This question often comes up, and did so just yesterday on e-sangha. I thought I’d repeat the answer I suggested to someone else a month or two ago, where the animal involved was a cat:
Dear …,
I do feel for you, as a cat lover myself. Many Western Buddhists have been through this. I can only offer you my opinion, based on discussions with quite a few other people.
1) You have already given your cat a far better, longer life than nature would.
2) The ulitmate critereon has to be compassion.
3) It’s obviously got to the stage where all that awaits your cat is more suffering.
4) *If* there is something “bad” about the euthanasia, take the consequences on yourself (the “bad karma”, if there is any, and the heartache) gladly out of love for your cat.
I have known people who have wished that they could be given the same release.
Like I say, only my opinion, but one that is widely shared.
Obviously, if you also know any prayers for the dead, they may help a bit, especially with your own feeling.
Best wishes to you both
It really gets up my nose when people start to put rules and speculations about the way karma works (suggesting, for instance, that you should leave the animal to suffer so that it can “complete working out its karma”) above compassion.
A suffering being may be experiencing the karmic results of bad actions–but what’s the karmic result for someone who ignores the suffering of another sentient being? One of the things I like about Buddhism (as a newbie) is the no-nonsense attitude that suffering is Not Fun, wanting happiness is Okay, and trying to relieve suffering and create happiness for oneself as well as others is morally right.
I have heard my teacher, Bardor Tulku Rinpoche, address this very question. He says that euthanasia is killing, and that if the animal can be allowed to die on its own, “That particular cycle of suffering is ended.” If euthanized, the animal will have to continue that cycle of suffering in the next life, until the cycle is finished. This does NOT mean, according to Rinpoche, that animals cannot be given pain medications or have other actions taken to alleviate their suffering.
I know this thinking is hard to accept. I have had one pet euthanized since I heard Rinpoche say this; I have worked hard to allow others to die naturally, yet comfortably. It’s hard work. I also do wonder how much of “euthanasia” is done for the sake of the animal vs. the animal’s owners.
I would never presume, however, to tell someone else what they should or should not do with regard to this question–I’m just relaying what I’ve heard my own teacher say.
Hi Lu,
Well as you’ll guess Bardor Tulku is someone I would listen to. Did he offer any way to think around the fact that the kind of owner that an animal has is also presumably part of its karma?
The problem I still have with that kind of thinking is that it would tell us never to do anything to mitigate anyones suffering – we should leave them to complete their “cycle of suffering”. Obviously (I hope) that’s not a position I can embraced. Do you think Bardor Tulku might have a way to deal with this?
I think EUTHANASIA should be allowed world-wide for every person, no contest.
All though, I do understand the “greif” part… because, me, well, myslef and my mother, had to put down our pet (GOD BLESS HER SOUL)Its a very hard thing to do… but what u have to think is that you are doing what he/she wants, that your putting them out of their pain and they will thank you for that… doesnt matter what other people think.
Your cat/dog/hamster whatever, will always love you and be greatfull for what you did, you saved him/her.
All my love.
Yours, J.Wafaquani
A quick comment that I heard a teacher say once: Euthanizing anyone, be it human or animal is based on the very western assumption that their suffering will be stopped by death. But what if they were to be reborn in the deepest hells? Would it not be more compassionate to simply do one’s best to relieve the (relatively) minor suffering of the present rather than opening up the potential for much greater future suffering?
My 19 year old dog, Seymour is nearly blind, is deaf, and incontinent and has crusty eyes because his tear ducts don’t work anymore. I think this his only pain is when I have to clean his eyes. He loves to eat, drink, and sleep. I had an appointment to have him euthanized- so he could transform. Five days before the appointed date, I received an email from a long lost spiritual friend (a Catholic) of the Butterfly’s Lesson. The lesson, is a butterfly, in order to complete its metamorphosis, must work very hard and suffer before emerging from the cocoon. During this suffering, the butterfly pushes fluids necessary into its wings so it will be able to fly. In this story, a kind and compassionate man sees the butterfly starting to emerge. But the butterfly pauses to suffer… the man decides to cut a tiny slit in the cocoon to help release the butterfly, expecting it to fly away, but instead the butterfly’s wings writhers and it is only able to crawl and never to fly. I had thought this story was appropriate for what I was going through, being sad to let my dog go.
