left here so soon, though I am appreciative that the fates spared Libby (and you) having to endure the slow decline of DM...I just wish they would have given her more years with you before they took her with them. I'm so sorry.

You saved her suffering, I can assure you. God Bless you for loving her so much she would not lose her dignity, too. I am so sorry for your loss.

OOOOOh so sorry, what a beautiful girl she was.  and YES you made the right decision, you loved her enough to let her go.  That is the most loving thing you could do for her.  Bless you and take care, Nan

Cheryl, When I saw the title of this thread my heart sank and my eyes welled up. I knew what it meant. I am so sorry. As Nan said, the most loving thing you did was to let her go and free her from anymore suffering. My heart goes out to you. Bless you for giving her such a wonderful life. Godspeed beloved and beautiful Libby.
Hugs,
Char