Thank you for Making the right decision!

[cutiecherise]

I have a couple of Heros to mention here,
But I'll start with how the need for this thread came to my mind...

I was reading a thread in which one member recounted her difficult experience with her beloved german shepphard; it had to be euthanized after it's second attack on a person. As a dedicated and courageous owner, she stayed with her dog when the euthanization was carried out, to calm and comfort him so that he might pass on close to the family he knew and loved, and be at ease.

I wrote her a note, thanking her on his behalf and sympathizing with her loss.
After writing that note, i realized that there are potentially hundreds of other pet mommies and daddies that have been forced to make this difficult dicision, and then been dedicated enough to stay with them during euthanization.
So, in that case,

You Are a Hero
I would like to post this thread in gratitude
To all pet owners who have ever been forced,
for the benefit of their four-legged friend,
to make the painful and difficult decision to euthanize an animal.
But first and foremost
I would like to Thank,
on behalf of all the four legged friends
that have slipped quietly away,
feeling safe and loved in the arms of their family,
Every pet parent that has ever
accompanied their animal to his or her passage from this world.

Nothing could ever be more comforting
than having you there: You are strong, and brave,
and selfless and dedicated, and there is no replacement
for you in the final moments of the lives of these
creatures whose very existence in fact rotates around YOU!

Thank you for doing the right thing, in the right way.

I congratulate you for your selflesness and devotion,
and sympathize the loss of your beloved pet:
rest assured that they left this world knowing and understanding
that you loved and cared for them.
I pray that all pet owners can show your courage in this dicision.

I would also just like to add a note to parents:
Some of you may think that your son or daughter is not ready to witness the death of their companion animal,
and for some I agree that this may be true,
But if your son or daughter is in their early or mid teens, and has a good understanding of the process and why it is being done, as well as knowing and understanding the specific emotional needs of animals,
i urge you to let them make a decision about staying with their pet during its final moments,
and to encourage them to act in the way that is best for the emotional wellbeing of their cat or dog.




When i was in my mid-teens, I had a beautiful brilliant white cat named Phoenix who was given to me by my father as a tiny kitten,
but after just a few short years,
he was plagued suddenly with the paralysis of his lower body.
My mother accompanied me to the vet, where we learned that he was suffering from severe clotting in his main artery, and his back end has simply suffocated to death.
There was no permanent cure, and the best way to ease the incredible pain he was in was to have him euthanized.

When asked if i would stay with him, my mother responded that it would be too difficult for me,
and i let her lead me away by the sleeve.
As i looked back over my shoulder,
I can still see him... wide eyed, craning his neck to see me out the service room window as i walked away.
All the light of the moon and the stars shone in his beautiful amber eyes, and they reflected to me every ounce of pain and fear and confusion and abandonment and betrayal and desperation that was trapped inside his tiny fragile heart that he could not express in speech.

I am plagued with more guilt for that decision than possibly any other decision i have ever made in my entire life,
and I will never,
NEVER
be able to forgive myself for betraying him so selfishly.






SO please parents, if your son or daughter loves their pet, let them make the choice whether or not to stay with them,
and encourage them to do what is best for the animal.

*Please feel free to share your experiences*