But two days later and two days before the appointment, I received another email from the same person. The second email was these photos of dogs that their humans had dress them in people clothes. I saw then that the messages were about what I was about to euthanize my dog. I was about to cut an opening in the cocoon for my dog, make it easy for him to pass, to transform, and to which he might not be able to pass and end his cycle of suffering.
Thanks Alex W. for your thoughts on this matter. I have an appointment this afternoon with my vet to euthanize my 12 year old, now blind in both eyes, cat. Is is with great compassion and the desire to eliminate her future suffering that I make this decision. I will responsibly take the consequences on myself of any such “bad karma”, if there is any, and the heartache, out of my deep love for my cat.
I lost my dog 4 days ago. He died on his own without euthanaisia and I would not have done it any other way. One of the most important Buddhist principals that I thought of during this time is that there is suffering in this world for everyone. He had cancer and really started slowing down two days before he passed. His tumors burst around midnight and it was a pretty big mess. I cleaned it up and stayed with him through the night. He had some more burst around 7 am with his last exhale. I searched all over the Internet with how to deal with this impending death that was coming. It is a very hard to decision to make because you don’t want to see someone you love suffering, it’s natural human instinct to want to do something about it. I felt that the best thing to do was to be there for him all the way through the end as his soul was learning to let go. He had a lot of fear and was holding on before he finally fell asleep and was taking deep breaths. I really felt at that point that he had come to terms with what was happening to him. I wanted to leave some advice for anyone else going through this and not wanting to euthanize. The most important thing is to just BE THERE for your pet giving him whatever he may need. If you are unable to chant or sing, just do it in your head and stay right beside them. The most important thing is to be there for them. Finally, you should have them in their comfy bed with a blanket on top so it is easy to move them in case of an accident, so it can be cleaned up and then you just move them back to their bed afterwards. Have lots of old towels to clean up what may come out either end. Keep in mind that life can be messy, but there is so much LOVE.
This is my first personal dog who is very old. He is 14 and a large breed (shepherd/husky). He has senesced at a gradual rate. He stumbles now. He runs out of energy and lies down wherever he is standing. He has diarrhea all the time. He still eats but he has diarrhea all the time. So he must be outside all the time now after a life of being inside at will. He seems like he is adjusting “okay”, but of course he still asks to come in every day, especially in the evening. There is a part of me that wants to allow him to die on his own, but I think that it is generally well accepted in our culture to euthanize old animals instead of letting them die. In fact, letting them die, especially without pain medication, is considered cruel in our culture.
But after reading some of the above comments, I feel a glimmer of affirmation. I birthed two of my three babies at home with a midwife. The first was in a hospital, which made me realize that I never wanted to do that again. With death, there is only one time, no chance to do it over again. As I saw my beloved friend start toward the path of death, I held strongly that I would just BE PRESENT and PROTECT HIS SPACE. But as he continues on his path it gets harder each day. I feel so much pressure to kill him! It is not direct pressure from people in my family, it is a cultural pressure. An unsaid agreement that people are supposed to kill their animals when they are close to dying. I am glad I read these comments because they helped clear my mind to what is important which is appreciating every moment that we are alive and those around us are alive, no matter how sick or close to death they are.
I’m so confused i’m a 23 year old guy who is trying to live a buddhist life in a western world. I did wonder about this issue because my cat has cancer in its face and around the jar which stops her from eating. I’m wondering if it’s better to put her out of her pain now. Whats better to do for her let her stave to death not being able to eat? Isn’t that very bad Karma to allow a loved animal stave to death infront of me?