I love this story:
Being a veterinarian, I had been called to examine a ten-year-old Irish Wolfhound named Belker. The dog’s owners, Ron, his wife Lisa, and their little boy Shane, were all very attached to Belker, and they were hoping for a miracle. I examined Belker and found he was dying of cancer. I told the family we couldn’t do anything for Belker, and offered to perform the euthanasia procedure for the old dog in their home.
As we made arrangements, Ron and Lisa told me they thought it would be good for six-year-old Shane to observe the procedure. They felt as though Shane might learn something from the experience. The next day, I felt the familiar catch in my throat as Belker ‘s family surrounded him. Shane seemed so calm, petting the old dog for the last time, that I wondered if he understood what was going on. Within a few minutes, Belker slipped peacefully away. The little boy seemed to accept Belker’s transition without any difficulty or confusion.
We sat together for a while after Belker’s Death, wondering aloud about the sad fact that animal lives are shorter than human lives. Shane, who had been listening quietly, piped up, ”I know why.” Startled, we all turned to him. What came out of his mouth next stunned me. I’d never heard a more comforting explanation. It has changed the way I try to live. He said,”People are born so that they can learn how to live a good life — like loving everybody all the time and being nice, right?” The Six-year-old continued, ”Well, dogs already know how to do that, so they don’t have to stay as long.”
So sorry for your loss. Blessings,
What a wonderful story and full of truths, even more so from a veterinarian who has seen the pain more than one would like to admit. We have our vet for twenty years, snickers our little girl dachshund who is hone and Maxwell who died tonight. Dr. Young left on a fishing trip today for a week, so a fill in vet, great young gal, helped us with Max. It was hard without Dr. Young there and tonight I am second guessing our decision. But it was best, kidney failure for over a year, sub q iv twice a day. His back was causing his legs to go out from under him and he would just fall on his side. Eating issues and he was vomiting today. The vet was very concerned about under the skin bleeding on his stomach area, that has just developed. But my little lion still had a twinkle in his eye as he layed there. Tell me Doc, did I do the right thing?