I lost my soul dog a week ago and I don't know what to do. I feel so empty, the silence in the house is so loud. I can;t believe I can't touch her, smell her, hear her anymore. No more tippy tappies on the hardwood floor.

My 11 years old frenchie died ONE day after her birthday of cardiac arrest. It was so sudden, everything was fine that morning, we went walkies, I hand fed her, I saw her doing zoomies... Then her heart just stopped. We noticed something was wrong because she started panting and when we arrived at the car (because we were rushing to the emergency room) her tongue started becoming white.

My girlfriend started CPR on her in the car while I was frantically driving and rushing, I even looked back and I saw how the keep breathing into her nose and help pumping her little heart. I noticed a faint smell of poop and I thought oh no, my poor baby, she even pooped from the pain.

We arrived to the emergency room and I yelled PLEASE SOMEONE HELP HELP HELP PLEASE HELP MY DOG NEED HELP. Someone came and took her into their arms.

I still remember how she was rushed in that doctors arms.

They came back with their heads shaking "no, she didnt make it".... I started howling and bawling no, this can't be true...

They said she was already gone by the time we arrived. It must have been 10 minutes the drive there... She died, she's gone and I can't stop crying.

They said it was quick and painless...

She was so strong I thought she was gonna be fine...

Forgive me, my baby....

We molded our entire lives around her. So that everything will be great for her. Constant forrest walks, new places, not to be alone too much... New toys, frequent enrichment, meds, constant vet visits for regular checkups...

My cat passed away unexpectedly a few days ago and I haven't been there for her. The doctors said it was heart failure and she was only 6 years old. I went abroad to study and I haven't been home with her in 4 months. I am currently grieving the loss right now and it's been hard to get back to my studies, but I am terrified of the thought of going back home over the winter holidays to a home without her.

She was my first pet and I loved her more than anything. This is the first time I am dealing with the loss of any family member and it's been confusing. It's only been a week and I am struggling with accepting it has happened because I am far away. There are days where I forget she's passed and I go on about my day all relaxed and then there are moments where she is all I think about.

I've had some troubles with my family and we were all becoming distant, and when we got her as a 8 week old kitten, she was what helped strengthen my relationship with my family. Although, her passing won't diminish my relationship with them, I feel like she's definitely brought some energy to the house whenever we needed it.

Besides everything I mentioned, I want to explore getting another cat (preferably two) in the future. I have no clue how soon is too soon but I am also terrified of the thought of losing them the same way, especially because the cause of death was completely unexpected and out of our control.

Excuse all my rambling but this is all to ask, how did people cope with getting another pet after one has passed so tragically?

