VALPARAISO, Ind. (AP) – Two dogs that escaped death when a northwestern Indiana veterinarian refused their owner’s request to have the healthy canines euthanized have found a new home together with an Illinois couple.
A rescue group said that the man who had owned Sam, a pointer, and Cosmo, a Lab mix, got divorced and was moving in with his girlfriend, who said she was allergic to dogs.
So this happened today!! Thanks to our friends at P.A.W.S. Tinley Park, Sam and Cosmo are laying on a comfy couch…
Posted by Begin Again Rescue Co. on Saturday, December 1, 2018
He visited the veterinarian in Portage and requested a “convenience euthanasia,” which is when owners have healthy pets euthanized for personal or convenience reasons, said Penny Emerson, president of Begin Again Rescue Co. in Valparaiso. The man had owned the dogs for 10 years.
“Apparently there was a change in his life plans, and they weren’t a part of that. It was really sad,” Emerson told The (Northwest Indiana) Times .
Huge thank you to our friends at PAWS Tinley Park for their help in finding "the boys" a forever home! Happy tears, Christmas Wish granted!❤️
Posted by Begin Again Rescue Co. on Tuesday, December 4, 2018
But the Portage vet refused the euthanasia request because the dogs were healthy, friendly and playful, Emerson said. The duo was transferred into the care of Begin Again Rescue Co. in Valparaiso in June and eventually taken to Peoples Animal Welfare Society in Tinley Park, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago.
Eric and Tiffany Dybas of Lockport, Illinois, later adopted Sam and Cosmo after hearing about their story.
Emerson said Eric Dybas told her recently that the canine companions are getting on well in their new home.
Did you know that in addition to being local celebrities, Sam and Cosmo have their own Instagram page?!?! This is the life that they deserved!! 🐾❤️🐾
Posted by Begin Again Rescue Co. on Wednesday, December 12, 2018
“He said Cosmo and Sam sleep in the bed with them and have free rein of the house and a nice yard, so they got a happy ending,” she said.
The practice of “convenience euthanasia” has decreased in recent years because pets are now seen more as family members than property, said Dr. Matt Cantrell, a veterinarian who’s a member of the Indiana Veterinary Medical Association.
But such requests remain a “difficult situation” many veterinarians deal with, he said. The reasons pet owners have given for “convenience euthanasia” include moving, getting new furniture, shedding, divorce, job loss, property damage or the owners not wanting the responsibilities that come with pet ownership.
Cantrell said many vets intervene on behalf of the animal, like the one who saved Sam and Cosmo.
“None of us want to end a pet’s life unless it is to prevent suffering,” he said.
