Sudden Death of my 6-year-old Cairn Terrier

[King's Dad]

Yesterday was a very bad day for my wife and I. I was downstairs and my 6-year-old Cairn Terrier, King, was still sleeping upstairs. I heard a crying/whining noise and assumed it was him even though I never heard a noise like that come from him. I thought he had gotten hurt somehow. I ran upstairs and he was lying on his back with his head to one side. He was on the cushion of a soft chair and he had been sleeping on the top of the chair which is also very soft. He always liked to sleep on the softest material possible. I saw him on his back with his eyes closed and he was crying so I though he was having a bad dream which occasionally happens. I tried to tell him it was okay and he stopped breathing. I tried yelling to him and eventually tried CPR and mouth to mouth but nothing worked. A couple of times when I was giving him chest compressions he opened his mouth and I thought he was coming back but he didn't.

The reason I am writing is because my wife and I do not know what happened to him and are wondering if anyone else had this experience or has heard of it. King was only six years old and in excellent health. He had been to the veterinarian six days prior and had three vaccinations, DHLPP, bordetella injectable and lyme disease. At that visit the veterinarian also listened to King's heart and lungs and found no problems and said he was healthy. We fed King Iam's food, water, occasional small milk-bone treat and an occasional small piece of carrot. He was also on sentinel and frontline plus. We did all vaccinations when recommended and brought him out for walks. A couple of months ago King had some spots on his stomach/groin area which the veterinarian said was probably some kind of bacterial infection. He gave us some pills and topical medication and it got better. Other than that King has been very healthy and the day before he died he was eating, drinking, playing and going the bathroom normally. I asked the veterinarian if there was a blood test he could do after King died to see if there was something wrong with the vaccine and he said no so we buried King yesterday.

I am guessing that King had a heart attack but my wife and I don't really know and if it was a heart attack is that common in Cairn Terrier's that area so young? If anyone has any ideas or information please let me know. We bought King at a pet store and afterwards were told about puppy mills and all that but we didn't know at the time and felt so lucky that King was so healthy and smart and kind. It is very hard for us right now and we miss King horribly. We will probably buy another Cairn Terrier because we loved King so much and hope we are as lucky with the next one but King seemed like one of a kind and it us he was our first baby. Any help would be appreciated.

King's Dad

[TNA]

Kings Dad, I have absolutely no information to share, but just wanted to send my deepest sympathies, as this story reduced me to tears.

In our thoughts and prayers

Ang.

[goforette]

I am so sorry to hear of your loss - that is just beyond terrible to witness that and not know how to help him. Is it possible that he was sleeping up top the chair and fell on the arm chair causing maybe an injury at all to his neck? Sometimes there are delayed adverse reactions to various vaccinations - even up to 1 month after vaccinations. If he was crying however you would think he was in pain of some sort, or maybe having a seizure. I am so sorry about your loss and my heart goes out to you.

[Will&Grace]

King's Dad, I just wanted to express my sympathy and send a prayer your way. That sounds like a horrible thing to experience and I feel heartbroke for you. I am sorry I don't have any input or speculation to offer as to what happened. There are some very knowledgeable folks that post here so hopefully they may provide some insight. Peace to you and your family, Linda

[maggie]

I am so sorry for your loss, I can't imagine how horrible this most be. I don't know what could have happened to King. My sister had a Weimeraner and a similar situation happened when he was just 4 maybe 5months old. Her son is a paramedic and was home at the time, he did CPR etc to no avail. They found out he died from an aneurism.

I will be thinking and praying for you and your family.

Maggie

[Janet]

What a terrible shock for you and your wife. My heart goes out to you both It is heartbreaking to lose a beloved pet so young and with no explaination why this should have happened. My little Cairn passed to the bridge last august aged 12yrs through illness and that was bad enough for my husband and I to cope with so I really feel for you.

Sounds a bit strange that your vet couldn't do any tests to get to the bottom of this. Surely he must have some idea what could have caused a young healthy dog to die so suddenly.

You must console yourselves with the fact that in Kings short life he was well looked after and you loved and cared for him as much as anybody could. You gave him six great years and that is better than a lifetime of cruelty.

You say you are going to get another Cairn, well believe me that is the best way to mend a broken heart. We can't replace our little furry loved ones I know but it sure helps to ease some of the pain.

We now have Gem(3yrs) she came to live with us 2 weeks after Lucy passed and we love her dearly. We will never forget our beloved Lucy and the time we shared with her.

[Brody'sMom]

I'm so sorry for your loss.

Edited January 11, 2007 by Brody'sMom

[CathyAnn]

My sincere condolences to your loss.

The only definitive way to find cause of death would be thru an autopsy. We lost a cat at 2 years of age and I had her remains sent to a teaching university. The breeder was also in favor due to her diligence of keeping her line of breeding pure. Long story, but, in the end, I did get my answer.

My deepest sympathies,

Cathy

[Duncan's Mom]

I'm very sorry for your loss of King. I know you will miss him very much. Since he was so healthy before he died, I would gues either an aneurysm, massive MI (heart attack), seizure, or stroke. In any of these cases, it happened so quickly that he would not have suffered. It was probably something that was congenital (King was born with) and more than likely there was nothing you could have done to prevent it, especially since he had no symptoms. It souinds like he had a very happy life and was much loved. Your memories of him are precious.

