Izzy in Playhouse
Izzy playing in the playhouse
Rick and I are saddened to tell you that we had Izzy put down last week after she attacked Telly once again. We are devastated to not have been able to solve this problem. Euthanasia was our last resort. When Izzy got very, very excited, it was like an atomic bomb of adrenaline going off in her brain. She did not know what to do with all that adrenaline so she attacked another dog. When it was all over, she was so ashamed and we were at a loss as to what to do. We forgave her time and time again because we loved her.
On the first day of camp last week, it happened again and Rick and I tried to think of anything we could to avoid such drastic measures. But that night God spoke to me in a very vivid dream…and I listened. I saw Izzy attacking a small child at the end of our sidewalk! We could no longer avoid the obvious solution. Our hearts are broken but better our hearts than someone’s child’s life.
The dynamics of our family have changed – we are all adjusting and we buried Izzy’s ashes in our pet cemetery behind the house. We will always wonder what went wrong with Izzy. We will never know for sure but doing the right thing is not always the easiest thing. We loved Izzy and we are saddened by her loss. Since I talk about our dogs so much, it was only right that I told you and explained the whole situation. In due time there will be another dog who needs us but for now we are grieving the loss of our beloved dog.
Mary
Sorry about Izzy. An uncontrollable dog is dangerous to everybody. Maybe she was too inbred. You did the right thing.
Your mind told you to do the right thing, but your heart is torn between knowing it was right and feeling like it was wrong. Take comfort in knowing that you gave Izzy something no one else would or could. A great home for as long as possible. I’m glad you trusted your instinct-as heartwrenching as it is. You may never know the ‘why’ but with time will find a way to understand what you couldn’t change.
Michelle – could Bentley come and play with Telly to cheer her up?
Sooo sorry I feel for you. But you are right in doing the right thing, as hard as it may be. Thinking of you
My heart breaks for you all but know in your heart that you did the right thing. Just look back and know that the life she had with you was wonderful to her and all the love that you shared. Remeber RAINBOW BRIDGE!!! You will be together again.
Im so sorry. I know how this can be. We are facing the same situation in our home. We have 3 dogs ans all are well loved and cared for. But recently one of them has become very aggt essive wi th the doberman mu bog dog ans he is always hodong now. My heart breaks foe my Jake bit it has come t o the point were we need to do the right thing before someone gets hurt. Ita very sad. Thonking of you.
You were so right, any dog bite is traumatic. When the trust in your animal is gone, it’s time to do the right thing. I know its very hard, but it probably wasn’t easy on Izzy either. Take care,
So sorry for your loss. Little bit of your heart dies each time you lose a pet. We are going to have to do that again soon. Our 18 yr old shiatsu mix is having hind leg issues. It is so sad to watch. Love to you.
I am so sorry, Mary!!!!! Izzy was blessed to have lived in your special home—God Bless……
this can be one of the most difficult decisions one can make, we had a wonderful cat for 18 yrs when it was his turn to leave we made a celebration of his life with us..I grieved for a year or more. Now we have 2 other cats to love and worry about knowing that day will come again for them and we shall miss them just as we did and still do our Fritzie.. thanks Mary for sharing your sadness..
Everyone will miss Izzy and all the things she got up to. No one will miss her like you all do. My deep sympathy is with you.
Love to you and yours
Oh Mary! So sorry. This had to be so hard to do. My heart goes out to you. Take care
Jackie B.
Oh, I am so very sorry for the loss of your Izzy! My thoughts and prayers are with you and your husband! It is truely losing one of your family!
My heart goes out to you. My sympathy to you both. Doing the right thing is never easy, especially when it involves your beloved pets. Izzy is running and playing with all the other dogs now, over the rainbow bridge.
So sorry for your loss. She’s playing at the Rainbow Bridge now and you will meet again someday.
I’m so sorry. It is never easy to lose a pet for any reason. This one was especially hard.
Oh Mary, My heart breaks for you! Losing Izzy is heartbreaking but you have to know, you did the right thing. My thoughts & prayers are with you.
