Retriever Died Suddenly - What Happened?

[buddy710]

My family is deeply saddened by the death of our 71/2 year old golder retriever - "Buddy".  There are no words to say how wonderful and beautiful Buddy was.  Yesterday started to be a normal day for Buddy.  I was on the couch and he came up to me looking fine and then his eyes started to shift, he began to sway and finally fell to the ground.  He was awake, but he could not move.   We rushed him to the animal hospital were the doctor gave him oxygen and began to ask us questions.  The doctor did not know were to began, because Buddy was in such bad shape..  He asked if Buddy had ate some medicine or sniffed some poison, which the answer was no.  The doctor could not tell us what happened to Buddy.  Everything happened so fast!  Within an hour he went from fine to gone..
We have three children who are also mourning the loss of their dog and all I keep wondering is why?

[jaypat32]

I doubt you could have prevented it. Once it's time, it's time.

My family and I lost our 10 year old black lab today. She collapsed a few times last week and we took her to the vet, but she passed all the tests. Then this morning she cant get up, tongue hanging out the side of her mouth, breathing horribly. We took her to the vet and he hooked her up with some IVs and did more tests, but she passed soon after. We don't know for sure why she died, and my dad isnt sure if he wants to do the autopsy either. I think she had a tumor somewhere. She was always a very lumpy dog, and even had some surgically removed.

[tjcar1]

Hi, I just lost my 9 yr old golden retriever .... I think I did something wrong.  She came home from the groomer and was fine.  Seemed tired but she always does after the groomer.  I let her rest.  Then she came up to me in my office and laid under the desk with labored and strained breathing.  I sat with her; then went to get my neighbor to go to emergency vet cause could not lift her.  She wasn't home so went and gave it a little time.  She got up and moved downstairs and lay down but breathing better.  Went upstairs for a moment and when came downstairs she was dead.  I feel like I did everything wrong and now she is dead.

[RileyPie]

Hello,
I am new to this forum and not quite sure how it works. We lost our 6 year old golden retriever to kidney failure on Friday :*( We are all in shock and devastated and destroyed inside!! You all seem to be very knowledgeable, so I was wondering if you could help me? You see, he was our family dog and I just moved out 2 years ago. My sister and I along with my parents all shared custody of him and he was always loved by us all and
taken on new adventures. My mother was his primary care giver although we allcared for him and loved him!!! Back in the fall he was diagnosed w/ Lyme disease after he couldn't stand up one morning and his joints were sore. After he was treated on antibiotics and given some fluid treatments his levels lowered to 2.6 The next months his Creatine level went down to 2.2 and his BUN was lowered. The
vet told my mom that he wasn't worried about him and he would live a full life. He was also given fluids at home for a little and put on kidney food. In no time he was back to his old self and doing so well that my mother never took him back in for another blood test. He hasn't been back in the last 4 months because we didn't know he was suffering. He showed no signs :( I'm beating myself up for not taking him myself, but I thought he was doing great. Out of nowhere last Mon, he became lethargic and vomited twice in the yard. Up to that point he was full of energy and eating. We took him in and his Creatine rose to a 13! Would we have stopped that level from rising if we took him in sooner?? Would fluids every month mean he would be here right now? We then immediately rushed him to the ER where they kept him on IV's for 2 days to see if the levels would drop. They didn't :*( and we were advised to euthanize him within 24 hours. Shocked and heartbroken we wanted to take him home with all of his loved ones. Everyone showered him w/ love and affection and he slept on his  
love seat for hours while we laid next to him. He was scheduled to be put down the next day by our vet. He wouldn't walk or eat, but he was still wagging his tail and I know he felt our presence.
We all laid and comforted him, thanking him and telling him ho much he means to us....Then we told him it was okay to go find Pop-Pop (who he loved and also passed recently) and stop fighting for us. He then slipped away peacefully and his head fell into my mom's lap. It was heart and
gut wrenching and I am still in complete shock. If we took him into the vet
sooner, would he still be here? The specialist treating him at the ER said he had a kidney disease called PLN (Protein-Losing Nephropathy) Have you ever heard of it? Was it caused byLyme?
Could his life have been prolonged? He was the most amazing brother and best friend and we feel empty and shattered without him!!!! I keep reliving these horrible moments in my head and I just want to hold him in my arms!! We all may need to seek some sort of counseling bc we have never felt such pain :*(  We all are a mess. If any of you could shed any light for me or point me in another direction, I would greatly appreciate it!  Thank you for your help!! Our hearts will never heal....

[larry7615]

I was looking for a place to take solace in the fact that i just lost my golden Maya last thurs with no warning.She was 9 yrs. Every night i would take her out and run around the yard as i got the mail. I was walking down the yard and she was running towrds me as she always did as she ran past me i turned to see her falling to the the ground. I went over to see what happened and she was gone instantly. She had just seen the vet in the last 4 weeks and had blood work and all was fine. I feel for all that have lost a golden like this.I miss her so and her "talking" to me evrynight. Just remeber the good times.........

[tuckersmum1107]

And I thought I was the only one....my beloved 6yr old Golden was running around the backyard, last Tues, very excited to see my friend who had just come in the gate. Suddenly he dropped to the ground by my feet, and passed away in @ 30 secs. I am devastated and totally stunned. He was healthy, well-fed, well exercised and adored. I am in tears reading all your stories...for you and for myself !!

[ginger899]

I am very sorry indeed about the loss of your dear Fredo.

The first few days are so very painful, I know. And the loss of a friend like that is always felt.

If you find it hard to cope with the loss of him, there is much understanding and support for the bereaved on:

http://www.rainbowsbridge.com

Everyone there understands what this loss is like, and there is a lot of kindness and help.