need so advise on cancer

Hi everyone,
I am looking for some words of wisdom,or any advise on how to get through this horrible time for me.
I Have a pure gentleman in my house his name is Harvey, he is a 12 year old Golden Retriver, he has been my dearest friend for 12 years, he has been through a lot with me, marriage break-ups, moving house, tears of sadness, He has grown up with my two children,we all love him so so much.
I took him to the vet's last week, he was very unwell you could tell, he could not be bothered to move ,and was not eating, his breathing was really bad, the vet took blood tests and them phoned me with the news, Harvey he suspected has Cancer of the Imune system.He has given me steriods to make him feal better which they have but i no it is just short term, as he is not going to get better.
I am finding it really hard to deal with, the vet said it is up to me to find the right time for Harvey to go,But i dont think i can make that disecion.
Its breaking my heart,how can i decided his fate.

I'm so sorry , when there is no happiness left in his life you will have to let him go . I know how hard this is for your you I had to make the same decision in December and I'm still heart broken

I am sorry to hear about Harvey. I was in the same position 7 years ago and like you our Max had seen us through some very tough times. He had T.Cell Lymphoma and like Harvey was put on steroids as chemo was not going to cure him and so we wouldn't put him through it. Max was 41/2, the steroids kept him going for 8 weeks he started waking us up in the night to sleep outside we did shifts on the sofa with the back door open he started digging up the carpet it was because he was overheating. I must say though we were lucky we really knew the time was right but our Vet helped us make the decision he didn't leave it all to us.

You will know he will let you know he is ready to go you can see it in their eyes and how they start behaving, it will not be easy but it will be the kindest thing you can do for your dear Friend who has shown you so much loyalty and he will thank you for releasing him from his pain.

I know it is going to be hard but you have to be strong.
Sending lots of (((Hugs))). for you and Harvey and your Family. Xx

thank you so so much for your reply, i no lots of people are in the same boat, it just so horrible isn't it.
regards barbara

thanking you for your words of wisdow, i am gunner miss him so much

So sorry to hear your news.. this is always a sad time and making the decisions is one of the hardest we have to make.

But what this also gives you is time to work out how , where and what happens after you have to let him go.

Speak to your vet , ask him if they will come to your home to help him on his way...

Do you want to do a private cremation, do you want to take him to the vet and leave it all to them

It is all worth you thinking about now... as , as always when the time comes , we sometimes do things we may not have done if we had been in a better frame of mind.

My friend lost her girl last yr... the vet came to the house, out her to sleep while she was in her own basket.

Friend also arranged with the pet crem to come to her house to take Maddy... they where very good, took her away in her own bed, and she was back home the next day

Just thought by making you aware , it might help you when the time is right.

thank you so much for your kind words,i no for sure i am going to get harvey cremaded and i would like to have him back home so he is still with me and the family.
very king regards barbara

It's the most horrible thing we have to do as dog owners, but you owe it to your dog to give him the dignity to leave this planet as pain-free as possible. Please do not delay your decision - you must be strong. Rather a day too early, than a minute too late.

x0x

Hi Barbara and welcome to Dogsey

So sorry to hear Harvey is ill. Sadly there comes a time when a dog becomes so ill we can do nothing more to help .
When this time comes all we can do to repay the years of devotion is to make sure our friend isn't in any pain and can still derive some small pleasure from each day.
When this is no longer possible we know what we have to do.

I have lost so many dogs over the years and look back with gratitude at the pleasure and companionship those dogs gave , I know my life would have been the poorer without them .

Barbara , enjoy each day with Harvey and when the time comes for him to leave we will all be here to share your sadness...xx

thank you so much for your words
very kind regards barbara