What do you mean she suffered? She struggled and was in pain?

when i had my female corgi PTS in july, she had been fighting cancer and it was an emergency situation. i didn't have time to get terribly worked up, emotionally. she was weary and beginning to suffer and she was gone, literally, in a heartbeat.

my male corgi, who i sadly had PTS in december, didn't go quite so quickly, it took 30 seconds or so but i think it was because he was picking up on my emotions. he had been suffering the ravages of a degenerative spinal cord disease and although he was not in pain/suffering, his dignity was gone. it was very hard decision, harder than normal (if that's possible) and i had many weeks to think about it.

my male corgi was sedated about an hour before my vet arrived here but it really didn't seem to make a difference. i think, perhaps, your dog picked up on your stress and that might be why you noticed the tenseness in her body.

she's a peace now, try to remember the happy times with her. time will help to heal your heart. (((hugs)))

Sometimes a vet would use one shot, sometimes a different vet would use two. Sometimes death would be instantaneous, sometimes a slow fading, sometimes there would be a little activity or vocalization. Did that mean that my best buddy felt pain or fear? I don't know.

The important part to focus on now is that your dear dog's last memory was how good it felt to be safe in your warm arms, feeling your beating heart, smelling your familiar smell, and seeing the look of love and compassion in your eyes. And your tears, of course.

Don't beat yourself up over the details... as you said, next time you face this most difficult of moments, you'll do it differently.

Susan

I had always heard that they just "go to sleep" and that is it "very peaceful" so didn't ask questions. The vet didn't sedate the dog, just gave her the shot. The dog was looking at me at the time and just gasped and died- like that. It was awful and the look in her eyes haunts me a bit to this day; I feel like she and I were both so confused in the moment. I try to console myself in that it was quick, but it certainly wasn't the "peaceful" way I had expected my friend to leave.

A year ago when I had to have one of my kitties put to sleep, one of the first questions I asked on the phone (of our regular vet) was if he would be sedated beforehand. I asked again when I walked in the door of the clinic, and again in the exam room. I'm of the impression that some vets sedate and some do not- I do not know the reason why, but I do know that it is a question I will always ask, and something I will always insist upon. This way was much more peaceful and left me feeling more at ease with the decision, but it did take longer and I wonder if that is why some vet's can't seem to be bothered. In the case with the dog, we were in and out of their exam room in no time; with my cat, the vet gave me as much time between steps as I felt was warranted with no rush whatsoever. They did not rush me to get him sedated, and then once he was sedated, they made sure he and I were both comfortable enough for the final step. They also did not rush me out of the room once he had passed away.

Please try not to obsess over it, though I know from experience it can be haunting. Just remember that you did not let your friend down and she is at peace now.

(((HUGS)))

Then she injected the drug.

The dog howled & arched & fell back.

I was devastated.

The vet said it "wasn't anything; it was just an automatic response he made when he started down that long tunnel".

& I was devastated again, & insulted, & enraged.

Here's my free advice to vets:

better to give too much than too little.

No drug costs as much as what penny-pinching & glibness will cost you.

I am a certified euthanasia tech, and I can understand why your vet did not pre-sedate, though its not always common.

To be honest, there are sedations that make the dog naseous or disoriented. In a shelter atmosphere (I cannot speak for a vet clinic) Pre-sedation is usually for the technician's comfort and ease rather than the animal. It allows many animals to go to sleep and be done rapidly. We never ever operated that way. Our mindset was it was the animal's comfort that was primary.

A truly good euth tech can hit the vein every time, and do it in a calm manner while the dog is being comforted and fed a treat - without presedation. Why? Because the effect is immediate. The solution enters the bloodstream directly and immediately goes to through the heart causing instantaneous death. The animal does NOT feel pain during this. My experience was that 98% of the animals would die mid-chew of a treat and slump immediately. I would inject, and an assistant would hold and feed the treat.

I think what you experienced is what is called "agonal breathing". My experience has been that if the dog has some sort of circulatory problem or heart problem (sometimes common with very old or very sick animals... and sometimes for no reason that I could ascertain), the animals would take slightly longer in the "agonal" stage. I think the thing you witnessed was just that - agonal breathing. The animal is gone, but the sound is very frightening for humans. I took the liberty of lifting the text below from another shelter's site explaining agonal breathing:

Rarely there may be involuntary muscle reflexes such as small muscle twitching or releasing of the bowels or urine. Even less often there may be brief agonal breathing or gasping. It is important to know that at this time your pet is already out of pain, and these are non-painful involuntary reflexes.

I am however sorry your vet did not explain this to you beforehand. He should have. I never allowed an owner to be with me and the dog during euthanasia without them being prepared and knowing the procedure that was going to be performed. I wanted every animal that passed to have the most easy and comforting transitional experience they've ever had - no matter what they had experienced at the hands of humans in the past.

I should add that our shelter provided euthanasia as a community service for cost to the shelter. This service was for people and their pets who often had a very limited income or had close ties to the shelter. They knew us and that we had a highly skilled and trained staff. It was much cheaper than the vet, but done ethically and humanely.

