Sedation:
before and during the appointment
Sedation has become a very important part of the end of life experience for our veterinary patients. It is important for several reasons. First it allows your baby to relax and rest, perhaps for the first time in several days, giving you a chance to share a peaceful moment with them before they pass. Second, it allows for the passing itself to be more peaceful. Reducing the chance of some of the more worrisome reactions that we used to get when we administered the euthanasia solution by itself. Third, it allows your baby to hold still, so that I am able to give the final IV injection without your baby being held tightly, something most animals dislike intensely.
Pre-euthanasia sedation is generally administered by injection under the skin, during the appointment, about 5-10 minutes before the final IV injection. With a fur baby that is still eating, they can often be distracted with food to the point that they will not even notice the injection being given. This makes the entire experience virtually pain and anxiety free. However, there are a few patients who will be bothered by the injection under the skin and can’t be distracted with food. For those patients, I offer an additional form of sedation that can be given by mouth before the appointment starts. This way your furry friend, whether it be a dog or cat, will be sedate before I arrive. The sedative injection will still be administered, but this way, they will be less bothered by the injection. Unfortunately, injections are given with a needle, so there is no way to 100% relieve the pain of the injection in every patient. But I continue to strive to make the experience as peaceful and pain free as possible for everyone.
These are some conditions that should make you consider pre-appointment sedation for your dog or cat:
fur babies with chronic pain - this hypersensitizes the skin, making the patient very sensitive to injections
dogs with cognitive dysfunction/dementia - these patients are often hypersensitive to injections even when they were not sensitive to injections earlier in their life
a fur baby that is normally anxious or scared when they meet new people
fur babies that have historically gotten upset when getting other types of injections
fur babies that are being euthanized for aggression (pre-appointment sedation will be mandatory in these cases)
A pre-appointment sedation package will be an additional $50. This will include delivery of the medication either by USPS priority mail or by my assistant to your doorstep. Because the medication has to be given the night before and two hours before the appointment, your appointment must be made by 8am the day before you appointment to give us time to deliver the medication to you.
All patients will be given a sedative injection during their appointment. You do not need to request pre-appointment sedation for this injection.