Often, having heard about someone's intention to euthanize a dog, they look disapprovingly and begin to whisper behind their backs. As a rule, people who don’t have or didn’t have any pets behave like this, or there were trouble-free animals that never hurt anything (for example, hamsters).
No less often, the intention to euthanize a dog becomes the cause of serious, years-long conflicts in the family, between children and parents, husbands and wives. Indeed, this is a very difficult and controversial decision, but not always.
Sometimes euthanasia is not just the only way out of this situation, but in essence is an act of humanity. For example, if the animal has inoperable esophageal cancer or paralysis. In such cases, discussions about the moral side of euthanasia are simply inappropriate; it is unethical to doom a pet to life in torment and an equally terrible, long and painful death. In addition, the beast that is in pain does not lie silently, that is, an endless howl is heard by everyone living in the neighborhood.
When can I resort to euthanasia?
Unfortunately, there are no legislative provisions regulating the issue of killing pets and clearly prescribing when this action is permissible. The decision to euthanize the dog or leave it to live is entirely the responsibility of the owners.
That is, to carry out the procedure for introducing a lethal injection, only a human desire is legally necessary. The health status of the pet, its age and other nuances from the point of view of the law do not matter.
This fact leads to the fact that in some cases terminally ill, mutilated animals die in agony for months, harassing all people around with whining and howling, or, conversely, completely healthy young dogs, for some reason bored by their owners, instead of to be given in good hands, sent to the table of the veterinarian.
When is euthanasia required?
The decision to euthanize a dog to any person with a healthy psyche is always not easy. Although many "humanists" will say that there can be no evidence for killing, in fact they do exist.
You will have to resort to euthanasia when:
- the presence of cancer in 4 stages, inoperable and preventing the dog from living in the literal sense;
- receiving severe injuries, for example, a fracture of the spine;
- brain tumors, at any stage of development and regardless of the nature of the occurrence;
- coma;
- incurable neurological pathologies - convulsions and so on;
- epilepsy is a relative indication, with this disease, some animals live happily ever after;
- failure of vital organs and systems, for example, inability to digest food, blindness or other similar ailments that are not amenable to treatment;
- irreversible changes that have come about due to old age or past pathologies.
Some of the above points are controversial, when deciding on the termination of a pet’s life, one should proceed from the specific situation and health status of the dog itself.
Why is euthanasia needed?
Paradoxical as it may seem, but if there is a need for euthanasia, the veterinarian will definitely say this, of course, if he is a good specialist who loves animals, and not a person who fell into this profession by accident.
If everything is unambiguous with inoperable cancer and euthanasia is not in doubt even among ardent opponents of killing, of course, if they at least once observed animals in this disease, then some other indications are cause for questions.
For example, a brain tumor that does not appear in the initial stage. Indeed, the animal looks absolutely healthy in appearance. The dog eats well, her hair shines, and the dog is very active on a walk. This is so, but it is impossible to predict the picture of the development of the tumor, its growth rate and what parts of the brain it will press. But this is inevitable, and the personality of the pet will begin to change. From a cute furry pet, an animal can turn into a vicious, completely uncontrollable and extremely aggressive dog.
In addition to personality changes, there will be physiological, also completely unpredictable. The limbs may be taken away from the pet, one of the organs may fail, internal hemorrhage will occur, and so on. That is, the presence of a brain tumor is a game of roulette and a constant risk. If there are small children in the family, or if the animal is large (for example, the Central Asian Shepherd, Newfoundland or a similar animal), it’s not worth the risk.
When you do not need to put to sleep?
It is not necessary to look for where to euthanize a dog if the animal is healthy, that is, it does not have severe incurable diseases.
Unfortunately, there are frequent cases of euthanasia of dogs, especially small decorative breeds for completely ridiculous reasons - “does not go to the pot”, “dull”, “barks”, “there is a lot of wool”, “we leave” and so on. This is really immoral and speaks of mental inferiority, the absence of a number of spiritual qualities in the owner of the animal.
The only reason for killing a dog is the state of its health, in all other cases the question can be solved differently, for example, to send to a shelter.
Where to euthanize?
