Dr. Flinchum's Argument Against Euthanasia

    Due to the domestication of cats and dogs their populations have skyrocketed. This is due in part to the lack of pet owners acting in a responsible manner. These responsibilities include the spaying and neutering of  pets. These numbers of

The mistreatment of animals is a serious problem within our society for a variety of reasons. While current laws and conditions are improving, there is still a

Pet owners have a wide variety of views about their responsibilities. Some feel that just providing food and water is enough and therefore do not provide a secure environment which is essential for all pets. Without this secure environment, a female in heat is a target for every male around. The males will go to great lengths to get to a female in heat. Her scent is a driving force. Some owners will allow their females to continue to come into heat over and over again, making her a target for every un-neutered male around, without trying to solve the problem. The males' owners will allow their animals to continue to roam freely because they feel they are not the responsible party to the unwanted pregnancies. Homes may be found for some of the offspring, some may die, and some may just wander off. Of those to survive, the breeding cycle can start all over again. Also, many owners do not realize that having a pet is a commitment for the life of the pet. When some owners get tired of their current pet, want a new pet, or get irritated because the pet does not meet their expectations, they will dump the pet thinking it will fend for itself or find a new home. Of the animals taken into shelters, 47% of the cats and 55% of the dogs are not spayed or neutered (Patelis).

More than likely, a good majority of people have heard about euthanasia at least once in their existence. For those out there who have been living under a rock their entire lives, euthanasia “is generally understood to mean the bringing about of a good death – ‘mercy killing’, where one person, ‘A’, ends the life of another person, ‘B’, for the sake of ‘B’.” (Kuhse 294). There are people who believe this is a completely logical scenario that should be allowed, and there are others that oppose this view. For the purpose of this essay, I will be defending those who are for euthanasia. My thesis, just by looking at this issue from a logical standpoint, is that if someone is suffering, I believe they should be allowed the right to end their

The euthanasia of animals is a very problematic social issue in the world today. Approximately there are about 7.6 million companion animals that enter animal shelters each year. Of those, about 2.7 animals are euthanized, and cats have the highest rate, according to “The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals” (2017). When you hear the term euthanasia in reference to animals, you think of a painless process that ends the countless suffering your pet had to endure over the span of their lives. There are many reasons for which these animals are “put to sleep.” When most pet owners put their pets to sleep it is because their pets have incurable disease, painful illness, behavioral problems and are of old age. When an animal is suffering and is no longer able to recover, this process may be the most humane thing to do. However, euthanasia turns into murder when perfectly healthy animals are killed. Since there is an overpopulation of animals there are many animals left on the street wandering alone. When there isn’t any room for all these new animals being brought in from off the streets, shelters have no other option, but to euthanize. Each year more and more dogs and cats are born and sent into shelters, but for every animal being born another one has to leave and once the animal leave they are most likely going to be euthanized. No matter the situation animals are losing their lives for no clear reason.

A patient has to judge his or her own quality of life, making the action of assessing if a patient’s quality of life is so low that they should be considered for PAD. Although dogs and humans are very different creatures, anatomically and spiritually, PAD is the same concept of putting a dog to sleep. Both beings are loved by others greatly and both experience a low quality of life when they are ill. But why is it better to put dogs down when they are suffering, but it is not ethical for it to be done when a human is suffering? 7.6 million companionship animals were put down last year (2014) (ASPCA). The same idea and process are behind PAD. Physician Assisted Death is not abused by physicians, despite what many people believe PAD is very uncommon, even in states where it is legal. “Approximately 1 of 1,000 Oregonians obtain and use a lethal dose of medication; 17% personally considered it as an option.” (Lachman). But America is not the only place where is a controversy. “85% of 218 nurses in Australia carried out the request the physician’s request for active euthanasia” (Lachman), and “10,000 citizens of the Netherlands, where PAD is legal,

I will never forget the first time I watched a pet euthanized. Distraught, I thought for a time I would refuse to perform euthanasia in my practice. As I took in more of the doctor-patient interactions, I realized this would not be fair. The bond between a veterinarian and a pet owner becomes very important and is needed through the animal's life. The doctor, who has been there throughout the good and difficult times, needs to be there for the owner and the pet when the only choice left is to end the suffering of the animal.