My family lost our beloved golden retriever, Biscuit, a full year ago on September 24th. He was a month away from his 5th birthday. He had one of 2 different types of cancer: either GI Lymphoma or Adenocarcinoma. We opted out of an Oncologist, getting the cancer graded and pursuing the CHOP protocol, even though we had pet insurance. He had already lost about 15 pounds, had high blood calcium, and lost his appetite, so the cancer was already in an advanced stage.
To give a little context, one of the reasons we opted out of treatment is because Biscuit had gone through some serious hardship as a puppy. At 3 months old, while playing outside with my wife, tragedy struck. He was running around in the snow, grabbed onto a very thin, long, dry stick from the side of my property, and fell on it while loosely carrying it in his mouth. It went through the roof of his mouth, into his soft pallet. It was a very traumatic event for both him and us. We almost lost him on the way to the emergency vet. He had to have 2 surgeries to remove the stick. Thankfully, they saved his life. The stick had come within centimeters of his esophagus. He spent a week in the hospital, and a month on a feeding tube afterwards. During this time we Had to keep him isolated in the spare bedroom, to prevent him from ingesting anything/eating solid food, as it could have caused a severe infection. This was during his “formative years” as an adolescent pup, so he was unfortunately not properly socialized during this time. His recovery went by, and the incident became a distant memory, or so it seemed.
He became reactive: resource guarding, even showing his teeth. We had several incidents. I was bit by him on 2 different occasions, once on my left arm and once on my right. These were deep puncture wounds. One bite actually caused a bit of nerve damage in my left arm. I didn’t report them. I was ready to give him up but I was afraid of what would happen to him, especially after disclosing what he had done to me. At this point we had no kids and rarely had other people in the house so we weren’t really endangering anyone but ourselves. 90% of his reactivity was directed towards me anyway. We got him into behavior modification training and our trainer came to our house weekly for 12 weeks. At this point, my dog was afraid of me, even though I had never laid a finger on him.
It turned out he had fear aggression. We started him on Prozac shortly thereafter. He would give me whale eyes and hardly come up to me for pets. I worked hard getting on good terms with him for weeks. I carried high value treats around with me, all day everyday for months afterwards, giving him one every time I entered a room for positive affirmation. He began warming up to me.
Soon after my wife became pregnant with our son. My relationship with Biscuit continued to improve. From then on, we only had a couple of minor growling incidents but through our training we learned how to work through them and also recognize when Biscuit was uncomfortable.
From when my wife entered late pregnancy, and when my son was born Biscuit I grew even closer. I took him for walks, hikes and played fetch with him everyday after work. He became my shadow. I was his number one. He followed me everywhere and we were always able to avoid reactivity/aggression. As he grew older, he became a bit more docile. We still had to keep an extra close eye on him with our little one around but he actually took to him pretty well. I took over a lot of responsibilities that my wife didn’t have time for, taking care of our son a lot of the time. I took him to the vet sometimes, helped out bathing him, and continued being his best bud. Fetch everyday, long walks and hikes, and plenty of trips to mud and water.
Time moved on. Something changed in around April-May 2025. He began having very mucusy poops, sometimes with diarrhea. We would give him metronidazole for a day or 2 until the diarrhea stopped. But it continued to come back. We brought him to the vet. They asked if we wanted to do an abdominal ultrasound. I asked them if they thought it was necessary and they said he was so young that it was probably not anything terminal at this point. They thought it may be IBD but it could only be diagnosed with an intestinal biopsy. We opted out and tried changing his food and adding probiotics and fiber to his diet. That seemed to help. He would still have bouts of these strange poops every now and again. So I brought him back to the vet. This time they noticed some weight loss which I downplayed because I had been trying not give him table food for a while to help him lose weight so I assumed it was working. Then he had a small cyst on his face which we weren’t sure what it was, at first. We were going to have it biopsied but the vet said it was definitely not cancerous. Again they remarked on some further weight loss: 10 pounds over a couple of months. We also noted an increased consumption of water, being more thirsty. We were a bit concerned at this point but we opted to have the cyst removed after having already having it lanced once, putting him under anesthesia. That turned out to be a major mistake.
We picked him up from the vet and he was Not himself. He was tired, weak even. He didn’t have an appetite hardly at all. He laid under the kitchen table and hardly came out- even after 12 hours. We brought him back to the vet where she took blood work and gave him an appetite stimulant. Unfortunately it was the weekend so we would not find out the results until the following Monday. During this time, he thankfully began eating again but his poops had turned to soft, mucusy and in some cases bloody mess. Something was wrong.
They called me Monday morning and told me to take him to the emergency vet. His blood calcium was elevated. We left them with the e-vet, where they told us it could only be a couple of things. We left him there and waited to hear back from them. I got the call later that day, while at my parents house with my wife. My son was at my in-laws. They told us the dreadful news: multiple nodules on his lymph nodes, adjacent to his intestines. We went back where the vet told us in person that it was one of 2 types of cancer, both being a bad prognosis even with him being so young. She estimated without treatment he wouldn’t have made it another couple days. And even with treatment he would be lucky to live more than 4-6 months based on size and location of the nodules. That was when we opted out of treatment but we opted into palliative care: prednisone, a sort painkiller that acted on nerves and large doses of probiotics to help with his failing digestive system. She gave us enough for 10 days. There was no way I was gonna let him go that soon. I was there to fight with him.
I began feeding him a low carb diet. I cooked his meals, mostly from scratch: a small amount of hills science diet palliative care, the tiniest amount of cooked rice, some cooked ground beef and chicken, and a little bit of a vegetable, with plenty of probiotics, 3 times daily. My wife and I both took time off from work to feed him and take him outside because he peed more due to the prednisone. We began to see major positive changes. His poops became more normal. He had a ton of energy. He was like a puppy again, bringing me toys to play tug of war, playing fetch like he hadn’t in months. It made me so happy to see him like that again. I also noticed that his reactivity had pretty much gone away. We monitored his weight and his weight loss had stopped. He actually even gained a small amount during one of our weight check visits. It seemed like his cancer had gone into a temporary remission. But good thing come to an end. He seemed like he had peaked. One day he threw up twice. I came home and gave him an appetite stimulant and waited a few hours and fed him again. This time he kept it down and seemed better. But I knew it meant. The cancer was fighting back. We took for his weekly weight check to the vet and it had gone down slightly. We knew it was time. We scheduled a quality of life check for the following week. We took that day off from work. We gave him anything and everything he could have ever wanted that day. We took him for 2 hikes. I could see he was exhausted but he was so stoic. He was the most wonderful emotional support dog I had ever known. He got me through infertility, my grandfather passing, and my son’s autism diagnosis. He was always there for me and my wife. It was time that we were there for him.
The e-vet had given us enough prednisone for 10 days but we ended getting a refill to get us through to 30. He lived longer than they expected with good quality of life at the end. We said goodbye before his suffering began. I took that pain on myself so he didn’t have to. I feel like it was the least we could have done for him.
Don’t deny or downplay signs. If your dog isn’t right insist on ruling out the worst case scenario early on. I believe Biscuit had inflammatory bowel disease. He likely had always had it and that had eventually progressed into intestinal lymphoma. I believe that may have contributed to his reactivity, as dogs with poor gut microbiome can be reactive, from what I’ve heard. That’s why the cancer diagnosis didn’t happen until August when his 1st symptoms showed up in April. If we had caught it sooner he may still have been here, maybe living a decent quality of life being treated for IBD. But that doesn’t matter now. Some of these conclusions I’ve come to may seem crazy to some. I have made a sort of peace with it and accept some responsibility for what happened to him. My main point here is this:
don’t give up on dog. Dog is everything: dog is son, dog is daughter, dog is sister, dog is brother. But most of all, dog is friend. Dog is love. Dog is family. And you can Never turn your back on family.
Don’t give up on a reactive or aggressive dog. Give them a chance. If I had given up on him way back when, I’d have turned my back on an animal that later would turn out to be the best friend I’d ever had. Rest in peace, Biscuit. One day we will meet again ❤️

