by Mary Lee

Created on: September 24, 2008

I believe in doing everything possible to save an animal's life. Medication and surgery can save or improve the life of sick or injured animals. An animal crippled by a birth defect, accident or disease can often be helped with specially made devices for handicapped animals. But sometimes, when your pet is suffering and there is nothing that can be done to improve their condition or lessen their suffering, the kindest thing is to euthanize your beloved pet.

When to euthanize? This is a hard decision to make and my suggestions here are to first look at your pet and ask yourself these questions. How bad are the injuries? How advanced is the cancer or other disease? How much pain is he/she in? Am I keeping my pet alive for them or for me?

If your pet is young, you may wish to try treatments that would be too much for an older pet. Your veterinarian can help you with your options for either treatment or euthanizing your pet. Just like with a human patient, you can take your pet to another veterinarian for a second opinion. Some veterinarians specialize, so if you are seeking a second opinion, you may wish to see a specialist for your pet's condition. That said, for a pet that has lived a full life and is quite old, it would probably be kinder to end their suffering.

I have had to euthanize two of my dogs and I know first hand how heartbreaking that is. The first was a Black Labrador and Collie mix. She was 13 and years old and she started acting like she was weak and had trouble getting around on her own. I noticed a small lump on her side and decided to take her to the veterinarian to have it checked out. This was on a Saturday night, that Monday was Memorial Day, so Tuesday was the soonest I was going to get her in to have that lump checked. That lump grew at an alarming rate and by Tuesday it was the size of baseball. She had become so weak, I had to carry her outside and carry her back in the house when she needed to relieve herself. She could barely walk or stand for very long. My worst fears were realized when the veterinarian said she had cancer and he believed it had spread all through her. She whined when I touched her, so I knew she was in great pain. I had to end her suffering, so I let the veterinarian "put her to sleep." It was over very quickly and it was just like she just went to sleep. He checked her to be sure her heart had stopped and I had lost my best friend.

The second dog I had to euthanize was my fifteen year old Golden Retriever. For several

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