By Marilyn Sorvas
Reprinted with permission from The Green Tree Times
If one is a true pet lover, it means that at some point in times one faces the end of life for a beloved pet. There haven’t many options for this bittersweet scenario until now. If your pet is ill with a poor prognosis, what can you do?
Enter Dr. Tamara Padgelek, DVM of Pgh Pets at Home, a mobile veterinary service providing hospice care and in-home euthanasia.
Dr. Padgelek, 1987 Chartiers Valley High School graduate, was graduated from Ross University in 2002. She spent her senior year at the Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine. After Graduation, she remained in that area and began her career as a veterinarian at Banfield (a privately owned company that operates veterinary clinics) in St. Paul, Minnesota, for two years.
When she decided to return to her hometown of Pittsburgh, she franchised a Banfield practice in Monroeville. There she practiced small animal medicine for ten years. “In 2014, the timing seemed right to make a change in my practice, from treating small animals to providing hospice service, end of life care and support to people and their pets during this trying time,” Dr. Padgelek said.
“I will be completing certification this fall in small animal acupuncture at the Chi Institute to further assist all pets,” she explained. In January 2016, she will offer acupuncture home visits for pets.
Pgh Pets at Home also offers help to other small animals as well as dogs and cats.
The website, pghpetsathome.com, provides a wealth of information about final care. It is designed to give pet owners the information needed to formulate best-case answers for the questions they may ask as their pets become ill or hurt and draws near to the end of life.
Under “Helpful FAQs,” information is provided on pain scales; i.e., on to determine the level of pain the pet is experiencing. Information is also covered about involving children in this process, as well as how far out from Pittsburgh Dr. Padgelek will travel (one to two hours). The website is helpful and easy to navigate.
We all love our pets dearly and many consider them, “part of the family.” For those reasons deciding final care is a very personal and emotional decision.
Pgh Pets at Home will come to your home for a consultation regarding a final care plan for your pet and provide help in making these difficult decisions. There are many things to consider in assessing the pet’s quality of life, including mobility, hygiene, appetite, interest in life, pain, a disease process and prognosis. Also to be considered is the ability of the caregiver to provide nursing care as well as any financial constraints.
The final plan may be a one-time euthanasia visit or a more involved hospice care plan towards natural death or euthanasia. The plan will be tailored to the needs of the pet and the family.
The website also provides information about cremation, pet burials at home or a pet cemetery.
Count on a caring professional to give you the help you and your pets need. Dr. Tamara Padgelek is located in Green Tree and may be reached at 412-346-1177.
