It's Not Always the Most Wonderful Time of the Year (If You're a Vet, Pet, or Pet Parent)

While there are parties for hosting, marshmallows for toasting, and caroling out in the snow, spare a thought for your veterinary team this holiday season, because when the Christmas decorations go up, so do the number of euthanasias. In fact, on one miserable December 24th, I personally sent four cats, five dogs, and one rabbit on their final journey over the rainbow bridge; Merry Christmas!

Dogs Don’t Care About Christmas

It is a recognized and unfortunate phenomenon that the number of pets being put to sleep increases noticeably around this time of year. Although this isn’t something that pet owners necessarily have a huge amount of control over – after all, if it is their time, it is their time – there is something to keep in mind if you know that the end is approaching for your beloved companion: dogs don’t care about Christmas.

Some of the more cynical among us have sometimes suggested that the increase in the number of pet euthanasias around the holidays is to make way for the new puppies arriving on Santa’s sleigh. This rather depressing theory may occasionally be true, but it isn’t usually the case. The real reason for the seasonal influx of sad goodbyes is that people often use it as a goal post, a line in the sand, a (pardon the horrifying pun) deadline.

“We’ll just get him through one last Christmas.”

“We just want her to have Christmas with us.”

“We don’t want to do it before Christmas.”

and so on and so forth.

Herein lies the problem with this line of thinking.

If your dog’s health has deteriorated to a point where you have ‘set a date’ to say goodbye, stretching out the time just to accommodate one last round of gifts, games, and Mariah Carey music might not be in the best interest of your ailing pooch, or in yours. Here is what is more likely to occur:

• Christmas Eve arrives, and you realize that your dog is going to be miserable if you wait until after the holidays, and end up being one of many euthanasia appointments that evening.
• You will spend the holidays laser-focused on your dog, worrying about your decision, hoping they are not suffering.
• Your dog will deteriorate suddenly, while your regular vet is closed, and you will find yourself sitting in the waiting room of the emergency vets to say goodbye in unfamiliar surroundings with an unfamiliar vet.

The truth is that euthanasia is a gift; one that, when possible, can be planned and paced to be as calm and peaceful as possible. Human festivities and holidays shouldn’t factor into your decision any more than absolutely necessary, and should not be a reason to prolong your dog’s suffering once a decision has been made. ‘Tis far better to spend the holidays mourning the loss of your beloved pet than to spend it regretting putting it off.

And while no vet in the world expects – or wants – you to factor in their emotional journey when making decisions about end-of-life care for your pet, it certainly would be nice to have slightly fewer euthanasias on Christmas Eve!

Feature Image Credit: MariaZubareva, Shutterstock

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