#pet death -

[gallusrostromegalus]

Honestly today was probably as good as it gets for when a pet has to leave.

She had a sharp decline that there was no second-guessing that it was time, but was still able to enjoy today. I got her a bacon cheeseburger from good times because why not. We drove her down to the lake and took her on a walk she really enjoyed, and then we all hung out, as a pack. She was tired, but not in pain or upset. Just. As clean an exit as it goes.

I love her so much

I'm going to miss her so much.

But I'm glad it ended this way, giving her her favorite kind of day.

Here's the last picture I took of her.

She's smiling.

It is my regret to inform you that Arwen's health has taken a turn and must leave us now.

She is at least 15 and lead a life of adventure and profound love, and it is my honor to be there for her today.

This is a pic I took just a few days ago after a long and beautiful walk on her favorite trail.

I will be offline for a while and will speak to you all again when I can.

Everyone reading this please go walk your dog or play with your cat or just spend at least a solid half hour with the animals in your life, giving them your undivided attention.

Thank you.

[cannabiscomrade]

(CW: pet death)

My tumblr friends, it’s with a sad heart that I have to share that Albert has passed away. So many of you have been touched by him- I had to share. Some of you have even met him IRL.

He was my retired ESA- he adopted me when my spouse and I got together in 2012. He was a Bengal who was abused by his breeder for being a runt, and he was rescued by my spouse and their mom.

He survived a urinary blockage at 6 years old (OG Dave friends remember), struggled and overcame anxiety, and later in life developed hind muscle atrophy, so we became disabled together 🥲

Albert trained our new ESA, Monty, to be the best little man he can be.

He passed away in my spouse’s arms, he wasn’t in any pain, we had him euthanized. He was 15 and outlived his entire litter by two years. We think he had a stroke in his sleep and was not able to stand when we woke him up.

We have been grieving him so hard this week. I miss him so much, but I know he’s resting now and he’s at peace. The vet staff were amazing to him and we plan on writing thank you cards to his two vet clinics.

[acupofconure]

With a heavy heart, I'm sharing the sudden passing of our dear, sweet Celeste, who went suddenly and painlessly over the rainbow bridge while playing with her best friend, Corvi. (Non-graphic details under the cut.) Fly forever free, sweet girl. You were taken far too soon. 😞

We had a necropsy done, worried that there might be a hidden illness in the house. Instead we found that she had some life-long genetic disorders with her heart and GI tract. There were clots present in her breast, her lungs were thick, and the GI issue was beginning to effect her kidneys. The most likely scenario is that a clot came loose while she was playing upside down, and with her heart already weak, that was just the end of it. I tried avian CPR on her to the best of my ability, but there was nothing to be done.

The vet assured us that we were/are doing everything as perfectly as can be with a good environment, excellent diet, filtered water, no exposure to outside birds or problematic fumes. Her eyes were clear, feathers and skin healthy, body weight ideal. But genetics weren't kind to her, possibly from poor breeding. (She was a rescue, I have no idea where she may have come from in terms of a breeder.)

Corvi and Chloe had a physical the next day and some panels have been sent out for testing just in case, but they are doing well and appear to be in excellent health. I'm glad to see Corvi, especially, isn't taking it extremely hard, as he's never known life without Celeste. I think Chloe being there is giving him support and comfort, as they've been growing very close.

Though it's unfair that she should leave this life at only 3 years old (just under?), I take comfort in her passing being quick and painless. If I had to choose a way to go, rolling over and taking a nap after having fun sounds like a nice way to transition to whatever may be next.

[identifying-dogs]

West Highland White Terrier

memorial portrait of my aunts dog

[onenicebugperday]

Please pour out some detritus for my precious ivory millipede Alice who passed away today after nearly five years with me. She was a very long and very special lady 😔

Here is a really artistic and accurate MS Paint drawing of her as an angel

[nyancrimew]

just accidentally ran over my neighbors dog and i really dont see why this is such a big deal to him, theres literally millions of other dogs in the world, like you can just buy a new one

[imagine-darksiders]

Sad news, Hennifer Lopez died today. 15 years old. Like stupid old for a chicken. Here are some of the last pictures I took of her.

[ninjamelissajulien]

My family lost another kitty today. Pooka joined Kai over the rainbow bridge this morning. Please give your kitties extra hugs and kisses today, and keep my mom/dad in your thoughts

Please hug and give a kiss to your kitties tonight. My baby girl crossed the rainbow bridge this morning and my heart is with her.

[toss-a-coin-to-your-stan-account]

doing great chat

[ziggystarling]

My dear friend and owner of Jabber the starling lost her Sweet Jabby Angel today. Despite aggressive treatment he was sadly unable to recover from his respiratory infection and passed away peacefully in her arms.

