Mans best friend - shooting vs euthanasia

[Texasbr]

Had to put down several horses and cattle growing up, cried every time I think. Then when what would become my future wife's childhood horse suffered a stroke, I spent probably the last $200 i had as a young broke 20 year old to have him euthanized. I knew she nor me would ever forgive myself if i did it. Many animals later i still pay to have it done.

 

[mt terry d]

Had the vet give the dog a shot as I had him with me in the front seat of the pickup, his head on my lap. (The dog, not the vet. ) Couldn't do it myself.

Shot a few horses, three of my own, one as good a pal as a horse ever was. Not easy, just felt I was the one to do it.

 

[Swamppirate]

One of the hardest things I have ever done. Black Lab, picked her up as a 7 week old pup and trained her to be a hell of a duck dog. Had the vet put her down due to bad hips at 14. When she went, a part of me died that day.

 

[bmrfish]

Shot a few horses, three of my own, one as good a pal as a horse ever was. Not easy, just felt I was the one to do it.

The worst is when you have to dig the hole too.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[mt terry d]

Never dug a hole.

Hauled them up in the hills for the coyotes, bears, etc.

 

[Luked]

I have had dogs my whole life. My dad was a dog guy, Coon hunter with hounds, then rabbit hunting with beagles. To him dogs were tools and needed them to do a job.
Many a time i saw him put dogs down just because they didn't do what he said or what he wanted. I hated it. Honestly pissed me off.
I had a Border collie that was my best bud probably 10 years ago or so. Something happened to him, never figured out what it was but I think he got into some antifreeze or the neighbor I had at the time gave him something. Woke up one morning and he was about gone, I could not put him down. Called my brother to do it, took him to my brothers house and he died on the way there. Regretted what I did for a long time. To the point that I didn't get another dog until about 4 years ago.
Now I have 2, a 4 year old Beagle/Border mix and a 2 year old Australian Sheppard. Is now way I could put either of them down myself. I will pay what ever it costs to have it done peacefully.

 

[Mountain Dog]

This is your best friend you are talking about here in theory. How do you want your last moments with your best friend to go down? Do you want to end with an act of extreme violence? I've put down a few sheep in my day and strange stuff happens with bullets to the head sometimes. You don't want that to happen to your best friend.

We have a local vet here that will come to our house with an injection, they will do everything while the dog is surrounded by the people who love him and who he loves more than anything. It costs a few hundred bucks for this service.

The most heartbreaking thing that I’ve ever done. But I agree…the vet is the way to go for. I didn’t let my wife come because I didn’t want to give her any ideas about getting rid of me.

 

[mitchellmountain]

I have put down two dogs in my life and a cat. It has nothing to do with me being tough and those that choose a vet aren't. I took them for a walk and took care of it. Neither knew what happened. The way I think about it is that they depended on me for taking care of them their whole lives and I won't take them to a strange place or have a stranger come and tarnish the last moments. I hated to do it, but such is life.
This thread sucks, lol.

 

[ZAK13]

I give kudos to those can and have put their own dogs down yourselves, I don't think I could, as it is, making that decision is hard enough. I lost 2 dogs in a year, my chocolate lab was 16y/o, when it became time, her last 2 months her age really started to show, it was time and we had the vet do it with us there, then almost a year later, my 10y/o KCS got ill,( severe pancreatitis), and in less than a week I went from having a perfectly healthy dog, to her passing in my arms, we were actually heading to the vet to end her suffering, but never made it there. It's a tough decision to make either way, and I for one never look forward to doing it.

 

[WannaBeRambo]

Figured we'd take the "do you hit your dog" to the next level.

When it's time to say goodbye to your best friend, have any of you thought about doing it yourself? I got my German shorthaired pointer (Trigger) 12 years ago when I was young and dumb (21 years old). I was new to hunting, as new as you could get to bird dogs and still an immature pup myself. My mother told me a needed that dog like I needed a hole in my head, ha! Fast forward to 2023, Trigger is 12 years old, the best dog any of us could ask for and is on the decline. He is a good bird dog (not perfect due to my insufficient knowledge in bird dog training in his younger days but se still get after it), a great guard dog, a great family dog and a great life companion. He has been with me on the majority of my big game scouting trips, hundreds of bird hunts, multiple hikes and camping trips and has just seen more wild land than the majority of people I know and even more than most of my hunting buddies. He now has a few health conditions that has made me come to the realization his life isn't endless. I'm estimating 1-3 years left with Trigger and the lower number is probably more realistic than the higher number. As of now, euthanasia in home (or possibly in the field on a camping trip if that's possible) is the way to go for multiple reasons. I am 33 years old so I am by no means an "old timer" but I have thought about possibly shooting him myself. I'm not sure if anything a single person says in a reply to this post will sway me in either direction but a conversation with a close friend made me feel that I at least wasn't crazy but part of me feels like I should be the one to do it. Maybe not a stranger or his vet. Saying I will do it is a whole lot different that actually pulling the trigger on your dog though. I don't know how to classify my relationship with Trigger, whether that would make your guys reply's any different. I don't have kids, I have spent more time with my dog over the past 12 years outside of home than any one person. I don't necessarily view him as my child like a lot of younger folks view their dog but I don't view him as just a dog as most older folks and adults with kids and a family view a typical dog.

