Happi Bun wrote:
According to the AVMA:
Cooling - This method is not recommended. Formation of ice crystals on the skin and in tissues of an animal may cause pain or distress. Quick freezing of deeply anesthetized animals is acceptable.
Happi-Bun, you're quoting the section for ectothermics like turtles and frogs. :grumpy:
It doesn't come as much of a surprise that most everything that doesn't involve a vet isn't an acceptable form of euthanization.
Their report is even at odds with itself. They recommend CO/Co2 in the summary, but the text notes that burrowing animals like rabbits, and most babies of all species are more resistant to inhalants. Brain activity and thus the possibility of stress lasts quite awhile.
Decapitation is controversial because of 13 or 14 seconds of 'electrical' activity of the brain, but recent studies dispute that there is pain and suffering, there is an immediate loss of consciousness and thus awareness.
Right now there's a major campaign here to eliminate the 'inhumane' Co2 'boxes' a few shelters are using. I really want to look into this further.
The Vets idea of humane euthanization of small animals is administering an anesthetic and then sodium pentobarbital, but aside from the fact that it requires an intravenous injection -- hard in cats and extremely hard for rabbits -- the stress of restraining and poking the poor animals, coupled with the obvious nausea, not to mention the ridiculous expense makes me wonder how this is considered more humane then a possible 13 second period of brain activity.
Both the cats I've had put down recently were extremely stressed, the needles were painful and they vomited repeatedly. And the cost was upwards of $150 each.
Its so easy to take an overdose of pain meds or sleeping pills, it never ceases to amaze me how difficult it is to put down a suffering pet.
sas
