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Post by Deleted on May 30, 2011 23:04:11 GMT -5
Pretty much what the title says. I've only ever put down one animal, and even up until the minute we did it I had much regret.
Mimosa is 7. She has had diagnostics run and is on treatment but is unresponsive, probably worse in fact. She has to be separated from the other ferrets unless she is supervised, since she wont stop biting or grooming even when they scream. She sleeps constantly, and always has her eyes half-mast like she's tired or in pain. I don't know what to do. I keep thinking she might get better if we persist but honestly, I just don't know what else we can do to make her happy. She's obviously depressed and uncomfortable. Never plays or explores anymore. I feel like a monster keeping her around, but don't want to just give up on her.
How did you know when your baby was ready to go?
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Post by Deleted on May 30, 2011 23:36:04 GMT -5
I just wanted to say I'm so sorry for what you are going through I've never had to put a ferret down, but I put my 15 year old Shepard cross down in January and he had been with me for 13 years. He had kidney and liver failure which we knew about for years but he was so happy and still wanted to live so we let him tell us when it was time. The last few weeks of his life he stopped eating, was hosptalized for a few days and then the last day he didn't even want to go for a walk, which was his favorite thing in the world. The life was gone out of his eyes and the euthanasia process was peaceful for my mom and I and brought us closure and a feeling that we'd done the right thing. I know it can be hard to Gage when that point is, but if you're asking, chances are it's probably getting close to time. Someone I know on another forum always says "better an hour too early than a minute too late" when it comes to this. You know your baby, she'll let you know when life isn't worth living for her anymore. I hope you come to the right decision for both of you, it's the hardest thing in the world, but I hope you can find some peace when the time comes.
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Post by Heather on May 31, 2011 0:22:14 GMT -5
I'm guessing that your wee one was diagnosed with adrenal? Just going by your description of her symptoms. There does come a point when one has to make that step. Adrenal is not usually fatal but the side diseases are Have you every discussed this with your vet? Have you tried the various possible solutions? Seven isn't really old but it is when they're fighting disease, because of this age some options are limited. A ferret that is in the later stages of adrenal is very stressed from fighting the symptoms, which can be IBD, ulcers, hyper-itchiness, sexual aggression to name a few. Each one of these can be fought with certain drugs for a period of time. I'm guessing that you've exhausted these possibilties? In answer to your question, I choose the time when either my little ones ask (that may sound stupid but if you look in their eyes you will see it) or which time their quality of life is no longer within what would classify as ferret like. It is rare when you can say in all honesty that you will feel good about your choice. In all the years that I've been doing this I can only think of a couple where I can say that I felt that the timing was correct and I felt that it was a good choice. I find that most times I second guess myself....I could have done this, or that and what if I tried this or that. I have a very good vet, she won't begrudge me time to come around to a good decision but she will give me the look and then I know that I'm pushing the boundaries of the fight and that I'm fighting for myself instead of the ferret. Good luck with your decision, may you choose well for your little one ciao
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Post by Deleted on May 31, 2011 5:13:06 GMT -5
Thanks for the comments and support Heather, I do feel like when I pick her up she seems to be "asking," as weird as it sounds, I thought I saw that in her eyes. Carpetshark, I'm sorry you lost your shepherd, it's like losing a member of your family. Yes, shes adrenal and insulinomic. Shes on a high dose of pred, tried diazoxide but it made her nauseous and anorexic. She's not really responding to the deslorelin at all; her symptoms are somewhat worse. I do not know a vet I'd trust to do an adrenalectomy. *sigh* I really struggle with the idea that I'm just giving up on her. I havent really talked about it with my vet yet but ... that's complicated enough. I think I'll take her in tomorrow to see if we can re-evaluate things...
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Post by miamiferret2 on May 31, 2011 8:23:09 GMT -5
I think that I would forego surgery especially at her age. I was in your situation last September. My ferret was over 8 years of age. He had insulinoma which we were managing quite well but the Adrenal disease waa awful and nothing was working anymore. Not lupron, Melatonin or deslorelin. He was very weak. No muscles and he couldnt walk anymore. I could not help him anymore and despite flutamide and propecia he was suffering from an enlarged prostate. I decided that I was being selfish keeping him around longer. He has his life back now. What an awful thing to see your friend stuck in an old body that is just no longer working. It sucks. I cried when I put him to sleep because I had him for 8 years and he was my baby. But I was also relieved that he was no longer suffering in that old and tired body. I am glad that he had a long, good and happy life with me. I gave him a good home, love and the best veterinary care that I possibly could get for him.
