Discussing and planning out your pet’s end-of-life care can be challenging, but you have a strong support system in our team at Park Veterinary Hospital. We are here to answer all your questions and help guide you in choosing the best care for your pet in their golden years. Like you, we want them to enjoy their remaining time in comfort. The key to understanding your companion’s needs in their latter years is to evaluate their quality of life. An animal’s quality of life can be gauged by assessing various factors, including eating habits, comfort level, elimination habits, and other behaviors.
Contact us to schedule an appointment so we can discuss your pet’s quality of life and help you make the right care decisions for their needs.
Understanding Your Pet’s Quality of Life
You do not have to make decisions about your pet’s end-of-life care alone. Our team is here to help. Ultimately, we need to determine the current quality of your pet’s life and whether improvement is possible with treatment. Typically, we will want to consider the following factors:
- Is your pet still eating and drinking normally?
- Do they still seem happy and sociable?
- Is your pet able to walk and move around in relative comfort?
- Does your pet frequently have accidents in the house?
- Are they vomiting frequently?
- Do they seem depressed and lethargic most of the time?
It can be difficult to look at your pet’s condition objectively because you never want to expect the worst. However, understanding your pet’s quality of life is the key to minimizing their suffering as much as possible. In some cases, humane pet euthanasia may be the best option.
For more information about gauging a pet’s quality of life, refer to this handout.
What to Expect
If you decide that euthanasia is the only option for alleviating your companion’s suffering, you can ask us any questions you have ahead of time, so you know what to expect. We hope to ease some of your anxiety about the situation and perhaps eliminate any guilt you might be feeling about your decision. If you prefer, you can also make arrangements for cremation and keepsakes ahead of the appointment so you don’t have to worry about it after what will be an emotional experience.
Pet euthanasia can be a gift to an ailing pet because it allows for a comfortable and peaceful passing. At Park Veterinary Hospital, we first administer sedation, so the pet falls into a relaxing sleep. They do not feel any discomfort or stress during this time. Only once they are fully asleep and the owner is ready do we then administer the euthanasia injection.
End-of-life planning is never easy for a pet parent, but our team can support you through the process in any way you need. Contact us at (954) 561-8387 to talk about your pet’s condition and needs.
