You don't have to do this alone.
In Home Hospice and Palliative Care (HPC)
Our hospice program is bond-centered, meaning we not only focus on providing the best care to your senior pet, we focus on supporting you and your family as you go through this journey with them. This includes educating families about their pet's disease or condition and what to expect as they decline, assisting with recognizing and managing pain and other symptoms, and being there to support you all through all of the uncertainty along the way. Alissa uses integrative medicine in a personalized care plan for each patient to help them have the best quality of life for as long as possible. This may include physical medicine (including physical therapy exercises, PEMF, massage; can provide information for acupuncture), Western herbal medicine, nutrition & nutraceuticals (supplements), aromatherapy (pheromones), and pharmaceuticals. Entry into our HPC program starts with an in home assessment, which generally take 1-2 hours and need to be scheduled at least 3 days in advance.
If you are caring for a senior pet, we suggest checking out the Pet Caregiver Burden website. You cannot take the best care of your pet if you are not taking care of yourself as well.
In Home Assessment
Starts at $400 (distance fees may apply)
It can be difficult for your aging pet's primary veterinarian to get an accurate idea of their pain or quality of life levels. Many pets are stressed or excited to be at the clinic, and adrenaline may mask symptoms. And in fact, pet caregivers (owners) are the BEST judges of how their pet is doing, but sometimes they need help to know just what to look for.
Alissa will do a thorough review of history (including medical records prior to the appointment which can take several hours if extensive), assessment of the home, and physical exam to help guide you through end of life decision making for your beloved pet. If humane euthanasia is not chosen based on the assessment, she will leave you with a packet of resources for assessing and tracking your pet’s condition. This can be a standalone Quality of Life Assessment, or you and Alissa may decide to start palliative or hospice care (what enrollment into our program includes and what ongoing costs will be are discussed at this time if you are interested, as we need to meet you and see your pet in order to best tailor it to your and their needs), including coming up with a detailed treatment plan for keeping your pet comfortable as long as possible (not all pets are candidates for hospice care). Hospice/palliative care treatment plans may include medications, physical therapy, home modifications and more. As we do not have the ability to perform diagnostic testing (and this can be extremely important to safely treat your pet), she may also recommend you have your pet examined and a workup completed (diagnostic treatment including bloodwork +/- imaging etc) at their primary veterinarian if this has not been performed recently.
If you are interested in scheduling an in home assessment for your pet please start by submitting this questionnaire and having medical records emailed to alissa@faithfulheartsvet.com. If you would like more information first, please call, text, or email us at faithfulheartsvet@gmail.com.
If after the assessment, humane euthanasia is opted for at the same appointment, the euthanasia fee will be discounted to $100.
Hospice / Palliative Care Rechecks
At the in home assessment Alissa will discuss with you what category your pet best fits into: palliative, early hospice, or advanced hospice. Depending on where your pet fits and on what level of support you need as a caregiver, we will check in with regularly with texts or emails (or phone calls if needed) and we will be available to answer questions and address concerns as needed.
Fees and requirements for recheck appointments to stay enrolled in our HPC program, customized to you and your pet's needs, will be discussed and outlined at the in home assessment.
Quality of Life Concerns
We understand that a full in home assessment may not be necessary or practical for all families. If you feel that it may be time to let your pet go, but are uncertain, visiting our blog post here may be helpful. We do not charge for brief phone conversations to help walk you through these difficult decisions, and we can email additional resources if needed.
