How to Know When to Put Your Dog to Sleep

If you have a dog, you likely care about him or her very much. You want them to enjoy time with you. You also likely don't want your dog to suffer if they should become ill with something that is not curable. If you find yourself in a situation where your dog is sick and is definitely going to die, you might consider putting him or her down. However, the last thing that you want is to deprive your dog of life too early. Here are some tips for making the difficult decision of when to put your dog to sleep.

1. Look at a List of Things Your Dog Loves to Do

The first thing that you want to do is make a list of a  number of things that your dog likes to do. Try to create a top-ten list or a top-five list. Then, evaluate your dog and see if he or she is able to continue doing these things. If your dog can do at least half of these things, you might want to consider holding off on putting him or her to sleep because your evaluation of the list indicates that your dog is still having a good life. If your dog can't do at least half of these activities, then his or her quality of life is suffering.

2. Track Your Dog's Days

Your dog can have good days and bad days. You might consider putting your dog to sleep only to fear that he or she might have a good run of days if you don't do that. You can evaluate how your dog is doing by tracking the days for a few weeks. If you are finding that your dog is having vastly more days when he or she is in pain, can't eat, or is bleeding, then you might want to consider putting him or her to sleep. If your dog has more days when he or she is joyful and is able to do some of the activities that he or she loves, then you might want to hold off.

3. Look at Food Consumption

If your dog is unable to eat, even without your help, then you might want to consider putting him or her to sleep because he or she is going to starve to death, which is painful. If your dog can still eat and drink, then you still have a little bit more time.

For more information, talk to an animal hospital such as Metzger Animal Hospital.

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