FAQs

Deciding when to say goodbye to a beloved pet is a tremendous responsibility, and it is understandably one of the hardest decisions you will make. If you are struggling with the choice, know that you aren’t alone.

Often the only advice you are given is that when it’s time, “you’ll just know.” Sometimes this is true, but other times it is not. Quality of life encompasses many things: pain, appetite, interaction, impact on your life, financial constraints. The biggest regret we hear after a pet’s passing is concern that the owner waited too long.

We can help. A Quality of Life consultation is designed to give you clear and specific benchmarks based on your family’s individual situation, so you can make this important decision with clarity, not confusion. Peace of mind is vital to the healing process after a loss.

The quality of life scale is one resource that may help with your decision.
CLICK HERE TO CALCULATE YOUR PETS QUALITY OF LIFE

No struggling to get into the car. No sitting in the waiting room. No fear. As far as your pet is concerned, our veterinarians are just a houseguest. In surveys, the overwhelming majority of people with end-of-life disease express a preference for dying at home in comfortable surrounding. We extend the same opportunity to your beloved pet.

Paws into Grace also offers appointments after most offices are closed, including evenings and weekends. If your pet’s health deteriorates rapidly when your veterinary office is closed you may still help ease your pet’s suffering with a home appointment.

Pet hospice is a very specialized service for terminally ill pets that focuses on comfort, not a cure. Our goal for pet hospice patients is to prolong a pet’s quality of life as much as is possible while providing emotional support for the entire family. For more information about pet hospice services, please see our free downloadable guide to pet hospice care.

Paws into Grace offers home pet hospice and euthanasia appointments seven days a week including evenings. We are often available for same day appointments and do not charge additional fees for last minute appointments. You can call us at 619-977-6698 any time to discuss availability.

Fees for our various hospice and euthanasia related services can be found on our Services page. Aftercare/cremation fees vary depending on the services selected and the weight of the pet. Please call us at 619 977-6698 for more information.

Your pet will receive a sedative and pain medication before we administer the euthanasia solution. After your dog or cat is resting comfortably, we administer the euthanasia solution, which is an overdose of an anesthetic agent. Our goal is to keep your pet, and you, as comfortable as possible during the entire process. For more information, see our section about the euthanasia process.

It’s hard to overestimate the impact pets have on our lives. We encourage families to celebrate the life of a pet during his or her passage, and it’s not uncommon for us to arrive in the middle of a heartfelt slideshow, share in a neighborhood toast, and listen to a child read a poem.

We can help you figure out how to talk to your children based on their age and experience. Our support staff is there for you and your family so you can bring your children into the experience while allowing yourself your own grief.

We believe that saying goodbye is sad, but can also be beautiful. A loving, peaceful transition can be a lifelong lesson for children about death, ease the pain of previous losses for an adult, and provide peace that you have given your pet the ideal gift for a life of love.

Based on the wonderful ceremonies we have participated in, our Celebration of Life  is designed to help you plan a passage that is meaningful to you, appropriate for anyone, and guided at all times by an experienced expert.

If you must cancel your appointment with us, we ask that you please give us at least 2 hours notice. For both consultation and pet euthanasia appointments, there will be a $100 fee or more (depending on the location of the appointment) for a cancellation made within 1 hour of the appointment.

Our doctors often travel up to 60 minutes or more for an appointment. If you cancel close to your appointment, the doctor is already be well on the way to your home for your booked appointment.

A short-notice cancellation also limits our ability to help another family that may have also needed help during your appointment time.

If we arrive at the house and the pet has passed and we have not received a call the full appointment fee is charged.

Aquamation (also known as Alkaline Hydrolysis) is a peaceful water cremation that uses temperature, gentle water flow, and alkalinity to break down organic material, leaving only the calcium phosphate remains of the bones and teeth. 

The ash received back in this process is similar to traditional cremation, but aquamation returns 20% more ash, which is lighter in color.

It is an environmentally friendly process that is an acceleration of natural decomposition.

Our pets leave paw prints on our hearts, not our environment.

• Aquamation is a flameless process that uses water instead of fire.
• Aquamation saves more than 90%  energy compared to flame based cremation.
• There are no direct emissions of harmful Greenhouse gases or mercury.
• There is no burning of fossil fuels.
• 20% more ash remains are returned and cremains are a desirable white/tan color.
  
  

In addition to our foolproof tracking system, we also assign each pet their own metal tag that will stay with them throughout the entire process. The tag is attached to the pet and verified at every stage of the process. The tag number is verified when taking paw prints, fur clipping, being placed into the machine, and then again when removed, and all the way until your pet’s cremains are packaged.