Sibling rivalry

So, I had a case yesterday that really bothered me.

A husband and wife brought in their great pyrenees (7 years old) and their saint bernard (1.5 years old). They were concerned that the pyrenees may have bit the bernard on the head. The owners noticed some crusting on his head Friday. (Yesterday was Tuesday).

The pyrenees had a history of biting. She had bitten three people in the past and had been know to pick up the other 2 (smaller) dogs in the house and shake them. The owners were concerned that this dog did not have a high quality of life, and she was a danger to other people and animals. They were not interested in trying anxiety meds nor did they want to look at placing the dog in a rescue - to see if she would do better in another environment.

They were at the clinic to have the wound on the bernard assessed and to have the pyrenees euthanized.

The owners wanted the bernard to be worked on first. I noticed that at his last visit, he needed to be fully sedated to be examined. I never mind sedating a dog if it makes his experience at the clinic better, so I pulled up the proper dose for a 170lb dog and brought him to the back treatment area. The dog became totally sketchy and was trying to lunge at the face of my 110lb technician. I injected the meds IM and waited for them to kick in - all while treading very lightly around this dog. The dose was not adequate. He would lie down and one step toward him made him spring up, bark and lunge at us.

After an additional 2 injections, and eventually leading the dog back to the exam room at the end of a rabies pole, the owner stated that "She always envisioned him as being a good dog once he got older." That "he was in puppy class and seemed to do pretty well".

Once back in the exam room, (of course) the beast passed out. I was so over him at that moment, that I let the OWNERS start working on shaving the entire top of his puss-covered, crusty head. I then headed to the back to work on the pyrenees...

She was in the back, wagging her tail; I gave her a small sedative - just to take the edge off and we placed an IV catheter with no problem...

Meanwhile back in room 1, the owners were working away at the abscess, and taking pictures of the passed out dog with their phones. I pitched in to speed up the process, scrubbed the wound and discussed that we will be putting the dog on antibiotics to clear all of this up.

I reversed the sedative on the bernard and asked the owners if they were ready to have the pyrenees back in the room to say goodbye.

The human mom flippantly threw her hand in the air and said, "Don't worry about it; you can do it back there".

My receptionist had them sign the paperwork, and checked them out. After doing so, she came to the back back room to tell me that their phones were going off left and right. They told her that they had posted the story on Facebook and all their friends were saying they were sorry about the passing of the pyrenees.

I swallowed the lump of hatred for humanity in my throat, and returned to the back to help the pyrenees pass peacefully.

Stories like these demonstrate the shitty part of my profession. I agree that a dog who is prone to biting people and other dogs IS a HUGE risk. A dog who feels like they have to behave that way is not a happy dog. Sometimes it IS necessary to keep the bigger picture in mind, and help them cross peacefully.

What I found to be so bothersome, is this dog lived with an evil bernard TWICE her size - in a house with a couple of fricking IDIOTS - and SHE was the one who was getting euthanized.

I would have loved to see her placed in a different situation - just to see how she would have done.