Bailey the Labrador went to the RB

[JuniorxMyxLove]

I see how all of you are so angry at this Mike. But have you thought about how hard it must have been to know that his baby was dying? You said that you could tell how much she adored him...maybe he would have felt guilty, knowing he was allowing them to do this to her. Maybe not being there was the only thing he could bear. I don't know him...so I can't say this is why, but I think it might be. Perhaps he didn't want his last memory of Bailey to be her drifting away....to never wake up....

That said, I am soo sorry. I know how hard it is to lose a good friend. A broken lamp or a ripped tee-shirt can be replaced. Your best friend cannot.The day Bonnie died was horrible for me. I wasn't even home. I felt soo bad that I hadn't been there to hold her as she left us in our kitchen. But, I guess she wouldn't have wanted me to go through the pain of watching her go. I got to say goodbye in the vets office, where we took her, but I still couldn't believe she was gone. I know it's hard. It'll be 3 years ago this august, and yet I'm still crying as I write this.

Although Bailey wasn't held by the person she loved most when she left this world, she got a warm welcome when she arrived the Bridge. All of the PT animals knew who she was.

This might make you cry, but its beautiful.
http://www.indigo.org/rainbowbridge_ver2.html

-Melanie

[Medusa]

Nope, sorry, I cut him a lot of slack on this one but this wasn't about Mike. It was about Bailey. It is indeed painful to have to put our best friends to sleep if/when the time comes. But it's the last act of kindness we'll ever do for them. He needed to put on his big boy pants and handle it. No excuses. Thanx for your thoughts, though. And I'm sorry for your loss of Bonnie. We here at PT have been there and we feel for you, too.

[Medusa]

After reading over your post again, I felt the need to say something else. Just a few months earlier, this guy scolded his friend who said that he didn't think he was going to be able to be there when his dog was put to sleep because it was too emotionally painful. He told him that he didn't deserve to have a pet. So his friend gathered up his courage and was there when he put his dog to sleep. Then Mike had a chance to do right and he didn't. If he had said "I don't think I can do it alone. Would you be there w/me?", it would've been a different story. But he was in his truck, he had the time to turn around and go back and he chose not to. He CHOSE to allow his beloved pet to be alone when she crossed over. My ex-husband agonized over being out of town on business when our dog died and he couldn't be there when it happened. He cried for 3 days straight, cried through business meetings and cried on the phone to me because he felt so guilty. I didn't hear guilt in Mike's voice, only relief, and not even relief that Bailey's suffering was over, relief that he didn't have to deal w/it. And THAT'S what made us all so angry at Mike.

[JuniorxMyxLove]

Hmmm.. He's wierd.

That's all I have to say about it (no offense)

[Medusa]

None taken.

[catmandu]

As hard as it would be I cannot imagine not wanting to be there when one of my Companion Cats passed on, if just to let them know that I was there for them.
But there are people who would hate to been seen crying , and maybe thats why your friend didnt want to be there. I certainly would not like to been seen crying in public and often have to be at the Vets for a while until I regain my composure.
But I would feel badly if I was not there for my Family of Cats.

[Medusa]

Nope, that isn't the reason either. He's quite dramatic and isn't ashamed or embarrassed to cry in public or in front of others. I know that you're trying to give him the benefit of the doubt as I and several others did. And bless you for it. But he just was not there when he was needed most. He had someone w/him and she could've been there to help him through it, he could've called me, too. He chose not to. He always chooses the easy way out but I didn't think he'd do that to Bailey, his favorite. Live and learn.