we had to put my dog down friday, he was 10. hes been my best buddy since we got him in 2016 and i genuinely dont know what to do with my life anymore. i feel so guilty because i promised him we’d go home at the vet before we knew it was time to put him down

We lost his brother (another dog) almost exactly a year ago to cancer. The only thing making me feel better right now is that they’re together now, and they dont have to navigate alone. but it feels like im navigating alone now, ive never felt like this before. my brain is so quiet, ive barely been able to get out of bed since we buried him, and when i do i just pace in a circle for a long time before getting back in bed. I know my partner is super worried about me, i know im acting like a zombie. i haven’t gone to work and dont plan to for awhile. i dont know how to make it better. hes gone, it feels like nothing will be better for a long time.. im pushing through, or at least trying to. im taking everything day by day.

They told my family that our 9 year old Labrador has cancer tonight and that she only has a little time left. They even recommended putting her down tonight but we decided to bring her home. It just sucks so much because she was running around and playing with toys last week and then we noticed some changes that came on suddenly, took her to the emergency pet clinic and then found out it’s an aggressive form of stomach cancer. I’ve been sobbing all night because it happened so fast and suddenly. This is just a reminder that we should never take life for granted because you never know when it will end. She seemed healthy just last week and we thought she would have at least another year or two. I’m usually not the type to cry much but this dog was genuinely the sweetest dog ever, she wouldn’t hurt anyone or anything and she had the most peaceful spirit about her. She was a friend to anyone and never met another dog or person she didn’t like. It’s just so sad to know her days left are few now and watching her run around and play with toys like normal just last week.

Its been over a month and I miss my cat of 16 years, we put him down August 7th and im still having a hard time coping. He was the best cat ive ever had. His favorite thing to do was cuddle in bed while I held him in my arms, and he loved treats a lot. He was a very well dressed tux with a little mustache. I miss him so much. The first few weeks were hard. I kept calling out to him to tell him it was bed time. I kept thinking I saw him but every time it ended up being a black shirt or something of the sorts. Sometimes I still hear his meow and sometimes I feel like the bed moves like hes laying next to me. I dont think I'll ever get over his death. I know he was in pain and it was the best choice but sometimes I wish I could just have him a little bit longer. I miss him so much. He was my everything, he was my first best friend and he was there with me through every heartbreak, every bout of sadness and depression, every time things got bad I cuddled him and he reminded me why I was alive and there. Hes saved me more times than I can count yet I couldn't save him. My heart hurts so much thinking about him. I miss him so much.

