JANUARY 2007

When It’s Time To Say Goodbye

LynnWhittaker
Bow Wow U

This is the most difficult decision a pet owner can face. At some point in your pet’s life you will need to consider their quality of life, and when it’s time to say goodbye. It pains me to write about it, but it is a question that I am often asked, often whispered to me in secret. Whether your pet is old, or suffering from something that has significantly changed his or her quality of life, the time will come when you have to make the choice to allow your pet to go or not.

Always consider what you can do to assist your pet to maintain a decent and comfortable lifestyle. Will any treatments or additional veterinary care help to prolong their days and your relationship with them? What else may be done? What is the long-term and short-term outlook?

If extended treatments are enabling your pet to live a bit longer, is this adding quantity of life in lieu of adding the needed quality? Do the bad days outnumber the good? Are there more days of pain than pleasure? How long can your pet be expected to live with this treatment? How do you know when enough is enough?

Trying to be as objective as possible, you may ask yourself why he or she is still on this earth despite their challenges. Is your pet still with you because he or she wants to stay with you, or is it because you are keeping the animal here for your own personal reasons. Having seen your pet living a full and healthy life previously, examine what kind of life they are currently living.

Some signs to look for that may help you in your choices may be:

- Loss of appetite
-Lethargic and reclusive behavior
- Incontinence
- Outward signs of pain when touched
-Inability to be comfortable or constantly restless
- Inability to walk without assistance
Inability to enjoy things previously enjoyed

Your veterinarian cannot tell you when its time to say farewell, however, they are able to give sound advice when you are considering the future of your beloved pet. My veterinarian has always held the scale of life in front of me, whenever I have had to face this tough choice. "Measure the animal’s current quantity of life against the quality of life it has led previously." Essentially it’s not how long your pet lives, it’s more important to figure how well your pet is living. One rule of thumb I have heard that I have kept in the back of my mind is this, pick three things your pet loved to do, and when they could not do two of the three, it was time to consider euthanasia.

This tough decision will always cause deep soul searching, especially if you have spent many wonderful years together. Truly this is a path that none of us likes to even consider walking down, however, letting your pet go can sometimes be the best selfless act of love we do for them.