The Truth about Animal Euthanasia
Spirit Needs. All souls choose the body they need to do their work for that lifetime. That work involves soul growth toward unconditional love—self-love regardless—and doing that body’s specific job. The end of life is the body’s final opportunity for soul growth. Do you know why your animal chose to be an animal? It wasn’t to be your teacher or guru, but what? Should you know? Ask your animal—and their spiritual team.
How does their job reflect on how they face death? Remember, the end of life pushes buttons: bodies are programmed to survive. Understanding the animal’s body, mind, and spiritual needs can be the key to helping both sides let go—and move on.
Making a choice for Animal Euthanasia
Many people, including veterinarians, believe that animals live only in the present. That is reverse anthropomorphism. People who don’t understand that animals recognize past, present, and future and can think, feel, and make choices miss the value in how animals will choose to die and what they experience. These people lose the authority to speak to it. What will an animal choose? Some say, “No, not today.” Others say, “I could go, or I could stay.” Others say, “Now today.” Others want to “walk the mystery,” to experience the dying process—and want their families to witness.
Your veterinary team won’t see that. Granted, veterinarians love animals and want to heal them, so Euthanasia is hard to accept (and partly explains the tragically high suicide rate among veterinarians). Listen to your team, then to yourself, and to your animal. You will know.
Our society hasn’t been open to dying since technology stole reason from us. When faced with the end of a beloved animal’s life, when you’ve done the research and consulted your veterinary team, ask yourself what you can afford, what you can do, what you (and your animal) can stand. Explain it to your animal: they understand. Listen to what they want—and need. Sometimes watching a death play out is soul damaging for you and for them. For example, loading the dying up with drugs to mask the pain is cruel; it confuses the brain and the choice.