I applaud your courage to do the right thing for Izzy…she tried to do be what her pack leaders wanted but was unable to control her emotions
Midge H
It’s always hard to lose an animal, but it also helps when you know you did what was right for both human and animal. I’ve lost several cats over the years and still miss them like crazy.
How heartbreaking 🙁 I hope maybe the vet that euthanized her had some possible reasons for this? For whatever the reason I cannot imagine making such a touch decision.
I’m so sorry for your loss of Izzy, our pets are family……but, yes, you did the right thing, if a person had been attacked, that would be unbearable. Another thought, maybe she had a tumor or disease that caused her actions…… You and your family are in my prayers.
Sorry to hear of your loss,I know it was a hard decision to make,but it was the only one to make for everyones safety.
Mary, My heart is broken for you and Rick. I had to do the same thing once with our St. Bernard. He attacked any dog he could see and one day he DID try to attack a child(fortunately he was on his choker leash). That was the last straw for us. It is still hard to deal with but we know it was the best for all concerned. Hugs and prayers, Sandy
So sorry to hear of your loss. As hard as it was, you made the best decision.
So sad to hear about izzy. You did the right thing. Dogs can have changes in their behaviour beyond what we as owners can control. So sorry. Lee
Oh Mary and Rick, my heart goes out to you. You did the right, but very difficult, thing. Our son had a beautiful dog that became difficult in the same way. The vet called it Rage Syndrom and said the dog had to be put down. We also had a dog that had glacoma and we had to leave him at the vet because he went from being a wonderful family dog to snapping when anyone came near him. These are times when we wish our dogs could talk to us and tell us where it hurts! God bless.
Oh my dear Mary, I am so sorry for your loss and your very difficult decision. But you did the right thing to listen to God’s voice. My heart goes out to you and Rick as you grieve for your precious Izzy.
Again, you did the right thing, for everyone’s sake.
Keeping you and Rick in my prayers,
Bonnie in Oregon
I had a similar situation and could have found a new home, but would have always questioned my decision. To not bring heartache to someone else – I too put my beloved dog down.
May time heal your broken heart!!
Hugs!
~Ann in Minnesota
It’s not always easy as trainers to be able to see what sets off a dogs aggressive drive. It might be obvious, it might be something that happened to her that you don’t know anything about. While training and socialization works wonders, sometimes as the pack leader you have to make a tough choice and God seemed to help with that. Hopefully he will give you His peace too. So sorry, I just experienced it 2 days before last Christmas I know how hard it is.
I am so sorry for the two of you – my heart is sad. Izzy was such a cool dog and always greeted me when I came to visit. I know Izzy could smell cat on me – maybe that is why I am always so popular at your place. Please take care.
I am so sorry. I know it wasn’t an easy decision to make but you did the right thing. Take comfort in the fact that Izzy had a loving home with you and Rick.
I am sorry about Izzy. The why of something always makes it harder! I guess that’s how we build our faith. When we don’t know why we have to trust there is a reason in spite of our inability to know what it is. As others have said Izzy is no longer in pain or feeling badly because she knows she is behaving in a way she doesn’t want to. God spoke to you and you listened. There are blessings in that!
I’m so sorry. Absolutely, you would have felt terrible if someone’s child had been hurt. But it was clearly a difficult decision. Thinking of you.
So sorry about Izzy, I am a big dog lover and we have had to give up on several of our dogs due to age or illness. It is the hardest thing in the world to do, they are like your children. Know that you will see her again at the Rainbow Bridge.
Just wanted to let you know I have been thinking about you all morning. We had a similar situation and our dog bit both my husband and our college age son. We had the same image of her doing that to a child and could no longer live with it.
We loved our Molly and we still treasure her memory but all of us are at peace with that decision.
So sorry Mary and Rick. Doing what is right is not always easy. You did the right thing. Better to be grieving for the loss of your beloved Izzy than worrying and being afraid she will hurt someones child. Thinking of you. God bless.
Mary,
So sorry you had to make this tough decision. It sounds like it was the right one…better now than have a more serious attack. Our pets are our family so it is so hard.
