PALLIATIVE CARE

What is hospice/Palliative care?

The term "hospice/Palliative care" can invoke many images, particularly if

you have had a family member or friend in human hospice care. For our

animal family members, it means addressing their quality of life until it is

time to say goodbye. This time can be a few hours or days in duration to

months or even years.

When no treatment will provide a cure, but comfort can be provided to

both the pet and family, Mobile Veterinary Service's hospice care may

be the best option. Like human hospice, pet hospice provides support

for the emotional, social, and spiritual needs of the whole family.

With pets, hospice recognizes that pets are a part of the family and

that everyone suffers when the most helpless of the family is in

discomfort and pain. In some instances, a diagnosis with a poor long term

prognosis does not mean the pet's quality of life is immediately

unacceptable. For example, a cat with chronic kidney disease may be

maintained comfortably for months or even years with proper care.

Unlike human medicine, decisions about pet care involve both the

tolerance of the pet to treatment as well as the inevitable concerns

about cost. For example, regardless of financial constraints, a

frightened cat might not be a candidate for cancer treatment that

required multiple vet visits because it could not travel in the car.

An elderly owner might not be able to afford surgery for her dog, but

could administer pain medicine at home.

We take a holistic approach to end of life care and try to meet the medical,

physical, and emotional needs of both the pet and the owner. This can

include:

Pain: Many geriatric patients of all species suffer from arthritis or pain from

neurological disease or cancer. A decline in mobility can make the

difference in whether the quality of life is acceptable or not. Fortunately,

many approaches are available to use to help manage pain in our patients,

including multi-modalities pain medications to keep an older pet feeling and

moving their best.

Nutrition: Animals in pain or who feel sick often do not wish to eat and an

pet's poor appetite is often cited by owners as part of the decision to

euthanize. Using both commercially available diets or a home prepared diet,

we can address the nutritional needs of the patient.

Medical Management: Many medical conditions that require professional

treatment can be addressed during a house call, such as administration of

fluids, medication, or nutrition via a feeding tube.

Psychological Management: We now know that animals can suffer from

many of the same signs of aging as humans. Many elderly dogs show signs

of canine cognitive dysfunction, which is similar to Alzheimer's disease in

humans. Signs include acting lost or confused, personality changes, urinary

or fecal incontinence or changes in housebreaking, sleep disturbances, or

even fear aggression. While these signs cannot be reversed at this time, some

supplements are suggested to be helpful in slowing its progression.