A sad day for Lulu

[punomatic]

Today our beloved Pogo left us. She has been battling tumors around her eyes for four years. Today we had to put her down. We are relieved that she is out of pain, but very sad that, after 13 1/2 years, she will no longer wake us demanding breakfast or scamper up and down the beach, her favorite hangout.

Now our concern is with Lulu, our 4 1/2 year old Dachshund mix. She seems very confused and sad. It is as if she knows something big has happened but doesn't know how to cope. She has been the alpha dog since she came to us at 7 weeks old, but now she seems lost.

Is there anything we can do to help her through this mourning period? She loves to sit on our laps, and we have encouraged her to do so, but then she will get up and go hide under the bed. I almost get the feeling she is afraid we will do away with her as well.

Any suggestions that may help her get through this loss will be deeply appreciated.

[punomatic]

I love dogs. And I love dog owners. You guys are a real comfort. Lulu is already doing better. Her personality has changed a little. She is not quite as cocky. We had a similar experience to Sher9570: "...she would look at us as though we had killed her best friend."

We are finding that life is simpler without the complex regimen of meds that Pogo was always in need of taking. And we believe that our ability to spend more time focusing on Lulu is helping her.

My brother has a daughter with a disability. When his kids were in school, his son started failing at his school work. A family counselor helped them see that all the attention they gave to Laura and her disability was starving Alex's need for attention, so he was acting out. I guess dogs are the same as kids, in more ways than one.

Thank you all. We knew that you all would understand and have answers. God bless you, every one.

[Deb_and_Ed_M]

Sorry for your loss - and I'm another one who believes that some extra exercise and lots of love/attention help heal everyone's wounds. That goes for humans, too.

I'll toss this in, although I've told the story before:
When we took our elderly Aussie Nick for the Final Vet Visit, younger Aussie Ike searched high and low for him that night - was freaked because we couldn't possibly go to bed until Nick was found, and he needed our help to find him. Seriously - he made us open every stupid door/cabinet/closet in the house. Of course, herding dogs want their "herd together".... It took several days before he gave up the search.

Fast forward many years, and it was Ike's turn for that trip to the Vet - THIS time, to help the younger 2 dogs understand, I brought Ike's collar back home with me, and showed it to the other dogs. I think between my grief and the dogless collar, they grasped that Ike was not going to be back? Jimmy grieved - but there was no searching or agitation.

[murphysranch]

I'm so sad for you and your family, and Lulu too. Time and another pup will heal your hearts.

[Toolguy5]

Sorry for your loss.

[magnusfide]

Prayers for you all. It's never easy.

[sher9570]

My heart goes out to you because we aren't the only ones that suffer a loss.
We lost our beloved Zachery, our Pom...at the time we had a 4 yr old Lab named Lucy.
Well they were best buds and sweet Lucy just adored her little Zachery.
When he passed away we had a terrible time with Lucy, she would look at us as though we had killed her best friend.
They say animals know what's going on but in this case I don't think Lucy had those instincts.
She wouldn't swim or play with her tennis balls...didn't care about her meals, ton walks she just barely moved along with no interest.
I was about a month she started to come around.
It was then we were searching for a new rescue and when Bubba came to live with us she didn't know what to make of him.
Today they are very close but you just have to give Lulu time, lots of love and try to keep her busy.
Good luck, she'll be fine eventually.

Sher

[punomatic]

Thank you all for your input. We are focused on Lulu's well-being, now that Pogo is gone. Your advice is right along the lines of what we have been thinking, so it will be easy to implement. I guess we just needed some reassurance that Lulu will recover from HER loss, just as we surely will recover from ours. Thank you again.

[colliehauler]

Sorry for your loss. Time heals many wounds even for pets. They have to go through their grieving process as well. Long walks and paying a little extra attention to them.

[nineoaks2004]

A few years ago Our Gypsy got ran over by a car and was killed,I picked her up and laid her on the back of the pick up, Sadie was just a pup at the time and they were best buddies, for several weeks Sadie would look into the back of the pick up hoping to see Gypsy but she finally realized that Gypsy was gone for good. We did get a Chihuahua puppy and named her Gypsy and those two got along just fine, even sleeping on the same doggy bed.

[dturm]

Sorry for your loss. Routine and exercise is the best medicine. Animals certainly can and do go through grieving and loss, just as you are. If this goes on for more than a few days, contact your vet. We frequently give medication (anit-anxiety type) on a temporary basis to help get through this tough time.

Again, sorry for your loss.

Doug, DVM