Alaska News

Dog Blog: Does your vet make house calls?

A Dog Blog reader emailed me a while back lamenting the fact that most vets don't make house calls for euthanasia. His own research found that Passages Cremation in Wasilla and Pet Emergency in Anchorage will make home visits, but others don't. I promised him I'd make a Dog Blog topic and see if we could get some discussion going here.

I wish I'd done so earlier. Just last week, I had to put my beloved 14-year-old Chessie Lucy down. She had a bleeding tumor and was hardly able to walk when I carried her to the car for a 2-mile drive to the vet. I then had to march her through the waiting room, where a barking dog announced he didn't like us.

At the time, I better understood the person who emailed me. It would have been nice to show Lucy a little more dignity on the final day of her life.

Now I certainly understand that vets are busy and can't afford the time to make home visits. My one regret about vets in Anchorage is just that -- they're busy. If you want to see your favorite vet, you better book an appointment days, or weeks, in advance. If not, you go to a pet emergency or other facility where you don't know which vet you're going to get and if they're familiar with your dog.

But, as the person who emailed me said, we pay vet bills throughout a dog's life. Is it too much to ask for some personal attention on the last day?

What's your opinion? I'm hoping to get the Dog Blog back to its former self, where I had regular topics and discussion was spirited. Please weigh in and help me get it started.

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