“What Would You Do?”: How Cat Owners Make End-of-Life Decisions and Implications for Veterinary-Client Interactions
Cats are the most common companion animals in New Zealand. Advances in veterinary care means that cats are living longer and there are many older cats. End-of-life decisions about cats are complicated by owner–cat relationships and other psychosocial factors. Our study explored the ways in which end...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2021-04-01
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| Series: | Animals |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/11/4/1114 |
| _version_ | 1797537838581940224 |
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| author | Katherine Littlewood Ngaio Beausoleil Kevin Stafford Christine Stephens |
| author_facet | Katherine Littlewood Ngaio Beausoleil Kevin Stafford Christine Stephens |
| author_sort | Katherine Littlewood |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Cats are the most common companion animals in New Zealand. Advances in veterinary care means that cats are living longer and there are many older cats. End-of-life decisions about cats are complicated by owner–cat relationships and other psychosocial factors. Our study explored the ways in which end-of-life decisions were being made by owners of older and chronically ill cats in New Zealand and the role of their veterinarian in the process. Qualitative data were gathered via retrospective semi-structured interviews with 14 cat owners using open-ended questions. Transcripts of these interviews were explored for themes using template analysis and nine themes were identified. Four were animal-centered themes: cat behavior change, pain was a bad sign, signs of ageing are not good, and the benefits of having other people see what owners often could not. Five were human-centered themes: veterinarians understanding owners’ relationships with their cat, normalizing death, the need for a good veterinarian to manage end of life, veterinary validation that owners were doing the right thing, and a strong desire to predict the time course and outcome for their cat. End-of-life decision making is complex, and the veterinarian’s role is often poorly defined. Our owners appreciated the expertise and validation that their veterinarian provided but continuity of care was important. Future research aimed at exploring the veterinarian’s perspective during end-of-life decision making for cats would be a valuable addition to the topic. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T12:21:58Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-3092608c04314502975fc7c49ce987b1 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-2615 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T12:21:58Z |
| publishDate | 2021-04-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Animals |
| spelling | doaj.art-3092608c04314502975fc7c49ce987b12023-11-21T15:24:32ZengMDPI AGAnimals2076-26152021-04-01114111410.3390/ani11041114“What Would You Do?”: How Cat Owners Make End-of-Life Decisions and Implications for Veterinary-Client InteractionsKatherine Littlewood0Ngaio Beausoleil1Kevin Stafford2Christine Stephens3Animal Welfare Science and Bioethics Centre, School of Veterinary Science, Massey University, Palmerston North 4442, New ZealandAnimal Welfare Science and Bioethics Centre, School of Veterinary Science, Massey University, Palmerston North 4442, New ZealandAnimal Science, School of Agriculture and Environment, Massey University, Palmerston North 4442, New ZealandSchool of Psychology, Massey University, Palmerston North 4442, New ZealandCats are the most common companion animals in New Zealand. Advances in veterinary care means that cats are living longer and there are many older cats. End-of-life decisions about cats are complicated by owner–cat relationships and other psychosocial factors. Our study explored the ways in which end-of-life decisions were being made by owners of older and chronically ill cats in New Zealand and the role of their veterinarian in the process. Qualitative data were gathered via retrospective semi-structured interviews with 14 cat owners using open-ended questions. Transcripts of these interviews were explored for themes using template analysis and nine themes were identified. Four were animal-centered themes: cat behavior change, pain was a bad sign, signs of ageing are not good, and the benefits of having other people see what owners often could not. Five were human-centered themes: veterinarians understanding owners’ relationships with their cat, normalizing death, the need for a good veterinarian to manage end of life, veterinary validation that owners were doing the right thing, and a strong desire to predict the time course and outcome for their cat. End-of-life decision making is complex, and the veterinarian’s role is often poorly defined. Our owners appreciated the expertise and validation that their veterinarian provided but continuity of care was important. Future research aimed at exploring the veterinarian’s perspective during end-of-life decision making for cats would be a valuable addition to the topic.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/11/4/1114catsveterinariansquality of lifeanimal welfareeuthanasiaend of life |
| spellingShingle | Katherine Littlewood Ngaio Beausoleil Kevin Stafford Christine Stephens “What Would You Do?”: How Cat Owners Make End-of-Life Decisions and Implications for Veterinary-Client Interactions Animals cats veterinarians quality of life animal welfare euthanasia end of life |
| title | “What Would You Do?”: How Cat Owners Make End-of-Life Decisions and Implications for Veterinary-Client Interactions |
| title_full | “What Would You Do?”: How Cat Owners Make End-of-Life Decisions and Implications for Veterinary-Client Interactions |
| title_fullStr | “What Would You Do?”: How Cat Owners Make End-of-Life Decisions and Implications for Veterinary-Client Interactions |
| title_full_unstemmed | “What Would You Do?”: How Cat Owners Make End-of-Life Decisions and Implications for Veterinary-Client Interactions |
| title_short | “What Would You Do?”: How Cat Owners Make End-of-Life Decisions and Implications for Veterinary-Client Interactions |
| title_sort | what would you do how cat owners make end of life decisions and implications for veterinary client interactions |
| topic | cats veterinarians quality of life animal welfare euthanasia end of life |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/11/4/1114 |
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