Wonderful Chea

Wonderful Chea

Sudden Pet Loss

Hi,

This last Monday my 9 year old St Benard suddenly started to vomit and cry... I knew something was wrong, I rushed her to the ER and they stabilized her, she was in good care but they told me that she had bloat and needed surgery right away. I asked her if surgery would help and she told me there was a 50% chance of successful recovery. However, she felt that there were other issues that may complicate the surgery, there was no guarantee. I know that St Benard average lifespan is 9 and 10-12 at maximum. I knew she was getting older but she was still active and mobile, she wasn't suffering from demetia or so old that she couldn't use the bathroom by herself. Anyways, the surgery was $5,000 with no gurantee... but if succesful it would have bought her 1-2 more years. My husband thought that euthanasia was the only humane choice. The vet techs felt positive about the surgery but the vet didn't give me that same feeiling. Things were happening so fast and I was pressured to make a decision, I was told the longer I wait the worse it is for Chea. I decided to sadly euthanize her. I regret doing that now. I researched the GDV and found out that there is a higher survival rate in older dogs etc..I am having a hard time with her passing and was wondering if there are anyone else who have had their dog euthanized instead of a surgery and later regres it or anyone with GDV incident. ( as far as the money, I could have asked family members to help etc..we could have started the surgery and she would have had to stay at the hospital for a few days, during that time i could have raised the cash)...

My grieving process is the usual... saddness, guilt and anger... I am in the anger phase right now. Angry at myself for not thinking more clear and angry at my husband for pushing the euthanasia and wishing the vet tech had a stronger voice when Chea really needed it.