Two weeks ago today we had to have our bionic 16 year old Chihuahua put to sleep. The old girl was suffering from a bad heart and her medication just wasn't working any longer. My wife is heartbroken and you wouldn't believe how sad the place has been since, but I must say that being in the room when my dog was put to sleep was the most emotional I have been in years. My wife couldn't go with me, she wanted to but she couldn't do it. However, I knew that our dog wasn't comfortable and that she was too old to make a comeback so I took her for her final visit. I must say that I couldn't believe how peaceful she looked after the vet gave her the first shot to just put her under before the final shot. The pain was gone from her face, so much so that she looked like she was ten years younger. It made me sad for a second that I hadn't noticed the stress in her eyes. Then I realized that the pain was gone and it was for the best. My wife doesn't want another dog, at least not right now. Yet, I just looked on a local animal shelter's website and there are 10 or more little chihuahuas on there that need a good home. I love the little dogs, they have more personality than you would ever imagine and they obviously need a good home..... Should I sort of push my wife toward getting another dog or should I wait until she feels like she wants to do it? If we are going to rescue another dog I will feel bad if we let him or her suffer in a shelter longer than necessary, but I don't want to bring another dog into the house while my wife's loss is still fresh. I wouldn't be the most responsible pet owner on Earth if I was by myself but my wife takes better care of an animal than anyone I have ever met, I envy the dog that gets to come to my house to live.
Dogs are always getting offed in the animal shelters. Sad but true. Probably better that you wait a while if thats what your wife wants to do. Its understandable if she wants to properly grieve over the last dog before replacing that love with another dog entirely. Who says she wants another Chihuahua too? No reason to rush back into it. It may hurt a bit more to grieve over your beloved dog but thats not necessarily a bad thing.
Yeah, thanks. I forgot to mention that the shelter I go to is a no kill shelter. You should see some of the crazy ass looking dogs on their website. Well, hold on I will get a link. http://www.nevadaspca.org/adoptable-animals/adoptable-dogs I also forgot to mention that we already have another Chihuahua, he is a mix like our other one was. I like things that match. I would really like a Pug I think but I am not paying large amounts of cash for a dog when they have so many in the shelters.
mutts are always the best/smartest, shelters are the way to go, not to mention the insane amount of money you save, not to mention not supporting some disgusting puppy farm, not to mention saving a dogs life in the first place. its a win/win/win/win situation
All my dogs have come from a shelter of some sort. I treat them like part of the family and they are loyal and loving pets.
Give her some time. When we lost a dog - it took a year before we were ready to adopt another. I think it helps because you treat these animals as part of the family. Immediately replacing one with another might make your wife feel as if this is not a real personal part of a family and just an appliance. It could also bring her to have some bad feeling to the new dog comparing and contrasting - which might not be fair to the new dog. Just my $0.02 - hope you all feel better and are ready to adopt soon.
I agree with andulasian, it might sound corny to say but it's too soon. I once had help a friend put her put cat to sleep. She (imho) stupidly kept the cat alive longer than what the cats little body could handle. She just couldn't let go of the cat. It wasn't that she was being cruel, but she kept giving the cat more medication, etc. Finally, she realized she needed to let the cat go, and had me take her to the vet. Even though the cat wasn't mine, it was an emotional moment. Especially knowing that the cat was finally free of the suffering that my friend had unintentionally prolonged. She was deeply saddened by putting the cat to sleep, even though she knew it was best for the cat. She waited a few years to get another cat (ironically, after put another cat to sleep that she had, after she spent countless thousands of dollars on prolonging it's life). Although it's not like a child, some people take deaths of animals really really hard. I wouldn't force the issue, but eventually bring it up.
Yup, I agree with andalusian & julius. If the wife says she's "not ready" then she's not ready. I think I'd be a bit like you and immediately go get another animal to love, but everybody is different. I agree with the premise that you should get a shelter dog. Those dogs deserve a good home to live in and you won't be spending a fortune to take them home.
I think they are right too, however tonight she just mentioned that she was going to take some vacation and look this Thursday and Friday. I think what got her was when I told her that Poocho (our recently deceased dog) wouldn't want her to wait and that she was thankful that we came and got her from the shelter as soon as we did. My other dog seems lonely or just sad, but my wife said she wasn't just going to get him a friend but find him the right one. We will see, it seems like half a dozen of one or six of another. I feel like it is a roster spot in the house that needs filled and I don't care if it is from a D league call up or not. Shelter dogs have been awesome for us. My boy dog is a weird bugger, I know he was abused by the way he reacts to loud voices. He is a lover of people though, more forgiving than I would ever be.
