[labster]

Every dog owner I’ve talked to about the end of life of their prior pets mentions how hard it was to let go. The selfish act is to preserve the relationship with your pet for your own emotional needs, and peace comes once you acknowledge the suffering of the animal.

The expense of medical care for pets is often the wrong way of looking at it. A dog doesn’t understand chemotherapy, it only knows it feels really sick. It doesn’t understand invasive surgery, it just knows pain, and wearing the cone of shame. Dogs don’t have the same inner life that we do, so a lot of medical interventions would cause a lot of suffering for what, a few months more life?

And if you don’t want the hassle of dealing with a pet’s illness, don’t get a pet. The relationship you build with a pet should make you understand you owe them your loyalty in the bad times, not just the good.