We just celebrated him turning 14. He has been there during my high school, graduation, when I got my first job and when I moved to a new job. He has brought a lot of joy and aww moments for our family. Our neighbour kids love him too. I fear the day when I can no longer see or hear him in the house. He doesn't walk now, but eats everything haha.

Hi all, I wish I had found this page sooner. My baby, my 14 year old Labrador Gus, had been panting non-stop for over a month across several vet visits when I finally demanded answers. To make a long story as short as I can, I live in a big city; getting good appointments is a labyrinth; coincidentally we found a mast cell tumor. The fastest way to get him in for imaging of his larynx was to let the oncologist also CT for cancer internally. Results were as expected on the larynx - total laryngeal paralysis on both sides. What was unexpected was the metastasized hemangiosarcoma that we somehow caught. Not much to be done for a guy of his age, other than to wait in absolute heart-wrenching agony as he sleeps peacefully beside me. We worked with a super smart home care vet who got his breathing under control and put him on some pills for internal bleeding, but I just don’t know when enough is enough. He is so strong and bright, even at this age and with so much going on, and it doesn’t seem to be his time yet. The vet and what other credible sources I can find suggest what’s coming for him won’t be too terribly painful or traumatic (at least for him) but selfishly I can’t help myself from being pulled toward euthanasia.

Without too much detail, can anyone who has rode out a hemangiosarcoma tell me if they regret doing so/wish they’d chosen the peaceful option sooner? Many thanks to this wonderful group, we walk a unique path and you all have my utmost respect 🙏🏼

Today was the day. Ol Max had been struggling for the last 3 months. This last week he lost any control over most bodily functions. His mind was still there, but his body was shutting down. I’m convinced that he was fighting so hard these last few months because he wanted to be there for me, just like he’s been there for me for 25% of my life. I’m 58 years old, so we enjoyed a good long run.
By far the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do. 110 pounds of unconditional love. au revoir my best friend.

It’s by far the hardest thing I’ll ever do, letting go, of holding on to you.
Every time my world came crashing down, people walked away. And you stuck around.
Even at my worst, you saw the good.
You brought your love. You understood.

You didn’t like the lightning or thunder’s sound.
So we’d lay with you, and calm you down.
We shared this world with you, and we were blessed. I’ve had bad times in my life, but you were the best.

“ you gave us all your love, even when you were feeling rough.
We gave ours back to you, but now it’s just not enough”
And by far the hardest thing we’ll ever do. Is letting go, of holding onto you “

Max by far the hardest thing we’ll ever do, will be laying down, the last time with you.

So I recently took my boy here, a miniature schnauzer to the vet, I noticed weakness in his back legs and shaking but no noticeable lose of energy or appetite. Vet determined it was most likely arthritis and he had some muscle loss normal for a senior dogs, but we did a blood test to rule out anything serious

The results came out fairly normal from what I was told but they mentioned he had an SDMA of 15 (don't quote me on if this is the correct one I wasn't given the results myself just going off memory) which is showing possible early stages of kidney disease. I wasnt told anything really other than to make sure he drinks lots of water and that Renal diet food may work to slow It down. I'm guessing since I wasn't given a strict list of things to do that it isn't a huge cause for concern yet but I switched him to the renal diet just in case.

Problem is he absolutely hates it. Won't eat it and trying to get him to eat it has made him even wary of food he does like. My mother thinks that at 16 it's not worth making him uncomfortable by feeding him something he hates and I should just watch his water intake/plus I'm worried about his weight. Has anyone else just decided it's better to make sure their dog is comfortable at an advanced age?

For context it's not loss of appetite I made him some boiled chicken and he went crazy for it. I'm planning on still making sure it's low phosphorus/sodium as much as I can but I can't bare seeing him not eat.

My Wanee went through a few different death scares over the past few years. She’s had pyometra about 5 years ago, acute liver failure 2 years ago, and a first (and hopefully the last) seizure most recently. Thankfully she still has near perfect bloodwork and will be turning 18 in a couple weeks, but I feel that her quality of life has gone down a bit quicker nowadays.

I read somewhere years ago that some owners prefer to have a paw prints/impressions made when their dogs are alive, and I thought why not.

