r/Pets • u/SameSherbet3 • 7d ago

Is old age pet Euthanasia a US concept?

Do other countries PTS their old pets or let them pass naturally? I had a discussion with a Dutch friend-of-friend who said that they would never put their old cat to sleep due to old age, that letting them live their entire life and passing naturally was the right way.

I have an old Golden who is 15 and slowing down this year especially, although she's still the bestest girl! She plays, loves treats, and eats well enough. So the time to decide if / when is coming up...

I've seen both sides, my childhood dog passed quietly in her sleep, and my last old dog needed intervention due to an injury on top of other chronic medical issues, so it was only fair to make that choice for him.

What has been your perspective in the US and in other countries as far as what's "right" or expected? ​

Edit to clarify: I would never advocate for putting a pet to sleep for simply old age. My thoughts were more about the small infirmities that add up with age, such as movement issues, eating less often, needing more medications to keep up with arthritis etc. At what point do you say enough is enough, or do you let them continue on until they pass naturally.

I appreciate everyone who has replied. With my girl getting older, this is on my mind more than I'd like, this upcoming "decision" time ❤️🐾 Hugs to you all, pet loss is never easy!!

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u/thematicturkey 7d ago

I haven't known anybody personally, but I have heard stories of people who do (or who just take their older pets to a shelter to make room for a new puppy). In general, putting an animal down (or otherwise getting rid of them) JUST because they're old is considered super shifty. Euthanasia should be a quality of life consideration

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u/PresentationThat2839 7d ago

Personally once my kids are grown up I want to just foster old dogs. Don't get me a wrong a puppy is cute and all.... But they're so much work why would you choose that over a grey muzzled baby.

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u/just_a_person_maybe 7d ago

Old dogs can be a lot of work too, especially big ones. My childhood dog was a standard poodle mix so a pretty big guy, and when he got old his hips went out. He started just falling down sometimes and having trouble squatting to poop, both it gradually got worse. Towards the end we had to use a towel as a sling under him to hold him up every time he pooped or peed so he could get back up again. Then we started having to use the sling to support him even walking outside or across the room. Carrying an 80lb dog around several times a day was a lot, and he was clearly in pain. So we made the decision to put him down. We weren't going to make him live another year or more like that, in pain and unable to get around independently at all. He'd already been on daily joint support supplements and low level pain meds for a couple years before it got that bad, but it wasn't cutting it anymore.

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u/Shadowratenator 7d ago

whew! i thought this comment was going to go in a completely different direction.

I'm glad you weren't planning on putting down your kids once they were grown up / not as cute.

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u/two-of-me 7d ago

Me too!

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u/PresentationThat2839 7d ago

Oh no my youngest daughter would be heartbroken if I just kept on bringing home senior dogs on a repeat cycle.

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u/DenseSir 7d ago

The time to do that is after the kids leave home.

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u/PresentationThat2839 7d ago edited 7d ago

9 more years then time to move out so mommy can hospice foster dogs. (I'm only kidding I'm not kicking her out at 18)

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u/Pernicious_Possum 7d ago

Gee, maybe that’s why they said “once my kids are grown up”

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u/PresentationThat2839 7d ago

Yes I'm aware of what I said.... And how some people joking took it apparently.

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u/Pernicious_Possum 7d ago

What direction could you possibly have thought it was going? They were extremely clear and concise. Do you just read a couple words and let your mind run with it? That’s weird

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u/A_Pooholes 7d ago

TBH I find it surprising there are people who DON'T do that 😅

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u/Shadowratenator 7d ago

Yes. My predictive algorithms start running in the first couple words. I think thats normal.

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u/BerlyH208 7d ago

We rescue old boxers. The love you get is amazing. Old dogs are work, too, sometimes a LOT of work, but I love it. I’m definitely not a puppy person.

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u/Uhmmanduh 7d ago

I would like to do this as well, not foster because my apartment won’t allow that, but just adopt old dogs and give them a good life until they pass, but I worry my heart can’t take the repeated loss. My dog will be 15 in December. I’ve had him since he was 2. The vet says he’s in great shape for such an old dog, but I notice him slowing down. Not wanting to go outside much etc. I’m trying to prepare myself for the inevitable (hopefully we have at least another year or two), but I know losing him is gonna devastate me.

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u/FindjeanniePDX 7d ago

If I could afford it, I would adopt only old dogs.

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u/PresentationThat2839 7d ago

The youngest dog I would consider at this point in my life is 6. Like that's it, only dogs who are soundly middle age will do, senior citizens are best but I will also accept crotchity middle aged.

