The power of being human

What is it about putting a pet to sleep that is so heartbreaking.

For me, it is not always that I love them so very much that it is about losing them. I realized yet again tonight as I stood in a room with my cat, brushing him and doing what I could to make him happy and distract him, that it is also about the power and responsibility of literally killing another being. 

How did it happen that humans not only use animals as pets, but that we get to decide their fate. If we are good humans we do what is right and and responsible. If we are bad humans, we never realize our responsibility. The suffering of all beings is an enormous concept which deserves enormous respect. And, even with all of my years in veterinary, animal welfare and as a pet parent to many, the respect I have for life for all never fades. In fact, it seems to have grown stronger...