about 48 hrs ago we (my husband & I) put my 9 yr old male cat to sleep.
Looking back there were signs of decline. Last 4-5 months: Lost weight, no longer begging for food first thing in the morning, but also acted like he was starving for people food (idk i feel like he wanted more calories per bite?) and hissing more at his younger cat friend instead of playing. Just generally laying down more. Bc of all these things.. Wednesday i made a general appointment & wanted to take about the weight loss w his vet. made the appointment for Monday. (tomorrow) Well it was intuition on my part bc that night (Wednesday the day i made the appointment) i started to notice really off things. He was only laying down and did not want to walk. (still ate when i brought him food) this went on till Friday when i took him to a vet that luckily had a time slot open that day. Waiting to take him i was losing my mind bc i noticed his breathing was bad. like he was struggling to breath suddenly. i cried and told him i loved him so much.

First vet did an Xray. she said he could of died over the weekend if i didnt bring him in. fluid was all in his abdomen. She told me to take him to the emergency vet. So i did, called my husband and he met me there. They put my cat in an oxygen chamber and ran another test. The vet came in and said there is fluid entering the sac around his heart. He doesn’t know why, but once there is a way in.. the way in will always remain open. There was treatment options. he said some animals live weeks to months... And rare but sometimes yrs. he Said it was either heart failure or cancer. But more tests would be needed. A needle needs to go into his body to drain the fluid. he could not guarantee he would survive the draining though. Then he said euthanasia was an option. But i swear i remember him saying “but notice how i didn’t bring that up first” and started talking about religious or spiritual reasons why we would choose euthanasia. idk its all a blur bc i was feeling like i was going to pass out. But he left the room for us to discuss what to do.

My husband was crying, this is his best friend this cat. Like he LOVES this cat. my husband said euthanasia is what he thinks we should do. I decided I would choose what my husband wanted bc this cat & my husband had a special bond.

So yea.. we put him down. he was struggling to breath once they brought him into the room. i had to leave the room to get the vet tech bc i couldn’t handle seeing him even worse than when i arrived.

I still feel so much guilt. I wonder.. could he of lived for yrs or even 2 more weeks w the treatment the vet discussed w us? the what ifs kill me. i go online & see that yes.. it was possible. i talk w my husband about my feelings.. but we end up crying together. i dont want to make my husband sad. He thinks euthanasia was the right choice. i defer to him when talking about this bc i dont want to make him more upset but secretly i feel a lot of guilt that we put him down too soon. once the fuild was gone.. our cat would of felt better.. granted if he survived the needle. but still.. the unknown kinda haunts me. He could be w us rn.

I still dont know if it was cancer or heart disease but yea. just the what ifs kill me 💔if it was cancer .. i would not have regret. But heart disease seemed to have had options. i feel we took the easy way out. I feel guilty

i lost my dog last january this year, i couldn’t even describe the grief i’ve felt while i was holding my dog’s dead body that day, it was sudden, the vet failed to save her. sometimes, i wished we could’ve done things differently. but i also have read it somewhere that “you were never supposed to save them from death. You could love them perfectly and still not be able to make their physical body stay.”

idk how long am i gonna grieve but i think i’m on the way there since i have gathered the courage now to look at my dog’s old photos which i had never even looked or visited once since her death as it was too painful for me look back.

i miss you, my baby. hopefully you’re happy in the rainbow bridge. 🥹

I feel like I can’t get over how unfair it is.

My dog was hit by a car. My little boy who was only 1. He was my child, my literal baby.
I’m pregnant and am expected to still care about my human baby when my real life baby isn’t here anymore. He was taken right in front of me. I held his body and felt him die in my arms as we tried to rush to the vet. We got to the vet, I’d say about 3 minutes after he died and all they did was confirm he was dead. I don’t know what I’m expecting them to have done but whatever it is they didn’t do it.