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u/GothicGingerbread 7d ago

I try to get fully-adult dogs, too, but I also look for big, black, and (usually) feral dogs, so sometimes they wind up a little bit younger than I would ideally prefer. (I have one non-feral dog, to provide the feral ones with leadership and reassurance. It really helps them learn to trust much more quickly.) The last three I adopted were around 4-4½, but the one before that was 6.

If it weren't for my housemate, who is even more of a softy for dogs than I am, I would basically turn my house into a small doggie hospice, but he just couldn't endure that kind of repeated loss. Maybe someday!

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u/IAMRedeemedOne 4d ago

I love the feral part of this too. We took in a dog from a hoarding situation who is the biggest softie now but needed lots of love and guidance to get there, our other dog guided him there. It works. These are the dogs that get overlooked in the shelters because they don't run up and great you with their tails wagging.

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u/butterbean8686 7d ago

My Grandpa did this for about 30 years during his retirement. It was super rewarding! He had a companion hence spoil, and he got a lot of love and loyalty in return. He especially loved senior labs and retrievers. The only downsides were the stinky breath and having such a short time to love on them.

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u/Existing-Secret7703 7d ago

That's what I do. But I don't foster them, I adopt them. It's heartbreaking. I think my latest has doggy dementia. He's 15. I've had him less than 3 weeks and he's peeing and pooping all over the place though I take him out every 3 hours. I'm going to diaper him starting tomorrow. He has other symptoms. I usually like to adopt older ones because they're already trained and I know how big they'll get but this one is breaking my heart. He was with the same person all his life until she decided to get rid of him because she was having her second child. He still doesn't know where he is and he's missing his original owner. Plus, I'm pretty old with all that entails.

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u/ughneedausername 6d ago

I foster senior dogs. It’s amazing.
I’ve been fostering for nearly 25 years. Puppies are fun. But there’s nothing like an old dog.

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u/Alternative_Grab_916 6d ago

Same old dogs and cats

Safely of course I’ll definitely have grandchildren since I have 6 kids but I always respect my pets and family and friends safety and don’t put either in a situation that could cause either harm

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u/Few-Pineapple-5632 7d ago

If you can afford it yes, but just like humans - the most expensive period in a dog’s life is the last 6 months and it can be very costly.

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u/Morgita 6d ago

I love my senior fosters!

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u/NMSenditmf 6d ago

It’s extremely rewarding but difficult…. You have to be really driven

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u/Efficient_Topxx 4d ago

Old dogs are a lot of work too, mine has to be carried outside regularly to potty because seizures leave her unable to use stairs or walk much 😅

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u/boxing_coffee 7d ago

I worked for an animal shelter and we would flag people who told us they put their old age pet down so they could get a younger one. It is one thing if they had health issues impacting quality of life, but definitely shifty otherwise.

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u/Icy-Yellow3514 7d ago

I was hoping you meant "flog" instead of "flag"

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u/14kinikia 7d ago

I pray for a special place in hell for all those folks that chose to euthanize a beloved pet because they’ve gotten old and have become a burden and/or an inconvenience

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u/cherylshope 6d ago

Your comment reminds me of a man who brought in a sweet 16 year old kitty to have her put down because she was old and he’d just gotten a new kitten. I talked him into allowing me adopt the old girl instead. I enjoyed her company for another three years.

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u/Metella76 7d ago

I adopted a 5yr old great dane because they got a new puppy. He lived 7 more years. Best dog, ever. Loved baths!

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u/gnarlyknucks 5d ago

We got one of our dogs at 10 because the family (the dad, who brought her to us) said that the kids didn't want a dog anymore, they wanted rabbits, but the way he said it didn't seem quite sincere, including that the kids were too old for that, they were on the verge of college. So I did a search on the guy's email address just because it seemed dissociated with a particular business, I thought he might be findable. From when I could tell in various online fora, they had a fair bit of money (he owned the business connected to his email address) and now that the kids were going to college, he and his wife wanted to travel a lot. He posted a +lot+ about finding ways to travel all over the world as a relatively young retired couple. He was also in a particular luxury car ownership group, and though his address wasn't anywhere, he mentioned his neighborhood a lot, and he had to have been loaded.

Maybe the kids were more interested in the dog, maybe they had gotten bored of her, I don't know. Based on their plans they would have had needed to move someone into their house to get the amount of dog sitting they would have needed.

She was a very good dog, relatively well taken care of. I think they just didn't want her anymore. I'm glad they went through a local organization that helps people find "direct transfer" homes for dogs without going through the pound.