Labsmum

These pics were taken recently before he was put to sleep. RIP Maya.

Be kind to your dog and never hit them. Maya never got a hit or spanked, even though some things he did we felt like it!!!!

And MayaNong8e.JPE

Thanks all. His breed is of no importance at all. He happenned to be a labrador. (I refer to Blacklabrador) What matterred is that he was my loyal friend for 15 years. He was a dog, a dear and loyal dog. (To me he was "the best dog in the whole world" and I told him so daily and on his death bed). I know, given the right sort of considerations they are all the best dogs in the whole world. That is only my kiddy (child-remembering) way of saying it. It has now been about three weeks since Maya passed away. Please pardon me for being so indulgent but I realised I did not get a pic posted before. I will try to post a few here. MayaNong5e.JPE

I truely and completly loved him. RIP Maya

Thanks again all you kind folks. I think what I have found so hard is having to have made the decision to have him PTS. I am having trouble with feeling "guilty" of killing him. I was nearly going to walk out the door with him and say we might come back later.....He was so stoic that I think he would have lived with any amount of pain until he dropped. An excellent dog trainer told me in his early days that he had so much enthusiasm for life, "almost too much". Quoting the dog trainer. That was Maya and how he was. Even at the vets before being PTS he was looking for a treat, an extra nibble. (Labradors love their tucker). I thought to ask for it but didn't and feel guilty now about that too. Even the vet cried about having to put him down. I sent the hospital a card to thank all the staff involved. It was a sweet card, it had a photo of a labrador puppy and a big bunch of roses on it. I just said thankyou because they had the hardest job. I just walked out the door and could not face seeing him pass. Most I can remember is his smile. Even on that day he smiled. Crickey. He was so beautiful that boy. I grow plants and am a horticulturist but nothing I've seen flower is as beautiful as he was. Katey

So sorry to you. Such a beautiful photo also of Yogi and Bear. It hurts like heaps but there seems to be nothing we can do about it. I tried to be ready for loosing my boy by getting another one but it makes no difference at all. EMPTY is how it leaves you. I just trust in time and the healing it can offer. Our furbabies would never have wanted us to be so sad. Blessings to you from someone who is going through the same thing.

Thanks Jans. I think you might be right. The dear boy had lost his dignity. There is no point or kindness in extending the details. On the happy side, we crossed the Nullabor together and went as far north (WA) as Kalbarri (from Melbourne). He had the holiday of his life, golden boy on golden Aussy sands. Red dirt boy! We had a lot of happy camping holidays, did lake hops around NW Victoria (looked at the map and went from one lake to another). Every time we stopped he was bouncing to get out of the van to go and explore. We felt safe wherever we stayed with such a determined gaurd dog. He would show his teeth if anyone/thing threatened ..... but what a good actor! There was one occassion where he ran off too far and nearly got lost. We could not see him because he was the same colour as the sand. Another strange thing about Maya....can anyone tell me why or how?...He only had fleas when he was a pup. He was on homeopathic flea tablets for about 2 years and after that he never got a flea again. My two girls do not get fleas either. I do not have to use any medication at all. No 'revolution' or whatever product. That is a bit strange don't you think? I do have a very good vaccuum cleaner. a Wertheim. I am not boasting but it is very good if you have furry animals and carpets. Does anyone have any opinions about why Maya never had fleas? So he had 13 years with no fleas, so maybe you are right Jans. PS I talk 'we' but I am only me, well I am 'us' in fact. It is more cool to have a boyfriend or a hubby. I did then and was not lieing. (how do you spell that word?) Somethings just do not work out, sometimes. Maya did.

Please on my part do not feel strange about posting this. To loose a dog that way is a total shock. I know this from a same experience. RIP little doggy. Poor Alpha dog who lost his dog, There is nothing anyone can say to make it better, just nothing. Kaye

RIP little Ewok. I'l light a candle for her too tonight. My sympathy to you and aunty.

I do not want to be a snob about breeds of dogs. Maya was a labrador retriever. He died yesterday at 15.5 years of age. I just need some time to get over it. Ie his death. F---k, never love a lab, they are too hard to get over!!! I have two other ones and must stay together to be able to feed them and show them some fun. I will do that. Yes. I will do that. Avanti!

Hi again, your comments are hugely important. Thankyou for sharing your story with me at this time. It is best you talk about it. You sound like a very kind person. I will get over Maya and move on. I am too emotional and in a way that is my disability in a way. Emotion and expression of emotion will save your life, however. Crying is good medicine. Sometimes we do not want to cry because it moves other people's grief. They might try to stop you to do that because they thought they had it all bottled up years ago and they want you to help them to keep it bottled up. Go with your natural expression and ignore them. I understand your dream. Your mother could no longer help you. You are now the parent. There are family rules and there are rules of the soul. Sometimes we are older than our parents and we come back to them to try to teach them something. Now I am sounding very nutty. I took this risk, Katey/Kaye

Thankyou too. I feel a bit selfish wallowing in my greif. It is only my greif. I must be crazy and in denial, I can still hear Maya walking around the house. I know that is not really the case but it is my way of coping. I am so sorry about your little ones. It does not end does it? It just changes your heart. Avanti/forwards....we have lots of furbabies to care for now. These tears have got to get useful.

