I killed my dogs with love and ignorance.

[magicre]

today, nichi died.

she died because we were ignorant.

she was thirteen and a half years old...a shih tzu bundle of joy....whom we let live with honey's mom to keep her from being lonely....she is the fourth of four shih tzus who never lived to be older than 13 1/2

maybe other dogs of her breed live longer; and, actually many do....

leading up to this was nichi had stopped eating a few months ago. this was a poop eater with horrid teeth and we knew not enough about nutrition, never heard of tom lonsdale and thought we were doing the best we could do.

we extended her life because we put her on home cooking...but even that was wrong because it still had carbs and grains.

when we took malia and bubba to the vet on saturday, their teeth were pronounced magnificent..vet's words, not mine.....even though we were told last year that bubba would need to have a dental this year because he has those smushy faced teeth....and he was, in september, a kibble fed dog.

nichi was always a kibble dog....no matter how many dentals she got, her breath, her teeth were skanky.....when she stopped eating, i put her on home cooked, but even then i included 25% grain and veggies....she perked up for about six months until i got the call this morning.

she had not eaten in four days, no poop, no pee, lethargic...

i brought her here and took one look and knew.....

we took her to the vet today..and he looked at her teeth....they were horrid....

we asked if pulling all of them would save her, and the vet couldn't be sure she would make it through surgery...

we opted to let her join bandit, yoshi, and kimba...all of whom have died within the last two years....been a rough year for shih tzus...

i am now firmly convinced that raw is the only way to feed dogs and the proof is in the dentition of my pug and the proof is in the dentition of the beautiful little 8 lb girl we put to sleep today...

while his teeth got better and his overal health makes him magnificent....nichi, with all of my love, mom's care.....did not keep her alive.

so i say this now...

i will never go back to kibble. i will never feed home cooked again.

from now forward, my dogs will all be on raw and nichi, bandit and kimba, along with all those who came before you...i am so sorry....

[BabyHusky]

i'm so sorry. losing a family member is the absolute worse. theres really nothing to say except that we're all here for you.

[MollyWoppy]

Oh, that just totally sucks to lose a pup, I'm so sorry. You did the best you could with the knowledge you had at the time. My heart goes out to you.

[magicre]

Oh, that just totally sucks to lose a pup, I'm so sorry. You did the best you could with the knowledge you had at the time. My heart goes out to you.

forgive me if i beat myself up a little here....i didn't even look...

i put more time in researching my cars and televisions than i did my dogs' nutrition.....

ya know that song...killing me softly...well, that's what i did with my four shih tzus who all died too soon.....in two years...maybe it's just too many dogs dying too soon, i don't know.....

but the what if is eating at me today....i'll get past it...for there's nothing to do about it now.....except learn from it..

still....

[MollyWoppy]

You just did what a lot of us are guilty of, even though we had the best intentions at the time. I was absolutely gutted when each of my old dogs died, but, looking back, the mistakes I made taught me valuable lessons on how to take better care of the next pup in my life.
Losing one dog every 14 years was enough for me, I can't imagine how hard it must be to lose so many dogs in such a short time.

[redspoo]

Magicre, there are no words that will bring you comfort. I can only say
that many of us share your pain. Time will help heal you. Grieve your
loss.

[yuffie]

aw i'm so sorry for your loss, it's so hard to lose a beloved pet just from experience, don't dwell on the guilt you feel because i know you did what was best for your dogs with what you knew, and your dog was loved which is the most important thing, and is more than a lot of other unlucky dogs get in life.

<3

[DaneMama]

Every single one of your beloved pets was treasured and loved beyond their capacity to know. Despite the information you didn't know existed, the fact that rhey were cherished and loved doesn't change. And in the end that is what matters. The fact that you gave it the best you could with the knowledge you had. Instead of beating yourself up about it, take a step back and remember the good times and happy memories, and take the knowledge you have now through life always. Find peace as you remember all of them.

[luvMyBRT]

I am so sorry to hear about this. Don't be too hard on yourself. Know that your not alone in how you are feeling. The loss of a beloved pet is the loss of a loved family member...... ((hugs))

[LabbieMama]

Godspeed, Nichi.

I'm very sorry for your loss, magicre.