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Post by miamiferret2 on May 31, 2011 8:28:54 GMT -5
I forgot to add, the decision is very hard to make. But in the end we have to be realistic. Medical care will take us so far. Only you can decide how long to go with this. I prefer to put my ferrets to sleep when they are very ill and with no hope for a cure. At least I can be sure that I am with them when they go. At least their final moments are not a seizure, gasping for air, etc. Like I said, I won't do major surgery on an old ferret. I don't do Adrenal surgeries either. Why put them through that.
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Post by Sherry on May 31, 2011 8:31:12 GMT -5
We knew it was time for our Sinnead when one day- she looked at us with her eyes squinted, trembling(signs of pain), and for all the world I swear she asked "please make it stop" This is never an easy decision, and even writing about it, I'm sitting here in tears. But you make it because it's the best thing you can do for them. I am so sorry
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Post by Deleted on May 31, 2011 10:32:28 GMT -5
I`m so sorry you have to make this decision. It`s never easy and is something we have to find away to come to terms with, as our fuzz need us to be strong enough to make this decision. I too am in tears, thinking of Trixie who we had to help cross in January. I think for me when I started asking `how will I know it`s time` i already knew we were there, I just couldn`t face it yet.
When the time comes hold your baby close and know that she feels your love and she knows you`ve done everything for her.
Praying you have the strength to make what ever decision is best for Mimosa.
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Post by Deleted on May 31, 2011 12:04:14 GMT -5
I think it's something in the eyes. Of the three ferrets I've lost, only one had to be helped to the bridge and I had so much guilt about making that choice. He was still alert, but the spark was gone from his eyes. He was the little clown of my group but his happiness had left him. I couldn't bear to go in the room at the vet's with him... I knew I wasn't strong enough to handle it and somehow I couldn't let his last moments be filled with my hysterics. Afterwards I had more guilt because I think I let him go on too long that way, just because I didn't want to lose him. He was having more bad times than good and life wasn't fun anymore.
Our little girl Trouble picked her own time and passed quietly in my husband's arms. We only had about an hour's notice that she was about to go. How selfish, I know, but I wish it could be that way always... just enough time to say good-bye, and then over.
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Post by miamiferret2 on May 31, 2011 13:22:25 GMT -5
at least your dealing with nice non-judgmental people here. i hate that you are having to make this decision. you brain says one thing and your heart says another. most of us here know how you feel. You know what happened to me (with my ferret Lemmy) I emailed some one that is on the "all experts" site. whatever, you ask her a question and she responds. so i was telling her that Lemmy was urinating blood, i was telling her about his prostate issues, adrenal issues, etc. seriously, i have no idea why i emailed this woman. i guess i was just trying to see if she could give me some miracle cure or maybe tell me to not give up and keep pushing and trying to make him better. (he was more than 8 years old how much more could i get out of him with insulinoma and advanced adrenal disease.) anyway, i told her that he was really pushing to get the urine out and he had screamed while urinating that day. she responded to my email by basically flipping out on me. she told me "PLEASE do the right thing and take this ferret to the vet and put him to sleep he is suffering from the very painful end stages of adrenal disease." i didn't need to hear that. here was a stranger lecturing me. i had spent thousands of dollars trying to make him better. to my knowledge, Lemmy was one of the first ferrets in south florida to have the deslorelin implant. i nagged the vet to order it for him after reading about it in a magazine. so this woman knew nothing about me or the close bond that i had with my ferret. and i certainly didn't need to be lectured by a stranger. I felt bad enough as it was. i felt like I wanted to die. i didn't want to live without my Lemmy. he was my best friend. so that day, i just gave up. I went home, i called the vet and i discussed it with him (which is what i recommend you do) i asked him to tell me what he thought i should do. in his words exactly he told me that i had done more for this ferret than he'd ever seen any of his clients do and that the right thing would be to put him to sleep and let him rest. if you have a close relationship with your vet, if your vet is a nice person, he'll tell it to you like it is. so i called my husband and told him. he was dragging his feet. he didn't want to do it. but Lemmy was feeling miserable. i told him that i couldn't do this to him anymore. he had zero quality of life. all he did was eat and sleep and cry when he urinated. i packed his blankie up, his favorite toy. during the drive to the vets office he bit my finger (that's my Lemmy). he went quickly. i stayed there with him when the doctor gave him the mercy shot. i'm crying now as a write this. when i went home i felt really guilty for letting him go on so long. i didn't sleep that night. i still missed him terribly. i had a pain in my chest that wouldn't go away for 3 days. it never gets easy putting a beloved pet to sleep. i think with ferrets its just WORSE because i have never loved an animal as much as i have loved my ferrets. when they are healthy they have such JOY they live their lives to the fullest. it is not fair that they have to go like this. but at least we can do something to help them go without suffering too much.
talk to someone you trust, a friend, your husband. also talk to your vet. and listen to your ferret. that is most important.
