Do animals know?

Gordon Booth · 12-03-2012, 19:44

When their time is up?
Had to take our 21 year old cat(inherited 5 years ago when we moved house) to the vets last week to be 'put to sleep'(don't like saying 'killed').
That's 3 dogs and 2 cats I've had to take over the years.
My point- on the vets table they all behaved in exactly the same way.Obviously they were all ill but once on the table they just seemed to shut down. No reaction to strange people dressed in white and smelling of disinfectant(2 of them normally hated vets on sight), no reaction to noisy clippers, legs being shaved or large needles pushed in! They have all just laid there totally relaxed(?) and quiet while it happened.
Do they sense the inevitable happening and accept it with a different attitude to death than ours? If so how?
Has anyone else seen this happen with their pets or is it just my imagination?
I hate playing God, even to a pet. I can't imagine how someone feels when asked about switching off a loved ones life support and I can't imagine how they handle it afterwards.

jaysay · 12-03-2012, 20:02

You have a point Gordon, but Joan had exactly the opposite reaction when she had to have her springer put down a few years ago, it was about 20 year old and she'd had her since a puppy, but when they got to the vets the dog came to life and perked up, but it was kinder to her her to sleep her kidneys had gone and her legs were shot at but it didn't stop that last brave attempt

MargaretR · 12-03-2012, 20:09

I had my elderly cat euthanised at home last summer.
The vet injected a sedative before he shaved a leg and the lethal injection was made.

He (the cat) was angry when the first needle went in but was too drugged to care about what happened next.

Margaret Pilkington · 12-03-2012, 20:23

I have to say that I have only had one cat put to sleep...he was a stray that had found his way into our garage......he was full of infected bites and fleas. I treated him, gave him antibiotics washed and cleaned his infected bites....and he was almost better.
I had found a new home for him where he would be loved and cared for.........he was almost ready to go to his new home. I went out one morning to do his antibiotics and clean his healing wounds and found him almost comatose with a severe head injury.
I wrapped him up and took him to the vets and he was put to sleep.... he was much too sick to know much about it.

All my other cats(I've had quite a few) just seem to stop eating and drinking and fade away......I'm too cowardly to take them to be put to sleep.

When they are gone I feel like I have lost a member of the family.

maxthecollie · 12-03-2012, 20:26

I am sure that animals know that you are putting them out of their suffering. When we took our dog to the vets in pain with cancer , he seemed to look at us and say goodbye.

MargaretR · 12-03-2012, 20:30

I think my cat's soul hung about a few weeks afterwards.

The bathroom store cupboard door opened on its own twice.
He learned how to do that when mice were getting in there up the ducting from the flat below.

garinda · 12-03-2012, 20:37

I'm sorry, about your cat.

I don't know, why they acted like this.

If you're very poorly, perhaps being restful, and at peace, is preferable to being agitated, due to strangers working around you, in unfamiliar surroundings.

Acrylic-bob · 13-03-2012, 05:16

Acrylic-Biff, the Terrier with Attitude, has given me to understand that he knows a lot more than he lets on.

I'm not sure how I would cope with having to have him put to sleep though. Tricky one, that.

maxthecollie · 13-03-2012, 06:51

We stayed with our Ben when he was put to sleep. It is hard to do, but you know that you are helpingb your pet by stopping their suffering and pain.You know that they have had a good and happy life with you and you have done your best for them.

mobertol · 13-03-2012, 07:39

Quote:

Originally Posted by Acrylic-bob

Acrylic-Biff, the Terrier with Attitude, has given me to understand that he knows a lot more than he lets on.

I'm not sure how I would cope with having to have him put to sleep though. Tricky one, that.

It's very tricky, but faced with them suffering you would make the right choice-I'e had to over the years several times.

Acryllic-Biff of course is still a nipper in dog terms and is sure to carry on bossing you around for quite a while yet -being a dog with attitude

mobertol · 13-03-2012, 07:45

As to them "knowing" i think animals do - working with them every day for the last 25 years on the farm, have seen all sorts, and they have great dignity when they decide "that's it I've had enough"!

susie123 · 13-03-2012, 09:18

Quote:

Originally Posted by Acrylic-bob

Acrylic-Biff, the Terrier with Attitude, has given me to understand that he knows a lot more than he lets on.

I'm not sure how I would cope with having to have him put to sleep though. Tricky one, that.

I've always found over the years with our cats, it's a hard decision to make, but once the deed is done and you can see that your companion is at peace, it's a great relief.

On a couple of occasion vets have not let it be done until they were sure there was no other option. This is quite hard to bear as you can sometimes see that it would be better to end it sooner and let the animal go, but it's hard to argue with expertise if they want to keep trying.

At least we have the option to end it for our pets when the time comes rather than them carry on suffering.

Long may Biff continue to enrich your life.

garinda · 13-03-2012, 09:33

As has been hinted at, the general consensus seems to be that it's kind and humane to end the life of a much loved member of the family, if it's sufffering, if it happens to be an animal.

Yet there isn't this option, if that much loved family member happens to be human.

cashman · 13-03-2012, 09:42

Quote:

Originally Posted by garinda

As has been hinted at, the general consensus seems to be that it's kind and humane to end the life of a much loved member of the family, if it's sufffering, if it happens to be an animal.

Yet there isn't this option, if that much loved family member happens to be human.

Its wrong, but doubt if there ever will be n option,least in my lifetime.

as fer animals personally i'm sure they know when its the end of the line, not summat i'm looking forward to wi ours, but thats the way it is.

katex · 13-03-2012, 23:22

I don't believe animals know 'it is the end of the line'. They don't understand about death, so how could they ? Just that they are suffering and tired. Maybe you forget how many times your pet has looked at you sadly when visiting the vet on less distressing occasions. Perhaps they just bounce off your mood ?

You will argue that pets know when someone close to them has died, but this is only because things are just different and is confusing, so that is why they go into a black mood.

The other week, a lovely horse at the stables, where I work, had to be put down. Paddy, the labrador, just couldn't understand where his pal had gone and was extremely quite for some time. Because something had changed in his life.