Is it Cruel to Have Your Pets Put Down After You Die?
June 10th 2008 21:00
Photo by Martin Bahman. Used in accordance with the terms of Wikimedia Commons’ GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.2 or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no Invariant Sections, no Front-Cover Texts, and no Back-Cover Texts.
One of my neighbours said is going to have her cats put down if they outlive her. I was horrified when she told me. What a waste, I thought. She went on about how she had provided a loving home to her pets and didn’t think anyone else could provide them with the same love and care they were accustomed to. She told me she had already instructed her vet.
“Wouldn’t they be better off being donated to an animal shelter?” I asked. My neighbour said no and that she would definitely want her cats put down rather than have them go to a shelter. It also made me wonder: surely she must have friends or family who could take them? If not, it sounds very sad.
And what about the vet? I wonder if it is ethical for a vet to put down two healthy cats? Would this be an ethical dilemma for him/her? On one hand, putting down two healthy cats seems unethical. On the other hand, isn’t the vet bound to follow his/her client’s instructions? And what about the dozens of animals that get put down each day simply because animal shelters have run out of room?
As a solution, I offered to take the cats if she does pass away before they do. But my neighbour seems doubtful about taking up my offer. She says I don’t have a balcony and my place is cluttered. She doesn’t think it’s the sort of place her cats would be happy in.
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