Stay With Them Until the End: A Pet’s Final Wish
Because your presence is their greatest comfort
Many of us bring animals and birds into our homes out of love. We care for them, shower them with affection, and nurture them. Slowly, they find a place in a tiny corner of our vast hearts. Before we even realize it, they begin to live across our entire hearts.
I have 22 cats. I don’t know when or how they gradually became 22. Twenty-two cats mean twenty-two different personalities, and I can’t even tell how my days pass while spending time with them.
Sometimes I wonder—what would my life be like if they were not a part of it? And at other times, I wonder—if something were to happen to them, how would I survive without them?
Do we ever think about what their hearts feel just before they cross the Rainbow Bridge? (I pray that all pets and all pet parents in this world remain safe and well.)
There have been moments in my life when, in my own arms, they crossed the Rainbow Bridge. From those heartbreaking experiences comes today’s writing—when they leave us, what do they feel?
Do they want to see us?
Even in their final moments, do they think about us?
A Vet’s Heartbreaking Confession
Twitter user Jesse Dietrich asked a vet what the hardest part of his job was. The specialist replied without hesitation that the hardest thing for him was seeing how old or sick animals look for their owners before they fall asleep.
The fact is 90% of owners don’t want to be in a room with a dying animal. People leave so they don’t see their animals leave. But they don’t realize it’s in these last moments of life that their animal needs them the most. Vets are asking owners to stay close to animals until the end. “It is inevitable that they die before you.
Remember that you were the center of their lives. Maybe they were just a part of you. But they are also your family. Even if it’s hard, don’t give up on them. Don’t let them die in a room with a stranger in a place they don’t like. It’s very painful for vets to see how pets can’t find their owner in the last minutes of their lives. They don’t understand why their master left them. After all, they needed the consolation of their master.
Why Your Presence Matters
For your pet, you’re not just an owner — you’re their family, their safe place, their whole world. In an unfamiliar vet’s room, with strange smells and strange people, your absence can make them scared and confused.
Veterinarians do their best to provide comfort, but they are strangers. Your pet doesn’t understand why you left — all they want is one last look at you to feel safe.
The Final Gift You Can Give
Forget your own pain for a moment. Be with them until their very last breath. Hold them, speak to them, let them know they are loved.
That is the greatest gift you can give — allowing them to close their eyes peacefully, with their head in your lap, knowing they are safe.
Until we met again!
Love means staying until the end. Don’t let them leave this world alone. For everything they gave you, for every moment they trusted you — be there.
They are only looking for you.
