Elixir
Made in America
The death of pets is the hardest thing for me in all of life. We've had dogs whose deaths made me unfit for work for days. In 2015, in the space of 3 months we lost 2 dogs - a 16 year old heeler succumbed to old age, and my dear 9 year old Golden was lost to cancer. Then I woke up one morning and went to feed the horses at 5:30am as usual, and our 28 year old arabian "Chinook" was thrashing around in his stall, all covered with blood and unable to stand.
After that, both my wife and I were morbidly depressed - not to mention the effect on the other horses. Two days after Chinook died, Parker (another Golden) was born. I had put us on the breeder's waiting list, and seeing pictures of the litter in their whelping box was the first glimmer of happiness. When he cam home with us a couple of months later, the clouds began to lift in earnest. It took several more months for any semblance of normalcy to return. But eventually, the puppy's 24/7 requirement for love, attention and training somehow supplanted most of the day-to-day, hour-to-hour grief.
I hardly cried at all when my father died when I was 10, or when my mother died 30 years later. But every dog, cat and horse I've ever lost has made me cry rivers. Don't know if it's the loss per se, or just the innocence of the animals, but it's SO MUCH harder than losing friends, or even family - at least for me.
Reading how others have been effected is very helpful, and I thank all who have posted about it on this thread.
For Ger1956 - you're a hero, and need to know it. I've kept some pets alive past the point where they wanted to live, and that is a bad mistake. When they TELL you it's time to go, it is our solemn duty to help them out, no matter how painful.
After that, both my wife and I were morbidly depressed - not to mention the effect on the other horses. Two days after Chinook died, Parker (another Golden) was born. I had put us on the breeder's waiting list, and seeing pictures of the litter in their whelping box was the first glimmer of happiness. When he cam home with us a couple of months later, the clouds began to lift in earnest. It took several more months for any semblance of normalcy to return. But eventually, the puppy's 24/7 requirement for love, attention and training somehow supplanted most of the day-to-day, hour-to-hour grief.
I hardly cried at all when my father died when I was 10, or when my mother died 30 years later. But every dog, cat and horse I've ever lost has made me cry rivers. Don't know if it's the loss per se, or just the innocence of the animals, but it's SO MUCH harder than losing friends, or even family - at least for me.
Reading how others have been effected is very helpful, and I thank all who have posted about it on this thread.
For Ger1956 - you're a hero, and need to know it. I've kept some pets alive past the point where they wanted to live, and that is a bad mistake. When they TELL you it's time to go, it is our solemn duty to help them out, no matter how painful.