Lord, as if the week weren't like a bad country song in some ways already, Erin and I watched Faline closely today.....she has truly worsened in the past couple of weeks so that now she is having trouble cleaning herself and BOTH legs are causing her so much trouble, she can't even walk and has to use her beak to hold herself up. So it looks like we are going to have to make a humane decision and find a humane way to go about it. And though Natalie at age 4 has been very matter-of-fact with the other losses, how in the world are we
going to help her prepare and handle the loss of Faline who has been her favorite and special pet for the past 9 months??
Grampy wisely advised us:
Natalie understands the relationship of pain and suffering to being able to live. Just as with your two pets who had to be put down, I'll wager, she will get on with this as well. The closeness to life, mating and death are inevitable outcomes of having animals. I think her experiences are not unlike those of children raised on farms, where these events are a part of "the circle of life" and are simply to be expected. You might tell her how her love for Faline actually gave her a longer life than she would usually have had - that she would have died as a chick without Natalie's care for her. So, she actually had a pretty good life because of Natalie and that when she gets to Pet Heaven, she will tell all the other pets about how Natalie loved her.
We made an appointment at the nearby vet who treats chickens as pets instead of livestock. They were so sweet and patient and gave Natalie all the respect of an adult with a beloved pet. The vet visit went well and Natalie bravely watched Faline fall asleep, then wept a little once we buried Faline at home. She astounded the vet and ourselves with handling everything way beyond her years.
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