Last week, we made the excruciating decision to put our dog out of her misery. She had aspiration pneumonia and an underlying condition called megaesophagus.

The vet told us she was suffering, and even if we could cure her pneumonia (which was unlikely), there was a high probability that the pneumonia would come back. The megaesophagus, according to the vet, was a “devastating diagnosis.”

While it was hard to let her go, we knew we had to. We knew that we couldn’t allow her to suffer, and that putting her down was the right thing to do.

It’s called euthanasia. And for animals, it’s the humane thing to do.

As we drove away from the vet, my husband looked over at me and said, “Why is it the humane thing, the right thing to do for animals, but not for people?” Coincidentally, I was thinking the exact same thing when he said that.

Human euthanasia is illegal in all but 2 states in America. The most famous case(s) of human euthanasia (i.e. physician assisted suicide) took place in the state I live in. Jack Kevorkian, a pathologist from Michigan, assisted 130 terminal patients in ending their lives.

I don’t profess to know everything and I realize my opinion is just that, my opinion. However, if faced with a terminal condition and certain suffering, I know what I would want for myself or a loved one…a little humanity.