Do I trust that everyone who takes that class can do it well? NO. I was appalled at some of the people I was in class with and their scores. However, I don't write the laws, just follow them.

Meghane is a vet and posts here often, and could likely tell you more than I could about vet clinical processes. However, I think it was more a matter of your vet not explaining what was was going to happen and why he chose not to pre-sedate.

Over 30 years I have put 4 dogs to sleep. All were necessary and it was time. I don't regret the decision but I have learned along the way.

The first dog was my only bad experience. The vet couldn't find the vein and jabbed over and over. The dog was crying, I was crying, the vet couldn't care less. I changed vets for my other dog the next day.

On the second dog, he had had a stroke and was so out of it that he couldn't see, hear or walk. I don't think he felt a thing. The vet (who is a sweetheart) found the vein first try and did the injection very slowly. Bhain did slowly fall asleep and then after a minute or two his heart stopped. Dr. Jerry held me while I cried. He's the best vet in the world.

We relocated before the third dog. She had a long, debilitating illness where it was one of those things where you just eventually had to decide she'd had enough. That was a very hard decision but finally it was time. The vet took her in the back and put in an IV. Then brought her out to us and we pet and talked to her a while. When we were ready, he injected the drug into the IV (so no stab at the very end) and slowly released the drug. She fell asleep and passed away.

The last one (her daughter) was in July 2009. I'm not over it yet. She had an eye surgery that wouldn't heal and had multiple surgeries but was in pain constantly. Meanwhile, her other systems were failing. When the day came, it was a Sunday afternoon but she was shaking, crying and had gotten so bad in 1 day that we didn't feel we could wait overnight for our regular vet. We took her to the emergency vet. I expected routine care because they didn't know either me or my dog and was prepared to fight to get the same IV treatment that her mother had. As soon as I got there, they put us in a special room - not an exam room but a room that looked like a living room -- couches, carpet, nice lighting, etc. It was like she was in a home, not a hospital. Then they told me about the IV (before I asked for it). They put in the IV, brought her back and let us have some time alone. When we were ready, they slowly injected the drug and she fell asleep.

None of my dogs were presedated that I saw -- I was with them constantly on the first two. All were peaceful because the drug was injected slowly. The first was bad only because of the multiple needle jabs which he hated and cried. The last three vets were all very human to both my husband, myself and my dogs. I now will always insist on the IV method. It was easiest on them.

You could not have known. It's such a hard decision to make and I agonize over every one. It should not be like yours was. If I were you, I'd change vets.

My sympathies on your loss. You did the right thing.

Debbie

So sorry for your loss. Try not to dwell on it. Remember the good times and the joy your baby brought you.

I had to put my girl down last year. My Vet sedated my baby, first. He made a special cocktail with Telzol, Buprenex, and Acepromazine. She fell deeply asleep. She was pain free and at peace before he injected her with the Euthanasia stuff.

He told me that the solution burns, so it's a lot better if they are sedated first.

I am haunted by that last raggedy gasp and even though I knew it was his time, I couldn't help but wonder if perhaps HE didn't know that it was his time. In any event, thank you so much to everyone for sharing. I certainly feel a little better now knowing that even the final moment isn't always as gentle and peaceful as advertised, but it's probably just a natural reaction to the drugs. And I hope that by sharing my story you can see that even if you'd pre-sedated and had a calm atmosphere at home that its no guarantee of a gentle passing.

Euthanasia solution is an overdose of anesthesia. There is always a brief excitement phase of anesthesia where voluntary motion is lost. This happens whether the pet is sedated or not.

Most of my clients prefer to have their pet conscious so they can tell him or her goodbye at the time. If the pet is very nervous, sometimes I do sedate first but only very lightly. Of course, if the owner wants the pet sedated I certainly do it.

I always place an IV catheter (in the back, not in presence of owner) to prevent 1) patient from having to be stuck with a needle 2) ensure all the solution goes into the vein because the solution hurts if it goes out of the vein 3) allows the owners to hold the pet however they want with the exception of the one catheterized leg 4) doesn't require a vet assistant to crowd up the room.

One of my dogs howled when being euthanized even though he was sedated and catheterized. It is just one of those things that unfortunately happens. But it is unfortunate and I am sorry it happened to you, especially since you weren't informed it was a possibility.

Know that many here will be thinking of you next week.

My heart feels your pain.

I've also seen people go into cardiac arrest, and some of them just fall over and others will briefly go into muscle spasms.

I cannot stay with my pets and see them killed, but I stay with them until I am assured that they are completely unconscious. My husband has stayed with them when they were administered the final shot, and he told me that they never stirred. I have had general anaesthesia during surgery myself, and it produced instant and complete unconsciousness, so I do believe that my animals knew nothing once they were given sufficient dosage of the sedative.

After reading the experiences of others, I am very glad that I have chosen this painless option for my pets, and will definitely continue to do so in the future. I want the last thing they know to be the slip into total unconsciousness.