Had to put our 16 yr old shepherd mix to sleep yesterday. Had a bunch of health problems, but she had not been in pain. She's been a great dog (At 2 yrs old, "Cricket" had flunked out of the Leader Dog School but a lot of the specialized training had stuck). Finally on Sunday she couldn't stand up and we decided it was her time. I was going to take her to the vet, (prepared to pay around $100 from what others at work had told me) but I remembered the County Animal Control picked up our last dog who died at home. Called them and they put pets to sleep for free for County residents. Took her in and they were real nice about it. So check with your local Animal Control Shelter when the time comes for your pets.