As veterinarians, our job is to help a family make this difficult decision. There is no perfect moment to make this ultimate choice, unless the pet is truly suffering—something we are trying to prevent in the first place.
Rather, there is a subjective time period, which may be hours, days, weeks, or months, when euthanasia is the appropriate decision. Prior to this time, veterinarians may refuse to euthanize a pet because they still have a good quality of life, but after this period passes, we may advocate for euthanasia, because their sustained suffering is obvious. During this subjective time, however, the family has to make whatever decision is best for them. Every pet owner is different and entitled to their own thoughts and beliefs.
After all, you know your pet better than anyone—including your veterinarian. Concerned about your pet's quality of life? Print these PDF's, keep them in plain sight and have multiple people in the family use them daily or weekly. Like humans, every pet will experience and react to changes in their body differently. Their response is also highly dependent on the disease process at hand, making in-depth discussions with your regular veterinarian an important part of the process.
For example, a pet owner should make the decision to euthanize a Yorkshire terrier with congestive heart failure before painful symptoms, such as difficulty breathing, arise.
Alternatively, an older Labrador retriever with arthritis can be maintained at home with adequate pain management for an extended time period. What to expect Making the decision to say goodbye to a beloved pet is stressful, and your anxiety can often be exacerbated if you do not know what to expect during the euthanasia procedure. Your veterinarian will generally explain the procedure to you before he or she begins. Small to medium-size pets are usually placed on a table for the procedure, but larger dogs may be more easily handled on the floor.
Regardless of the location, make sure that your pet has a comfortable blanket or bed to lie on. In most cases, a trained veterinary technician will hold your pet for the procedure. The veterinary technician has the skill needed to properly hold your pet so that the process goes quickly and smoothly. If you plan to be present during the entire procedure, it is important that you allow enough space for the veterinarian and technician to work.
Your veterinarian will probably show you where to stand so that your pet can see you and hear your voice. Your veterinarian will give your pet an overdose of an anesthetic drug called sodium pentobarbital, which quickly causes unconsciousness and then gently stops the heartbeat. Your veterinarian will draw the correct dose of the drug into a syringe and then inject it into a vein. In dogs, the front leg is most commonly used. In cats, either the front or rear leg may be used. The injection itself is not painful to your pet.
We have met with families who drew Tarot cards before the appointment, or created beautiful altars with dried herbs and crystals, or simply made sure that they were outside in fresh grass or beneath the stars. Also remember to eat and drink water—crying causes dehydration and headaches, and eating means not feeling faint. Think about who you want to be there in the moment, before, during, and after.
Some families use video or voice calls to ensure loved ones who live far away are present for the process. Derek and I served one family who invited a friend over and gave her the specific job of answering the phone and the door so that they could focus on things that they felt were more important. Here, too, you can decide on what level of inclusion you want for kids and other pets. Kids are more resilient than many people give them credit for, and sharing in the experience can often be extremely beneficial for their own grieving processes.
As part of this, we can make the actual appointment as comfortable as possible for our pets. Often, they have their favorite toys beside them, and many families keep treats on hand during the appointment.
The most important part of the in-home euthanasia process is for the pet to be in a safe, comfortable, familiar place surrounded by the people they love and who love them back. For both dogs and cats, their sense of smell is incredibly important, so being able to smell you and recognize your presence helps keep them calm.
We once served a woman who had saved the very last bits of the hand lotion she had used when her dog was a puppy. It had recently been discontinued. Right before the final injection, she put it on her hands so that her dog could smell her as she kept petting him. Sometimes people are afraid of what the euthanasia process is going to be like to watch, and so they request to leave before we begin.
While we recognize that people have their own needs, we gently counsel that everyone should face their fear in order to be brave for their pets and stay with them.
At minimum, you should remain present until the sedation kicks in, but we recommend that you stay for the entire process.
All too often, pets whose families leave spend the process fighting the sedation and searching for them.
Derek and I are lifelong pet owners and animal lovers through and through, but we are still strangers to your pet. We have found that when people feel safe to ask questions and feel fully informed, they do stick around—even the ones who said earlier they would rather leave. Death is hard enough without regret. It is an inherent part of life. The process of thinking through these things, talking about them, asking questions, and addressing them ahead of time is so important, for yourself and for your pet too.
It erases the uncertainty of ignorance and grants stability to a topic that can often feel uncertain. Planning for euthanasia, though difficult, is a way of helping them live out their final moments in peace and as much comfort as possible. It is a kindness, not a cruelty. For both of you. SELF does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.
Any information published on this website or by this brand is not intended as a substitute for medical advice, and you should not take any action before consulting with a healthcare professional. All pets should have the same. The difficult inevitability of living with and loving a pet is the reality of their death.
In addition, the breakdown of nuclear families and the uptick of divorce rates have contributed to singles forming tighter bonds with companion animals. Such attitudes and trends are likely to engender profound changes in societal views of euthanasia. In a paper that I published entitled Euthanasia and Moral Stress , I described the significant stress experienced by veterinarians, veterinary technicians and humane society workers.
Many chose their profession out of a desire to improve the lot of animals; instead, they invariably ended up euthanizing large numbers of them, often for unethical reasons.
In other cases, the animal is experiencing considerable suffering, but the owner is unwilling to let the animal go. With owners increasingly viewing pets as family members, this has become increasingly common, and many owners fear the guilt associated with killing an animal too soon. The consequences are manifest. One recent study showed that one in six veterinarians has considered suicide. Another found an elevated risk of suicide in the field of veterinary medicine.
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