If your pet is diagnosed with a terminal or aggressive disease, you may not want to put them through rigorous treatment, or you may be told there is nothing else that can be done, but you also may not be ready to euthanize your beloved four-legged friend. Hospice is a third option that provides supportive care for pets in their end stage of life by maximizing their comfort and supporting their family during their remaining time. Our team at Golden Years Veterinary Services wants to explain hospice care for pets, so you can decide if this route is right for your pet.

Veterinary hospice care

Veterinary hospice care focuses on alleviating pain and reducing your pet’s disease signs. If your pet is undergoing curative treatments that cause pain or discomfort, these measures may be discontinued, and palliative treatments can be used to improve your pet’s quality of life. Alternatively, hospice and palliative care can be administered alongside life-saving therapeutics, since veterinary hospice care differs from human health care, where insurance dictates that all life-saving measures must be stopped in order to begin hospice care. Palliative treatments provided for your pet may include medications or procedures to reduce pain, decrease nausea, improve breathing ability, and increase mobility. 

Hospice care also focuses on supporting you as your pet’s caregiver, and educating you about your pet’s expected disease trajectory, how to evaluate their quality of life, and preparing for their death. You will build a relationship with your pet’s veterinary care team to help prepare you for the journey ahead.

Veterinary hospice vs. human hospice care

Human hospice care focuses on improving a chronically ill patient’s symptoms and pain, and providing emotional support for them and their family. Veterinary hospice care was born from the human hospice movement of the 1970s, and similarly aims to maximize a terminally ill pet’s remaining time and to support their owners. Similarities between human and veterinary hospice care include:

  • Symptom management — Treatment shifts from trying to cure a patient’s disease to managing symptoms to keep the patient pain-free and comfortable.
  • Unit of care focus — Instead of focusing only on the patient, hospice care focuses on the entire unit of care, which includes caregivers, family members, and friends who will be impacted by the patient’s illness and death.
  • Interdisciplinary care team — Instead of a single doctor managing a patient’s care, hospice involves a care team that may include a veterinarian or physician, veterinary technicians or nurses, caregivers, family members, a social worker, and possibly a chaplain or spiritual leader. 

Ways that veterinary hospice care differs from human hospice include:

  • No physical location — Whereas hospice facilities, such as nursing homes, exist to facilitate human hospice care, veterinary hospice care is provided at the pet’s home, and is largely administered by the family, with veterinary guidance.
  • No insurance limitations — Insurance companies limit when human hospice care can start, often delaying care that could improve a person’s quality of life. Since veterinary care is not restricted by insurance policies, pet owners can begin hospice care as early as they wish.
  • Euthanasia — Perhaps the most significant difference is the ability to provide humane euthanasia for pets who are suffering or who no longer enjoy a good quality of life. Euthanasia allows the pet to experience a peaceful death surrounded by their unit of care. Additionally, it prevents a prolonged process of decline that can erode a pet’s dignity and their caregivers’ happy memories.

Hospice-supported natural death

Many people want their pets to die naturally “own their own”  instead of choosing euthanasia. Unfortunately, few animals die as peacefully as we would like. The death process is typically long and drawn-out, and often involves suffering. Euthanasia exists to prevent suffering, and to allow pet owners to choose the time, location, and those present for their pet’s passing.  Unfortunately, allowing a pet to progress to a natural death may cause their condition to suddenly deteriorate. Owners who choose this option may end up rushing their pet to an emergency hospital for euthanasia to end their suffering.

If you wish for your pet to die naturally, your pet will need to be supported with diligent nursing care, pain management, and medical support. Hospice care can allow for this, and can keep your pet as comfortable as possible during their final days.

Veterinarians providing hospice care

Any veterinarian can provide hospice care, but Dr. Freed is one of only a few hundred certified hospice and palliative care veterinarians in the world. She has participated in advanced continuing education, and has been certified by the International Association of Animal Hospice and Palliative Care (IAAHPC) to provide elevated care for dying pets. 

Whereas veterinarians typically focus on treating and curing sick pets, certified veterinary hospice and palliative care veterinarians focus on symptom management to support pets and their families. Hospice veterinarians must often devise creative, individualized means of treatment to alleviate a pet’s pain, encourage them to eat, or otherwise support a good quality of life. Hospice veterinarians are also trained to look beyond the pet, and provide supportive care to their caregivers and family members who may need comfort, guidance, and encouragement along the way. They consider the family’s emotional and spiritual needs, as well as the pet’s medical needs. 

Most veterinarians are trained to euthanize pets via intravenous (IV) or intracardiac (IC) injection. IV administration of the euthanasia drug is most common; however, certain situations, such as an inability to access a vein, or a pet who is suffering and requires the fastest relief possible, may necessitate IC injection. IAAHPC-certified veterinarians are trained in many  additional euthanasia methods, which means they can offer more options to pet owners to ensure the most peaceful passing possible.

Dr. Freed strongly believes in a bond-centered practice, because the human-animal bond is so important for humans and pets. This is one reason she has devoted her career to providing end-of-life care for pets and their families. If you think hospice may be a viable option for your pet, contact our Golden Years Veterinary Services team, so we can make your pet’s remaining time as comfortable as possible.