Death of any kind is a very touchy subject for the average person. This is definitely true when it comes to humans, but it’s also just as sobering when it comes to the death of animals. Some people are just as or more compassionate about animals than they are about most humans. The subject becomes even touchier when there is a mention of having to end an animal’s life through some form of euthanasia. The procedure of euthanizing is one that has just as many critics as it does proponents, due to the seemingly inhumane ways that animals are forced to meet their end. Some people are animal rights activists who are vehemently opposed to anything that have anything to do with possible inhumane treatment of animals, and some are regular pet owners, who might be faced with the possibility or decision of having to euthanize one of their pets. However, any inhumanity or apprehension that may be involved with euthanasia, in many cases, it is the right and reasonable step.
Many people are reluctant to take the step of euthanizing their animals, and there are many people who are outright opposed to it. There is the feeling that the animal should be given a proper chance to live and survive, or at the least, be able to leave the land of the living on their own terms, and euthanasia robs the animal of those abilities, because it is forced to accept its fate without any sort of fight. Some people feel that it’s a step that is taken far too quickly, and that all treatment measures should be exhausted before an animal should be euthanized. Some feel that if one owner is unable to take on the responsibility of tending to their sick animal, that there are plenty of other people out there who are very willing to take care of it and give it the love, attention, and financial support that it requires.
There is also some apprehension towards euthanasia, not only because of the procedures themselves, but because of the period following the procedure. Animals may still twitch or exhibit regular living movements after their breathing has stopped, and those things may be a little disturbing to watch, because the death may appear to be a little too much to take, for both animal and witnesses. When animals are euthanized, the eyes sometimes don’t close, and there is sometimes movement and emptying of bodily waste, and that’s a little too much for some people to be able to watch. As far as methods go, some are perceived to be too harsh, from decapitation, strangulation, electrocution, and in some extreme cases, shooting. Some people feel that if humans are no longer thrown into gas chambers, strapped into electric chairs, put before firing squads, or meet death by guillotine, then animals, who have feelings just as humans do, should not have to experience such grotesque treatment. Along those same lines, many opponents of euthanasia share those sentiments due to the fact that just because an animal is sick, it should not have to automatically and heartlessly have its life ended, just to supposedly put it out of its misery. If elderly people are not put to death when they appear to be too old to tend to themselves, or if the mentally or physically unfit don’t get cast aside, unless you live in certain countries, then why should elderly animals be put to death just because they’re old, disabled, or sick? However, there are plenty of reasons that show that euthanasia is not as horrid and heinous as it is sometimes made out to be, and that it, in fact, is often a very reasonable and understandable procedure.
Firstly, putting animals to sleep is a relatively painless procedure. That erases a great deal of the apparent inhumanity of the act. In the past, and even now, if it’s not done professionally, cases of euthanasia involve using force, as evidenced towards the end of the book ‘Old Yeller,’ when the beloved canine title character of the book is shot to death. But, as human execution methods have changed for the better, if there is such a thing, over the years, as have methods of animal execution. There are many methods of euthanasia, depending on the species and the situation, but injections seem to be the most widely used and acceptable method today, at least for most animals, domesticated or otherwise, from dogs and cats, to hamsters and other rodents, to rabbits. The injection can be of potassium chloride, or it might be an intentional overdose of a substance such as pentobarbital. The death is swift and painless, with the animal taking its last breaths within seconds after injections, and the process often occurs with the animal already under anesthesia. And, the potential movements and actions by the animal, such as muscle twitching, or the eyes not closing, or the heart continuing to beat even when the animal has stopped breathing, all of those occur without the animal’s knowledge. The other methods, such as strangulation and decapitation, are only acceptable in certain circumstances, and those are done under anesthesia. With the death not being slow and agonizing, it makes the process a lot easier and more peaceful for both the animal and their possible owner(s).
Euthanasia is usually only done as a last resort, when it’s absolutely necessary for the animal’s sake that it be put to sleep. There are some cases when it is a hasty measure, and where it’s done wrong and unnecessarily, but for the most part, euthanizing is deeply thought-out, and avoided at all costs. But, there are some situations when it’s absolutely necessary for it to be done, when no other measure can be taken, for one reason or another. For example, racehorses that are seriously injured are put to sleep if it’s apparent that the injury suffered is too serious for the horse to be able to recover from, or if there is a potential threat of a possible fatal injection setting in the affected area within a short time. If a pet has gotten seriously ill or been ill and deteriorated to the point where there is little to no hope for it to live or to live without being in extreme difficulty, ending the animal’s life is the proper measure to take, without a doubt. Few people, no matter how much they may care for their pet, would not want to see it suffering and struggling, even if it means having to reluctantly give up a big part of their lives. Doing the right thing isn’t necessarily always the option that someone may want to do, but it might be the best thing to do. There are some situations when the pet has suddenly taken ill, and there isn’t much time to prepare for the animal’s death, and that makes apprehension about euthanasia understandable. Even when the animal may have been sick for an extended period of time and has gotten progressively worse, making the decision to euthanize the animal is one that requires a lot of thought. And, in the end, regardless of if the animal has been terminally ill for a period, gotten seriously injured in some way, or suddenly become ill, if the procedure would be in the best interests for the animal to be put out of certain misery, then it has to be done.
