My puppy died from illness. How to cope with guilt and grief?

I am terribly sorry to hear about your loss, I can only imagine how heartbroken you are. I advise to neuter pets all the time, and it is the right decision to take because it saves them a lot of suffering as they get older. Don't blame it on yourself, you just chose the best for him and he knows it. Dogs are very very special and they sense everything, he knows he was very loved and that's why you all miss him so much. The pain will not go away, will change over the course of time. In my case spending time outside, walking, embracing my family helped me gradually feel better, which felt impossible in the beginning. I know it feels impossible now, but give yourself time. Sending you love from the other side of the world.

I'm so sorry you had to say goodbye to Odis! He was a handsome boy. It's never easy to have to say goodbye to a beloved pet, but it did sound like he was quite sick. By letting him go, you took away his pain and discomfort, which is a great gift. He's at peace now, no long suffering, and you should know you did the right thing for him. I'm sure he loved you, and try to remember all the good times you had with it. It's so painful now, but over time, the pain will ease. You will always love him and miss him, but keep the memories of him close with you. I hope this helps.

I am so sorry to hear about Scooby. You did everything you could do, he was just too sick. You might find it helpful to write him a letter- it has been very therapeutic for me in the past. I hope his memory keeps you smiling for many years to come. Thinking of you. Take care.

I am sorry to hear of your loss, it is a very difficult time to lose a pet as even as time passes, memories are brought back by many triggers. I would also have agreed that euthanasia was a valid and kindest option given the symptoms of such severe weight loss of more than a quarter of his body weight, bleeding into the bowel and likely the chest given the pink fluid and black stool and the failure to respond adequately to steroids. Please do not feel guilty for allowing him to go with some dignity, quality of life has to be much more important than quantity for our pets and often allowing them to go is the bravest and kindest treatment we can offer in debilitating conditions

I'm so sorry to hear about the loss of your dog! I know how hard it is to have a pet pass away suddenly like this, without any warning. From what you're describing here, I would be suspicious of a sudden cardiac arrhythmia, or a tumor in his heart or abdomen that may have ruptured suddenly - both of these are relatively common causes of sudden death in middle-aged or older large-breed dogs. With either of these problems, there is usually nothing anyone can do - even if it happened in the lobby of your vet's office and they were able to start working on him immediately, it's unlikely that this would have made any difference at all. So try not to feel guilty. It sounds like you did the best you could, and I don't believe it would have changed the outcome even if you had left immediately for the vet's office. Again, I'm very sorry for your loss. If you think it would help you to have piece of mind, you could ask your veterinarian about arranging for an autopsy to be done (called a necropsy in animals). This would be the best way to determine what the cause of death was.

I personally know how it is to lose a dog and I really feel sorry for your loss. At work I come across some owners that blame themselves for their pets' health problems. This really should not be the case for Rain as she did not die because of herbicides or fertilizer. Grieving is a mental process that is very hard but this is the only way to move on. It is good that you will remember her as a fun and happy dog as she must have been like that for her entire life.

Head pressing is often a sign of very severe brain or other disease, and common in-house diagnostics may not tell us what is going on. Ally may have needed advanced diagnostics such as MRI or CT to look at what is going on inside her skull. These types of diagnostics require the pet to undergo general anesthesia, which she may not have been a good candidate for. Making the decision to put a precious pet to sleep can be very hard and traumatizing. We just get so close to them, it can be very similar to losing a human loved one. I would recommend seeking out a therapist or someone whom you feel comfortable talking with. You may also look for a pet loss help group in your area. Please take care of yourself during this difficult time of transition, and reach out to someone if you can. Here is a website that may help you find comfort: http://www.petlosshelp.org/