I will be praying for both of you. So many wonderful little furry friends come your way, I’m sure another will show up…not to take Izzy’s place but will fill the void.
HUGS to both of you!
OOPS! I spelled my name wrong!! : )
Now it doesn’t look like my original post is even there??
I am so sorry you had to put Izzy down. It sounds like it was the right decision. Better than having a more serious thing happen.
You have so many wonderful little furry friends appear…’someone’ else will come to find a loving home…not to take Izzy’s place but to help fill the void.
HUGS to both of you from Montana.
My heart goes out to you…..what a difficult decision that must have been but you surely did the right thing….altho that doesn’t ever make it easier. Bless your heart for loving her and for trying so hard!
Mary and Rick,
Please know I am keeping you in my thoughts and prayers. Being a responsible pet owner is so difficult at times, and yet our animals enrich our lives so much. I am curious, “How is Telly after this ordeal?” Take care.
Mary and Rick, I am so sorry for your loss 🙁
I am so sorry that you had to go through this. We all know how much you love you furry members of your family, I can’t imagine how difficult it was to make that decision. My thoughts are with you.
I can feel your broken heart. I’m so very sorry for the both of you. What a courageous decision you made. Feel confident that you absolutely made the correct decision.
My heart is breaking for you. It is a difficult decision anytime, but under these circumstances, horrible. My deepest sympathy.
It is never easy to lose someone you love!!! You did the right thing! My thoughts & prayers are with you!
Dear Mary my heart aches and breaks for you and Rick. You gave Izzy a wonderful life as long as it was possible. And you were open to God’s instruction when it came. As you said so well, doing the right thing is not always the easiest thing. Izzy is at Rainbow Bridge now playing with Janie and all her companions there. God bless!
So sad, for Izzy and for all of you, but there was a reason you had that dream, but now Izzy is in doggie heaven and being the dog she was suppose to be…so very sorry for you loss, no matter what the reason, it is so hard to lose our four legged friends… :-{
so sorry to hear this but you did the right thing and remember the ” bridge”. we’re thinking of you at this awful time.
Mary and Rick,
I’m so sorry for your loss! She was a wonderful dog and I’ll always remember her carrying around a stuffed animal. The Izzy I’ll keep in my heart was a real lover……I’ll think of her wet nose waking me up in the morning when we were pet-sitting.
I am so sorry about Izzy. I went through the same thing with my Cocker Spaniel, Dexter. He injured his back jumping off the deck onto some ice. He was taking pain pills but still had trouble walking. He was really aggresive on the pills. He went after my husband one evening while being petted. We had to have him put down for the sake of our very small grandchildren. Dexter couldn’t be trusted. My heart was broken as I held him while he went to his eternal sleep. Again, I am so sorry about Izzy. You and Rick will be in my prayers. God bless you for doing the right thing even if it feels wrong.
It’s always reassuring to hear someone else’s story and I appreciate hearing about Dexter. My sympathies to you, too.
hi Izzy and Rick
I do feel your loss, we had the same experience with one of
our dogs, just last weekend! that was one of the hardest
things to do in my life!
may you find the strength to overcome your grief
love
rina
Tina – my sympathies to you, too. Do you have other dogs?
Mary
So sorry for your loss but you have so much to gain as all of us when we have loss but it does bring joy like a rainbow have the storm May God continue to bless and keep you all save Marilyn
I am SO sorry about your emotions involving Izzy! Everyone says it is the right decision, which it was, but it doesn’t help the heart inside of you. I still think of my beloved little Shamrock (cocker spaniel), as we had to make the same decision you did when she began snapping at my grandchildren. Her love is still in my heart, and Izzy’s will always be with you. You gave Izzy the best life a dog could have ever anticipated, and I know she enjoyed the country life with you. My sympathy as you feel your way through this!
It was probably a genetic defect called, appropriately enough, Rage. It is well documented in many different spaniel breeds, but it can occur in other breeds too and mixed breeds.
You did the right thing putting her down, there is nothing that can be done for a dog with rage.