First camping trip turned into a nightmare

[ValMelton]

I am so sorry for your loss. our 4 legged babies are children for sure. Hubby and I have had pets our entire marriage (33 years so far) and it's neer been easy to give our babies their wings. I still miss even the first one we lost. take all the time you need to mourn your baby, hopefully you will find another one sometime that will enjoy camping as well.

[jim r hill]

so sorry for your loss ; have been there our selves;jim@diane

[TinkerToy]

Been through a loss several times, heart-breaking, and, wondered if she/he
could ever be replaced.
Much to our delight the next one does just that, given a little time.
Don't give up, try again
Tinker Toy

[KateE]

I'm so sorry for your pain. The first trip without your fur baby is the hardest, but eventually the good memories will push away the pain.

[Sigmili1973]

I am sorry for your loss, we lost our beloved Niles just a month ago , like you we didn't know what camping would be like without him. Since this whole thing of being a road warrior centered around a special spot in the cab for my buddy to watch the world go by, but then A friend sent me a Dr Zeuss quote that goes like this "don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened " think of how much poorer we would have been without the rich memories of our loved one, thats fur babies and humans, to seal the deal when I was googling for pet hospice this image appeared in the search results.

[D_B Travelers]

I have had many pets mostly dogs, all very special in their own way. The last one was a Sheltie and she was the best, smartest, and most loyal of them all. My daughter's taught her tons of tricks and things she could do; she loved "doing". She also developed a disability in her legs which prevented her from standing on her feet; the ligaments stretched so that they would just turn out and basically she walked on her ankles with her feet just bobbing in front. As she only went outside for the bathroom she was fine on the carpet, albeit pitiful looking as she still wanted to chase a ball. She developed congestive heart failure and we had to have her put down finally at 8 years old. This was so hard on my wive that she doesn't want another pet to say good bye to, it broke her heart. I miss having a dog around, but as we are intending to travel quite a bit, it makes it easier. Note I did not say more enjoyable. After we quit traveling I will pick up another "best friend" from a shelter and we can be stay at home friends.

[zinger60]

It's been very helpful hearing all the wonderful stories of the good times people have had with their pets and how their fur babies have enriched their lives. Things are still difficult being home without Buddy. Everywhere I walk in the house, I can just see him in my mind. You don't know how involved with pets you are until they are gone. I keep looking in the spot where his water bowl was because with the Cushing's Disease, he drank so much so I had to keep an eye on when his bowl was getting empty. I was pounding on something in the kitchen today and just instinctively, I immediately thought he was going to start barking, which he always did because he thought someone was knocking at the door. Just a million different things of him going through my mind all day long. He loved to be anywhere my husband and I were and followed us around everywhere. We have a hammock in the back yard where my husband and I would spend a lot of summer evenings. Buddy dug a big hole right next to the tree so he could lay there right by us. We spent time there together for years. The first time this summer that we went to sit in the hammock about a week before he passed, he did not lay in the hole by us. For the first time, he was stretched out on his side in another part of the yard which was not like him at all. We figured out that whatever was wrong with his back legs or his back, caused him pain or discomfort to be in any position except laying on his side, which he could not do laying in the hole. Right then I knew that things were getting bad or else he would have been right there by us as always. I have second guessed myself these past few days on whether we acted too quickly on putting him to sleep. But the night before we took him to the vet, it just broke my heart to see him trying to stand up and walk and having his legs go out from under him and having him just stare at me like he wanted me to tell him why this was happening to him, why his body was doing this. But there was nothing I could do to help him and that was the worst feeling. Even though we knew he was getting worse, we sure never knew that we would be taking him camping and he wouldn't be coming back with us. It just all happened so fast. I still can't believe he is gone and never coming back.

[Blackhat6mike]

We can all get along if we try. These are my "Babies", both rescue pets. Duke is a C.H. cat that has trouble walking, but he doesn't know he has a problem. Holly, well, we lost Holly to cancer and Duke has not been the same since. Life is so short. Live it well. You just may have to answer for your actions one day.

[Taranwanderer]

Zinger--sorry to hear about Buddy. These posts always make me think about my black lab Zack and my boxer Izzy. Saying goodbye to them has been the two most difficult things I've ever had to do. It was easier saying goodbye to the ex!

I told Turbs this when he lost Toby, and I'll tell you too: we think we train our dogs, but they really train us. Buddy spent the last 6 years teaching you to be a good doggie parent, how to be patient with him, how to listen when he was trying to tell you something, and how to be his steward and caregiver. He also gave you lots of love in addition to all that training, and you certainly returned it. Now that he's gone, he wouldn't want all that training he put into you to go to waste. He'd want you to continue to give your love and heart to another dog in need. It's not replacing him, and he wouldn't think that either. We all need time to mourn our pals when this time comes upon us, in our case it was about 3 weeks after Zack left us that we found Zula, our rescue pittie. In time, you'll only think of him with fondness and you'll laugh at the stuff he'd pull--hopefully while you're telling your new dog, "you're not gonna believe what your older brother used to do..."

You'll know when the time is right. Hang in there.

[Bushbunch]

Originally Posted by howie70

Sorry for your loss. I have had to do thesame myself. The first camping trip without my dog was tough to say the least.I'm sure it’s the farthest thing from your mind right now, but I ended up withanother SPCA rescue mutt who likes to go on our adventures. He didn't "replace" my old dog, he is just carrying on his legacy.

Get another dog and do it as soon as possible. Build new memories.
We LOVE our rescue dog. His name is Howie, btw.

[Kels4g]

I'm so sorry for your loss. We are currently grappling with making the choice for one of our fur-daughters. And it's heartbreaking.