Our beloved Boris has been declining for some weeks now. It’s not very surprising — he’s at least 17 years old. I don’t even feel too sad about it. He’s had a good, happy life (I estimate I have walked him around 6,000 miles) and is going quietly, with no apparent pain.
His back legs have been getting weaker for some time. Now he can no longer stand up for more than a few seconds. He has eaten essentially nothing for a couple of days, though we are trying everything — a boiled egg was our last success: he ate half of one on Tuesday. He drinks a little water, that’s all.
As I said, he’s not making any fuss, and I am sure will soon leave us. The thing is, we want him to die at home, not to be put to sleep by a vet. Is there anything we can do at this point to up the probability? (No mentions of shotguns, please.) If he shows signs of being in distress, of course we’ll take him to the vet, who I am sure will insist on doing the final thing. Our strong preference, though, is for him to die in the place he knows and loves, with us there with him to see him out. Any suggestions?