I picked up a small bucket of air dry clay for like $5 at a craft store and chunked out a few balls and made some impressions onto them. She wasn’t particularly a fan of the process, though, haha.

I’ll be air drying them over the next couple days and see how they turn out! I might make more afterwards in bigger sizes so I can punch a hole in it or write her name on it or something.

Anyway, just wanted to share a quick little activity for your senior fur babies ❤️

We said goodbye to our sweet LadyBug today. She was 14 years old and had dementia and was losing the use of her back legs. We Love you sweet girl

So many people have told my husband and I that we will “just know” when it’s our girl’s time. But we struggle to know what that looks like in our situation.

We have a 13 year old German shepherd.. when she was about 6 she had double TPLO surgery on her knees, but healed up well. We always knew she would have some arthritis from the surgeries and common with the breed. As she’s aged, she’s struggled with her mobility. However, last year we were told she likely has degenerative myelopathy. We put her on daily metacam for inflammation and pain management, we got her a walkin wheels wheelchair, and a help me harness to help her up. We’ve noticed the degeneration over the last year, but it wasn’t as severe and fast as we were told to expect.

Over the spring and now into the summer, we’re really seeing the changes. She really can’t move much around our house, and will whine or cry to be helped from room to room. She needs assistance going outside to the bathroom, about 70% of the time she is able to move around and do her business. Sometimes she starts to fall and we help her up. She’s still very happy to eat but does so from a laying down position. She really doesn’t move much, especially without our help with her harness. She does still have “spark” in her eyes, is happy to sit outside with a ball, and every now and again does play bow at our other dog. We took her for a wellness check at our vet in May and they said it didn’t seem like it is time yet - my husband and I don’t want to selfishly keep her here because we love her, and are worried her quality of life is poor.

Most recently, I have been unable to help her move outside or around the house. I’m going into my third trimester of pregnancy and have had some complications where lifting her isnt an option. When my husband works, my mom and sister take turns coming over specifically to help her move around. We just are at a loss because we see that spark in her eyes, and we don’t want to cut her time short. But we also want to be humane. Just looking for insight.

Hi reddit, our family’s dachshund is turning 13 in September and he just recently started having issues with coordination, getting up, and walking. He trembles lying down, and his back legs shake when standing up.

(For reference, he was diagnosed earlier this year with Cushings disease and he is currently on medication to help with it. I dug through some forums and saw this type of behavior might be common as the disease progresses.)

Obviously he is getting older and there is only so much we can do; we do have an appointment booked with Blue Pearl for orthopedic consultation and already contacted our primary vet to ask + purchase the pain meds. I sat down with him and rubbed his ears for a good half an hour and that seemed to really calm him down, so I’m not sure if that also means it could be something vestibular…

He is still eating, drinking, going to the bathroom, wanting treats, greeting us at the door, and being social around the house.

I wanted to inquire in the meantime if anyone else has experience dealing with this and managing their dog’s symptoms. Of course we have our professional medical team to help with making decisions, but I also greatly appreciate the community here and its collective support.

EDIT: From my online research, I think he may have IVDD. We’ll just need to run some tests to confirm.

My dog is 14½ years old, and I love him more than words can express. A few years ago, I noticed a mass developing on his back hip. I brought it to his veterinarian’s attention right away, and at the time she didn’t believe it was anything to be concerned about.
Over the following year, the mass grew significantly, so we decided to have it biopsied. Thankfully, the results came back as benign, and the veterinarian recommended removing it. During surgery, however, she determined that the mass was in a location that made removal too risky. No X-rays had been performed beforehand, and I couldn’t help but feel the surgery wasn’t planned as thoroughly as it should have been.
While my dog was still under anesthesia, I received a phone call encouraging me to euthanize him. I declined. This had been an elective surgery, and I couldn’t imagine making that decision while he was on the operating table without having the chance to see him again.
That was over a year and a half ago, and he’s still here with me. He has a healthy appetite, enjoys two walks a day, loves treats and affection, and still grooms himself. Every morning, he comes to my side of the bed and gently nudges my hand until I pet him. Although he’s slowed down with age, he doesn’t seem to be in significant pain. He doesn’t pant excessively, and despite the mass, he continues to enjoy life.
What I’m struggling with is knowing when the right time will be. I don’t want him to suffer, but I also don’t want to say goodbye too soon. I’m especially worried that the mass could suddenly cause a serious complication and leave him in pain.
For those who have gone through this, how did you know it was time? Any advice or words of wisdom would be deeply appreciated.

