Will Euthanasia Hurt?
The following is a description of a typical euthanasia procedure. If you do not wish to read about this procedure, please close this document now.
Euthanasia is very humane and virtually painless.
First, I will ask you to sign a paper - an "Authorization For Euthanasia".
If you decide to go ahead you will be given a number of options:
1. you may be present (with the pet) during the euthanasia;
2. you may be absent for the procedure but wish to see your pet after euthanasia; or
3. You may want to say goodbye to your pet prior to euthanasia and not see him again.
Once you have decided upon your involvement in the euthanasia process, you will need to decide what you would like to have done with the remains. We can discuss your options before the euthanasia procedure.
The procedure generally involves sedation and the humane injection of euthanasia medicine. In general, the euthanasia is rapid, usually within seconds, and very peaceful. Your pet will just go to sleep. On rare occasions there may be a brief vocalization or cry as consciousness is lost; this is not pain although you may misinterpret it as such.
Within seconds of starting the injection the drug will cause the heart to slow and then stop, and any circulation in the body will cease. As the heart stops and the blood pressure decreases, the unconscious animal will stop breathing, circulation to the brain will cease and your pet will die peacefully.
Once your pet has passed away, you might observe involuntary muscle contractions or respiratory gasps about one or two minutes after the loss of consciousness and circulation. Again this is not evidence of pain or consciousness, but instead, it represents a physiologic response that occurs whenever the brain is deprived of circulation. The unconscious animal may also lose bladder or bowel control. I often cover the pet immediately after injecting the euthanasia solution to partially shield the pet owner from these physiologic responses, which may still be disturbing.
