Is it time to put my senior dog with arthritis and cancer to sleep?

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I am so sorry that you are in this position. I would recommend that you consider going to your veterinarian before making this decision. They would be able to gather more information, examine him and determine what would be best to proceed with always considering his quality of life. They may decide to recommend something that may improve his quality of life and buy you both some quality time to spend together. Best of luck!

Hello, thank you for using PetCoach. I'm sorry you are having to deal with this issue. The right time to euthanize a pet is based on quality of life. If you feel his quality of life is diminished then it is time. In my opinion, no veterinarian will turn you away or judge you for wanting to euthanize her based on the information you provided here. Quality of life is based on many factors. You can check out this link as it may help you to make a decision. ( https://vet.osu.edu/vmc/sites/default/files/import/assets/pdf/hospital/companionAnimals/HonoringtheBond/HowDoIKnowWhen.pdf ) I hope this helps. Best wishes.

Thank you for using PetCoach. I'm so sorry for your situation with Brooklyn. Euthanasia for our pets is one of the greatest gifts for our pets, and greatest burden on us as owners and veterinarians. Consulting with Brooklyn's vet may help you to know when to make the decision. Using a quality of life scale can also help to make a more objective decision. This allows you to assign a numerical value to Brooklyn's activities and symptoms in order to determine his quality of life. I have used this one: http://lapoflove.com/Pet_Quality_of_Life_Scale_DrMcVety.pdf Another thing you can do is to have 2 jars - for every good moment put a penny in one and for bad moments put one in the other jar. If bad moments approach or overcome good moments then it is time to consider euthanasia. I hope this has helped a little bit with your decision making. Please feel free to post again if you have further questions.

Oh no, I'm so sorry that Santeri is so sick! I work for a home euthanasia service, so I face this question all the time with my clients. I suggest making a list of five things Santeri loved to do. If he's not doing at least two of them, then his quality of life has decreased to a point where humane euthanasia should be considered. It's always a hard decision to make, but if he has a poor quality of life, letting him go peacefully would be a great kindness. If you'd like to discuss this further, I'd be happy to consult with you. Just click the "consult online" button under my answer. Otherwise, I hope my answer helps and I'm sorry you are facing this issue :-(

Thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach with your question about Leroy. I'm sorry he's not doing well, and deciding if it's time to consider euthanasia is a tough time. I always recommend looking at the dog's quality of life in making this decision. If it's a poor quality of life, then yes, euthanasia would be the kindest option. While I cannot ultimately make this decision for you, based on your description of him currently, it does sound like his quality of life has declined to a point where euthanasia should be considered. I apologize if that is hard to read, or if it upsets you. It's never easy to make this choice, but if it prevents him from having his quality of life decline more, it is truly a blessing for him. I hope this helps.

This is always a tough question to answer. I work for a home euthanasia service, so I face this question all the time with clients. I recommend making a list of five things Coco used to love to do, and if she is no longer doing at least two of them, her quality of life has declined to where euthanasia should be considered. Quality of life is very important in these cases. I would speak with her vet to see what they think about her quality of life. I hope this helps.

Euthanasia is a very personal decision that must be made between you, your animal, and your veterinarian. It sounds like Baby has plenty of problems but still has some good days. When people are undecided about how to proceed I refer them to the oncology quality of life scale, which permits people to place an objective figure on things, even if it isn't doesn't make the choice for you. https://www.aplb.org/resources/quality-of-life_scale.html I hope this helps you make a decision one way or the other.