I believe that this decision is the hardest that one can make in caring for animals. Over the years, I have had to make this choice many times. And it never gets easier.
This page is dedicated to those who are facing this decision, or have felt compelled to choose euthanasia for their pet.
If you bring to a veterinarian an animal that is badly injured or criticall ill, the vet may offer you the option of "humane euthanasia", also known as "putting the animal to sleep".
But sometimes I knew going in that the issues were serious, and the animal might not survive. In many such case, I eventually felt compelled to choose euthanasia, putting the animal to sleep forever.
Why?
After the initial examination, the veterinarian would offer treatment options and an estimate of the outcome. In the case of Bandit, the vet estimated 20% chance of survival. Included in "survival" was a strong liklihood of permanent brain damage. "I've seen some cats who couldn't do anything but walk in circles for the rest of their lives."
The treatment was also expensive, but I wasn't really thinking about the cost. I was thinking about that 20% chance of survival, probably with damage. Then I asked myself, Would I really be doing Bandit a favor by buying him some extra days of misery?
You must ask yourself one vital question: Do you love your cat enough to let her die, when continued life would be miserable?
The animal is first prepared with a tube going into a blood vessel. This makes the actual injection into that tube quick and easy.
The animal rapidly becomes unconscious; breathing stops; then the heart stops. It's all over in a minute.
After the animal is clinically dead, there may be a few twitches or muscle jerks. These are reflexes, shutting down. The pet is already gone.
Most vets will give the pet owner the option of being present when the injection is administered. I always take this option, insisting on being present to comfort the cat in her final moments. Ironically, in my attempt to rescue feral queen Dark Tail, she never really let me pet her, until she was near to death. After she was prepared, I spoke gently to her, slowly stroking her fur. I believe that it was a comfort to her; if she had the strength, she might have purred. Then the vet administered the injection, and I continued to sooth her, as Dark Tail went to sleep forever.
For the rest of your life, whenever you think of that cat, a little nagging voice in the back of your mind will whisper, "Did you really do the right thing? Was there nothing else you could have done?"
The only thing that I can say about this is: if you cared little about the cost, carefully considered the chance of survival, and were facing a high probability of misery - you did the best that you could.
And those little nagging little voices should shut the hell up!