When vet schools used to use animals it wasn't thought as of being cruel to the animals it was thought of as an educational experience (¨Are Live-Terminal Laboratories Necessary?¨). Although these are good arguments there are also several arguments against using animals in vet school. Many schools have backed away from using animals in their studies. “ Fortunately only a dozen of the nation's 125 accredited medical schools still use live animal labs” (“Medical Training Using Animals”). This quotes is saying that 12 of the 125 schools still use animals for educational purposes. That is only 9% of the medical Universities, in the United States (“Medical Training Using Animals”). Common animals used in vet schools are dogs,pigs,mice, rats, and birds. These animals are picked because of their body type, and by the procedures that can be done on them. These 5 animals are commonly used because they are the most common animals that a veterinarian will see in their office. These are also the easiest animals for a University to get their hands on (¨GRADUATE AND PROFESSIONAL SCHOOLS¨). In labs, animals are anesthetized then injected with medicine, tested, and later the animal will die. Many people find this cruel but others look at it as the circle of life. Thousands of animals have been killed due to scientific demonstrations. The operation that is being done that day will depend on what animal will

Myths of fixing your animals can stray people to think it’s not good. There are many myths out there and all of them are miss leading. One popular myth is “It's better to have one litter before spaying a female pet.”("Myths and facts," 2009). The truth is its not you might find a home for all the puppies your dog has to a home, but what happens to those puppies grow up do they get spayed? Even though they have a good home they may be bread for puppies and those puppies who don’t get homes might be taken to the pound. Some dogs have had litter and then been abandoned because they now have a new dog to love. Another popular myth is that owners say, “I don't want my male dog or cat to feel like less of a male.” ("Myths and facts," 2009). Your pets do not know there sexual identity, once they have been fix they do not act any different and they do not know that there any different than before. One of the last popular myths is “My pet will get fat and lazy.”("Myths and facts," 2009). They do not become fat and lazy because of the procedure they become fat and lazy because they are feed too much and then they

As domesticated animals, cats and dogs have been bred over centuries to have high reproductive rates, much higher than that of their human counterparts. Animals can also reproduce at a younger age; for example, a cat can theoretically have kittens starting at about 5 months of age. Add in the facts that cats can have two litters a year, with an average of six kittens per litter, and one finds that the number of unwanted pets can very quickly skyrocket. Thus spaying (removing the sexual organs of female animals) and neutering (removing a male animal’s testes) procedures become incredibly important to maintaining a manageable level of homeless pets in America (“Pet Overpopulation”). Unfortunately, while many owners do “fix” their pets, a significant percentage do not, for a variety of reasons. Some believe that they cannot manage the financial cost of a spay/neuter operation, and yet others think that their pet’s personality will be negatively warped by losing their reproductive capacity Less common justifications include confusion over either what age to spay/neuter an animal or the health consequences of not having at least one litter, and a desire to have children experience “the miracle of birth” (“Reasons People Don’t Spay or Neuter Their Pets” ). These erroneous beliefs lead to the drastic increase of homeless animals nationwide when non-fixed

Did you know about 25 million puppies and kittens are born into the United States each year? That’s more than 50,000 born each day in this country alone. Twenty five million pets produce yearly greatly exceeds the amount of willing families to take care of these animals that are born into the world. Even though, these massive amount of litters may in fact be completely healthy there is just not a sufficient enough of homes for this animals to be place in. statically reported by the humane society of the united states in October 2011 6 to 8 million animals who have no place to call their home are put into animal shelters. Unfortunately, due to the excessive surplus of these animals about half which is 3 to 4 million only make it out alive. The other half left to be euthanize by the shelter to make room for the new incoming animals. This turns out to be one animal euthanize every 8 sec. Pet overpopulation has been a serious problem throughout the nation for many years. The on ongoing cycle of bring unwanted litters of pets into the world makes it extremely difficult to reduce the amount of animals being euthanize across the nation each and every day. It’s important for people to understand the need to spay and neuter their family’s pets and all pets in general, all though people don’t understand that need its extremely important to take into account that these thousands of wanted any unneeded animals being born into the world each day will statically end up homeless, place in

Population Control: Help control the U.S. pet population with spay and neuter services. The Humane Society notes an estimated 6 to 8 million homeless animals enter U.S. shelters every year, with less than half of these pets adopted and the rest euthanized.

Animal overpopulation is a huge problem and you, and every other human, contributes to this problem when you don’t spay or neuter

Voluntary or assisted euthanasia is a complex issue that is often “not fully understood by clinicians” (Ersek, 2004). Currently four states have legalized voluntary and assisted euthanasia for the terminally ill, granted that a predetermined criteria has been meet. While other states that have not legalized euthanasia offer patients the option

What amount of suffering is too much to bear will never truly be known. But It is inhumane to force someone to live out their their life enduring agony because you happen to value their continued existence more than they themselves do. When a doctor puts an animal to sleep, it is not considered animal abuse, or murder. It is considered helping the animal, and the family the pet belonged too. It gives the family peace to know their beloved