So just to get a different prospective on things, I figured on this forum I may find some people with a similar relationship with mans best friend. Maybe get some opinions or some pros and cons of going either way. This should be interesting none the less.

We had a GSP we had to put down as well. (I’ve got tear’s making it hard to see)

NO WAY should you shoot him. Take him to the vet, let the vet give you a rational assessment. If he agrees the humane thing is to put the dog down, then hold your dog and let the last thing he sees is your face while the vet does the task.

Then take him to his favorite milo field (where you perhaps have prepared in advance) and bury him amongst the quail and pheasants he chased.

You don’t want to make the call and decide to shoot him, as you likely will be second guessing that decision the rest of your life.

Also, to kill a living thing requires a level of detachment to do it humanely. Emotion can cause you to wound the animal. Even cowboys Ive known have had a vet, or in cases (far in the back country),where they could not get a vet to euthanize, they will have another cowboy pull the trigger.

 

[W200]

Its one of the hardest things to do I hold them tight so they feel secure and know they are loved as the vet does his thing Crushes me every time though...

 

[PredatorSlayer]

God, I hate this thread.

Randy

Worst Rokslide thread ever…I wish it would stop getting bumped.

 

[Silver Wings]

Tripp was terribly injured in an accident at home. I literally ran to the house to retrieve a rifle.
Pete was a German Wirehaired Pointer who’d retrieved 1000s of ducks for us. He was old and started having seizures. Finally had one where he couldn’t get up. I loaded him on the backhoe and drove him down to the pet cemetery on our property. I ended his life and buried him there.
Andre was in the prime of his life when he suddenly became super sick. Took him to an emergency vet on Thanksgiving Day only to find he was full of cancer and beyond hope. The vet euthanized him as I held him.
I was a big city firefighter for 35 years, so trust me when I say I’m no stranger to the most horrific human trauma you can imagine. The deaths of those dogs is right up there with the worst things I saw at work…in terms of sticking with me.
Missy is 15 years old and her health is failing. I’m truly conflicted on which way to go. She will not suffer either way, but I’ll have to live with the choice.
I wouldn’t judge anyone for choosing one way over another when it comes time. I will say that I was most effected by the experience with Andre.

 

[mtnwrunner]

Ginger says.....how bout some happy thoughts??

Randy

 

[mt terry d]

I think Dale Evans was worried.

 

[FuddRucker]

Know someone who's done this.. apparently it nipped his young kid. I don't know if I could do it honestly, and I don't think I'd want to knowing I could find a bet to administer an injection in home.

 

[Buckhaven]

Euthanize for me, it’s a more controllable circumstance and way more peaceful. Why add potential disaster when it’s already one of the hardest things to address?

 

[Felix40]

I put my dog down myself tonight. It sucked a lot but it was the best thing for her. Riding in the truck had gotten really painful and the vet is super stressful. Doing it in the yard she had no stress. Eating thanksgiving turkey one second and gone the next.

 

[AZmark]

I've done it both ways and prefer going the vet route now. I hear guys saying "Man ought to be able to do the man things" and that's a bunch of bull. This isn't about the man, its about your best friend, and dog is your "best friend" that is if you treat your dog appropriately.

Since this is about my dog and not me, i go the vet route, hug and pet them as they fall off to sleep.

In cases like severe injury like getting hit by a car, then you need to do what's quickest. Thats where being a man kicks in.

I just had to do this last June to my 11yo, Munsterlander, pictured in my avatar, I saw it coming several months earlier and took her on a few extra quail hunts that hadn't been planned, hunted up till the last day of the season in early Feb.

 

[adieatrick]

The trust and lovingness my dogs have when they look at me there is no way I could do it myself. They are my best friends and love unconditionally. When the time comes, the vet will do the deed with me holding them tight.