[tlwtheq]

King's Parents:

I am so sorry for your loss and your pain. I am glad you found your way to this forum.

Take care, and don't be a stranger.

Tara, Mom of Many

[kcsdogs]

First of all I am so incredibly sorry to hear about King. You and your wife must be devastated! I would be suspicious of the vaccines since it was done so recently, some dogs have reactions to them. I have a Boston terrier and his Grandsire died suddenly of a suspected vaccine reaction. There is a lot of debate right now on wether or not yearly vaccinations are healthy for dogs. Many vets are saying they are very dangerous and way over done.

This could also have been a genetic issue but it is hard to say.

There are a lot of reasons that dog's pass suddenly and if you were to get down to it you probably would have to do an autopsy on him and even then it may not tell you anything.

My heart just broke for you guys when I read this, I truly hope you are able to find out why this happened and can find comfort in another furry little Cairn.

Cairn hugs from Kipper, Seasaidh and Montrose and their uprights Ben and Krista

[Tuckersmom]

I am so sorry for your loss, I hope you find comfort knowing you are thought of by so many people....God Bless!

[Kramersmom]

I'm so sorry to hear what happened. I feel for you & your wife. I lost Missy, my Cairn November 9th 2004 liver failure due to old age. Whether young or old it is so hard when we lose them and so suddenly and young makes it even harder.

King had the best of his 6 years and I know how much he was loved. He will watch over you & your wife to make sure you both are doing well. When I first read your post the first thing to come to my mind was a reaction to the vaccines.

I do vaccinate but, I worry a whole month after the shots since there is so much talk about over vaccinating or we do not need to vaccinate every year and the list goes on. Whatever the cause It sounds like King had no suffering.

I sure hope in time that you will let another Cairn enter your hearts. King will take one part if the heart and the new cairn the other. As hard as it is we learn to love another. Remember they are gone but NEVER forgotten.

We now have another cairn, Kramer who is now 2 years old and he is my little boy! I call him a mommys boy

Missy was Missy a little bossy, dominate princess and now Kramer he is a cuddly bear and loves the attention and affection. They are all different in there own litttle ways.

Please Know that you are in my thoughts and my deepest condolences to you & your wife

[Sarah]

I am so, so sorry that you have experienced such a loss. How tragic.

I'm sorry your vet wasn't more helpful, too. I most certainly would want to know what might have caused it and I can't blame you for seeking more answers.

I hope you find peace with or without those answers, though.

[Pepandfriend's mom]

I am so sorry for the loss of your beloved Cairn. I am glad that you came to this forum; the people here really DO care about these wonderful animals. My thoughts and prayers are with you, and I hope you and your family can have some peace knowing you gave your little guy a happy life. Six is so young: one of mine is six also.

Peace to you,

pam

[Anna_525]

What a terrible thing! My deepest condolences to you. I also wonder if it's a heart attack with chest pains. I'm so sorry to hear this!

Anna

[bradl]

Oh, my heart aches for you. I'm sorry your vet didn't do or suggest a necropsy. In the end, though, it seems to be a sad truth that all dogs are taken before we are ready. I'm sorry you had no time to prepare. It is clear King was truly loved - your memories of him will honor him forever. Blessings on King, to you, and all who knew him. Peace.

[King's Dad]

Thank you everyone for your kind words of support and caring. It does help to make us feel better and seeing the pictures of your dogs next to your names is nice too.

King's Dad

[Flyboy]

So sorry for your loss!

Cairns don't seem to suffer from heart desease as much as other breeds from what I can find but it does sound like you may be right. SOme problems can develop with pure breed dogs according to the cairn site. Maybe your vet can shed light on the situation.

[savannahsmom35]

I am so sorry for your loss. Take comfort in knowing that you gave him a great life while he was here. My deepest sympathys.

[GirlieJr]

I am so sorry for your loss. I can't imagine how painful this must be for you and your wife. You are in my thoughts and I hope you find out what may have caused King's sudden passing.

God bless.

[pammyfay]

Just so sad; my heart aches for you.

I sometimes wonder if sudden passings are a pet's way of not forcing us to confront the decisions that would otherwise have to be made (a friend's basset died the weekend before Xmas, suddenly--altho he had had a growth near his heart for several years, you would never have noticed any problems. Then he turned lethargic, they took him to the specialty clinic and the techs there found internal bleeding. His owners made the hard decision to let him go. I'm actually glad I wasn't able to go--I had just spent a good afternoon with him 4 days prior, walking with him and belly-rubbing him, so that's my last memory of him.)

I really do wonder why your vet wasn't more open to doing a necropsy. He/she must've known that so many questions in your mind would never be answered to your satisfaction. That's very sad, too.

But your hearts are open to future dogs, and that's a wonderful thing. I'll bet King's up at the bridge barking up a storm about the great humans he had.

[mollysmom1]

I am so so sorry for your loss of your beloved friend. We have only had Molly for a year, although she is 5 now, and she, too, was a pet shop dog. Unfortunately we can never know what life has in store for us or our best friends. My heart goes out to you and your wife.

[Scully'sMom]

I can't begin to tell you how very sorry I am for your loss. My heart just hurts for you and your family. I can tell how well loved King was and I know he loved you all very much as well. Again, my deepest sympathy to all of you.

[OzGirl]

What a tragedy... I am so sorry to read about your precious King. I hope you will find peace in the memories he left behind.

Deepest sympathy to you and your wife.