On the way home, yesterday now, I saw a human funeral happenning. Maya left so humbly, like he lived. No 100 people came in suits and pretty dresses. No arrangement of flowers for him. No limosines to drive him in a fancy box. I was actually puzzled about why not! I have two other labradors, two girls, Bella and her daughter, Heidi, they are sitting on the floor, wagging their tails, wondering why I am behaving so differently to normal. Thankyou everyone. Maya is still walking around the house, I can still hear his footsteps. Thanks Blacklabrador. Time to get strong now and feed the girls some good tucker. (edited for spelling)

I hope time does make it better. I could not stay in these doldrums. Maya would not like that at all. I must write to the vet who had the job of giving him the injection. She had tears too. What a job, what a hard job. I just ran out the door and could not face seeing him die. My last memory of him is his smile, his partly blind eyes and his angelic smile through his angelic, gone white, labrabor yellow hair. I felt like I just abondoned him. I still feel very guilty. Maybe I could have nursed him on. Maybe I could have lived with the poo that hapenned every night. I tried to. Rest in peace dear boy. I love you forever and always will. You are the best dog in the whole world. Rest in peace. I love you entireley.

I am in tears of flood. It does not seem real. Is he really gone? I am going to write to the vet too to reassure her. She was crying too. What a horrible job to leave her with. To kill my dog whilst I ran away?

At about midday today, 1-6-05 Maya, my 15 year old yellow labrador retriever was PTS at the Lort Smith Animal Hospital. His quality of life had deteriorated to the point I think he may have been suffering too much. I had consultation from a vet who agreed it was certainly the most kind thing to do. I write in tears but also with fond memories of the adventures we shared. I will find this very hard but not impossible because life has to go on. I am grateful to have had had the blessing of a doggie companion for the term of his natural life. I post a pic of him smiling when we went back to the Maribyrnong for a visit recently. Say a little prayer for his truelly loyal soul please, many thanks, Kaye (Katey on the forum, I am really Kaye) How do you ever get over it? I suppose you do not and you put your energy in to helping new young dogs get a happy and healthy life, driven by the love that sparked the enthusiasm. Ie like Maya, the old boy whom we lost today. He was my rock, my boy, my diamond boy. Truelly beautiful. I am so gratefull to have known him. Sorry, I cannot remember being as gushy as I am right now. Probably never before have I felt such a loss as I do over this boy. Life will go on however. I do not know what else to say. I am far too emotional. It is probably better if I say nothing else. Just send him some prayers please and let him know I loved him completely. He knows that I think.

What a grand age she made it too, sounds like she had a happy life. RIP sweet one

RIP dear little one, I hope you have lots of fun in heaven like you did here on earth, lots of love

Hi RnB, I'm in a similar situation with anxiety about my 15 year old labrador retriever. He is loosing it daily and I don't know what is kind anymore. I have been treating him and taking him to all of his favourite places. He has been enjoying this and his spirit is as it has always been but his body cannot keep up with it. From once an olympic swimmer in the Maribyrnong he was a confused, doddy old boy wading in the mud of a nearby duck-pond (which I know I should not have let him go to but given the situation I felt "Maya, you can do anything you want and as your keeper I'll pay the consequences [with the council] if there are any"). He was not game to go in but he was remembering his passion for water . I really do not know what else to say except I understand something close to how you might feel. It is such a delicate issue and my first experience of having had and loved, been loved by, a dog for all of it's life. I wish he could talk. He is in so much pain I feel. An old friend of mine who seems to have a gift with handling dogs said it is time to have him PTS. She said dogs are stoic. I had to be reminded what that meant. They will push on through pain, they will push on through anything. I don't know what to do either. He will die soon, that is for sure. The issue for me is now when, what is now being kind to him? and how am I going to deal with the grief?

That's very sad. Don't blame yourself, but I know how you must feel. These misfortunes happen. RIP little Peta

Must be so difficult. My best blessings to you. I've got a 15 yr old lab and cry daily knowing he wil go to rainbow bridge soon too. Mind you it wont be before his time I hope and pray. We go walkys every morning and I ask him "are you a happy dog?" Big waggy tail and a nearly toothless smile, yep he's happy. I love that boy to pieces. I love him more than I have ever loved any one or thing. My heart goes out to you loosing your girl. Its an issue with humans and dogs cause we live for 60=70+ and they don't get to 20 usually. I send you and your recently parted canine pal my most kind and considerate thoughts, Katey

I'm very sad on hearing my mother's little Sydney Silky Terrior "Gypsy" had to be put down on Friday at 16 years of age due to a rapid decline in her health. I'm sad for my mother too having lost her human partner only a year ago. In the old peoples village where she now lives they are only allowed to move in with one dog, if they have one, and if the dog passes away they are not allowed to get another one. My poor mother recently had an eye operation which was also not successful. It is hard to know what one can do to bring some cheer into her life. Please send some blessings for little Gypsy and our mum.