You might find this recent article by TIME Magazine an interesting read.
Also, on a related note, the story of Professor Craig Ewert, who bravely went to Switzerland for assisted suicide.
Good find. As the article said, most dog-owners knew that already.
A side conversation if you guys don’t mind.
http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?p=10600739#post10600739
Umm, because pets are … pets. And humans are human?
There’s a difference. Let me ask you a question. Why is it OK to kill a tree when you just feel like it, but not a human?
G’morning!
I believe the most prominent reason is that many people feel only God has the right to end human life.
Too many patients are kept alive via the use of IV solutions when they would have died a natural death weeks before sans the IV. Pain management is easier when doctors aren’t attempting to prolong the dying process - as opposed to the living process - by feeding and watering patients who are clearly at death’s door.
If a patient cannot eat and drink on his own - it’s time to medicate to the max to keep them as comfortable as possible and let nature take its course. Handled this way, it usually doesn’t take long. - Jesse.
It is also debatable whether that is more humane or not than the euthanasia solution. If you’re giving me the choice between no palliative treatment and the euthanasia, please give me the euthanasia because it is quicker and more humane. If you’re giving me the choice of palliative care and euthanasia, I’ll more likely to get palliative care because my body will still go at will but attempts are being made to ease the process.
The solutions are fluids, electrolytes, and nutritional molecules (proteins, carbohydrates, lipids, vitamins, minerals). But guess what? It is still the patient’s body that has to process those things and get them in the cells and the organs. If the body is FUBAR, no amount of palliative care (which is what those are part of) will help.
This is precisely my point. Hooking someone up to an IV when it’s only going to prolong their agony is why most unnecessary suffering takes place.
Of course, we do also have family members who won’t permit a patient to be a DNR because they aren’t ready to deal with the loss - another cause of unnecessary patient suffering.
Dying in a hospital setting can be hell. If there’s any way I can avoid it when the stuff hits the fan, I refuse to get sucked into the hospital vortex, as would most other doctors I know. - Jesse.
Hmm… should’ve ammended my sentence. I meant that if the body is FUBAR, no amount of palliative care will extend its life, it’ll still die, but the idea is to die with less suffering. And I will rather prefer dying with those things than dying without them and starving and thirsty (and with no aid of a quick drug out).
I’ve seen cases of animals that have died the way you describe (IV drugs and pain drugs withheld, to die “naturally”), I’ve been there when many animals are euthanized (and have given the injection in other cases, too), and I’ve seen my relatives dying with the IV fluids (which contain nutrition, meds, pain drugs, etc. to help the body).
As a human, I’ll take the last approach. Like I said above, unless the person explicitly requests euthanasia, I would be very wary of any relatives asking to euthanize said person. I’ve seen pet euthanasias were I’ve questioned the motives, I would really hate to see that happen with humans. And I’ve seen animals suffer through starvation and thirst before being put out of that misery. I question the humanity and compassion of that approach.
When you say that, do you mean you have known pet owners who have let animals go a prolonged period of time without food or drink, before making a final decision?
G’morning Karl!
Valid points. Euthanasia isn’t an option I’d consider for humans because of the expression of my faith, but I’m not a martyr and can see why some would choose it. I’d be very careful though, IIWY, organ doner/harvesting is big business, and many people are euthanized (and also declared brain dead) when they shouldn’t be. You don’t want to hear the stories… - Jesse.
Yes, those that have intentionally let the pets gone without water or food. Not just “I’m trying to feed them, they just won’t and it has been a couple of days”, or “Oops, I’ve just realized the pet has not been moving since yesterday, I’m so sorry!!” but deliberately doing that. I’ve also been told (by a relative, no less!!!) about how they kept their beloved old pet in a separate place, with no food nor water nor pain meds, checked on her periodically, and eventually she died. They wouldn’t take her to the vet because “vets are evil and they euthanize everything”. Gee, thanks!