Our dog in the 80s was about 10 years old. He started getting thinner in the front and fatter in the rear, ate less and had trouble going down the three stairs to the outside. We took him in for an x-ray. He had fluid below the diaphragm -the x-ray was solid white. We took him home for a few days and said our goodbyes. My father, who always acted as if he couldn't care less for the dog was crying when he said goodbye. The dog would get all agitated when going to the car, because he knew it was a trip to the vet, but on the last trip, he was very calm and peaceful. He knew what it was for.