There are a few things that you can do at home to prepare the environment for your elderly, ill or disabled pet. A few goals to keep in mind: To maintain a safe, secure, and comfortable environment. This can be done by providing good traction for your pet to safely get around without slipping on smooth flooring. Some non-skid…
Getting older is inevitable for everyone, including our beloved pets. When does a pet become “old”? That depends on whether you are a cat or a dog, and what size of dog makes a difference as well. In general, cats and small dogs are generally considered geriatric at the age of 7, whereas larger breed dogs are considered…
How do we know when it’s time? Who decides when it’s time when multiple people are involved in the care of a pet? Quality of life is what we use to know when it’s time to say good-bye, but it’s not so simple. Quality of life (QoL) is different for everyone and means different things to different people due…
I decided to write this article because I was up very late last night with my son as he cried over the loss of our dog. The thing is, our dog died a few years ago but a picture of him surfaced and my son started to cry and ask why Scooby had to die. As a parent there…
Palliative care and hospice care are not the same thing, though they are often used interchangeably. Palliation is defined as “relieving or soothing the symptoms of a disease or disorder at any stage of an illness”. More and more people are choosing palliative care and so in this blog article we will explore the concept of palliative care and…
You may have been told that your beloved pet has a terminal illness and that nothing can be done or maybe you are watching your elderly pet start to decline. So many things may run through your mind and your anxiety level may start to rise wondering things like: When will this happen? How will this happen? Why is…
People deal with grief in many different ways. Most people deal with it in similar ways and have similar phases by which they process the loss of a loved one. Here are some common stages of grief that you or someone you know might go through. Four stages of grief: 1. Shock and Numbness: This stage immediately follows a…
