I am very sad to say that yesterday we had to put Cooper down. Many of you met when you came to the New Year's Eve parties that we had over the years. If you knew him, you knew what a terrific dog he was and how was a friend to everyone.

We adopted Cooper from The Safe Haven Rescue in 2001. The story was that he was rescued as a young dog from a laboratory on Cooper street in Jackson so that is where he got his name. He was older than most of the other dogs at the rescue there because he was never chosen as he was half Doberman and half Rottweiler. We didn't care about that because we knew he was the dog for us the moment we saw him. That decision paid off handsomely as he was hands down the best pet any of us had ever owned. I never knew anyone (or any other dog) who met him and didn't like him.

Unfortunately, his mellow and friendly nature wasn't the entire picture. He often had nightmares that made him howl and cry in his sleep. We always hoped that they were typical dog dreams and not dreams of times before he was rescued. He had bad feet and was missing a toe on each hind foot from birth so he had to walk odd. In the spring and fall, he had bad allergies and he would lick his paws and rub his nose on the carpet until they bled.

His minor shortcomings never mattered because for 8 long years he was our friend and our protector. He was always mellow, always listened to what he was told, and never had did anything he shouldn't do. He would rarely even bark, only when necessary. He loved to play rough with me, but would only play gentle with our son. Despite his foot problems, he still galloped like a horse. He was the inspiration for this thread and this thread because we wanted to help give someone the chance to hopefully experience what we did with Cooper.

In the past couple of years his health started to slide gradually. He grew a large tumor near his left leg and ribs that was not cancerous and didn't seem to bother him but definitely had us concerned. We were afraid to remove it because surgery was too risky for his age. He lived with it fine for the most part, it didn't seem to bother him but we had it checked regularly. Then in the past couple of months he started dropping weight rapidly with no change in his diet. We took him in and did as many tests as we could to determine that he had the beginnings of kidney disease. He also had very bad arthritis in his spine which surprised the vet that he could get around in a manner that appeared normal for the most part. Otherwise, he was in good health according to the tests. However, he continued to get thinner and his eyes began to get goopy and receded into his skull and we noticed the he started drooling from the right side of his face. We were getting concerned but his attitude still seemed fine, but just a bit more subdued. We still kept a sharp eye on him.

In the past couple of weeks his usually healthy appetite for food diminished along with his enthusiasm. He didn't greet us at the door as much when we came home, and his ability to walk started to degrade rapidly because his hind legs were starting to slow him down. He didn't look us in the eye and didn't seem to be liked being touched. We knew that things weren't looking good.

Last night we took him into the vet. He had a hard time getting into the van and didn't eat or drink much earlier that day or the day before. The vet inspected him and discovered something in his jaw that was determined to be bone cancer which made sense with everything happening to him. There would be no way to fix it and the vet estimated that we didn't have much time left as it is very aggressive. We made the decision as a family that he deserved to go peacefully and with dignity instead of letting the cancer take him slowly and painfully. It was the most difficult decision we have ever made but we knew that it would not be fair to sacrifice his pain for ours. He peacefully went to sleep with all three of us wrapping our arms around him.

If you knew Cooper, the next time you raise a bottle or a glass please think of him and salute him. We miss him terribly and a large piece of our world is gone. We hope that everyone can experience at least once in their lifetime the unconditional love and companionship that we were so very fortunate to have. Please consider finding your local rescue or humane society and rewarding yourself and give a good life to a deserving animal. The joy of it completely outweighs the agony and sorrow in the hearts of myself, my wife and our son.

I miss you, old friend.

 

Jason,

I never have met you or Cooper but want to say I am sorry for your loss. You sound like the type of pet owner that more people should be like. I am sure he enjoyed his time with you and your family as much as you enjoyed him.

Good Luck.

 

Mr. Coop! Mr. Coop was awesome all day, every day. He hung out at parties like security... Always quietly wandering through the room looking around like he was at everyone's service.. I'll pour one back for him tonight.

 

Man, that's rough Sorry for your loss

For some people dogs are just animals. For others, they're most certainly another family member. I had to put my of 18 years down Had her since I was just a little kid. Hardest thing I ever had to do. Held her in my arms when the vet gave her the shot...

Know you gave him a good home and life

 

Thanks for sharing Jason. Sounds like he was truly a great dog.

Take care.

 

Jason, i'm really sorry for your loss As a Rottweiler owner, i understand exactly how great of a character Cooper was. I really hope your considering adopting/rescuing another Rottweiler or Doberman in the near future, once again sorry for your loss.

 

Damn dude... I'm sorry. Cooper was a sweet dog.

 

Very sorry to hear. We will be picking up our first dog this weekend, so this thread is one that I hope I never have to post, but know that one day the time will come. I am very sorry for your loss. Losing a family pet is losing a family member.

 

yah it is rough dude. been there a few times already as my parents had a dog for 16 years, and my wifes parents had 3 dogs that I all knew all their life. it was a hard decision im sure, but a good one. I can relate for sure. sorry for your loss man, but you gotta think of the good thing. you gave that dog a great life w/lots of love.

 

Sorry to hear that Jason. I know exactly what you guys are going through. Alomst exactly a year ago we had to put one of my dogs, Sadie, down. She was around 15 or 16 years old. She couldn't hardly walk anymore, was going deaf and blind, and was in pain. It was so hard putting her down. Then just a few months are we had to put my other dog, Bailey, down. He had cancer. He was younger, only about 10 years old. He had a lump on his chest so we had it removed, but it turned out to be cancer and it came back with a vengeance. He was in alot of pain when we put him down.

We're defiantly going to get another dog or two someday.

Sorry for you loss, I hop you get another dog!!

 

Very sorry to hear Jay. We also know excactly what this feels like as we had to put our last dog out of her cancer induced misery.

 

Sorry for your loss, J. It's always a hard decision to make - sometimes ya just wish the pets could talk to us and tell us "its ok" when you're trying to make that decision. Had to make the same decision after my sh!tzu had a stroke and was paralyzed on her left side. Couldn't even hold herself up to go to the bathroom anymore. Still didn't make it any easier, but just have to remember they're no longer in any pain.

 

Sorry J, Cooper was a cool dog. I know it's hard -- I went through something similar a couple years ago. Reading this thread made me tear up more than I'd like to admit.

Come on over to visit Rocky whenever you want.

 

Sorry for your loss Jason. Cooper sounded like a wonderful companion.

 

Thanks for the nice words, everyone.