Introducing pet hospice

A growing movement toward hospice or "pawspice" care for pets is catching on as owners demand more emotional support and options for end-of-life care such as pain management, alternative medicine or palliative radiation treatments for terminal cancer, said Dr. Alice Villalobos, a veterinary oncologist and director of Pawspice in Hermosa Beach, Calif.

"Professionals know there is a cry out there for more home care and more instruction on pets that are treated more like family members than anything," she said. "It's a natural next step."

Many times hospice is as much about serving humans' needs as those of the animal, Villalobos said. "People really want to have an extended farewell just like they did with family members and parents."

Americans appear increasingly willing to pay for it. Pet owners spent $24.5 billion on vet care in 2006, up from an inflation-adjusted $21.6 billion in 2001, according to the American Veterinary Medical Association, which represents 85% of U.S. veterinarians, in Schaumburg, Ill.

Hospice programs can help pet owners deal with their anticipatory grief and discuss options for managing the pet's pain in its last days, weeks or months. The vet can help people determine what signs indicate that a dog or cat is in pain, Strubel said.

Euthanasia is still an option to prevent suffering, and deciding when to do it can be the hardest part for people, she said. "Once the decision is made, often it's a huge sense of relief."

The movement toward pet hospice encourages vets to improve their bedside manner, Villalobos said.