An ethical business decision in veterinary practice: Euthanasia of a 'Fixable' Animal

Academic Paper from the year 2022 in the subject Ethics, grade: A, University of Nairobi, language: English, abstract: Veterinarians have legal and ethical responsibilities to provide good care for the animals they handle in their veterinary practices. However, they often experience ethical conflicts arising from the differences between animal owners, veterinarians, and animals. As a result, veterinarians face ethically challenging situations which may lead to stress or moral distress. Hartman et al. (2020) confirmed that several ethical issues occur in business units of veterinary practices. When such problems are experienced, they result in dilemmas that require a proper, well-thought-out ethical decision to address them. Sometimes the puzzles in the veterinary practice could pit the owner and the vet with both looking after the animal's best interests. Specifically, the case of euthanasia for animals can be a challenging decision. Therefore, this paper presents a thorough analysis of a business ethics decision on euthanasia for a 'fixable animal' within the veterinary practice, assessing the situation and the possible resolutions.