Much of the previous literature has focused on shelter dogs, particularly in the US, comparing euthanased dogs to non-euthanased dogs to evaluate risk factors 17, 18, 19, 20, limiting the generalisability to the UK primary-care population. Despite such ethically problematic situations, many veterinarians place great importance on their roles as care-givers in the context of pet death 11, 13. In the context of undesirable behaviours, some owners may be unwilling or unable to invest the necessary time to treat these behaviour issues. Veterinarians may be reluctant to offer euthanasia as an option, viewing it as an admission of failure of their treatment skills 15, or because the animal may be suffering from a treatable condition but the client may be unable to afford the proposed treatment due to lack of pet insurance, a situation termed ‘economic euthanasia’ 16. Veterinarians are often pushed to balance the interests of a chronically sick or unwanted animal with those of the client, who may insist that treatment should be continued or discontinued against veterinary advice. Dealing with animal death, and especially euthanasia, is a major challenge for veterinary professionals 13 that can be morally complex and stressful as well as negatively impactful on mental health 14. The wider process of euthanasia has been described by veterinarians as representing “the best and the worst” of the profession 11, 12, with 86.4% of deaths in dogs presenting to veterinary clinics recorded as involving euthanasia in the UK 2. In contrast, the suggested definition for euthanasia for human patients is a death that is intended to relieve the patient’s suffering 10. Euthanasia in veterinary medicine is taken to mean a painless death following a standard euthanasia protocol 9 although the reasons behind the decision to euthanase an animal are manifold. Designed to support clients and animal patients through difficult decisions and care pathways, the veterinarian’s role in pet hospice care is often non-clinical, with help-oriented roles such as educator, supporter, guider and facilitator overshadowing the role as veterinary medical expert 8. End-of-life care for pets has emerged as a growing discipline within veterinary medicine, with the pet hospice movement expanding 7. Although sometimes regarded as “disenfranchised grief” 4, 5, the death of a cherished pet is now acknowledged as a significant life event for owners, with some employers even granting compassionate leave for those affected 6. However, societal attitudes to pet death are changing.

Whether the method of death is euthanasia or is unassisted, the loss of a pet can be particularly distressing for owners 3. However, given overall median longevity in dogs is reported as 12.0 years 2, long-term dog ownership means that many owners are likely to face losing several dogs during a typical human lifetime. Positive human–dog relationships can lead to physiological and emotional changes that benefit both the human owners as well as their dogs 1. The results highlight that a large majority of owners will face euthanasia decisions and these findings can support veterinarians and owners to better prepare for such an eventuality.ĭogs are the most popular mammalian species kept as companion animals globally, largely stemming from the deep human–dog bond 1.

Breed, larger bodyweight and increasing age were additional risk factors for euthanasia. The disorders with greatest odds included: poor quality of life (OR 16.28), undesirable behaviour (OR 11.36) and spinal cord disorder (OR 6.00). After accounting for confounding factors, 6 grouped-level disorders had higher odds in euthanased dogs (than dogs that died unassisted), using neoplasia as the baseline. Of the confirmed deaths, 26,676 (89.3%) were euthanased and 2,487 (8.3%) died unassisted. Multivariable logistic regression modelling was used to evaluate associations between risk factors and method of death. Method of death (euthanasia or unassisted) and clinical cause of death were extracted from a random sample of 29,865 dogs within the VetCompass Programme from a sampling frame of 905,544 dogs under UK veterinary care in 2016. Using primary-care clinical data, this study aimed to report the demographic and clinical factors associated with euthanasia, relative to unassisted death, in dogs. The loss of a pet can be particularly distressing for owners, whether the method of death is euthanasia or is unassisted.

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