I'm so sorry to hear this. :-( I agree with you completely about avoiding invasive/painful/traumatic "treatments" for old dogs. I hope Bentley will be able to continue living comfortably for a longer while. Sometimes these old timers can surprise us. I had a mare diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer that somehow rallied and went into remission and lived a year longer than anyone expected. I hope Bentley's outcome will be as lucky.

I'm so sorry to hear this. Of course you are still missing Pea, so this hits extra hard. How old is Bentley, and what made you take him to the vet, his symptoms? I hope he's happy and comfortable at the moment.

Oh Ninapearl, I am SO sorry to hear this... . My heart breaks for you. You are such a good mom to your boy, I hope you are able to share many, many more precious sweet moments with him. Lifting up prayers for you and Bentley.

nina, this is so sad after only just losing pea and trying to move on. I think you are doing the right thing by sparing him invasive surgery and treatment, even with that there are no guarantees. I hope you can keep him comfortable for a while longer and I know you will do everything you can for him for whatever time he has left. poor boy.

This is sad to hear but I'm sure you'll find strength and courage. Let us know how you're doing.

My heart breaks for you and Bentley, you will give him all the love and comfort he needs,we all know how much you love him. God Bless you Nina.
Hugs Christine

I'm so sorry.

I really think they'er remarkably like us, or maybe it's not remarkable at all.

When a loved one dies, often the bereaved follows pretty quickly.

Take care of Bentley, & take care of yourself.

thank you all for the lovely sentiments. i appreciate you all SO much!
i'm having a hard time wrapping my brain around this. i cannot imagine
my goofy guy not being here to greet me or taking my spot on the
couch. *sigh*

hang in there nina! he may surprise you! all you can do is make the most of each day with him :)

Love him today and create beautiful memories. Whether months or years we only have our babies for such a short time and it is always heartbreaking. Hard as it is, think about a companion for Olive(?) Keep those danes in your life!
I am trying to mentally prepare myself for such a day that will come.

oh, there will definitely be another dane. olivia has never been an "only" dog and i know she will miss bentley terribly. for now, my boy is comfortable and enjoying life. i take solace in knowing that he doesn't know he is sick so that helps, even if just a little. we are still going for walks in the fields and lots of car rides to the cheeseburger window. :)

thank you all, again. <3

awww, how sweet is that!

bentley is doing well so far. he doesn't seem to be in pain yet so he is only getting an anti-inflammatory for now. i had 12 of my reef aquarium friends here all weekend and bentley got lots of hugs and attention, as did olivia.

i will continue to do whatever i have to so he is not in pain. thank you all!

I think I'll just strip. Any brand recommendations

Nina, I am just seeing this now. I'm so sorry for Bentley's diagnosis. I remember when you got him. He's been a lucky dog to have landed in your life and given a good one in return. Please give him a hug for me and I will say a prayer for him and you.

thanks so much, MM! he's been a huge part of my life for 6 years now and i will miss him terribly. he is doing well, so far. even though the lump is growing and beginning to spread to the back of his leg, i do not think it has affected his ankle joint because he has no trouble moving around. i did just add gabapentin to the anti-inflammatory that he's taking and i doubled up on his joint supplements to keep him comfortable.

i am waiting to hear from a woman who has a lovely 5 year old harl girl that she has retired from showing/breeding and is thinking about re-homing. if we meet her and she's a good match, i will probably go ahead and bring her home while bentley is still able to enjoy another companion. he does love the girls! :)

Nina, the dog that lived next door had that and lived for two years with it! It didn't affect her joint either and she was fine with it until it grew too big and was opening and bleeding.

Also I wanted to tell you that I will be putting Teddy down at the end of this week. He has COPD and cancerous tumors in his sheath and I don't want him to live with that anymore. He turned 27 in May. He has had a wonderful 6 years living the good horse life out on the farm. I had to stop riding him a couple of months ago, because it was too hard for him to breathe. :( Losing our friends sucks, doesn't it? I hope this new girl perks Bentley right up!! Good luck.

aww, i'm so sorry to hear you will be losing teddy. he's such a beautiful guy! i do understand, though, and yes it's just so hard to lose our companions.

both my regular vet and my ortho vet looked at bentley's x-rays and said it was hopeless and that he probably wouldn't live much past 3 months. we'll see...i would love nothing better than to have him prove them wrong!!!

I hope he does!! What a sweet boy. Thanks for the kind thoughts about Teddy. Such a good boy. We do love them so.

i was thinking about you all weekend. i hope that, if it was indeed teddy's time go cross the bridge, that it was a peaceful journey for him. (((hugs))), i know how much it hurts.

I'm so sorry about Bentley...and so soon after Pea! My thoughts and prayers are with you and Bentley, and with Murray'smom and Teddy, too. It's so hard to lose our dear friends- that's a lot of love to lose.

thank you, junebug. there is never a good time but yes, this is way too soon after losing pea. i am trying to stay upbeat with bentley, i don't want him to see me sad and i don't want olivia to sense it, either. cancer is such a beast!

I agree about the cancer, Nina! Thanks for your and Junebug's kind thoughts. Teddy will cross the bridge tomorrow morning. I said my goodbyes to him today. I want to remember him out in the pasture with his friends.

thinking of you and hoping for a peaceful journey for teddy. (((hugs)))

Thanks, Nina. Teddy went peacefully a little after 9 this morning. The vet checked him out afterward and found the cancer was worse than we thought. It was clearly the right time to let him go. That helped me a lot to hear that.

i'm so glad it was peaceful for teddy. (((hugs))) to you :)