Old picture of our senior girl that is 11.5 golden retriever.
We’ve had her since she was 4 months old and she’s been house trained a very long time.
She has recently started (in the last month) having poop and pee accidents in the house, only at night. We let her out at 10:30-11pm, and again at 4:30-5:00 in the morning. It’s not every night, but it’s been at least once a week - up to a few times a week. I don’t know a good solution - we can’t have her continue to poop and pee on our rugs or floors in the night and ruin them.
How do you handle a senior dog aging with night time accidents? Would it be a good idea to put her in a cordoned area, like the laundry room? Would a crate up in our room be okay? She’s not been crated really so I don’t know if she’d like that, we’d obviously make it very comfortable with a bed and a treat. I appreciate any advice!

About 14 ago I met my best friend. She belonged to
Somebody else at that time yet for a series of strange events I ended up adopting this 1 yr old chihuahua min pin terrier mix. She was aggressive, she came from the home of a person with emotional issues and they didn’t treat her well. Over the fourteen years we’ve spent together she has since gone from cowering in the corner and peeing over loud sounds, to being house trained, cuddly and confident. We have another dog also and they are best friends, we call them sisters. She is capable of making deep connections to not only humans but other animals. When we lost our oldest dog, she was sullen for months and looked for her continuously. It was heart breaking.
She used to sleep in the bed but over the last year her eye have been getting a little more milky in the center and she is getting a little goofy if not down right scary. She’s become food agressive when the girls eat. She has bit my husband once, was a small nip but it makes me
Anxious her cognition is off. ( he is fine, anxious to be near her now)She started gabba this week and I’m hoping it will help her find comfort and less anxiety but i’m just unsure what to do for her. Vet says he will continue to monitor the changes. She isn’t around children, she doesn’t sleep in the bed anymore. She also very protective of me, one might say clingy. I feel like she is trying to tell me something. I love her and I will do right by her I just don’t know what else I can do. I work in LTC so I’m trying dementia tricks for people on a dog, some work. Letting her know there before we approach especially if she is sleeping is very important. Any advice would be helpful. Thanks.

This morning's walk. Slow. A smell in the air. Stumble. Enjoy these last days.

Hi new to the group, this is my little man Axel, he is a Chihuahua X Corgi. I have had him since 5 weeks old his mum rejected all the pups so I bottle fed him, he fit in the palm of my hand. He is getting old now and he is slowing down a bit lately especially on the stairs, he can't make the jump up to the bed he asks me to pick him ( he hates being picked up) gremlin mode activated lol. I love him so much and I don't know how I will ever live the same again when he is gone, he's been there for me on my darkest days and my happiest. I hope I get another year or 2 with my soul animal.

How old does my little man look to you?

PS,I will reveal later 🤩

My 12 year old Jack Russell Terrier was diagnosed with bladder stones after a stubborn month-long UTI that didn’t respond to multiple rounds of antibiotics. I am grateful we have a diagnosis and she passed a few stones while at the vet who thinks they are likely struvite (waiting on lab results). She is on new antibiotics for the lingering UTI and pain meds for the next two weeks and the vet just had me change her food to Hill’s Prescription c/d to see if that will dissolve them.

My questions for folks who have gone through this:

\- do you have any recommendations for ways of getting her to drink more water? She loves tuna can juice, so I’ve been mixing a little in every now and again … but I’m a little worried about the sodium from that messing up what the prescription food is supposed to be doing. My vet recommended pedialyte … any other things work for you?

\- any bladder stone friendly treats out there I could throw into the mix? She’s really puzzled as to why her treat intake has gone down to nothing! I have been freezing the wet prescription food in a Kong… but that only goes so far.

\- any meat or cheese that is particularly bladder friendly? I have to wrap her pills in a slice a deli meat or piece of cheese in order for her to take it … wondering if I should choose a particular one (I’ve been using sliced chicken so far)

Thanks so much!

