{"id":150,"date":"2015-07-01T05:00:15","date_gmt":"2015-07-01T09:00:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/?p=150"},"modified":"2022-07-08T14:50:05","modified_gmt":"2022-07-08T18:50:05","slug":"when-is-it-time-to-say-goodbye","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/when-is-it-time-to-say-goodbye\/","title":{"rendered":"When is it time to say goodbye?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>When your pet\u2019s health is declining, the toughest question to answer is: \u201c<em>When is it time to say goodbye?<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n<p>It may be easy for others, including your vet. But it is most difficult for you, the pet owner, not only for emotional reasons, but also because you see your pet every single day. Others don\u2019t. So it\u2019s difficult to be objective about the situation.<\/p>\n<p>Here is a nice little trick that can help you make the most difficult decision of your life. I just read about it in a recent issue of Veterinary Medicine, a professional magazine.*<br \/>\n<!--more--><br \/>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1823\" height=\"2150\" class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-151\" src=\"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/Old-Lab-face.jpg\" alt=\"Old Lab face\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/Old-Lab-face.jpg 1823w, https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/Old-Lab-face-254x300.jpg 254w, https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/Old-Lab-face-868x1024.jpg 868w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1823px) 100vw, 1823px\" \/><br \/>\nYou need a bunch of coins and 2 jars or 2 glasses. Label one container \u201cgood days\u201d and the other \u201cbad days.\u201d Any type of coin will do, but using the same denomination will help make things even more unbiased.<\/p>\n<p>At the end of each day, ask yourself if today was a good day or a bad day for your pet, and drop a coin in the corresponding jar.<\/p>\n<p>When the number of coins in the \u201cbad days\u201d jar exceeds the other one, you should seriously consider euthanasia.<\/p>\n<p>This is a simple way to make a very emotional decision a little bit more objective.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-152 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/2-jars-with-coins-300x169.jpg\" alt=\"2 jars with coins\" width=\"300\" height=\"169\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/2-jars-with-coins-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/2-jars-with-coins-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/2-jars-with-coins.jpg 1221w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When your pet\u2019s health is declining, the toughest question to answer is: \u201cWhen is it time to say goodbye?\u201d It may be easy for others, including your vet. But it is most difficult for you, the pet owner, not only for emotional reasons, but also because you see your pet every single day. Others don\u2019t. [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-150","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>When is it time to say goodbye? | Dr Phil Zeltzman\u2019s Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"When your pet\u2019s health is declining, the toughest question to answer is: \u201cWhen is it time to say goodbye?\u201d\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/when-is-it-time-to-say-goodbye\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"When is it time to say goodbye? | Dr Phil Zeltzman\u2019s Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"When your pet\u2019s health is declining, the toughest question to answer is: \u201cWhen is it time to say goodbye?\u201d\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/when-is-it-time-to-say-goodbye\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Dr Phil Zeltzman\u2019s Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/DrZeltzman\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:author\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/DrZeltzman\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2015-07-01T09:00:15+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-07-08T18:50:05+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/Old-Lab-face.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Dr. Phil Zeltzman\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Dr. Phil Zeltzman\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/when-is-it-time-to-say-goodbye\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/when-is-it-time-to-say-goodbye\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Dr. Phil Zeltzman\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/316f5474f0c7ca4fdcbd26977751788f\"},\"headline\":\"When is it time to say goodbye?\",\"datePublished\":\"2015-07-01T09:00:15+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-07-08T18:50:05+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/when-is-it-time-to-say-goodbye\/\"},\"wordCount\":209,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/when-is-it-time-to-say-goodbye\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/Old-Lab-face.jpg\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/when-is-it-time-to-say-goodbye\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/when-is-it-time-to-say-goodbye\/\",\"name\":\"When is it time to say goodbye? 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He is a board-certified surgeon and a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Surgeons, a coveted professional achievement Dr. Zeltzman is also a certified surgeon for the tibial plateau leveling osteotomy (TPLO), having performed thousands of these procedures in dogs from less than 30 pounds to more than 250 pounds! The results of his work have been very impressive. Dr. Zeltzman\u2019s interests include all aspects of soft tissue, orthopedic, cancer, reconstructive, and neuro surgery, as well as physical therapy and emergency cases. He also has a strong interest in the prevention and treatment of obesity. His newest endeavor is stem cell therapy for arthritis, kidney disease, liver disease, and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), as well as tibial tuberosity advancement (TTA). 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He performs specialized orthopedic, neurologic, cancer, and soft tissue surgeries on dogs, cats, and small exotics at your family vet\u2019s hospital. After graduating in 1993 from the School of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Liege in Belgium, Dr. Zeltzman simultaneously worked as a general practitioner, emergency vet, and journalist for three years in his native city of Paris, France. He completed a one-year internship at the University of Georgia, followed by a three-year surgery residency at Surgical Referral Service in Buffalo Grove, Illinois. He then worked as a surgeon for four years at a surgical practice in Cincinnati, Ohio, and an additional four years at a surgical practice in Whitehall, Pennsylvania. He is a board-certified surgeon and a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Surgeons, a coveted professional achievement Dr. Zeltzman is also a certified surgeon for the tibial plateau leveling osteotomy (TPLO), having performed thousands of these procedures in dogs from less than 30 pounds to more than 250 pounds! The results of his work have been very impressive. Dr. Zeltzman\u2019s interests include all aspects of soft tissue, orthopedic, cancer, reconstructive, and neuro surgery, as well as physical therapy and emergency cases. He also has a strong interest in the prevention and treatment of obesity. His newest endeavor is stem cell therapy for arthritis, kidney disease, liver disease, and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), as well as tibial tuberosity advancement (TTA). Dr. Zeltzman knew he wanted to be a veterinarian since the age of 5 when his favorite TV shows were Flipper, Daktari, and Lassie. \u201cBecoming a veterinary surgeon has been a dream come true, and I am as passionate about my profession as I was when I first started,\u201d he says. In practice, Dr. Zeltzman\u2019s goal is to offer the best surgical care, the safest anesthesia, and the utmost pain management to all of his patients. Actively involved in teaching, lecturing, and publishing, both locally and internationally, Dr. Zeltzman has published two books: Cocker Spaniels: A Practical Guide for People Owned by a Cocker and Walk a Hound, Lose a Pound, a book on weight loss for both dogs and people, co-written with Rebecca Johnson. He also writes a monthly award-winning newsletter for true dog and cat lovers. It is read in all 50 States, as well as more than 40 foreign countries. This newsletter has evolved into his blog. As a Certified Veterinary Journalist (CVJ), blogger, columnist, and award-winning author, his goal is to write meaningful articles, newsletters, and books that will make a difference in the lives of pets and their owners. He has published numerous articles in national and international veterinary journals, and is currently working on several book projects. He is also a prolific speaker. Dr. Zeltzman is a member of the Cat Writers\u2019 Association, the Dog Writers\u2019 Association and the Authors\u2019 Guild. He is a member of the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA), the Lehigh Valley Veterinary Medical Association (LVVMA), and the American College of Veterinary Surgeons (ACVS). He is a monthly contributor to veterinarypracticenews.com and a regular contributor to Dog Fancy, PetsAdviser.com, and PetHealthNetwork.com.","sameAs":["http:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/","https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/DrZeltzman"],"url":"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/author\/phil\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/150","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=150"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/150\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2031,"href":"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/150\/revisions\/2031"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=150"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=150"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=150"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}