Sick Dog - Roselle,IL

I would absolutely not have them in the room while the dog is euthanized. That is hard for an adult let alone a child. I would have them say good-bye before the dog leaves. They are young enough, you can say he is very sick and you are taking him to the Dr. When you get home, let them know poor doggy did not make it and he went to heaven (or whatever you believe) I've put 2 of my dogs down in the past several years. My daughter is almost 9 now, but I told her they were euthanized and .. actually we just discussed it in more detail last night because we were watching something on

Don't take them when he's put down. It was traumatic enough for me as an adult and can't imagine a child watching it. There's no benefit. Have them say their good-byes beforehand.

We told our oldest that our dog got a bad disease called cancer and that the doctors tried really hard to help him but couldn't. Definitely don't mention "putting to sleep" or "sick" because they will develop bad associations to those words.

I'm so sorry you're going through this.

I have mixed feelings...Last year, I took my daughters(10 &6) with to the vet when I was quite sure we would not be bringing the dog home...he was almost 14, they knew he was sick and that he would probably not get better. I told them both the reality and that it would be very sad. They both regularly watch animal cops type tv shows, so they were familiar with some of the terms/outcomes. BUT...It was much more difficult and emotional than I ever thought it would be. My older daughter wanted to stay in the room with the dog when they put him down, but my younger daughter did not want to be there & she was crying hysterically. I didn't know which one to stay with! Plus, you never really know how the dog will react to the shots...my dog cried out as he died and it was horribly upsetting. My girls are both very smart and like to be told realistic, truthful explanations for everything, but they do have different ways of dealing with things. With yours being a bit younger than mine were, I think they should stay home. It is too hard to hold them, comfort them and worry about the dog at the same time.

They are too young to go to the vet when it's time. Have them draw pictures or cards or dictate something you write for them to say goodbye and take those with you when you take the dog. There's a beautiful poem I think called the rainbow bridge about when a pet dies. There are probably also some kids story books on the topic.

I'm so sorry about your dog. We lost one of our dogs last winter when our son was 4 1/2 and our cat the year before when he was 3 1/2. When it came to telling him about what was going on with our dog, he understood fully. My husband took our dog to the vet and I stayed home with my son where we said our goodbyes. For us, we discussed that our animals go to Heaven. In Heaven they are no longer sick and they can play and run around again but they are still with us in our hearts. The next day at school, my son's preschool teacher started a dog journal with him. He dictated what he wanted her to write and he drew the pictures. They worked on this journal on and off for weeks. I loved this idea and I think it helped my son remember all of the good memories that he had with our dog.

No, i think they are too young. I would not take them along. Help them to understand he is old in dog years (very very old) and in pain (a lot of pain) and that he can't get better. Sounds like you have good instincts and will help them not "identify" with the dog or worry about getting what he has. Let them say goodbye and tell them something like the vet will help him die comfortably. then...... whatever your thoughts are on after life.

You do not want them to be there!!! You have to be truthful, let them know that your dog is very ill, that nothing could be done, and they went to the rainbow bridge in heaven. Remind them that the dog is in no more pain and that your dog loved them so much. Have a little memorial garden or plant a tree in the dogs name…

This is hard on anyone (some will leave the dog all alone to go through this) as sometimes nothing can be done with our fur buddies.

We went through this about 3 years ago. My children were older at the time (16 and 19.) This was so hard on them knowing that our dog would not be able to handle to much more (she was diabetic, liver disease, brutal arthritis.) When it was time, my oldest refused to go, but my youngest had to be there for his boo....he had to actually carry her to the table (which he was nearly in tears) and left the room, and it was his birthday. She was in my arms (all 80 pounds) and I was hysterical crying. The vet had to comfort me and told me to hold it in for the dog:’( We had her cremated and we took comfort in bringing her back home to rest under her favorite tree…

I am so sorry about your dog. We went through this with our sweet dog Sadie this last December. In her case it was very sudden and I actually came home from work early (I work at night) to take her to the vet when the kids were already in bed. At the time my daughter had just turned four and my son was 5 months shy of two. My daughter knew Sadie hadn't been feeling good all night, she had been helping my husband by letting her in and out and clearing off furniture so she could lay down. I came home and took Sadie to the vet, she had bloat and there was nothing they could do for her. She was fourteen so I said goodbye. When I got her up in the morning I just said, "You know how Sadie wasn't feeling good last night? Well, Mommy had to take her to the vet. They gave her some medicine to help her feel better, but they couldn't fix the problem so she died." I didn't want to use any words like "put to sleep" or "put down" or "got a shot". I didn't want her to think that she would die next time she got a shot of went to sleep. I just kept it simple. She was very upset-they were close. It took her most of the day to understand that Sadie wasn't coming back and almost a month to understand that I didn't just go out and get rid of her. My little guy didn't even seem to notice she was gone.