There are other circumstances, not involving physical illness, when euthanasia is the correct thing to do. Sometimes, an animal has become unmanageable, for one reason or another, due to extreme changes in its behavior and mental state that cause it to be a danger to others, or just too much to deal with for an owner. Even if the animal might be otherwise healthy physically, when it poses a threat to possibly hurting someone, may it be another animal, or a person, then euthanasia has to be considered. Euthanasia is also a step that is often taken when an animal has attacked and injured someone, and that’s when it’s become all too plainly obvious that the animal is far too much of a threat to continue to be kept as a pet within the household. No matter how much you might love your pet, or how the pet used to be, if it has the potential to physically harm you or the people around you, then the right steps must be taken. Sometimes, euthanasia has to be done to curb a potential overcrowding issue. A pet may have given birth to a number of offspring that the owner is unable to take care of, and is unable to find decent homes for, either on their own or through shelters.
There are some cases, not necessarily involving pets, where euthanasia is a step that is taken for reasonable, but controversial reasons. There are many stray animals, and in some cases even pets, who are taken to various shelters with the hope of finding them a home. However, there are limits on when animals can be kept in the shelters before a home for them must be found, dependent on the amount of room there is in the shelter. When there isn’t enough room or resources to maintain the animals, and no one steps up in enough time to adopt the animal, animals are often enough euthanized. This is a highly controversial topic, and it’s a measure that no one would like to have to take. But, to prevent against population overcrowding, or putting or keeping stray animals out in the streets just to wander around and end up dying or being killed anyway, it has to be considered. It would seem that there are more than enough people who would like to have a pet or could take care of a stray, but that’s not always the case. As is with the case where pets have too many babies for their owners to be able to take care of, spaying and neutering is something that should be done at a certain point to ensure population overcrowding doesn’t happen, and to curb the amount of animals that have to be euthanized as a result, even if it’s the only step that can be taken when all is said and done.
Euthanasia is done professionally, by people who are trained to know what they’re doing. Most veterinarians get into the occupation because of a great love for animals. In taking care of people’s family pets and other animals, becoming attached is easy and almost unavoidable, because of the regular and close contact that they have with the pets and pet owners. Thusly, because of that emotional investment, if they have to euthanize an animal, they’re going to take extra care to ensure that the animal is well taken care of, even in death. Before the animal’s death and while the procedure is taking place, veterinarians will often soothe the animals and talk to them. It’s undoubtedly just as hard on the veterinarian as it is on a pet owner, or anyone else who might be present, to have to put an animal to death, regardless of if it is sick, healthy, or if it has a home or not. In the human medical profession, being attached to patients is not always necessarily the best thing, but in veterinary medicine, personal care for an animal is a great asset, especially in cases of euthanasia. The care that the vet exhibits towards the animal not only helps the animal out, but it also benefits and consoles owners who are broken-hearted about having to let go of a pet.
There are several benefits for owners of pets who have to be euthanized. Along with the benefit of being able to know that their pets are longer suffering, it can relieve a lot of stress and burden from the owner. In cases where the animal has gotten terminally ill and requires regular, extensive treatments, the costs for the treatments and for maintaining the sick animal can get very high, and some owners are not able to carry the financial responsibility that such care calls for. Euthanasia allows the owners to give their pets a proper goodbye and the realization that what they did was the right thing to do. That also helps to counteract the assumption that euthanasia puts the lives, and deaths, of animals into the wrong hands. Euthanasia can also help to preserve the animal in a reasonable state, for those owners who might want to see their pet as closely resembling the way it was when it was living and healthy, or for those extremely attached owners who want to forever immortalize their animals by stuffing them, which for all intents and purposes, is actually a little lower than euthanasia on the moral and morbidity ladder.
It’s never easy to let a loved one go, human or animal. But sometimes we have to, and that’s one of the sadder, harsher realities of life. When you’ve had a pet for several years, someone that you’ve drawn close to and become extremely attached to, as if they’re like a sibling, or a child, and then that day comes when you face having to say goodbye, it’s a tough thing to accept and properly deal with. But, because of the amount of love and care that you have for the animal, that can help to drive home the fact that the decision is the right one, for both the pet’s sake and for yours as the owner. And, in cases when the animals involved are not pets, that same human, caring element remains, at least in most circumstances. True enough, there are some people who are devoid of emotions about taking an animal’s life, and do so ruthlessly, and those are the cases when you can’t help but feel sadness or anger. However, in most cases, it is the right thing to do. It’s tough, but it’s right. The feelings that the opponents of euthanasia have are often justified, and their care and love for animals is understood and shared by nearly everyone who has some sort of heart. But, when it’s all said and done, the animal’s best interests and well-being must be taken to heart, over anything that we as humans may feel, and sometimes, that doesn’t always mean doing what you want to do, but what you have to do.
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