Dog being PTS, how will the other one cope?

[Postmissposte]

My parents have a pair of old retrievers, originally from the same litter and now very old and infirm. One has come to the end of the road and they've decided to euthanase, but they're concerned about how to support the other one - how is it likely to affect the remaining dog? Thanks in advance.

All dogs react differently , just like people but as an example my dsis recently had her 16 yr old terrier x pts and his littermate sister has been absolutely fine since . She did have a look round for him for a day or two but since then has been back to her usual bouncy self ( she thinks that she is 5) . I do think that sometimes it’s the humans in the house that think the other dog is missing the deceased because that’s what they want IYSWIM because they miss the dog so much themselves .

I lost one of my three this week. My other two are different, but they didn't really interact loads, my small girl was more like a cat.

I worry about how my youngest will cope, she's 3 this year and adores my eldest who is 11 this year. He is her world. Dogs are not like humans though, they live in the moment more. Can they let the remaining retriever see them when they've put the other to sleep? We didn't with my small girl because they were quite different, but I would consider it for my other two. Some people have said that's helped their other dog to realise they're gone, because they've seen them. Very personal choice though.

Thanks both.

@florence11 we were wondering if it was worth letting her sister see the body so thanks for that.

Ours didn’t see the body .

One of mine took it very badly, completely lost her playfulness and whined when she woke up and the other wasn't there. She had got very close to the older one over the years. I kept to her routine and she did recover. The whining stopped after some days but the playfulness took months to return.
They're not all the same though, and your parents' remaining dog is very old. It's hard to tell.

Mine didn't see the body because of circumstances but I think it sometimes helps and sometimes not.

I hope he/she is ok.