End-of-life care for companion animals encompasses pain management, palliative support, and euthanasia decisions. Getting this right is one of the most important welfare responsibilities of pet ownership.
End-of-life care is among the most ethically significant responsibilities of companion animal ownership. The welfare gift of euthanasia — the ability to end suffering before it becomes overwhelming — is its defining feature. The welfare failure most commonly identified in retrospect is delay: keeping animals alive through suffering out of human emotional need rather than genuine animal benefit. Welfare-centred end-of-life care requires honest quality-of-life assessment, proactive planning before crisis, access to good pain management, and the courage to act on behalf of the animal's experience rather than the owner's grief. A peaceful, timely death is a final act of care.