Animal End-of-Life Care
11/10/2012
Last weekend I attended a meeting of the International Association of Animal Hospice and Palliative Care (IAAHPC). What an inspiring group of people, all getting together to talk about death! I know it is a subject that we would rather ignore, but the reality is that when we live with animals, we must experience their death or loss in one way or another. Most of us who take the plunge of pet stewardship understand that reality, and find that the relatively short time together is worth the grief of loss that we feel. “It is better to have loved and lost than to never have loved at all.” Having animals in our lives can bring us such pleasure, comfort, entertainment and consternation (but every great relationship has some of all of that!) Sometimes the bond with our animals can be stronger than those we have with people (perhaps a symptom of a lack of community support in our modern society, but that is another conversation!) I’d like to see a world where we are well bonded to our animals and our people and can learn from all of these relationships.
As a house call veterinarian, I get a special glimpse into those bonds that people form with animals, and have an added opportunity to support them. One of my greatest concerns is that as animals age or have a terminal diagnosis, they still need to be supported. Even if we cannot “cure” them, we can provide care and comfort to support their quality of life. Their needs change and we can adapt to that if we are prepared. Sometimes there doesn’t seem to be anything more that we can do as end of life approaches, but simple things like adapting the litterbox so they can step into it, providing a ramp so they don’t have to stumble down the stairs to get outside, or offering pain and joint support can make a huge difference in their life experience. As our pets near the end of their lives, I would like to provide more than just a peaceful in-home euthanasia (which is very important to me as well.) If you feel that your pet needs some extra support, I can provide a “palliative care” and/or “end-of-life care” consultation to address those needs.
As a house call veterinarian, I get a special glimpse into those bonds that people form with animals, and have an added opportunity to support them. One of my greatest concerns is that as animals age or have a terminal diagnosis, they still need to be supported. Even if we cannot “cure” them, we can provide care and comfort to support their quality of life. Their needs change and we can adapt to that if we are prepared. Sometimes there doesn’t seem to be anything more that we can do as end of life approaches, but simple things like adapting the litterbox so they can step into it, providing a ramp so they don’t have to stumble down the stairs to get outside, or offering pain and joint support can make a huge difference in their life experience. As our pets near the end of their lives, I would like to provide more than just a peaceful in-home euthanasia (which is very important to me as well.) If you feel that your pet needs some extra support, I can provide a “palliative care” and/or “end-of-life care” consultation to address those needs.