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Death Of Your Dog: Know What To Expect
from:There are certain things concerning death with which every dog owner should be acquainted. Many practical considerations must be evaluated and alternatives discussed with your mate, simply as part of owning a dog. Death should not be scratching at your door before you begin to ponder reasonable alternatives in dealing with the eventuality of your dog's death.
Death is not to be feared nor to be looked upon as repulsive. Dogs that die simply go to sleep permanently. They look, to the average person, as if they are simply asleep. Death does not turn your dog into a hideous caricature. Your beautiful dog does not begin to decompose before your eyes, nor does he immediately discharge a repulsive odor. So you should have no fear in sharing this experience with the children if your dog dies in the house.
Many older dogs die in their sleep, at night, when the body is at its lowest ebb. In such cases, you may just wake up in the morning and find him peacefully asleep without heartbeat or movement in his chest. His eyes may be closed or they may be open. If they are open, you will observe a glassiness or glaze to the eyeball. You will be able to tap the surface of the eye gently without receiving any response. That is one very accurate way of telling if death has come. Should you elicit no response, no blinking, no movement in the eyeball, then, for his sense of dignity, close the eyes. You can lift up his jowls and examine the gums. If they are white and lifeless, the blood has ceased pumping vital oxygen throughout his body. You can also examine the chest for movement and for heartbeat.
When a dog is asleep, you can always notice some lung expansion as he inhales and exhales rhythmically. When he has ceased to breathe, there will be no heartbeat and no chest expansion. Certain muscles may twitch slightly, even after death, but this is only the remnants of electrical energy reacting in his muscles and nerve complexes and, unfortunately not a sign that he is still alive. It may seem to you slightly indelicate in your extremely distraught state, to be required to check your dog's vital life signs, such as the eyes, gums, chest, and heartbeat. But, if you do this and find that your dog is still alive, you will be saving precious time. Upon contacting your vet immediately, you will also make it easier for him to tell you what to do. You may have a chance to save the dog's life.
When animals (or humans) die, they lose control of their excretory functions. This is another sign of death, although animals under anesthesia can also display loss of control of excretory functions. Should you come upon your dog in the morning and, having established that he is dead, notice that he has urinated and defecated involuntarily during the night, don't be shocked. Clean it up as best you can and place him on a clean surface: a blanket preferably, which you can also cover him with. You are not going to keep the dog warm with the blanket, for his thermal sensitivity has left him. Yet there must be a dignity in death as well as in life. If your dog is nearing the end and he is home with you, put him on a blanket. If it becomes soiled, simply change blankets. You can use the blanket to carry him to the vet when the end does arrive.
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