In January, I pet sit both of her starlings Jabber and Juice at my home. Jabber was such a sweet bird, completely unafraid of me, and he wanted to hang around on my shoulder the whole week he was with me.

If anyone is inclined she would greatly appreciate some memorial art of dear Jabber to commemorate his life. Please tag me in it or message it to me and I will pass it along to her.

Video of Jabber talking:

[gallusrostromegalus]

Just to keep everyone appraised:

Arwen isat least fifteen and a half now and these are probably my final months with her. She has pretty bad spinal neuropathy and has been battling a UTI lately. She's also pretty mentally foggy these days, but she's not in pain and enjoys walking and treats and attention so she still has a pretty good quality of life. She's my parents dog so they'll make the call on when it's time for her, but I'll be going up to see her as often as I can.

I know I haven't been talking about her as much recently, and that's because she is old and tired and doesn't commit much crime anymore. But I just took her on a 2AM walk on a warm spring night up here and told her how much I loved her while she rolled in the grass and ate snow.

I know she's been a friend to you all, and I made sure to tell her that, even if she has no idea what the Internet is, there are hundreds of thousands of people she's brought joy to who love her as well, and that she is a Very Good Girl.

I'll keep you all updated as events warrant, and give her lots of pats and love for you.

[drferox]

Sometimes, but thankfully only rarely, something catastrophic happens in veterinary medicine and by the time that animal reaches the clinic, it’s already many minutes too late.

This is worse when the catastrophe is unexpected, when the animal is juvenile or when cruelty was deliberate. And sometimes the body is such a mess that CPR or any attempt at heroics is really just… performative.

In times like this, all we can really do is try to manage the people that witnessed it: the owner, their family, the good samaritans who helped them get to the clinic, and the bystanders who happened to be in the waiting room. All of those people need to be managed to some degree after witnessing that degree of trauma.

The pet owner, and possibly the family, need the most time and attention. They may well be in shock, and while you’re trying to tell them what’s happened and get permission to stop CPR, you also need to watch them. Encourage them, gently, to sit down if they need to. Bring them a glass of water if they need to. Nothing wrong with offering a bit of emergency chocolate if they look really shaky or this is going on a long time. Tell them you will clean up their pet and make them look presentable if they want to spend time with them saying goodbye. Encourage them to call family or a friend. Do not let them drive until you are quite sure they are safe to do so.

Then we have the good samaritans, who also witnessed the trauma. Though they’re less emotionally invested they will still be affected. And practically, they may need a lot of help cleaning up their car. (Do not apply heat to blood)

Lastly the bystanders also need to be spoken to, because they’ve also witnessed a terrible trauma, or its aftermath. And you don’t know what previous traumas or baggage they’re carrying with them. At the very least they need a check in, thanked for their patience, and possibly herded to a location that is not covered in blood.

When you can’t do anything for the animal other than clean up the body, there’s still work to do caring for the people surrounding it.

[vaspider]

I was saying to Emet earlier that one of the big things I was worried about with this fucking Kristi Noem thing was that she was trying to present this as "a rural thing"

Like "oh you city people just don't understand, this is just how it is in rural places"

And I really didn't want to see this just accepted by the news media, most of whom have never lived anywhere rural, as just "how we are"

Like, no, absolutely not, we don't just fucking shoot dogs bc they aren't good at being hunting dogs. Everybody I've ever personally known who hunts with dogs knows that a dog that is a bad hunting dog may be a great family pet. It's clear that people like that must exist - she's a person, after all - but it's not just How Things Are.

There are enough bad stereotypes about Rural People. We don't need more.

However, I have been relieved to see that a bunch of places covering this have had people on who grew up in rural places & who were pushing back on this hard, saying exactly that: no, this isn't normal.

Ugh.

[kaijuno]

[tributary]

i knew when i got him in 2010 that the day would come when he left, but i’ve always been a procrastinator. i thought i could maybe push these feelings off for 18, 19 years, not almost 15. and that’s still good for a dog, i know, but sometimes muppet’s breed lives longer. i hope whoever invents the drug that extends dogs’ lives by decades becomes very, very rich.

his bad days started to outnumber the good ones and it was time, but it’s never time, you’re never ready for the hole that loss tears into you. that you have to carry around like nothing’s wrong, because the world continues to spin, and that’s the worst part of all.

i love you, muppet. and though i am your biggest fan, i’m far and away not the only one.

[baldurdashitall]

Kudos to @blacktabbygames for taking the most heartbreaking scene in the entirety of Scarlet Hollow and somehow making it even more devastating!