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Post by Deleted on May 31, 2011 13:50:00 GMT -5
Aww you guys are making me cry... *sigh* I just fight the feeling that I'm giving up on her, but she has definitely been giving me that undeniable look.... the "let me go" look that you all describe. She shudders and squints, only seems content to perch on my shoulder like in my avatar. The only thing that keeps me hanging on to hope is that is only been about 6 weeks since the deslorelin implant. I keep thinking she will turn around if I just keep supporting her.
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Post by kristin on May 31, 2011 14:20:32 GMT -5
So sorry to hear that you have to make this decision. It's one of the hardest things we have to face.
May I suggest that you stop looking at it as "giving up on her" and look at it as "giving her the gift of helping her let go"?
It really is a gift we give them, to take away their pain and suffering in a humane and loving way.
My thoughts are with you.
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Post by crazylady on May 31, 2011 14:34:01 GMT -5
I agree with kristin you are not giving up on her you are giving her the greatest gift of love any ferret mom can the freedom from pain the decision is never easy and as heather has said you always tear yourself to pieces thinking what if if only I had .... but you know what you have done it all and for that your baby will be thankful who knows how many extra years she has had thanks to you and your love and care when she does leave I promise you this she will return to you in your dreams happy healthy and dooking again they always do they never leave the hearts of those they loved or who loved them keeping you in my thoughts take care bye for now Bev aka crazy lady
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Post by shilohismygirl on May 31, 2011 14:59:08 GMT -5
I've never been in your position, not yet. But I just wanted to say I am thinking of you and Mimosa. She knows you aren't giving up on her, that I do know. I will have you both in my thoughts, and just know that you're an awesome ferret mom.
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Post by Heather on May 31, 2011 15:53:24 GMT -5
Never consider the final gift "giving up". Of all the things I do on here, these are the hardest. I ask only one thing, don't do the surgery. For the sake of your little one don't go there. I have no right to ask this of you but if you're thinking in the back of your mind that this might be the gift chances are it's not. Adrenal is strange...it doesn't really kill, not in the total sense. Usually, its other things that cause the problem. It destroys a ferret little piece by little piece. Sometimes imperceptibly. One thing to consider and I hate using this but when the lupron stops working, and the des implants won't work and the pred is no longer balancing her blood sugar....then there is something going on far deeper than the diseases that you know about. Look to your little one, she will know....as my Pooka did. I still think she stuck around for the des implant just to humour me. I think we were about 4 maybe 5 weeks into the implant. Her underlying issue was ulcers....I just couldn't get ahead of them. I was hoping with the des.....it didn't happen. One Sat afternoon, she stopped eating. She hadn't eaten on her own in months, but was content to sit on my lap with her paws on the table while I fed her from a spoon. On the Thurs she decided she didn't want her baby mush and I started syringe feeding her. She accepted that as she always did. I wrapped her up (I never had to force her or burrito wrap her, she would just lie like a baby in my arms and drink from the syringe) I started her back on her ulcer meds knowing this was the first sign. This time it wasn't to be. Sat evening she refused to eat anything, she wouldn't swallow. A ferret can't go long like that. She finally took some fluids but refused any food. Mostly, we sat and snuggled....I answered posts and she slept in my lap or on the computer desk. Sunday, before I went to work, she refused her meds....I told her fine. Tomorrow we would go for a drive, that I understood she was tired and I would do what I must. I promised I wouldn't fight her any more. When I came home from work, I went straight to her room....she was cold, ice cold, stiff....but she still breathed. I picked her up, grabbed a blanket and wrapped her in it. She snuggled against me...gave a funny hickup and a sigh....and then she was gone. I sat in the middle of the ferret room on the floor for the longest time.....doing the horrible "what ifs"....what if I had taken her to emerg on Sat....what if I had pushed fluids.....what if....there were no what ifs. She had chosen her time. She was tired of being a pin cushion, tired of not being a ferret. In the end, it was cancer that took her, the lessions on her bowel...that was it. According to the vet, very fast, if I had come in even a few minutes later, I wouldn't have held her as she went. I think she held on just for that moment, to say goodbye. The responsibility we take when we decide to keep one of these little ones is great. They rarely leave of their own accord, I've only had a few. No one here will ever tell you that you didn't do enough. We've all been there, and those that haven't dread being there. They know that their time will come too, when they stand in your shoes. If your little one can no longer raise her head and be a ferret, can no longer do the dance of joy, no longer open her eyes with happiness to the upcoming day....sleeps to avoid life....then perhaps it's time This is your final gift of love to her....no you're not giving up on her, you're giving .... to...her. ciao
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