Regarding the "Just Ask The Expert" column on other pets being present for a fellow pet's euthanasia (March 2012), any house
call veterinarian sees this situation all the time. When I do home euthanasias, the other pets are almost always around. If
they are not present for the actual euthanasia because they are too rambunctious, nervous around strangers, etc., I usually
recommend that the owner let the other pets come around the body before it is taken from the home or buried. I don't think
this diminishes the mourning some pets go through, but I do think it reduces that aimless wandering all through the house
for days and weeks afterward some pets do when a pet goes off to the veterinarian never to return again. Some pets sniff the
body, while others appear to ignore it. But we know they sense what has happened and "know" the other pet has died.
Susan McMillan, DVM, JD
Burlington, Vt.
Regarding Dr. John Ciribassi's answer about the presence of housemates during euthanasia, I have been doing home euthanasia
as part of my house call practice for nearly 20 years. I was quite surprised that the usual preparation I gave owners regarding
the transition of their other pets to life without the one being euthanized seemed not to apply. One after another, owners
reported that the other pets did not seem to notice the deceased pet's absence, even in cases in which the pets were very
close.
My conclusion after this many years is that they simply need information—that is, to know whether or not the missing pet is
alive or not. They may have smelled illness when the sick one was taken to the hospital, but that is not the same as the smell
once all processes have stopped. I do not believe that it matters whether pets are present at the time of death, but they
should be allowed a chance to smell the deceased before moving on. I even encourage owners to take a surviving pet to the
hospital in cases in which a housemate dies after surgery or hospitalization. It is hard enough for the people to deal with
the loss of their pets, but this experience is compounded by another pet that just doesn't know what happened.
Nancy L. Murbach, DVM
Scottsdale, Ariz.
I actually do have an experience regarding having a housemate pet present for a euthanasia. I had a 9-year-old dog, Ribbon,
that had lived her entire life with a 12-year-old dog, Beau. Beau got osteosarcoma, and I finally had to euthanize him. I
took Ribbon with me—I'm not sure why I chose to do that. While we were doing the euthanasia, she hid under the bench—worried
we were going to "examine" her. We put Beau to sleep on the floor. When we were finished, I got up to leave and told Ribbon
to "Come on!" She didn't look right or left, didn't even glance at Beau on the floor. We trotted out of the clinic, and she
never once looked for him at home.
You would be hard-pressed to convince me that something in those "heightened animal senses" didn't recognize that Beau was
no longer present. In times past, if for some reason one dog wasn't at home, the other dog would go look for the missing dog.
Ribbon never did this after Beau's death. I'm not much of a religious person or metaphysics follower, but that experience
makes me at least a little bit of a believer. I would say if there is no research either way, then take the housemate dog
with you and let it be there.
Denise Saxon, Manager
Portland, Ore.
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