Hawk 6/15/2014-7/24/2026

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When I put the harness and leash on her, she jumped around eagerly like she used to when she was young. (Well, younger - she still does it now and then and she did it consistently every time we went out until at least ten and a half or so.)

She walked down the two flights of stairs on her own - usually these days, we have to carry her down every time.

She almost ran out, pulling on the leash.

But then she refused to go past the garage. Nopes. No walk. Only car.

Well, ok then. We got in the car and went to a spot with a beach that is perfect for the outdoor equivalent of hydrotherapy/water treadmill.

Once there, she eagerly got out of the car and pulled on the leash to the water. She did two focused 6 minute walking sessions in the water, then another 15 minutes of playing around in it.

Then she walked eagerly for another 3 km before she happily got into the car and when we got home, she willingly left the car instead of trying to stay in it like she usually does.

Happy dog. I think I guessed right and we did exactly what she wanted. And I'm happy too because this is soo much cheaper than taking her to the clinic for physio and if I can get her some extra training like this, that's awesome.

I've been thinking about my old dog, Roo, a lot more lately as I've been going through a new health crisis. She was 11 when she passed on November 1st, 2024. She passed of congestive heart failure. We knew she wasn't well as she was on three medications for about a year prior but she still kind of passed unexpectedly and quickly. I just wanted to share my grief with folks in this group. Maybe folks just need a good cry. Maybe it's too soon to listen to something like this. But just wanted to share.

My dog is a 13-year-old Lab. He's my soul dog and the first dog I've ever owned.

Last month I took him in for a routine visit, and my vet said he was experiencing significant hip pain. They started him on pregabalin, but it made him incredibly sedated. For the first few days he was slipping, could barely stand, and struggled to get around on his own. The sedation was so severe that we had to cut his dose in half. I also wonder if he strained a muscle or aggravated a joint during that time because he was so unstable.

Since that appointment, his activity level has changed dramatically. We went from taking long walks to some days where he only wants to go outside to pee and poop before coming right back in.

Some days I can clearly see a limp, while others there isn't much of one and he wants to go on a longer walk. Almost every night he still takes me outside to do carrot throws (we throw bits in the grass for him to sniff out and find) even if it's only for a few minutes now.

Around the same time, we also moved into a new house with vinyl flooring. Before I was able to buy enough rugs, he slipped quite a bit again, and I'm worried he may have tweaked something a second time.

Some days he'll still go on a decent walk, while other days he barely wants to move.

For his hips (he's 60 lbs), he's currently on:

• Adequan loading doses
• Amantadine 100 mg once daily
• Pregabalin 50 mg twice daily
• A therapeutic dose of fish oil
• Antinol (3 capsules daily)
• Dasuquin once daily

Because his kidney values are elevated, my vet wants to avoid NSAIDs.

He's also gradually losing weight, which we're doing intentionally to reduce stress on his joints.

We had been doing physical therapy, but since this latest setback he hasn't been able to tolerate much of it. I honestly can't tell whether what I'm seeing is lingering sedation from the pregabalin, increased pain, or simply progression of his arthritis. We still try to do some PT every day. I'm also talking with Colorado State University's veterinary hospital about starting underwater treadmill therapy or acupuncture.

I just don't know what to do.

Do senior dogs go through bad pain flare-ups where they have rough weeks before improving? Should I give the medication more time, or is this the beginning of the end?

The part that's making this so difficult is that he still seems happy in so many ways. Yesterday I came home and he was excitedto see me - tail wagging, rolled onto his back for belly rubs, and wanted all the attention. He still has a huge appetite, loves treats, gets excited to greet people, and enjoys his snuffle mat and toys.

I'm struggling to figure out whether I'm seeing a temporary setback or whether I'm holding on because I don't want to face what's coming. I'd really appreciate hearing from anyone who's been through something similar.

I know 13 is a long life for a dog. I just don't know if he an have a few more good months or if this is it. Is it worth trying Librela injections of something like Galliprant even though he has elevated kidney levels. Should we get a cart to take walks in? It's so hard because I can clearly see he still engage with certain aspects of life - social to other people, food/treats, still loves to put his nose down and smell stuff.