Mark, our rescue Golden Retriever, during his last hours. He had been suffering from very advanced cancer of the bones and throat.
He was the alpha of our pack of dogs, a fighter - but the last 2 days he had given up his will to live - he stopped eating, drinking and could not stand for more than a minute. He was in terrible pain.
I have been photographing and filming Mark and my other furkids since the day they became a part of the family. I do so because I love them. And this love extends even when they are sick, till the day they have to leave us, and after death.
Many have asked what was the purpose of this video. Here is why. When I was a child, my very first Golden Retriever was diagnosed too with cancer. At the time, my mother and I thought the best thing to do was to let her die naturally. To not 'play God'. She suffered painfully for weeks, yet we still told ourselves not to 'play God'. During her last minutes on earth, she was in such pain she cried a high pitched whine and her whole body shook violently then she went limp. At that point, I knew it was wrong not to have euthanized her weeks ago. I knew, in my heart, that the true reason that my mother and I did not, was not because we loved her, but because we were too selfish to let her go.
I vowed never to repeat this mistake again.
All of us bring our furkids to our home, to be a part of our family. We make efforts from the first day to bring safety, protection, love and happiness to him/her. And I feel, it is our duty to do just that on his/her last day on earth too. Not one of pain, suffering and sadness.
It is my heartfelt wish that more people can see why I, and other people, choose this path. It is a selfless thing to do. And it is the right thing to do. And because I have never seen another video documenting the procedures behind the process here on YT, I felt it would help others understand it better.
Some felt that it was undignifying posting him at this time. Questioning if I myself, would want to be videoed on my death bed. The answer would be yes. I would feel grateful, loved and blessed that friends and family were there till my last breath, and cared enough to want to remember me this way.
And to my Mark, I miss you and hope you are doing well at Rainbow Bridge.
Bless you all.