30 Of The Most Entertaining ‘It Doesn’t Work Like That’ Stories, Told By Professionals In This Online Community

I worked at a home for sick old people and at the end of their lives they were in palliative care (close to dying often almost in an almost comatose state). The nurses used to give them 'too much' morphine to make their suffering shorter. They died with no pain. Totally okay for all of us and probably them aswell

My grandma was very mentally ill. In fact, she ultimately died of sepsis after getting a urinary tract infection she refused to go to the hospital for. Her excuse for not taking her medication was how addictive many were. Ultimately, it cost her her life. I know many young people who are the same with their mental health medication. They start to feel better and they stop taking their medication, despite the fact the reason they feel better is their medication.

Thank you! Those patients that are given pain relief on demand use much less than those who get by the timed dosage.

My ex-husband is in palliative care and is dealing with this from the doctors. He is not on death's door but he does have terminal cancer and no colon. Because of a procedure he doesn't have a stoma, but the trade off is he is a lot of pain every time he goes to the bathroom and of course the pain from chemo, etc. For the first time since he lost his colon he is not in agony every time he goes into a bathroom and they shame him for it.

Thank you as well.

That's nice dear, but did you even read the post? Your comment reads as virtue signalling but doesn't address the point at all.

Everyone handles grieving differently or at their own pace. Just because someone is ready to go doesn’t mean you are in a place to accept it. I have a friend that did not go to her own young son’s funeral because she wasn’t ready to accept the loss nor did she want to remember her son in that way everyone had something to say same here pets are dearly loved if someone doesn’t want to remember them as dying don’t judge.

They most certainly would not ask you to remain for a surgical procedure. No one stays with their pet while they're, say, getting neutered. OP is saying the dog doesn't know the difference between getting sedating before being neutered and getting sedated before euthanasia.

The main point of the post is, some people are so averse to being present during euthanasia that they *don't* have a suffering animal euthanized, for fear that they would have to be present. Obviously your way is the best, but the *second best* is to decide for euthanasia without being present yourself. If people are too insistent on the "be present" part, the main idea - that pets get to die with minimum suffering - gets lost. Being present is an extra, not the purpose of euthanasia.

I was present for my beloved dog's euthanasia. That is entirely beside the point. Having done it now, I know that the vets and vet techs are super kind and very calm, which is the energy your dog needs. Don't go back with them if you can't bring that calm loving energy. Everyone out there who has a pet, if your dog becomes terminally ill, do not hesitate to schedule this and drop them off if that is what you need to do. No need to feel guilty. Say goodbye before you leave. The sedative is fast. Once it sets in, it is a split second from the euthanizing drug being inserted into the line and their heart stopping. My sweet girl never jumped or anything. It was extremely peaceful. She would have had basically the same experience with or without me because she was seriously ill and in a lot of pain.

If you're able, take them home one last night. That was my biggest regret. She wasn't old, and honestly I thought she might be pregnant. In reality, she was bleeding internally from some unknown injury. I had absolutely no clue I would have to put her down that day. They asked if I'd like to take her home one last time and I said no because I thought she would be even more scared if we left and came back. Now I regret that so much. I wish I could have shown her just one more night how much we loved and cherished her.

I agree but that is my personal decision as well, and I know that was all you were stating. I am a lic vet nurse and yes, some are comforted by their owners but we try and take that place. Some are so far along that reality isn’t there for them anymore. We as veterinary professional do love them like you do so we whisper sweet nothings in their ears as they say hearing is the last to go. We pet them and love on them as you would. They still are a life and therefore are precious. Just be sure the professional will do it as soon as possible, as the thought of them sitting alone in a cage is heartbreaking. To be sure it’s handled as soon as you step out stay with your baby until it’s about to proceed then step out. If it was made as a drop off the Vet may have appointments first and your pet is taken to a cage to wait for more time, unless in distress. But if mentally you can’t be there, we will step in for you. Not all vets sedate prior, that’s a choice. Unless aggressive not necessary either. Whatever you choose don’t ever let them suffer for your selfish reasons.

Yes,I had to put my dear Oscar Meyer to sleep, it was a horribly difficult decision, but I loved him too much to let him starve to death. I was with him when he went, so he wasn't alone.

Had to put my 21 year old cat down as she could no longer move on her own. See want wasn't even able to barely eat (had to novwr her head to food or water )or even vacuate. Ahe was next ti me for like 3days and nothing came out. Maybe if i had the money to have her looked at years before or even when she started limping badly who knows but she always insisted on laying next to me. I miss my fallen kitties. My previous cat was fine until he was breathing weird then dead on the same day. Gd it. Now I'm crying

When my cat was no longer enjoying life, we found a vet that would do a home visit. All of us were in agreement that there was NO WAY we were going to subject her to the carrier-car-vet torture in her final hours. Look into that when the time approaches. It cost less than $200 and was worth every penny. She died in her own home after a lounge in the sun.

And then there's situations like my mom when we had to euthanize her service dog when I was a child. My mom was so upset they asked her to leave the room because the dog was sensing her stress and discomfort and was unable to calm down because of it. Not everyone's story is the same and humans shouldn't bash other humans just because their stories aren't the same.

