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6 - A Doggone Shame

Hard Decisions about Euthanasia and Dogs’ Lives

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 January 2024

David L. Weimer
Affiliation:
University of Wisconsin, Madison
Aidan R. Vining
Affiliation:
Simon Fraser University, British Columbia
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Summary

In Chapter 6, we confront the reality that many dog owners must eventually face decisions about their dogs’ end-of-life, potentially including hard decisions about euthanasia or costly medical interventions. We frame these decisions about ending life in terms of the owners’ fiduciary responsibilities and what they imply across different property rights regimes. We show how framing the relationship between dogs and humans in terms of principal-agent theory may offer some novel insights about responsibilities. We explore the appropriateness of euthanasia and how individual preferences and societal perspectives on its appropriateness have changed over time. We then examine the growth in pet health insurance and pre-paid veterinary plans and how this growth affects the economics of the choice between various treatments and euthanasia. We conclude by considering how individual and societal attitudes toward the use of dogs in medical research have changed over time. Nonetheless, although the number of dogs used in research has declined in recent years, many dogs still suffer and experience premature death.

Type
Chapter
Information
Dog Economics
Perspectives on Our Canine Relationships
, pp. 113 - 136
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2024

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  • A Doggone Shame
  • David L. Weimer, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Aidan R. Vining, Simon Fraser University, British Columbia
  • Book: Dog Economics
  • Online publication: 11 January 2024
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009445504.007
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  • A Doggone Shame
  • David L. Weimer, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Aidan R. Vining, Simon Fraser University, British Columbia
  • Book: Dog Economics
  • Online publication: 11 January 2024
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009445504.007
Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • A Doggone Shame
  • David L. Weimer, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Aidan R. Vining, Simon Fraser University, British Columbia
  • Book: Dog Economics
  • Online publication: 11 January 2024
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009445504.007
Available formats
×