VETERINARY MEDICINE | GRIEF | PET OWNERSHIP
If This Candle is Lit, Someone is Saying Goodbye.
For some, death may grant peace.
As veterinarians, we spend nearly all of our waking hours trying to prevent death. In fact, we work anywhere from 50–90 (or more) hours per week to try to stop death in its tracks. Whether through preventative medicine or aggressive surgical and medical intervention, veterinarians strive all day, every day towards this end.
Though, there comes a time when it becomes clear that we’ve done all that we can. To do more would be fruitless or even cruel.
Whether it’s the result of an aggressive illness, a loss of the will or means to fight, or something else, veterinarians eventually — in a unique wardrobe change — swap our hat of the healer for the scythe of the grim reaper.
This pivot in roles is accompanied by intense sadness and often other emotions like anger. Though contrary to the image conjured by the grim reaper, many veterinarians and pet owners feel that this act, in the right setting, is truly one of utmost kindness.
Veterinarians are tasked with beginning the process of transition towards whatever awaits our pets in the afterlife, and by doing so, we can alleviate immense suffering in our current world.