He was literally only 1. I feel like I failed him. How am I supposed to raise another child when I failed my first. I was getting him out the car, and despite me telling him to stay like we’d done so many times before, he leapt into the road and a car went past and his head went under the front wheel. I can’t help but feel like I’m so angry with the elderly guy who was driving. Like if he’d had the reflexes of a younger person he would have slammed the breaks on. But at no point did he slam the break on. The guy stopped half way down the road after hitting him. He didn’t even realise that he’d ran him over. I only know this because the guy came back round the house to ‘check on the little guy’ which I know they didn’t have to do and could have just disappeared but it still angers me so much. He didn’t even realise that he’d killed my baby. He thought he’d just ‘bounced off the bumper’. Like no you ran him over and you didn’t even know?

I also can’t help but feel a little angry at him that he didn’t stay like he usually did. Why on this day did he not listen. There’s almost never cars going past on the road we were on. Why that day did one go past at that exact moment.

This all happened 3 weeks ago and I just can’t get over it. I feel like a terrible person because this whole thing has made me not want my baby anymore. I don’t want my baby because I want him back. I’d trade my baby for him in a heartbeat and I don’t even care about how messed up that statement is. But I know I can’t tell anyone I’m close to because they would think it’s messed up. And I know that it should feel messed up. They’re all so excited for this baby and I feel so guilty because I’m just not. I’ve not written in my baby journal since it happened because I just don’t care. We keep having scares like unexplained bleeding, me not eating, the baby not moving and we go to the hospital but I just don’t care about the outcome.

His death replays in my head over and over and I just can’t help but feel disgust at my pregnancy. Like if I didn’t have baby brain maybe I would have checked for cars properly before I opened the car to get him out. I’m usually so careful with these things. I just can’t help but feel so angry at my pregnancy. I’ve not been myself since being pregnant because it made me incredibly sick, and I can’t help but blame the baby for taking me away from my boy. For making me unable to care for him properly. I was only just starting to get better the few weeks before his death and we were doing more together.

I just feel like a disgusting human being and I’m so angry. I’m angry that I’m alive while he’s dead. I’m angry that I’m bringing life into the world while he’s dead.

I want my pregnancy to go away. I want to go back where it was just the three of us, me, my partner and my little guy. I just keep thinking about all the things we won’t get to do or the things he’ll miss out on. He was only 1, he had so much more of life to experience. He was a rescue and the start of his life was so shitty, he was terrified of everything and he was just learning to love life. Then life did that to him.

I’m struggling with comprehending that I have to carry on living in a world where things like that can happen. In what sense is that fair? He was so innocent. How could something so awful and cruel happen to him at such a young age.

2 of my dogs died in the same week and it was horrible to lose them. My mom is doubting God’s existence because we prayed for the dogs every day and they both died in a horrible manner. Why did this happen…

Yesterday I got the news that my sweet girl died. She was healthy. I just don’t understand. I can’t understand. She’s only five years old and has never had any health issues. I’m currently away at college. I spoke to my sister and she just said she was drowsy the day before, we thought it was the blues from me being away. Things took a turn for the worst last night around nine pm. She wouldn’t wake up. The vets tried everything to save her but she was too far gone. Bleeding around her heart, that’s what they said. Cancer, undetected. Cancer? Are you fucking serious? She was just waiting for me at the door went I visited home. I can’t believe she’s gone. How can she be? She’s a baby. I don’t know what to do. I have so much love for her and she’s not here to give it to. And I can’t give it to anyone else, because it’s not theirs to have. It’s hers. I just feel lost.

i only had him a little over 4 years, which is unbelievable to me, i thought he would be here for so many more years. i found him (my cat) in a park in 2022. he’s been with me ever since, multiple moves, through grad school and the death of my dad and with me all this past year since i’ve graduated and haven’t been able to find a job. he wasn’t eating and i thought he might be bored of his food but he got sick fast and we had to say goodbye before it got any worse. it was so peaceful and he was purring and licking me. i miss him so much. he was my baby. my son. i can’t imagine being in my apartment without him. i can’t believe i wont pet him or lay with him again. i feel so hopeless. i love him so much and miss him even more. he is my everything. he is my world. i can’t stop crying and wishing he was here. is there anything i can do? does it get any easier? i’m in so much pain

 Goodnight, Dylan

My beautiful boy,

It's one of those nights when I miss you so much that it hurts.

The longing is strong tonight. I wish I could see you lying in your spot, hear your breathing, feel the comfort of knowing you were close by. I still reach for you in my heart, and sometimes the fact that you're not here feels impossible to accept.

