Making end-of-life decisions for dogs is one of the most difficult aspects of pet ownership, requiring careful quality of life assessment to prevent unnecessary suffering.
End-of-life decision making for dogs requires balancing the emotional needs of owners with the welfare interests of the dog. Dogs in advanced illness or chronic unmanageable pain experience suffering that cannot always be fully alleviated by palliative care. Delaying euthanasia beyond the point where quality of life is acceptable prolongs suffering. Quality of life scales provide objective frameworks to support difficult decisions. The ability to provide humane death at the point of suffering rather than natural death, which may involve prolonged distress, is a significant welfare advantage of veterinary medicine.