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Lindsey Kontovich's avatar

I hope sweet Penny is feeling better and so are you. You really touched on something here - the dissonance of wanting to care for her our pet and also not necessarily having the financial means to do so. There is so much guilt and shame associated with deciding if a procedure for our pet is “worth it.” We lost our dog almost two years ago. He was almost 17 and we knew when it was time to usher him to his next life. It was shockingly painful and my eyes well up now thinking about it. He was such a huge part of our family. Family members would often comment about him being in almost all photos we’d send of our kids. He was omnipresent. Thanks for sharing this. It reminds me of how sweet and special our relationships to our pets are and they’re not to be diminished. Sending love to sweet Buster, too. 🩷

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Jackie Daly's avatar

Thank you for this essay. My wonderful cocker spaniel Bruce is approaching his 14th birthday. He has arthritis but is otherwise doing really well. My anticipatory grief grows month by month. I know the day will come sooner than I want it to and I frequently wonder how I will cope with the decision when I need to make it. And I worry about the vet bills. Thank you for mentioning the finances and how guilt-inducing it can be to make this part of any decision about our pet’s wellbeing.

A beautiful wise essay, thank you Amber.

Sending healing wishes to Penny 🐾

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