End of Life Decisions

In the last couple of weeks, I have had two animal clients make their transition.  It is such a difficult time for us two-legged folks and we labor over the decisions we need to make, wanting to ensure that we make the right choices as far as our animals are concerned.

Both clients had two of the same questions for their animals and I realized they are the same two questions that most people want to ask their pets.  1) Do you want help from a vet to make your transition? or would you rather do it naturally? and 2) Do you want to be buried or cremated?

No matter how many animals I have asked these questions of, the answer is always the same:  "Whatever my mom and/or dad wants."

To them, what is most important is US and how we feel.  They want us to be comfortable, they want us to be at peace, so whatever will make us comfortable and give us peace is what they want.

They don't care what happens to their bodies after they transition because they don't associate with it anymore.  If their guardian wants to bury them in the yard, that's fine with them.  If their guardian wants to cremate them and spread the ashes somewhere, that's fine with them.  As long as their guardians feel good about the decision, the animals is on board.

As for euthanasia, I will say that most animals would prefer to not go into a vet office to make their transition and would prefer to be in the safety and comfort of their home with their loved ones around if they need assistance making their transition.  I do find that since animals are here to teach us and help us grow, they often are working on fulfilling their purpose right up the very last minute, therefore, they don't necessarily want their time cut short, and would rather have a natural passing.  They also know that can be really hard on us, so animals will usually tell me that if it gets to to be too hard for their guardian to let them go on their own, they are fine with getting medical assistance to make their transition.

It is a time where we struggle to do what is right for them but I can assure you that what is most important to them is that we make decisions that give us the peace, the closure and the comfort that we need.  In their eyes, we can do no wrong.  They have the wonderful ability to see everything through the eyes of compassion and understanding and they always trust that what is meant to be is what will unfold.

Bless our beautiful animal companions-teachers-guides.  We are so lucky to have them in our lives.

Adventures in fostering

Almost 3 weeks ago, I decided to foster a 90 pound 11 month old german shepherd named Kino who was in danger of being euthanized.  I was told that he hadn't received any training and had pretty much spent most of his life alone in the family's backyard.  I didn't quite grasp what that meant until we got home from the shelter.  :-)

Week one:  On top of discovering that he had a raging ear infection that had not been treated, and finding that he was going to fight me with every tooth in his mouth to keep me from getting the medicine in his ears, I found myself having to "correct" him almost every minute of every day.  He wasn't potty trained, he wasn't leash trained, he thought it was OK to put his paws on the stove, the kitchen table and any other place he felt like.  He threw himself into my lap if I tried to eat, he lunged at people when we were out for a walk and every time I tried to get dressed, he assumed that I was inviting him to a game of tug of war when I attempted to put underwear on.  He stepped on my feet fifty times a day and at 90 pounds, it really hurt.  Holy-Moly, I wasn't sure what I had gotten myself into.

Week two:  He stopped having accidents in the house.  He learned to sit and to take a treat from my hand without biting my hand.  When we were out for a walk, he pulled less on the leash and was a little calmer when we encountered people, although he would still yank on the leash to try to greet them.  After only one reminder to leave my food alone, I could eat while he laid calmly at my feet.  He discovered Lucky's toy basket and began letting his playful side emerge.  We still had our challenges though.  He barked and jumped on people who came to the house and started becoming overly protective of the house.  He refused to spit out things he wasn't supposed to have in his mouth and would defiantly swallow them in front of me. Consequently, I repeatedly found my ear plugs as well as the stuffing from almost every toy he ever played with each time I cleaned up poop in the yard.  And still, my friends started placing bets on how long I was going to pretend I was just fostering him.


Week three:  Our communication has greatly improved.  When we are out for a walk, I remind him that it needs to be the person's choice if they want to greet him and he will calmly walk past people who haven't expressed an interest in petting him.  He knows that when I say, "Clean up after yourself" after I've given him an ice cube to munch on, it means he needs to get all the little chunks of ice that he left on the floor.  He doesn't believe me yet when I tell him that we need to allow birds and squirrels in the yard so that's still a work in progress and I still don't know how he would behave with other dogs if he was off leash, so we've still got some work ahead of us.  When we're in the house by ourselves, we are in almost perfect harmony.  He no longer feels the need to "help" with the crossword puzzle by pulling the pen out of my hand and I'm getting dressed now without any "assistance."  I am truly enjoying my new "not-so-little" companion.

and I am still trying to profess that I am merely fostering him.