...to be fucking Horrified that my neighbour Killed His Dog??

[ahhyesiseeyouvepooedonyourfoot]

Was chatting to our next door neighbour who is ok (I thought), in his late 40's with a lovely family and his own consultancy business. He mentioned that his dog was incontinent and probably dying and how sad his daughters were about it, all innocently I said 'Ahh thats sad when will you be taking him to vets' he said 'I'm not paying any bluddy vets I'll take him out and shoot him' (he does have guns for hunting)...cue stuttering WTFS??? from me..

He was quite indignant and said 'With our last dog me and a friend took him to a forest and injected him with ketamine, he went straight to sleep its EXACTLY what the vet would do'
I said I'm pretty sure it WASN'T exactly what the vets did and bluffed a bit about knowing they used a cocktail of drugs for different things - which in fact don't know - can any vets confirm for me?

Anyway I asked him to leave my house, I wasnt being all 'PC gorn mad' was I??

The critical issue is whether he does actually know how to kill an animal humanely. We don't know that, do we? I'm inclined to give him the benefit of the doubt, others will differ.

If you knew that he does know what he's doing, would you still have a problem with it? If so, what? Is it just you think it's somehow sanitised if it's done out of sight at the vet's, or is there some other issue?

I sounds perfectly reasonable to me, presuming he meant a point blank bullet to the head, not trying to hit a moving target. Lots of animals get very stressed at the vets, nicer to go in familiar surroundings I think.

I'm interested to know if the street rate for ketamine is less than a vets visit to have your pet put down. And if so, by how much?

Surely a do would be more
Comfortable being with his owner in the woods one last time than on an awful car
Journey to the vets that
Might distress him

I can't see the difference

hmm thinking about it hester I dont Think I would have a problem with it if he was a vet or a farmer..it just all seems a bit gung ho..

Maybe your reaction will prompt him to re-think his plans [hopeful].

I grew up around horses and trained as a riding instructor, and I've never known anyone put down their horses themselves. Most horse owners and farmers have an existing relationship with their vet who will visit to put the animal down.

If he hunts and has a black lab, surely there's a chance it's used as a gun dog?!
Not sure about injecting the dog with ketamine though. You'd have to be bloody sure of your amounts to do that humanely I'm sure. Shooting I think is ok.
Not sure why the "middle class" bit comes into it though!

vets don't JUST use ket though do they?? Do they?!?

it is shocking for a city girl to find out what these farmer type people's way of life is.

We saw a rabbit in the middle of the road with 'mixy' I envisioned that someone may pick it up and rescue it etc, my partner informed me that it's entirely the norm out here in the sticks to shoot them and that is the respectable thing to do (as they are suffering) and he felt bad that he didn't have a gun with him.

If a dog is pissing and shitting everywhere that makes life incredibly stressful,
I would consider it living outside in a kennel before getting rid though?

But if you have to get rid, let's not pretend the vets are doing anything nicer, afterall they're strangers so it would be more of a stressful way to die than the owner do it.

IMO if he owns a consultancy business he could fork out to give his family pet a peaceful death.

No wonder his Daughter's are so upset - they know what's coming!

Cruel. I'd RSPCA him.

moodykat by saying "middle class" I get I just been "a bit naive about stuff" - no dog is definitely just a family pet, he never takes him shooting

meant not been ..

I get the gun thing. That's not so bad, if you are experienced with the gun and know for certain you will kill instantly and first time, which I doubt many regular dog owners are, even if the do hunt for sport. My dad shot his dog when he was a boy. It was the done thing back then. He said it was the most horrific thing he'd ever had to do, but that's just what you did back then when your dog was incurably sick or injured. Although he comes from a very rough family, it probably wasn't the done thing to own shot guns or shoot your pets, to normal people

The ketamine is disgraceful. Vets don't train for years to qualify because it's as easy as that. He would've have had no clue how much to give the dog in order to prevent suffering. I am fairly sure vets don't use Ketamin anyhow. Poor dog

A labrador is a gun dog, so quite possible that the dog is more than a pet and is also a worker.

I have to agree with those that have said if it was done well, humanely and quickly, then it is no worse than a vets, and certainly better if it meant the animal is less stressed before it dies. Having been through several stressful experiences with having rats put to sleep at vets, if I had the option of them going with me, at home, with me controlling the situation and the animal not stressed, I'd take it.

But WHY is it cruel, Boys?

WHY is it any less peaceful?

I just don't understand this.

Vets use a hand gun to kill horses. No different to a rifle bullet really.

should he let it die slowly of multiple organ failure and dehydration
as is natures way?

Vets don't use ketamine to euthanase dogs! We use a huge overdose of intravenous barbiturate. Ketamine is a dissociative anaesthetic in animals- it has no pain-dulling effect, just induces a state of dissociation. I (and no doubt the police!) would be interested to know where he is getting his ketamine from, as it is a controlled drug- I have to sign a prescription to order it from my wholesaler, and record any usage in ledger. It's not a drug that is just easy to lay your hands on (or shouldn't be!)

I'm also fairly sure it is not legal to shoot a dog, just to save a few pounds at a vets (£20? To ensure the animal has a pain-free and relaxed end?) Might be worth a wee anonymous tip off to the RSPCA/ SSPCA, they may have a stance on this. I know everyone on here slates the RSPCA, but I work a lot with the SSPCA (Scottish equivalent) and they investigate lots of cases, and take many to court, having removed the animal in question- many for far far less than this!

I KNEW vets didn't use ket jooly thank you!

Hooray, a vet arrives

"Cruel. I'd RSPCA him"

So an elderly and infirm dog can be removed from his home and spend his last days in a cage surrounded by strangers .

With regards to my last post, I'm not thinking of going down the ketamine route to save money...I'm just curious.

no talkin he should be put down by a vet