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Humane Euthanasia

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Deeply missed

Euthanasia

The City of Richardson Animal Shelter offers Humane Euthanasia to our residents only. If you live in another city, please contact your city shelter or a vet clinic that you trust. Richardson residents can bring their pets to the shelter by scheduling an appointment, we are open every day excluding holidays. It is not an easy choice to make so you can read American Humane, Euthanasia:Making the Decision which can help you through this difficult time. 

Euthanasia, simply defined, is the act of inducing a painless death. Humane euthanasia of an animal requires five basic elements:

1. Compassion.
2. Knowledge.
3. Technical skills developed through training and experience.
4. Appropriate application of the most state-of-the-art drugs, equipment, and techniques available.
5. Wisdom to know when euthanasia should, and should not, be performed

Our trained staff members euthanize animals by injection of a drug called sodium pentobarbital. The animals remains are then cremated. We request that residents bring their animal into the shelter but exceptions can be made for elderly and/or handicapped residents or special circumstances.

  • If you have read all the conditions above and would like to schedule an appointment for euthanasia, please go to this link:https://richardsonanimalshelter.setmore.com/
    •  Euthanasia fee is $25
    • The owner will sign an owner surrender form for euthanasia

 Things to know before making your decision to come to the shelter:

  • You are not able to be with in the room, before, during or after we perform this service.
    • We strongly recommend that owners are with their pet during their final moments, as they cross the rainbow bridge. However, to do this, you will need to use a veterinarian/vet clinic. If you elect to use euthanasia services through us, we are not able to have you in the room before, during, or after the procedure (per state law). You will need to say goodbye in our lobby.
  • If your pet appears healthy, we can refuse the euthanasia service. We would need a letter from a vet that states euthanasia is the best action due to your pet's health issues. 
    • Euthanasia is used as a last resort in instances when an pet or animal is deemed too ill or too dangerous
      • This is an end-of-life decision for a pet/animal as an act of mercy not for convenience, space or funding. Euthanasia is for pets that have no chance of recovering an acceptable quality of life

Cremation Services

  •  We are unable to return any ashes or give back the body
    •  We perform communal cremation with the remains – so we are unable to return ashes or release the body back to you for a private burial. You can choose to hire a third-party company to pick up the remains from us and do a private cremation. Most residents that use this service pick between “Pet Memories” or “Toothacres”. Please arrange this pickup with them prior to your appointment, as we are not able to hold remains for an extended period of time.

Other Solutions

If you cannot afford euthanasia at a vet clinic or live outside of our city, please remember if you live in another city, please contact your city animal shelter/control or a vet clinic that you trust.

Below are some solutions that might help:

  • Pet Insurance
    • Insurance plans could help you cover the cost of emergency or medical treatment
    • You can also start a pet saving account with your bank and set aside as much as you can every week or every other week for future emergencies
  • Care Credit
    • This is a online credit provider (like a credit card) that you can apply to get help with vet bills
  • Ask the vet clinic for payment options
  • Consider fundraising platforms like GoFundMe or Waggle
  • Ask help from friends and family members
    • It might be scary to ask for help but most loved ones are happy to help if they can