There are different ways to achieve peace.  Sometimes medical correction
will do that.  Sometimes pain meds will do that.  Sometimes a mercy shot
is needed.  It's a matter to weighing the options and not letting fear
of what can be overcome cause to rapid a jump toward a mercy shot while
also not letting fear of death prevent giving that final gift when it
is needed.  Only those who are right there can figure out what to do
and that is best figured with the family and the vet working together,
because each knows different parts of the picture to figure out what
is best at any given time.  It's never an easy call, but knowledge and
weighing of the options and love serve us all.
 
You wrote:
>I absolutely do not understand the rationale behind making little
>ones who are obviously "going downhill" and have been diagnosed with
>something that will inevitably make their little lives horrendous
>stay around for our benefit.
 
Just so you know.  It is NOT for our benefit that we are working our
tails off, sometimes hurting ourselves (physically as well as the
emotional toll to help her when she needs that), and spending from our
savings to give her as much quality time as she can have in this world.
it is for HER benefit.  This is her only time to be Ashling; she may as
well have as much wonderful time doing so as she possibly can.  She is
more than worth that.
 
Remember, too, that not everyone believes in life after death.
 
Nor is manageable pain or a manageable handicap the end of the world.
When things are too far gone, yes, it is time to provide a mercy shot,
but I can tell you from experience as can many others here that it is
possible to have pain so bad that you shake and still have pleasures,
even for those pleasures to matter much more than the pain.  It is
possible to have handicaps and still have joys which mean much more:
ask a good number of FML members.
 
There are times when the capacity for joy is still so great that death
would be premature.  THEN it is time to wait and pull out all stops to
give the best quality of life possible.  is life scary?  Sure.  At times
very.  Does that mean that when it is that it's time to give up?  No.
It's time to give up when life can't be made to any longer have more joy
than pain.  Mother Jones said, "Pray for the dead, but fight like hell
for the living."  It makes sense to me.
[Posted in FML issue 4345]