the phone call you never want, ever
Jul. 19th, 2013 10:13 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
chanter1944I had a call from my mother tonight.
Some time in the last day and a half, Bosco (the dog in the icon) injured his left knee pretty severely. He's not putting much weight on it, only walking very short distances from time to time, and reacting to being touched in that area like ow, darnit, that hurts. They're carrying him in and out of the house when he needs to be relieved, and he can stand up to do that, but he isn't walking around much otherwise. A vet visit showed at least one, if not two badly damaged tendons in his knee.
There are three options: Surgery with a recovery time of four to six months, surgery with a recovery time of four to six weeks, and... the option no one ever wants to consider, but has to. The first surgery would just be torturous for the poor old man. The second isn't guaranteed either; he's twelve and creakity. He's been getting progressively wobblier for a while now. I don't want him to suffer, ever, but I also don't want to just say oh, that's it then, and give up on him. I asked my mother if he was giving them the look, the look that says make this stop, please, and she said no, but that he also seemed sad. He's himself, as in still waggy, still friendly and people-lovey, but he's also not himself.
She said I don't need to make any decisions tonight. I can't make a decision like this in a night, or over the phone. I need to be there. I'll be calling them again tomorrow, seeing how things progress or don't.
I don't want him to suffer, but he's my dog! We've had our share of major ups and downs, and now they're all coming back to me so excuse me while I get a towering case of the guilts, but I adore the fuzzball. I need to be there, whatever the outcome.
How the hell am I going to enjoy anything this weekend without feeling horribly guilty about doing so?
Some time in the last day and a half, Bosco (the dog in the icon) injured his left knee pretty severely. He's not putting much weight on it, only walking very short distances from time to time, and reacting to being touched in that area like ow, darnit, that hurts. They're carrying him in and out of the house when he needs to be relieved, and he can stand up to do that, but he isn't walking around much otherwise. A vet visit showed at least one, if not two badly damaged tendons in his knee.
There are three options: Surgery with a recovery time of four to six months, surgery with a recovery time of four to six weeks, and... the option no one ever wants to consider, but has to. The first surgery would just be torturous for the poor old man. The second isn't guaranteed either; he's twelve and creakity. He's been getting progressively wobblier for a while now. I don't want him to suffer, ever, but I also don't want to just say oh, that's it then, and give up on him. I asked my mother if he was giving them the look, the look that says make this stop, please, and she said no, but that he also seemed sad. He's himself, as in still waggy, still friendly and people-lovey, but he's also not himself.
She said I don't need to make any decisions tonight. I can't make a decision like this in a night, or over the phone. I need to be there. I'll be calling them again tomorrow, seeing how things progress or don't.
I don't want him to suffer, but he's my dog! We've had our share of major ups and downs, and now they're all coming back to me so excuse me while I get a towering case of the guilts, but I adore the fuzzball. I need to be there, whatever the outcome.
How the hell am I going to enjoy anything this weekend without feeling horribly guilty about doing so?
no subject
Date: 2013-07-20 03:46 am (UTC)For now you need to take care of yourself. You can't do anything now and worrying won't help him. Cry, drink tea, listen to music, acknowledge how you're feeling and then on Monday, give him hugs and figure out the next step.