Socrates

1 Year Old Pit Bull Suffering from Unmanageable Epilepsy

Set Free On 12/16/16

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Today was a sad day for all of us because today we euthanized our first dog as a rescue. When we met Socrates we had high hopes that we would be able to find a way to manage his epilepsy through medication. His previous home had already begun a great deal of trial and error but in five months had been unable to manage his seizures. When he came to us we began a new treatment for him once again, took him to a new doctor and a neurologist for a second and third opinion and we hoped for the best. Unfortunately Socrates’ epilepsy was just too severe. Without medication he would be looking at the possibly of 4+ seizures daily and weekly hospitalizations. With medication he only had 5-10 seizures a week, however the seizure medication had taken all of his quality of life from him. He had no appetite, he couldn’t focus or even recognize when his name was called, and his balance was off, regularly causing him to fall down the stairs or causing his back legs to just give out while he was standing still. This one year old playful pit bull puppy began losing weight, losing the ability to enjoy his life and was still having seizures. When the neurologist said our next option was to change his medication to something that would make him even more lethargic and uncoordinated just to get a handle on his seizures we knew that was not fair to him. We decided it was a kinder option to cut down his medication for a week so he could become the vibrant and full-loving puppy he was meant to be once again and then we would send him on his way. You can see in this video, that is exactly what he became once more. Socrates went back to running and playing, but there was the dangerous risk of him having a cluster of seizures we would not be able to stop due to the decrease in his medication. We were lucky and made it through the week without a single seizure, which considering his condition was a true miracle.

Today was a sad day for all of us, but today was a wonderful day for Socrates. He spent the morning doing whatever he wanted in any given second, with endless supplies of treats, love, toys, and friends. Then a new friend, a wonderful veterinarian who specializes in at-home euthanasia, came over to his foster home and played with him before he fell asleep, again surrounded by love. His last conscious moment was spent with his head in the lap of his foster dad with peanut butter on his nose and everyone telling him how much he was loved. That was our only goal this week: for Socrates to have fun and feel loved every single day. 

Euthanasia is something that happens in most shelters and rescues across the country, but it is rarely discussed openly. When we started this sanctuary we intended to give every single dog that came into our care a full and wonderful life. If a dog is too aggressive for adoption we are committed to still giving them a place to call home for as long as they are healthy and happy. We had hoped not to have to face the euthanasia of one of our animals for years to come, and in that instance hoped it would be a dog that had lived a full and long life who was ready to pass from natural causes. In this case, Socrates was a very young, active, and upon a quick glance appeared to be a healthy dog, but his epilepsy was causing him to suffer. While we believe in providing lifelong care to every animal we take into our rescue, we will not keep them alive for our own sake when they do not have a quality of life. Socrates will be missed and honored every single day by the family that surrendered him to us, our board members who fell in love with that knucklehead, but especially by his foster dad who formed a bond with him in the short time they were together that he will hold for the rest of his life. 

We appreciate your support in this difficult time, and tomorrow is a new day where we will continue to rescue dogs and provide them with the care they need to enjoy their lives and find loving forever homes.