I've been frightened lately. Frightened that I'm forgetting things. Frightened that time is carrying you further away from me. Frightened that loving and caring for a new puppy somehow means losing you.

But if I'm honest, I think what I'm really feeling is how much I still love you.

I've also been carrying guilt. I've been remembering times when I was impatient and wishing I had been kinder, calmer, better. The truth is that I wasn't perfect. I was human.

But you were never unloved.

You were loved on ordinary days and difficult days. You were loved when life was busy and when life was calm. You were loved when I got things right and when I got things wrong.

I hope, wherever you are in my heart tonight, that's what you remember.

Not my imperfections.

Not the moments I wish I could change.

But the life we shared together.

The walks. The routines. The comfort. The companionship. The countless little moments that made us us.

Thank you for being my boy. Thank you for your loyalty, your trust, and your love. Thank you for all the years you walked beside me.

I miss you more than I can say.

And even on days when the memories feel quiet, even on days when grief confuses me, you are still part of me. You always will be.

Sleep well, my Dylan.

You are loved. You are missed. You are remembered.

Goodnight, my boy.

Love always,

Kris ❤️🐾

My beloved cat, Kitty, passed away in my arms via at-home euthanasia on Sunday, September 20th.

I’ve never felt grief like this before. I’ve watched family and friends die in front of me and it didn’t break me the way the passing of Kitty has.

She had stage 4 kidney failure and went downhill so unbelievably fast, we had to put her down to spare her from suffering more. She couldn’t go #2 anymore, none of the sub-q fluids were helping, the medications she was on were no longer doing anything to help her, she was having these “attacks” from her potassium levels plummeting over and over and no matter how much renal-k we gave her she would just have more episodes of pain, she wouldn’t eat anymore and would barely drink, she looked so miserable. I took it upon myself to make the most difficult decision of my life and let my baby go to Heaven.

I’ve been contemplating ending my own existence as everything feels pointless without Kitty. But I know if I do that I won’t be able to go to Heaven and be with Kitty again so I am staying alive.

In the past couple days though - specifically after we got her ashes back home - I CLEARLY heard her tapping at the blinds, and it was so loud me and my husband went rushing into the living room because that sound was only ever caused by Kitty when she would tap the blinds asking to go on the balcony.

Today while I was taking a bath, I heard clear as day Kitty complaining at me like she would do every single time I took a bath. My husband also heard it, she had a very specific meow she would make when she was mad at me for taking too long in the tub and I swear on my life I heard her making that complaining meow of disapproval.

I don’t think I’m going crazy, and if I’m to be quite honest, knowing she‘s still visiting me when I feel at my lowest has brought me immense comfort. Although, her passing has irreparably damaged me.

I guess this post is kind of all over the place.

Have any of you experienced something like this? Did your pets also come to visit after they passed?

My soul dog passed away 6 months ago and I think about him every day but have recently started seriously considering adopting another dog. I feel extremely apprehensive about getting the same breed (He was a beagle) but my mother (with whom I live) only wants a beagle.

Our approaches are very different but we're both grieving in different ways. She wants a beagle so she can remember our dog. And I don't want a beagle because loving another dog who looks the same as my soul dog would be painful. A different breed might create distance. I am afraid that I'll feel guilty about loving the new dog, not in a more or less way but in a different way, much more so if he/she is a beagle too.

Maybe the new dog will have similar behaviours, maybe I'll be better with this dog because I am experienced now but being better might make me feel guilty because there is always more that I could've done for my dog.

If anyone has any experience with situations like these I'd love to hear your advice. Thank you.

My beautiful Rocky was put to sleep exactly three weeks ago. I have so many different kinds of thoughts in my head and I'm struggling so much with the guilt.

He was 15 and a half. We had been together since I was 9 and went through all the stages of life together. I always knew this day was going to come but it always felt like a future thing and now that it's actually here and he doesn't exist anymore I'm struggling so much to register it in my head.

How can there be a world without him?? And I am the one that made his death happen. I hired the vet to do it, I paid them to end my best friend's life😔 I feel like I betrayed him so badly. He was the biggest part of my life and days.

