As much as you try to extend your pet’s life
through first-rate medical care, there comes a time when euthanasia
is the most caring gift left to give your animal companion.
Approximately 70
percent of owners opt for euthanasia when the pet is suffering from
an ailment that significantly compromises its quality of
life.
Choosing to put your pet down is an incredibly difficult and
emotionally grueling decision to make, but it’s often more humane
than letting the animal live on in misery. Approximately 70 percent
of owners opt for euthanasia when the pet is suffering from an
ailment that significantly compromises its quality of life.
If your pet is gravely ill or has been so severely injured that
the prospect of recovery is slim, and euthanasia looks like the
kindest option, then the next big question becomes how to tell when
it’s time to put the animal down.
Your veterinarian can help you with the decision, but most vets
will leave the choice of timing up to you. When my clients ask me,
"How will I know when it’s time?" I always tell them that they will
get cues from their pet, if they look their friend in the eyes and
try to read what they are thinking. Most clients will innately know
when it is time. If a client does not think it is time, then it
usually isn't.
Does this all sound like touchy-feely mumbo-jumbo to you? Maybe
you’re looking for a hard-and-fast answer about when euthanasia is
appropriate? Unfortunately, there is none—but there are parameters
for assessing the quality of an animal’s life. If you’re worried
that you won’t instinctively be able to figure out when the time is
right, review the following inventory of questions to help you get a
better sense.
1. Does your pet maintain his usual routine—getting up,
going outside, eating, sleeping, and playing, as it has throughout
his life? Do you still get greeted at the door with a big, sloppy
kiss hello? Animals are creatures of habit. When the daily
routine is lost, consider that a sign that life just isn’t the same
for your pet.
2. Is your pet in pain? If so, can the pain be treated with
medication, or is there nothing that will resolve it? If the
answer is the latter, then it might be more humane to end your pet’s
suffering.
3. In addition to other debilitating problems, does your pet
suffer from incontinence? If your older pet has become incontinent
after a life of perfectly house-trained behavior, he probably
realizes that he is doing something he has been taught not to do,
and thus suffers from a loss of dignity. He senses that you are
upset by the accidents and can do nothing to stop the problem. If
every effort has been made to diagnose and treat the problem and the
incontinence remains, take a good look at the pet’s quality
of life.
Ultimately, the real question is whether you are
keeping your pet alive for yourself or for the pet.
