Hospice and Palliative Care for Companion Animals: Principles and Practice offers the first comprehensive reference to veterinary hospice and palliative care, with practical guidance and best practices for caring for sick and dying animals. Presents the first thorough resource to providing veterinary hospice and palliative care Offers practical guidance and best practices for caring for sick and dying animals Provides an interdisciplinary team approach, from a variety of different perspectives Gives concrete advice for easing pets more gently through their final stage of life Includes access to a companion website with client education handouts to use in practice

Over the past five years, there has been a significant rise in the number of pet owners who are seeking in-home medical treatment options for their pet - particularly with regard to end-of-life care. This practical resource by Dr. Lynn Hendrix is the perfect guide for those veterinarians wanting to help meet this growing demand by incorporating house calls and end-of-life consulting into their practice. From setting up your business and performing your first in-home consultation to performing in-home euthanasia and providing grief support, Dr. Hendrix will walk you through how to effectively navigate all of the procedures and challenges related to this vital area of veterinary care and help maximize the amount of quality time that a pet has left.

Veterinary Euthanasia Techniques: A Practical Guide provides detailed guidance on euthanasia procedures in a wide variety of species, including dogs, cats, exotics, horses, and production animals. Based on the current AVMA guidelines, the book offers step-by-step descriptions of the recommended methods of euthanasia, giving all the information needed to perform these techniques with confidence. Veterinary Euthanasia Techniques helps practitioners, students, and technicians expand their knowledge base and provide competent, compassionate euthanasia services. Including information on client considerations, equipment, positioning, sedation, and aftercare, the focus of the book is on providing detailed procedures for correctly performing euthanasia. Veterinary Euthanasia Techniques presents complete information on euthanasia, offering specific advice to improve skills and aid in decision making.

Half the population of dogs and cats aged 10 and over will die of neoplasia. The bonds that clients have developed with their older pets are especially strong and drive the increasing demand for more proficient and highly compassionate medical treatment of companion animals diagnosed with cancer. This book offers more than just a competent clinical approach to the most common tumors in dogs and cats. This book also offers a focus on the special needs of geriatric pets and their owners. Amply illustrated with dozens of case studies representative of those regularly encountered in practice, Canine and Feline Geriatric Oncology will provide readers with the tools needed to diagnose and treat aging pets with cancer, and to help clients make the best decisions for themselves and for the animals with whom they share their lives. Canine and Feline Geriatric Oncology is a unique resource. It is a useful oncology reference for specialists, veterinarians in general practice, veterinary technicians, and clinic staff. The many "what ifs" that the practitioner inevitably faces in interactions with clients and their aging pets with cancer are presented and discussed. Special Features: * Focuses on the special needs of geriatric pets and their caregivers; * Offers direction in the diagnosis and treatment of aging pets with cancer; * Addresses many of the "what ifs" that arise in interactions with clients and aging pets with cancer; * Amply illustrated with full color throughout; * A valuable reference for practicing veterinarians, technicians, hospital staff, and professionals involved in supportive counseling for pet caregivers.

Gail Pope, founder and director of BrightHaven, a holistic animal sanctuary and hospice in northern California, created this booklet to provide both knowledge and comfort to those who are accompanying a beloved animal companion on the journey to transition. It is written as a simple guide to the specific signs and symptoms you may encounter during each stage of the actual dying process, which may begin several months before death finally occurs.

Hospice and Palliative Care for Companion Animals A thoroughly updated and expanded new edition of the only book providing comprehensive treatment of hospice and palliative care in veterinary medicine Animals with life-limiting illnesses deserve compassionate, thoughtful, end-of-life care. Their caregivers and families, faced with the loss of a beloved companion, deserve empathy, support, and education, to guide them through an emotionally wrenching period and provide their companion animals with the highest possible quality of life. In recent years, the ethics of care and service to sick and dying animals and their caregivers has been the subject of considerable attention. Hospice and Palliative Care for Companion Animals, 2nd Edition provides a thorough update to the first and only complete guide to this field of service, its foundations, and its applications. It addresses the needs of pets, caregivers, and veterinary professionals alike, including fundamental ethical and emotional principles as well as detailed discussion of specific illnesses and life-limiting conditions. The expanded second edition incorporates cutting-edge research into animal behavior and cognition to enrich the reader’s understanding of companion animals’ emotional needs and their experience of illness and death. Hospice and Palliative Care for Companion Animals, 2nd Edition readers will also find: Existing chapters expanded to incorporate new research and practical experience New chapters discussing factors underlying the decision to euthanize, the potential role of ethology in palliative care, and more A companion website with educational handouts for use in veterinary practices Hospice and Palliative Care for Companion Animals is an indispensable resource for caregivers and veterinary professionals alike.

In a book that draws on both personal stories and research presents an in-depth exploration of the practical, medical and moral issues that trouble pet owners confronted with the decline and death of their companion animals.