Veterinary hospice and palliative care has grown as a specialty focused on maximizing quality of life for animals with terminal illness while minimizing suffering in the final period of life.
The final period of a companion animal life is a time when welfare considerations are most acute and most personal. Animals with terminal illness may experience pain, nausea, dyspnea, and psychological distress from changed circumstances and capabilities. Veterinary hospice aims to maximize the quality of remaining life through proactive symptom management and honest quality of life assessment. A central goal is helping owners recognize when suffering outweighs remaining quality of life — a difficult but necessary conversation that requires compassionate, evidence-based veterinary guidance.