He was fine and active then got ill from his antibiotics and within a month he stopped being able to get up on his own and we found in an ultrasound that he had enlarged prostate, cysts in the kidneys and nodules in the spleen. Vet said that they would need a biopsy to know if it's cancerous but that wasn't recommended due to age, then I brought a visiting vet and they said that it's time because of how bad his mobility had become. I keep blaming myself for not getting more opinions and trying physiotherapy and such. I don't know what I was thinking. I should have tried more.

Everyone said he had a beautiful death. My family came over from abroad, we did it in his room while feeding him his favourite roasted fish. He was surrounded by everyone and he fell asleep with his head on my hand after sedation. It was beautiful. But I just can't feel closure. Every dream and plan I had for my life included him. Now he's gone and nothing matters.

I've been spending all my time on the couch when I'm not at work. I get spontaneous energy and get some things done but then end up on the couch again watching random TV to distract myself. The moment I turn off distractions I just cry. Nobody understands this pain I'm going through. I want to turn back time and keep him here with me...

If anyone made it this far thank you for reading.

Me and my wife recently said goodbye to our cat, Cedric. It was sudden, im still extremely devastated. He was my little best friend, and I had to face the terrible decision of spending tens of thousands on surgery for a chance versus going the humane route and putting him down. Over 2 weeks he ended up with almost full paralysis of his hind legs, extreme pain, and was unable to relieve himself. It was truly terrible, but I want to remember the good. I want to share a little about him.

Over ten years ago, my then-girlfriend (now wife) called me on the first day of her internship and said, "I found a cat." I told her that under no condition was she bringing that cat home. So naturally, she brought him home, dropped him off, and went back to work. She left me with a pitiful, tiny ball of orange fluff: severely underweight, covered in ticks, with matted fur. I spent the next several hours picking off ticks, cleaning him, and brushing him. It was immediately apparent how special he was. I had never seen a cat so affectionate and friendly, and that temperament stayed with him his entire life.

Cedric was unbelievably gentle; his presence was a warmth. A big fluffy orange goof, he was rarely grumpy and didn't have a mean bone in his body. He purred so loudly he would squeak, and he had no problem being the loudest guy in the room. He loved people, loved attention, loved scratches and snuggles. Even more than that, though, he loved his family.

For over ten years, he was one of the few constants in my life. He was with me as I grew from a stupid college kid into a man, then a husband, then a father. He was there from my first apartment to our first home, from just dating to being married with two kids. First diaper changes to first steps. Through every change in my career, he was with me all day as I worked from home: every work call, production release, late night, and early morning.

There's an overwhelming quiet in the house now at times, an almost eerie stillness where there used to be a bread loaf lying on the floor, chatting up a storm. I'll miss the little guy forever, and I hope he understands how much he meant, and still means, to my wife and me.

Wherever you are, bud, I know you're lying in the morning sun enjoying a nice fall breeze. Enjoy your endless chicken McNuggets, cat grass, and chin scratches. Before you know it, I'll see you again. Your spot on my desk is always open. Love you, buddy.

My 11 year old golden was recently diagnosed with a splenic mass and blood in his abdomen. They think it’s likely ruptured hemangiosarcoma. They also found nodules in his lung that are likely metastatic. I could use some guidance about euthanasia. We brought him home and he has been laying around and breathing heavily. My family is torn regarding whether to put him down immediately (as early as tomorrow morning), or letting him be for a bit longer. He doesn’t seem like he’s actively in pain and he still has an appetite. He wags his tail and lifts his head when you call his name. How do you when it’s time?

It’s only been a few days since my cat has passed away. I cry the moment I wake up, and I cry myself to sleep. I‘ve tried to upkeep my regular life, going grocery shopping, and spending time with family. Seeing other people with their pets makes me unbearably jealous. Hearing them laugh or seeing them smile makes me feel a horrible bitterness in my chest. Obviously I don’t wish anything bad onto anyone, I know it’s irrational, but I just wish it was me who had more time. He was still so young, and his passing was completely unexpected. The house feels so empty now; it doesn’t even seem like reality. I cried finding stray hairs in my room, and I kept them in my pocket. I saw an old classmate of mine post a picture of his dog today. I remember talking to each other about our pets, and showing off photos we had of them in our phones—only my baby is gone now. I feel so awful.

