If you have had to make the decision to euthanize your pet, it’s possible that you one moment feel that you did what was best for your pet, but that you the next moment feel torn apart by guilt and doubt, like for instance:
- Was it the right thing to do?
- Should I have waited?
- Was there more I could have done to help, heal or save my pet?
Those feelings are normal, and I felt like that too, when I had to euthanize my cat Pittiput.
Making the decision to euthanize a pet
But if we for a moment go back to before making the decision, what do you take into consideration before making the final decision? You might want to
- get the opinion from a vet that you trust
- research if there are other treatments that could help your pet’s specific problem
- ask your pet to give a specific sign when he or she is ready (you might or might not get it, but if you do you will know).
But ultimately, it’s you as your pet’s caretaker who’s left with the heartbreaking decision, so in order to do that, you need to gather all the information you have to do so.
What’s best for your pet?
I know from my own experience, that your own feelings might get in the way, so I suggest you make sure that you of course do whatever you can to ease the suffering of you pet and prolong his life, but pay attention to when your pet has had enough. He might tell you for instance by completely stopping eating and drinking.
The opposite could also be the case. You see your pet in pain and can’t bear it, so you might be inclined to euthanize to end your pet’s suffering. Again, check your options – and your feelings – and try to also consider what signs your pet is giving you. Does he seem to have given up, or does he still have a will to live?
How to cope after euthanizing a pet
After the death of your pet, it’s almost impossible not to have waves of guilt and doubt wash in over you, but you know in your heart that you did the very best you could. You can communicate your thoughts and feelings to your pet, for example in a meditation, in a journal, or written in letter form to your pet. Doing that can ease your suffering.
How to get comfort by getting your pet’s forgiveness
If you after doing that little exercise still struggle with overwhelming guilt and doubt, then I can help you. I can connect with your deceased pet in the afterlife and not only make sure he’s settled safely there but also ask him questions on your behalf, get his forgiveness. I’ll do that by using the gentle process and healing power of shamanic journeying, and that’s what really made a difference to me, when I had to euthanize my cat.
