Hi friends, I have had to make a difficult decision & that is to part ways with my beloved dog Sancho. This is inevitable not just because of his age at 13 yrs & 3 mos, but because of several other factors. Being a German Shepherd mix, he has been struggling with arthritis in his back legs for several years now, struggling with standing, sitting, & has a bad tremor in both hind legs when on his feet. One of his pain meds' side effect is aggression, & I'm afraid it has increased & caused him to not only show his teeth to me, but snap at me on numerous occasions, & this summer he has bitten me twice now in the same month, the 2nd time being last evening. I moved across the state several months ago to live in a building that is handicap friendly with an elevator, & he has had a better time of it here, but no amount of repeated treat training & accommodating his disabilities has been keeping his aggression at bay. I struggle with feeling safe living alone with him & feel his days don't have enough good moments to keep him with me any longer. I have found blood in his stool lately & feeling bumps in his sides beyond fatty deposits so I know his time is short here. My vet has given me a guestimate for putting him asleep with taking his ashes home & it is around $700. I plan to scatter his ashes under the tree where my parents are buried in nearby Claremont. I'm not feeling safe in this living situation so am opting for letting him go next week. I have struggled with this decision on numerous occasions, looking for humane resolutions like buying mobility assistance supplies, joint supplements, the meds, offered unending hours of patience of continually training him to be good, & took on a very very expensive move to a better & kinder set up for him. I have been his dog mom since he was 6 months old when I adopted him from the Austin Animal Center, & have been his whole world. I don't have the heart to surrender him to another owner, & cannot in good conscious do that knowing he is an unpredictable bite risk. If you have any donation you can offer so I can make this happen next week. I would be so grateful. This is truly a gut wrenching decision, but I have searched my heart & mind & know it's for the best for him & me. Thank you for listening & considering donating. Jen