When the decision to kill the animal has already been made, a series of other questions arises - euthanize the dog at home or take it to the hospital, whether it will hurt the animal, it is necessary to be present during the procedure or not, and so on.
The act of euthanasia, namely, the place of the injection, as well as the question of killing itself, depends only on the person. A fatal injection can be done both at home and in the clinic. Each option has its own advantages and disadvantages, so the choice depends on specific life circumstances.
There are no differences between the way dogs are euthanized in veterinarians and this procedure with home visits. The same drugs and injection are used, of course, at home it is performed in exactly the same way as in a hospital.
The benefits of euthanasia in a hospital
The benefits of leaving home to euthanize a dog in a clinic are as follows:
- children, if any, do not witness the process;
- no need to wash the animal and remove the biological consequences of death;
- if the clinic has general cremation services, you don’t have to worry about what to do with the body.
In terms of cost, there are no special advantages.
Of course, if the dog is decorative, then the inpatient procedure will be cheaper, but transporting a large animal, especially one that is unable to move or is in an inadequate condition, will require expenses. Often, economically, leaving the clinic is less profitable than calling a doctor at home.
The benefits of euthanasia at home
To euthanize a dog at home is preferred by many owners who are faced with such a need. There are many advantages to choosing a home procedure, among them the most important are:
- the animal does not have to be transported - this is extremely important for the unable to move, very old or completely exhausted pets;
- there is no need to take a dead dog from the hospital around the city - this plays a role when it is planned to bury a pet, for example, in a summer cottage;
- there is no additional mental trauma for either the beast or the owners.
In order for the procedure to be less traumatic for the owners, it is necessary to prepare not only heart drops, but also a place for euthanasia. It is optimal to use old rags or diapers for bed patients, which are sold in each pharmacy, as bedding.
Such a simple precaution eliminates the need to clean up the biological waste that always accompanies death. It makes sense to talk with the veterinarian about what should be done on the eve of the euthanasia from a household position. This is not insensitivity or blasphemy at all, but a tribute to the four-legged friend, because if you have a prepared zone, you won’t have to turn the body over, move it, or perform other manipulations with it.
How to euthanize painlessly?
How to euthanize a dog painlessly excites all owners without exception, forced to take this step.
Among the existing methods of killing, the following are most often used:
- bleeding;
- calcination of the spinal cord or injection into it;
- "Suffocation" - a mask with nitrogen or argon, similar to anesthesia;
- injections of potassium chloride, hydrochloride or air embolism;
- the introduction of paralyzing heart poisons.
Most often, modern veterinary medicine in large cities uses a two-phase procedure for killing an animal:
- the first injection is a potent drug that disables the dog’s consciousness, usually sleeping pills or anesthesia;
- with a second injection, made only after the full action of the previous one, poison enters the body, usually from the group of paralytics that stop the heart.
It is believed that this method of how to euthanize a sick dog and not cause it additional suffering is most effective.
How much is it?
How much it costs to euthanize a dog is an important issue for most owners who are faced with this need. It is not a secret that the income of most Russians does not at all correspond to the rainbow patterns of these state statistics, so the price always matters, even if it comes to the euthanasia of a four-legged friend.
It is impossible to say exactly how much it costs to euthanize a dog, since in every city and even in various clinics located in the neighborhood, there are own prices.
The cost consists of many components, among which are the chemical compounds used in the procedure, the weight of the animal, the place of the euthanasia. The larger the dog, the more it will need poisonous substances, which means that the higher the price of the service will be.
On average, in large cities of the Central European part of the country, the following cost criteria were established (in rubles):
- up to 10 kg - from 1000 to 1900;
- up to 20 kg - from 1800 to 2100;
- up to 30 kg - from 2500 to 2900;
- up to 50 kg - from 3000 to 4100;
- up to 70 kg - from 5000 to 8000.
Departure at home means an increase in the price of the clinic in sizes from 300 to 600 rubles.
When deciding on the euthanasia of an animal, you need to delve into all the details and choose the method that will be optimal in a particular case, that is, be sure to discuss with your doctor that for this particular dog it will be faster and less painful.