Saying goodbye to Cooper today and the guilt is killing me

Cooper has been my best friend for thirteen years. I got out of the Army with pretty bad PTSD and Cooper was there with me when no one else was. He saved my life just by loving me as I was. Now Cooper is old and he was able to see me get well. Get married, have a daughter, buy a house with a big yard.

Cooper gets confused sometimes and he actually bit me twice. I made the tough call to put him down because I have a three year old daughter and I know he’s now a risk to her.

Today is the day. We are doing it at home and he’s been so perfect this week. I feel so much guilt, like I’m killing my best friend. I’m struggling so hard with this even if intellectually I understand it’s the right move. It’s crushing me.

I think I just need some love from people who have been through the same. I’ve lost plenty of pets through the years but I’ve never had to put one down. This pain is almost unbearable.