Our sweet baby boy was only 2.5 years old when he passed away suddenly and unexpectedly on Jan 20th. I feel like om loving on a nightmare. Its extremely hard to imagine life without him. Our family is so heartbroken and we have no answers! Has anyone ever experienced losing a lab baby so young and unexpected? We couldn't bring ourselves to get an autopsy done because the situation was traumatizing enough. I just dont understand it. The week before he was at the vet and his bloodwork and urinalysis came back good. The day before his passing he was out playing in the snow with my daughter and jumping in snowbanks like a goofball, all was good but the next morning was awful. I woke up to get ready for work let him out to do his business like always but when he came in he went to his bed to lay down and before I knew it his legs were kicking in the air and he was just gone!! It is so hard to write this as he was not just a pet but a child!! Does anyone know what this could have been or experienced something similar. Just looking for comfort, thanks for listening. We will forever love you, Ranger!
Hi Gloria, Welcome to the forum, I'm so sorry to read about your loss. I hope that in time you can take comfort from the fact that Ranger clearly had a full and joyous life right up until the end. He sounds like a wonderful dog. Best wishes, Sarah x
It hurts me just reading this. My sweet buddy passed away at just 2 years and 3 months. He was very healthy and active and was the best dog I could have ever dreamed of. He had just gotten his 2 year old check up and had a perfect exam by my trustworthy vet. We did our daily routine the day prior to his death and he was perfectly normal and active. No pain, discomfort, anything. He was my shadow and he followed me around all day. I put him to bed on his dog bed just like every other night. I woke up the next morning to feed him breakfast and didnt hear him which I thought was strange. I walked to the living room where he sleeps on his dog bed and I found him dead in the corner of the room with a small blood trail from his bed to the corner of the room was he was curled up dead with blood on his rear. I thought for sure I was having a nightmare. I never heard him once during the night whimper or cry. I went into complete shock and I cant even describe the pain of seeing my perfectly healthy dog dead like that. I couldn't even bring myself to discuss the situation because it just didnt feel real. I never had any tests done because I was too much of a wreck, but The vet thinks he went into cardiac arrest and died a very quick painless death. She presumes it was heart failure. She said that in very healthy active dogs that have preexisting heart issues, they will show no symptoms at all until they collapse one day. I wish no one ever has to go through this and I am so so sorry that. a similar situation happened to you. I lasted only about 2 weeks until I got another lab pup. It didnt take away any of the pain but it gave my mind something else to think about. I know how bad that hurts. Just remember to choose to focus on the memories that you made with your pup for those two years. His life here was short, but surely not wasted.
I'm so sorry about your loss! It blew my mind this morning reading your story. It so unbelievable how our situations are pretty much the same! We got a new lab puppy on March 6th but like you said it does not take the pain away it does help the void in our hearts though. My boy was my everything, he was the dog I always wanted. He has a very good life and was very spoiled. It just hurts so bad that his life was so short and we have no answers. We art thinking heart related though because of the way it happened so fast. Did your dog wear a seresto collar and what kind of food was he eating? We have seen so much news about things I sometimes wonder. Enjoy your memories as well. I know it's the hardest thing ever! I feel your pain so much
No he did not have a seresto collar but he was on simparica for fleas. He ate purina his whole life, as have my previous dogs who have been fine. I had never heard of another situation like this until I read your post and I knew I had to comment! I almost regret not running an autopsy or tests, but like you said I was at no point to make the decision when he passed away because I was a complete wreck! I didnt even want to think about it!
I know I feel the same, thinking back I wish I would have as well. It's hard to go on without any direct answers and extremely hard to find closure. Even though I have a new puppy that keeps me quite busy, I still have a hard time mourning my sweet Ranger. I hope to never have to deal with this again, I will never be the same. I thank you so much for sharing your story with me. I felt so alone with my traumatizing situation!
