End-of-life care for companion animals has advanced significantly with palliative care, pain management, and euthanasia practices that prioritise welfare, though access is uneven.
End-of-life welfare requires both adequate pain management through the dying process and timely euthanasia when quality of life is poor and irreversible. Delaying euthanasia to avoid grief causes additional animal suffering. Compassionate support for owners facilitates better animal welfare decisions.