we are so truly sorry to hear of your loss…  there are just no words that can help and we know this, this group is here for you during your time of loss, amd so many of us know the horrible grief that comes with this. Godspeed to Misty on her way to the bridge and may she run free and happy there with all the tripawds that have gone before her….

Coops pack

My prayers go out to you and your family.This is so very devastating and so very unfair. Memories of Misty will eventually give you brighter days ahead. Misty was a beautiful Girl!!!

My heart aches for you. Our beautiful golden retriever, Sammy, will mark his 1-year amputation anniversary in two weeks. His lungs reamin clear and we thought we would beat the odds. Unfortunately, he was diagnosed with osteosarcoma in his remaining front leg at the end of September and the tumors are spreading fast. He is on pain pills and slightly inactive, but seems happy and comfortable — he still chases his ball (very slowly and not very far) and does his crazy dance. It seems like his tail is always thumping.

We can't help but wonder how you know when it is time to let them go. Our vet has said she will come to our house when it is time, but we worry about being selfish and trying to keep him with us at his expense. He is amazingly brave and stoic so it hasn't always been easy to see that he is in pain.

Hi Sammy's mom/dad…we had the very same questions about Misty. Although Misty's amputation had been cancelled because the cancer had now spread to her lungs, we thought she would be just fine for months or even years. She was happy, swimming everyday and eating like a pig. In my mind I told myself that she would let me know when it was time, but unfortunatley these wonderful fur kids would probably stay with us forever even going through unbelievable pain. Misty had been carrying around her ever growing cancerous leg for about 2 months and then one day her breathing began to get labored, like she had asthma, and she was sitting or laying down at every opportunity. The 2nd, and 3rd day passed with her wheezing getting louder. I just knew that every day it would get worse and whether we said good bye on that day or a week from then, it was going to be the hardest thing we ever did. As a family we said it was time and our wonderful vet said she would come to our house even though it was her day off. We spent the day before pampering Misty, having lots of people stop by to give her kisses and just reassuring ourselves that this was for Misty. Waking up that morning was like waking up into another world. Misty hobbled to me when I came downstairs (my husband had slept with her all night on the ground) and she proceeded to the backyard. Just me and her and the first thing she did was point to her tennis ball. She wanted me to throw it into the pool. So why not. We did a couple of throws. She went after it once but that was my sign, she just didn't have the lung capacity to swim out. When our vet came she spent allot of time with us. Watched us cry, cried allot herself, and when we were ready said Misty of course could be outside by the pool when she crossed the rainbow bridge.

I think our hearts know when it is time because they are breaking every day we watch them not be themselves.

We do have 3 other dogs. Millie is a 7 year old chocolate lab, Lola Millie's daughter is 4 and Toby our Rottie mix is 5. The first day after Misty was gone they all seemed to be sniffing around like they were looking for her. They all seems more interested in me and my crying. I think they know something is not quite right but their main concern is their people. Toby and Lola were best friends with Misty but since she became stricken with OSA they really cut back with their aggressive playing with Misty and with each other. After Misty passed they all started back to their crazy rough housing like they knew it was now ok, but they had been holding back while Misty was here. I think it's ok to worry about Sosa. He will need extra love and kisses when his brother is gone, but he will also bring you some extra joy.

If you click on the headlines at the top of the forum posts (where it says HOME (arrow) FORUMS (arrow), you'll get to a page where all the forum topics are listed. Select the topic most closely related to what you want to post, then click on it. When you get to the appropriate page, there's a little box off to the right of the page that says "add topic." Click that and it will open a new box to post your info into…

Hope that helps.