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Page: << Prev | 1 | 2 | 3 | Next >> Increasing interest from human hospice workers has a few human facilities considering building special wings for terminally ill pets, Marocchino said.
Sharen Meyers, a long-time social worker for human hospice, made plans to open an end-of-life care facility for animals later this summer after her employer had her research the idea but decided not to pursue it.
Synergy Animal Hospice, located in Bend, Ore., will give aid to all companion animals, including horses, geckos, rabbits and chickens.
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A renovated two-story house, sitting on 20 acres, serves as the nonprofit's business office and inpatient-care unit for families who can't physically or financially tend to their dying pets at home.
People often rush to euthanize their animals after receiving a terminal diagnosis then feel like they "executed" their best friend, Meyers said. But that's not the case when owners opt for hospice care, she said.
"When people walk through the hospice process thoughtfully and consciously, it lessens the intensity of the grief afterwards," said Meyers, who also runs a pet loss support group.
Modeling their program after human hospice, Synergy's volunteers will provide animals with spiritual care (through Reiki, a Japanese healing technique) and caregivers with emotional support.
The group is also partnering with a local humane society to find homes for the pets of human hospice patients when they die.
With funding from donations and grants, Meyers hopes to provide these services at little or no cost to the community.
Nursing a terminally ill pet can be exhausting, especially for elderly owners or those who work full-time. But Kenneth Koch of Modesto, Calif., doesn't regret the three years he spent caring for his cat, Midnight.
Adopted by Koch nearly two decades earlier, the black domestic shorthair had chronic renal failure, among other illnesses. Injections, intravenous treatments and a regimen of six different pills quickly became part of Koch's daily routine.
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