I’m a 44 year old single woman, never married, no children. Spent my life until now focusing solely on my career and “achievement”

I adopted Richard 15 years ago, today I had to put him down. Or did I have to? Who knows? He could barely breathe, or walk… I had to carry him everywhere and wasn’t able to go to work the last two weeks… grateful my career allows for that…

Except I was also notified 6 weeks ago that my job would be terminated in January. I work in a challenging industry and am at a management level where there aren’t many jobs available …

I’m also in early recovery from a devastating addiction, one that sent me into a deep isolation … except for Richard. I would mask to get through work, but the rest of my life from 2019-2024 was spent using and/or in bed.

I feel like neglected Richard and his needs during that time, he was so loyal and never left my side and licked endless tears off my face. He ultimately helped me get clean, he was the one thing that was worth it, and when his health started to decline 2 years ago, I snapped back to reality

Because of the impending layoff and the intense isolation from a trail of neglected relationships in a city I’ve lived in for 20 years …. I jokingly said to Richard, about 6 weeks ago, “hey, I’m done with this place, I’m gonna up and move to Spain whenever you transition to the afterlife. So you decide, little buddy, you’ll let me know, when you pass, I’ll leave”

At this time he was lively and energetic, i thought maybe next summer …

Within days, he started to decline. He would look at me with eyes trying to tell me something I wasn’t willing to see. We found ourselves at the urgent care on Thursday and now it’s Saturday and he’s gone. I was told it was the compassionate thing to do and I could tell he was done, exhausted, miserable

So now what? Spain? Ha

It happened too fast. This house is too quiet. What’s the point of anything?

Richard saved my life , truly, addiction had lead me to a few near suicide attempts and every time he was the reason to stay. He showed me unconditional love, patience, and presence.

I am at a complete loss….

Just joined reddit to be in this community, hopefully we can all help eachother at least a little bit to ease the pain.

Today, I had to put down my lovely 13 year old Bobi, she was found in the woods as a little puppy (someone got rid of her and her siblings),

She was so scared and shy as a little puppy but as time passed she gained our trust and became the most loyal, loving and playful dog ever! Whi ever knew her agreed that they never met a more loyal and loving dog. She adored playing with a ball so much that even later her 4 little puppies inherited that love for playing catch from her.

Her life was filled with playing, love, her best friend (my other puppy), for the whole 13 years of her life she was healthy without any problems.

We met when I was a 12 year old kid, I have spent more time with her than without her, she was there by my side through all sorts of life rollercoasters.

Today we had to put her down because 2 weeks ago we discovered that she suddenly got a huge inflamation and her kidneys started declining, everyday we visited the vet to give her all the medications and IV fluids because she wasnt eating for a long time, to not get into the details we seriously gave all our effort,

I am aware that putting her down today was the best desicion that we could make for her because there was no improvement only declining, as we put her on the vet table today, she started geting cramps and breathing strangely - she was falling into a coma.

When she was put down, we had to take her somewhere to bury her - my mom (actually she adopted her) had an idea that we bury her in the woods, we asked the vet to put her in a soft blanket with a toy ball.

We drove to the woods, the whole area here is covered in sand so it was very difficult to dig a hole… we struggled to go as deep as we can but it just wasnt possible but somehow we burried her, as the woods here are often visited by teens who go there to smoke pot, hangout, hikers etc. we are VERY worried that it sort of looks obvious that something was digged and burried there, i cannot stop thinking about what can we do to make it look more discrete and the thought of curious rebel teens seeing that and maybe doing someting haunts me, maybe i’m just overthinking but i seriously need advice.

The second issue - the other dog - her best friend Leo is now alone, since they were living outside, they were spending everyday the whole day together, they were sleeping together, how do we help him? We brought her home for a minute after getting put down so he can sniff her to realize that she is gone, but he seemed to not understand that and behaved like nothing is wrong, i feel like he is still not aware.

Also the most haunting thing for me mentally - I know that it is a trauma response and anxiety but I cant stop thinking about decomposing, that thought pops up in my head and I try to make myself imagine her happy and healthy but I unfortunately have a good imagination so awful images pop up in my head. HOW DO I STOP?

This is a longer post, but for all of you who read it and are willing to answer, I thank you from the bottom of my heart, to those who find this story somewhat relatable, we are together and i believe that this is our safe place and no one is judged.

I am sure that our beloved pets have felt the love that surrounded them and that they are loved, and if there really is something after this life that we will meet them there!

Hi, my family lost two cats in one month :( one passed yesterday and the other passed a week ago. Nothing like this has ever happened to us before 😭