[Sparty]

Hello,

I have a male Yorkie who is almost 11 yrs old. About 5 weeks ago, I noticed he was acting lethargic and losing some weight. He was also vomitting. I thought he may have gotten into something so I gave him a couple of weeks before taking him to the vet. At the Vet, I discovered he had dropped down to 3 1/2 lbs (from 5 1/2). The doctor also had a hard time finding his kidneys because they were so small. He did blood work to tell if my dogs organs were working okay. The blood work came back fine. He said he still felt like there was something very wrong going on.Some diseases, such as cancer, do not show in standard blood work. He gave me muscle relaxers and painkillers for the dog and told me to call if he did not improve. After Sparty (my dog's name) took the meds, he started moving better. He was more interactive with the rest of the family. Once the meds were all gone, he no longer wanted to move much. Some days I had to put his leash on and drag him from his cage (Its his little house w/a cushy bed that he loves) because it would be almost 3 in the afternoon and he hadn't eaten nor gone potty. I gave him a shower and spotty something white on the part of his back close to his tell. I went to remove it only to discover it was his bone showing thru his skin! I was horrified. I made another appointment with the vet. I took him yesterday. The Vet weighed him and we discovered he had lost 5 more ounces. The vet also couldn't find one of his kidneys. I told him Sparty had been drinking a lot more water then normal. Even with this, he was dehydrated. Based on the exam, the Vet felt that Sparty only had 1 to 2 more weeks of life left. He also said those weeks would be very painful for the dog to endure and for us to watch. I had expressed to the Vet, at the first appointment, that I did not want to run a bunch of invasive test and do painful treatments just to give us a few more days or months with Sparty but put him thru a physical hell. With that in mind, the Vet recommended I put him down. He asked if I wanted to do it that day. I told him I wanted to wait until after the weekend. I had my youngest daughter with me but my husband and oldest daughter had not had an opportunity to say goodbye. We have spent this weekend taking Sparty to all of our favorite places. He is getting home cooked meals everyday of all his favorites.It's just so hard. I have had him longer then my kids. Symbolically, he means so much. I got him as a Christmas gift from my husband. I wanted a small dog that I could hold my arms and love. Four months earlier, we had lost our first born child who was a full term still-born. I firmly believe that Sparty is the only reason I was able to relax enough to get pregnant again and have our oldest daughter.I just want to know that I am doing the right thing. I would hate to put him down and it only be a slipped disk or sore back. I told my husband that our dog was dying the very first week he was sick. I had never said that before. I just knew. But, how can I know if I should put him down? I wish he could talk and tell me what hurts and if he is ready to go. Before he got sick, he was super active. It seemed he had not aged at all. People meeting him for the first time would ask how old our "puppy" was. He jumped onto the top of couches without breaking a sweat. I use to joke w/my husband that he would never act like an older dog. One day he would go to do one of his jumps and die mid-air. So many tears have been shed this weekend that I'm surprised there isn't water damage! The thought of losing him is bad enough, but the sight of my 5 and 9 yr old crying is making it unbearable. Currently, we are planning to put him down on Thursday of next week. Any opinions/recommendations you can give me is greatly appreciated.