Sorry about the long story, but I guess my point is that I am glad I went by myself because Sadie was part of the family and I had her for four years before I had kids. I wouldn't have been able to really say goodbye to her if I had to stay strong for my kids. I was glad to be able to sob my heart and say a true goodbye to my sweet girl. It was also an incredibly sad thing to watch and I don't think at four my daughter would have been ready to see that. My son definately would have caused more irritation than anything else.

Again I really feel for you and your family right now. My thoughts are with you. Good luck!

C.

My son was 3 when our cocker spaniel was put down with Lymphoma. What worked for us was to tell him that Precious was going to be Papa's dog now. His grandpa has passed a few months earlier so we told him Papa really wanted a pet in heaven. If they know someone else in the family who passed that could help or since one of your kids in older. Honesty is always best too. Good luck

Absolutely NOT! Please do NOT take them to be present to put your pet to rest even if it's just to wait outside. My husband and I had to put our pet to rest and it was the hardest thing to do. My husband went in with our pet and he still says after 4 years it was the hardest thing he has ever had to do. I waited outside and was so emotional that in my opinion, it really is not a good idea to bring your young children.

Just tell them that your pet needs to go be with someone they know that is already in heaven. Save the adult explanation for when they can understand.

My heart and sympathy go out to you and your family. It is never easy getting over the loss of a loved one. Good luck!

They are too young to go to the vet when your dog will be "sent to the Rainbow Bridge"...That happens to be a wonderful poem/story that you can read to them. Whenever we lost an animal we added his/her photo to the frame that holds the Rainbow Bridge poem and they will always be remembered.
I am very sorry about your dog. They ARE family members and it is tough when they have to go.

I am so sorry you are losing your beloved dog!

I would suggest that you handle this yourself. Euthanizing a beloved pet is very emotional, and it might not go smoothly. You can probably handle trauma, since you know all of the medical facts, but your kids are probably too young.

Part of this depends on what your beliefs are regarding life after death, but here's how I would approach it. First - I would NOT tell kids that young about having a dog put to sleep. Instead, I'd just say that doggie got very old and when that happens to dogs or people or any other animals their body dies but who they are on the inside goes somewhere else to live. And someday, when you get old and the same thing happens to you, you'll get to see doggie again. We're sad because we miss doggie, but we're happy for him because he's gone on to an exciting new adventure.

I think they are too young to be in the room or even go to the clinic. I've had to do this twice in the last year. With the first one we had to take our 10 year old with us because otherwise he would have been home alone, it was evening and I didn't know how long we would be gone. We gave him the choice of whether he wanted to be in the room and he chose to stay in the waiting area with his Nintendo DS. He was still upset at school the next day. I wouldn't tell them the dog "was put to sleep." It might worry them that they won't wake up or come back when they go to sleep. I would tell them the dog was very sick, the vet couldn't help him anymore and he died. I don't know what kind of sick your dog is or how old it is, but if it's old you could explain that it is very, very old or if it has a particular disease you could explain a little about it, although I think they are really too young for much detail. There are books for children that cover this topic and there are even pet loss grief classes at vet clinics and humane societies. Good luck.

So sorry about your dog, they are part of the family. We put ours down last summer (12 1/2 years old) She was our "practice" child and a fierce protector of our kids and our home. My children were 9 and 11 at the time. WE got advice from friends who are counselors. Here are a few tips, but use your own words and whats appropriate for your child's age

1. Be sure to emphasize that "Fido's doctor says.... You want to make sure they differentiate their doctor and the dogs doctor. What we said is that the dog was very old and lived a very full life and her body parts just weren't working anymore and she is in a lot of pain. She was a wonderful friend to us and the kindest thing we can do for her now is help her by giving her medicine to take away the pain. For our children we added that this would make her heart stop. We also prefaced all of this by telling them that she was dying and in a lot of pain

2. Let them say goodbye but not at the vet. That would be too hard and make them afraid of getting shots in the future. We brought our dog home from the vet and all sat around her and said goodbye and told our favorite stories. Then my husband and I took her back to be put down. It was VERY hard for us and would have been too hard for our kids, even at their age. (plus will most likely make them terrified of shots)

3. Friends gave us many books,"Dog Heaven" was their favorite. We have her ashes and collar on our mantel. We talk of her often and after a year are almost ready to get a new dog

Hope this helps - good luck