Thank you all for your support. I contacted the vet and complained about the way I felt I had been treated. The practice manager was very understanding, she apologised for the locum, who she said is newly trained and is somewhat nervous still of giving bad news or wrong advice. She agreed to see Selkie in her lunch time. Selkie went in at 12pm and the vet gave her a full exam. She told me all the possible drug options for her dementia, and incontinence. She listened to me and how I felt and agreed that it could only really be about managing her medical conditions and keeping her comfortable, there was nothing we could do to reverse her 15 years of ageing.

Selkie was food obsessed silly stubborn old Selkie to the end. I gave her a piece of chocolate covered shortbread, some prawn crackers and about a dozen mini markies in the waiting room (she always wanted chocolate and clearly thought it was worth the 15 year wait), she had already had a breakfast of half a chicken and two sausages. When we went into the vets office, after checking her over and talking to me about what was wrong and why I wanted her put to sleep. The vet gave her a little sedative to make her sleepy and comfortable, but all it did to selkie was lift the pain away enough that she was a bit brighter than I have seen her for a long time, she actually recognised me, which she hasn't done for months and tried to lick my face, she recognised Mum who had come with me and went over to her for a cuddle, then she pottered round the vet bed in the vets office and rifled through the bin, typical Selkie! The vet came back in and gave selkie some more sedation in the hope we could get her to settle and lie down peacefully for the injection and she left us again. I tried to get her to settle on the bed the vet had put on the floor next to me, but you could tell that the high dose of pain medication and sedative the vet had given her was making her feel high or drunk and naughty, I called her to me where I was sat on the floor and we cuddled while Selkie giggled about the world... then she decided to flump over my lap for a cuddle and the vet came in with the nurse to shave her leg for the final injection. Selkie licked the vets hands and to distract her I offered her the rest of the markies as she was given the injection she excitedly wolfed down three markies and her head just dropped as she went for the forth. she passed peacefully in my arms.

I came home and took Kismet and Pharaoh to the woods for a long walk. Mum and I talked about Selkie's antics in her younger days.

Goodbye my Selkie, My angel, my bear. I don't what I will do without you by my side.

So sorry for your loss, I have been in tears reading this thread. You have been so brave fighting for your friend and what is the right thing to do.

It is hitting home hard for me, as we are currently close to deciding that the end has come for our 14 1/2 yr old, who is in much the same state as Selkie was, health-wise. Stubborn old bird, I have been saying this for the last 10 months - she has fought on, but the time has finally come and we can't see her struggle on any longer.

I truly hope we can be as strong and brave for her as you were for Selkie.

With love and big hugs x