OK, I can finally talk about this...

Hmm... Ketamine can cause hallucinations...

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Wise enough to know I'll never be wise enough to know it all

I know he kept testing her level of responsiveness prior to injecting the second stuff, but she just kept screaming after the trank. He seemed satisfied that she was totally out of it before the second shot, but the whole thing was a nightmare I will be taking to my grave, . I am soooooooooo glad Sandy's other "owners" weren't there, the ones who initially put the animals in the field for the 14 year old's 4H project. He decided he couldn't be there, and I thank GOD he wasn't. Some happy ending to his 4H project; his sheep dies of a spinal fracture within a month of getting here and then Sandy...

Ketamine should be given in comination with other drugs because ketamine causes the patient to be unable to respond, unable to move or blink, but the animal is awake and aware (this drug is the
rape drug" slipped into women's drinks, which is horrific as you can imagine being totally awake yet unable to move or speak). In tranking an animal to get them ready for surgery or euthanasia,there shoudl be a second med dosed with ketamine to put the mind to sleep as well as the body--I believe rompun is often the med given forthis, but there are others.

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Chris

2 dogs, 1 parrot, 2 horses, colorful flock of egg-layers, peafowl, dairy goats, porchful of hummers, and a garden full of monarchs

I am so sorry you had to go through this. I have not had any of my animals react this way when euthanized, so I can only imagine how hard it was for you. I will tell you when I was waking up from surgery myself, I was flailing my arms all around and moaning loudly like I was in terrible pain. My family was traumatized, but truly I felt nothing. I was just reacting to the drugs and probably it was the same for Sandy. Again, I'm so sorry you had such a difficult time. Hugs to you.

...I'm rethinking my other post about wanting injectable euthanasia.

That bullet puts them down fast and then I slit the throat in case there is still life clinging. Takes about a minute or so...

The animal wailing would have been too much for me...

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Radically conservatively un-biased liberal.

http://whitepinesoapworks.com/

Oh my gosh, hon, I am soooo sorry. What a memory to be left with. You did so much for her and loved her so much that it just seems so pointless to end that way. If it helps any, when I had to have my horse put down the vets asked me to stand back because when they sedate first the animal can lash out without realizing what it is doing and hurt someone. But guaranteed me she wasn't in any pain. I stayed with her to the end and the vet is a very well known large animal vet in the area and an excellent one for goats too.

My horse experience was a good one (well, you know what I mean). JD was already down, the vet slipped the needle in, JD went to sleep, then the vet quickly put in the second shot and it was over. The only thing he did was thrash once after death, a muscle contraction or something. If he had reacted like this I think I would have swallowed a bottle of valium and washed it down with vodka.

As it is, I tanked up on some Xanax (I had to go to work that night, can you believe it?!).

I appreciate the outpouring of support, advice and stories. I am so lucky I found this place.

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Becky

Yep, happy peacefull animals that arn't in pain always bleat and carry on incessently.
Maybe it was the vet that felt nothing.

FWIW, I had surgery once with general anesthesia, and because the anesthesiologist was a friend, he videotaped the entire anesthesia process for his daughter, who was doing a science project and needed it. He gave me a copy of the tape, which included the induction process in the OR, a small segment of the surgery itself, and then film of me being brought out of the anesthetic state, including a segment in the recovery room (where I worked, actually).

Anyway, I was mildly horrified when I saw the film, even though I was a recovery room nurse and woke people up all the time. The film shows me thrashing about in the bed, talking (slurred speech for sure, mostly incomprehensible), lashing out at people who were trying to hold my arms, etc.

I know that this sort of reaction to anesthesia is way more common in younger people. I was in my mid thirties when I had this done.

What was weird to me wasn't what I did. Rather it was the fact that I have absolutely no memory of it, and it was an odd feeling to watch myself on film doing stuff I have no memory of. There's a point in the film where I suddenly remembered it, and I can point to the exact second where I lost consciousness, and where it returned.

It is highly unlikely that your doe knew anything at all. That doesn't make it less horrific for you to have witnessed, but perhaps it will make you feel better about what she actually felt and knew, likely nothing. Which is what you wanted for her in the first place.

We take responsibility for our animals, and that includes making sure they are as comfortable as possible from birth to death. All we can do is our best, which is quite certainly what you and your vet did.

When we first got goats many eons ago, in my ignorance, I tied one out to a concrete block. She got tangled in it and strangled to death, in about five minutes. (It happened so fast it was hard to believe.) I beat myself up for years about that. I can still cry if I think about it enough, and it's been about 20 years. But a more experienced goat breeder kept telling me to stop feeling so guilty. We do the best we can with the knowledge we have. If we're responsible, we do exactly what you're doing, and try to broaden that knowledge if we can.