Hopefully you haven't been in the situation before it can be extremely hard, especially if people are emotionally sensitive. I am pretty hardy but had to put one of my dogs down unexpectedly. She had issues with the medicine, convulsed and had a bunch of issues during the process. Had to go back 3x for more medicine. Wasn't easy.

I've had to euthanize two pets because of painful, terminal illness, and it was painful. I wanted to squeeze out the last few seconds I could be with them. But has anyone ever taken their pet to a groomer? I took one of said pets to the groomer (years before she had to be euthanized), and the groomer requested my mom and I leave. It was a bit troublesome, as the appointment time was too short to drive elsewhere to finish errands and come back, and too long to just brouse the pet supplies or other stores at the strip mall. The reason why the groomer, like most do, requested the owners to leave is because in their experience, pets become more anxious before and during sessions when the owners are present. Just Google "why groomers ask owners to leave." The first search result is even titled "Why Your Dog's Groomer Wishes You Would Just Leave Already."

A lot of the posts here are making me very sad. Do people really abandon their furry family member in their final moments?? Holding my dog while he died was the hardest thing I've ever done, but he always gave me his all, how could I *not* be there to comfort him and confirm how much he's loved in his final moments?

Dogs especially pick up on your emotional state. If you are anxious about having to take your dog to the vet, your dog will likely be anxious as well. It's understandable if a dog had a previous bad experience with a vet visit; but otherwise, how would they know? It's you.

Yes, it's painful & sad. Man up/put yr big girl panties on-life & death happen. That dog would give his life for me. The least l can do is be with him on that last trip.

Me too, but if the owner can't face it, I understand. Better they admit it rather than let the pet suffer.

Mine are fine because I dont make a big deal Of the trips

That's nothing to do with the post

Unfortunately, not everyone has your strength.

Good. For you.

I doubt you read the post, however for those of you who need it, I find it easier to stay with them. Also let me tell you, despite my Great Dane not getting up, he felt zero pain and lived his best life. We thought he’d never walk again. And then we made steam for dinner and I swear it’s like god revived him.at no point in their lives do they fell miserable either with the medication, and using neurological research they’re @ ease when being put down. Trust ke, as much as you think they’re in pain, they’re not. I know half of this the above post doesn’t talk about but I just wanted to get my point across

What an absolute b***h! The poor person already had to deal with making that difficult decision, she just showed how uncaring and cruel she was.

Carrying extra weight on your body is physically demanding and it takes more exertion for every movement. Chances are that the joints and spine will degenerate painfully. Having lived with a hard working mother who had morbid obesity, I can testify that her life was a daily struggle and triumph over her body ;you can't be obese and independent while also being "lazy". In many cases, obesity should be regarded as a mental health issue. Like many addictions, people don't actively choose to compromise their health but anxiety, stress and being overwhelmed by modern living can be mentally taxing. I've never met a person who doesn't have some way to sedate their own emotions whether it be food, drink, sex, drugs, adrenaline junkies. Just be glad if your distractions in life don't compromise your health.

As a person who takes meds with the almost guaranteed side effect of weight gain.....God it is such a pain to do everything right and still get fatter

Plus our food it just pumped full of sugar & fat these days and we're bombarded with adverts for junk food at a young age. If I have a bad day I eat rubbish, yes I know it is terrible for me but looking at other people's vices/coping mechanisms of drink/drugs/smoking/violence- there are worse social crimes!

Exactly. I am so glad that there are people here who are able to understand. I mean, I'm big because of genetics, and yet I still go to the gym, and try to be active, and do all these things, because I'm not lazy. Thanks for saying this.

Oh my God, I am so dumb. I saw "messed up metabolism due to ED", and I was like.... what does erectile dysfunction have to do with..... ohhhh, never mind, I got it now.

Yeah I am overweight, I guess obese, not for lack of trying, I have two bad hips that makes it so I cannot move around, I try to eat right but since I can't exercise it really doesn't help at all.

My mom is obese and she gets very upset sometimes because she can't exercise the way she wants to due to spinal issues and it truly breaks my heart.

You should not judge people ever because you aren't them. It's so easy for *beautiful* people to judge & put down those who are skinny, fat, plain, clueless or poorer. The Pandemic taught us that no one, no one is exempt from suffering in any form. At any time in your life.

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What if i notice you and think 'poor victim of a broken society' instead? There's a reason obesity is way more prevalent in mostly unchecked US capitalism than over here in the EU.

Turn it off and on again!

That's actually a very good explanation to the purpose of a defibrillator. Now, if we could just get you to be a consultant on every* medical drama and soap opera..

I usually explain it by comparing it to smacking a TV that has a bad picture. If the TV isn't on, smacking isn't going to do anything (except hurt your hand). However, most of my students no longer have the rabbit ear/cr tube TV frame of reference.☹️

Not only do you know your stuff, you write well in explaining it. Bravo and thanks! I learned something.

Not heart stoppy please don't use those words. It does scare people. I'd like people to use these machines. If they think that this is heart stoppy, it's not okay. It resets the heart. I do compressions to keep the heart pumping blood it needs to organs and coronary vessels. No heart stoppy please, poor use in words to the public

If I understand, which I may not, but I want to get into medicine, a cpr takes a slow heart rate, stops it, and allows for us to give it a new heartbeat. Therefore, aren’t we just giving them a better beat?