Is it cruel?

A question I have asked myself many many times since October 2011 and will probably ask myself more and more as time goes on is "Am I being cruel to Holly?"

It's a problem that all animal owners come across, knowing when it is time to let them go.

A few people have told me that Holly must be suffering and how could I consider letting her live with such a condition. These are people who have never met Holly. Some of them have subsequently met her and changed their minds.

Everyone who meets her tells me how wonderful it is to see her out and about enjoying herself and having such an obvious zest and enthusiasm for life. This is usually just before they get run over by a zesty enthusiastic Holly who very much of the opinion that they should watch where she is going and get out of the way.

She does love her walks and knows when it is a Saturday and we are going walking with friends. I try to have a lie-in on a Saturday but she wakes me up somewhere between 6 and 7am (alarm is set for 7.30am) and then keeps up a constant whine and natter until we arrive at the start of the walk. I then spend the next 5 minutes or so issuing sterner and sterner "Stand Still" commands so I can hook her into the cart, she doesn't want to wait and keeps trying to set off to greet all our friends (human and dog) and get on with the walk.

She loves her food too, well being part Labrador she will! She can be apparently fast asleep on the sofa and I will be in the kitchen preparing dinner. At some point I will be aware that I am not alone, I will turn round and she will be there waiting for a tasty morsel to come her way. The sound of food will have invaded her dreams, woken her and be enough incentive to propel herself across the floor (using her front legs with hind legs trailing behind her) and into the kitchen.

So, am I being cruel? Probably not just yet. She gets help when she needs it, but she does prefer to move on her own. When we use the scarf-sling she chooses the direction and speed of movement unless told to wait while I open and close doors. But I have started to give serious thoughts to where to draw the line. I know the common advice is to write down their favourite five things to do and then when they cannot do three of them call it quits. But I think with Holly it will have to be when she can no longer be independently mobile.