WWYD? Sick Rescue Dog (hypothetical)
 

This is a total hypothetical.

An older dog comes into your shelter. (Or you find an older dog on the street and with the intent of finding its home or getting it adopted). You take the dog into the vet to be looked over, but the dog is sick. The dog is terminal. However the dog isn't showing any signs of pain or discomfort at the moment. What do you do? Do you choose to euthanize the dog? Do you try to find that dog a home to live out its final weeks, months, year? Do you take the dog in yourself and look after it and give it as good of a life as you can while it still can have that?

What do you do?

PTS. For me, anyways.

To me the obvious answer would be put to sleep. I mean its hard to find a home for any adult dog. But one that is terminal well I would say impossible.

My POV on it is that if I am running a rescue or shelter, I would want to make more room for more adoptable dogs.

I would take it in to live out it's final days (if my husband agreed) otherwise I would try to place in a foster home with the foster parents fully aware and willing to give the dog a little bit of comfort and joy in their remaining days. As long as the dog is not in pain or uncomfortable due to their terminal illness. Otherwise pts after a couple days of a warm bed and a full belly.

I would take it in to live out its days too. Much kinder to have some days of love and comfort than to be pts on the spot IMO.

Depends on whether I had the space, money, time. Right now? PTS. But I'm unemployed, living with my parents, and eating ramen noodles 2 times a day. Back when I had a weekly paycheck I would have kept it.

You see that is where I am torn as an individual.


Years ago we found a dog that was running in the middle of the street and bleeding. (we thought she was in heat) Turns out she had some sort of cancer and she bled all the time. She was 15 years old. We found some neighbors that tracked down the owners. The owners didn't care that she was nearly hit by a car. They just were going to let her suffer until one day she just died or got hit by a car. They just let her roam. AC had been called on them several times I learned but they never did anything about it. A few weeks later I saw that dog laying in the middle of the road dead.

That dog deserved a much kinder ending. A good meal, a little bit of love, and to die respectfully, to die peacefully. She didn't deserve to die the way she did.


That is where I am torn. If I were in that situation, I would hope I could take the dog for a few days, weeks, and give it a good life until it was time. But if I weren't in a situation to I guess I'd take the dog for a good day at the park, buy it a nice juicy burger and show it the good in life before it had to be put down.



But from the Point of View of a rescue, I don't care if you are no kill or not, that dog would not be adoptable, best you could do would be hope to find a foster compassionate enough to take the dog in on for its final days

If you have a foster spot willing to do a hospice dog go for it, otherwise PTS, making an sick old dog to spend it's last time sitting in a kennel isn't humane either. However taking up a foster space for an undetermined amount of time and asking someone to take on heartbreak is a lot to ask.

Pts

I would have to say PTS. But like GP said, if someone was willing to do a hospice sort of foster with the dog then I guess go with that...but if he needs a lot of medical work done (unless the foster was willing to pay) I would say PTS again

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It would depend on the dog and what was wrong with it.

I love senior dogs. If the dog had a good temperament and was not suffering and got along with my dogs, I would probably keep it until it died or needed to be put down.

Best experience of my life was adopting 2 senior Greyhounds after their owners divorced and didn't want them anymore. Giggles lived 1 yr and died from cancer at age 11. Linus lived another 6 yrs and died at 15 from cancer.

I would love to one day have a rescue for senior animals to live out the rest of their lives.

More than likely, if possible, I would keep it, let it live out its days with me until it started to suffer and/or be in pain and then let it go. I don't see a point in trying to rehome when more than likely, no one would take a dog like that. And again, if financially (and space- and time-wise) I was able to, I wouldn't really see a point in putting the dog down.

I agree with others it depends on what exactly is wrong with the dog, what it's life expectancy with this terminal illness is etc.

Personally (as in not as a rescue) I would probably keep it, provided it fit in with the animals have currently (of course it isn't contagious). This is how I got ALL of my cats... all four of them... with the mindset that they would find homes, which apparently they did.. with me! Anyways... lol

If it was an illness that would eventually lead to it being in pain, or if the stress of fitting into my household was too much and I couldn't find a person willing to take it in PTS.

As a rescue, there are so many different variables. The local humane society in my town is a no kill, they are over run with cats, but they don't have issues adopting out dogs, even the old ones with special needs. So it all depends on the rescues' resources, their "turn over" rate (of adopting out dogs), cost of care etc.

I agree that PTS is much more humane than living out a sad existence in a rescue/shelter kennel.

Me, too. Providing the dog wasn't suffering yet and got along with mine and the disease wasn't contagious, I'd keep the dog until it started to show signs of pain and then put it down.

I also like senior dogs. I didn't used to be such a fan, but after a few years with new puppies in the house I have to say I have a lot of love for old dogs who are calmed down and trained! I figure when I get too old to deal with energetic young dog nonsense and old enough that I know I might die before a young dog, I will adopt seniors and we'll be crotchety old farts together.

Best dog I've ever had was a senior dog. I had her for 4 years. Her owner passed away when she was 10 and we kind of inherited her. (The womans family didn't want the dog and before she died she asked my mother to take her. Dog ended up becoming mine) I had her from the time she was 10 until she died at age 14. Despite being older she was a very healthy dog up until the weeks before her death.

If I were in a situation where I suddenly had no dogs (knock on wood massively because that would freaking kill me to lose the girls) I would totally adopt a kick ass senior because I am not financially in a position to go buy a well bred dog right now. Probably a Malamute from Moonsong Mals if they had one who would be alright around my cat.... or a senior Sibe from a shelter or rescue just because Northern breeds get the shaft a lot and I like snuggly fur and woo-woo's.

I have a few of the "too old/with problems to adopt out, still too ok to kill" dogs. They are my rescue retirees.
I'll keep em till they hurt too much, then send em off.

Definately this. I would foster older dogs if it were possible but I am at my limit right now.

This actually happened to me while doing Collie rescue. When we picked up this old guy, we took him straight to the vet only to find out he was riddled with cancer. Although we were pretty full up and didn't have room for another dog, let alone one who we could not place, we chose to keep him.

He went home with my partner who gave him a warm soft bed, good meals and a lot of attention for a couple weeks. Roger, as we called him, had a great, comfy last few weeks of his life. He knew what it was to be loved for a short time. Then we took him back to the vet before he started really showing signs of pain, and while we both loved on him and kissed him, he went to sleep.

Even if it is only for a couple of days, I believe that every good dog deserves even a small amount of comfort and love in their last days.