Saying goodbye to a beloved pet is one of the most difficult experiences a family can face. Traditional veterinary clinics, while providing excellent medical care, can sometimes feel clinical or stressful for animals during their final days. Many pet parents struggle to navigate the anxiety, pain management, and emotional toll of their pet's last stages of life, often wishing for a peaceful, familiar environment where their furry companions can spend their final moments surrounded by love and comfort.
Lap of Love offers a compassionate solution as a dedicated provider of in-home veterinary hospice, euthanasia, telehospice, and pet loss support services. With their recent expansion into Honolulu, Hawaii, the organization is bringing its empathetic approach directly to local households. In this interview, we speak with a Honolulu Lap of Love veterinarian to discuss the importance of in-home end-of-life care, how their team supports local pet owners, and what this expansion means for the community.
Q: Ensuring a pet passes gently at home is often described as the last gift an owner can give them. How does the in-home environment fundamentally change the end-of-life experience for both the pet and their family in Honolulu?
Dr. Sunshine Eckstrom: It really is a gift. Even the calmest veterinary clinic has smells and sounds that are stressful to the majority of pets. Plus, many pets nearing the end of life are feeling discomfort, nausea, anxiety or other symptoms that may make even the car ride to the vet very stressful. Helping them at home lets them remain where they’re most at ease, surrounded by what’s familiar and supported by both the human and animal members of their family. It lets both the pet and their family be comfortably together at the end, in the place where they shared their happy life together.
Q: Lap of Love recently expanded its services to Honolulu, Hawaii. What unique needs do pet parents in this local community face when managing end-of-life care for their companions?
Dr. Sunshine: Although Oahu is the only place where I’ve specialized in In-Home End of Life Care, I’ve met many people here who were previously unaware that In-Home Hospice and Euthanasia were services that even existed. I would love for more people to become aware that they have this choice and that we offer many resources to help them as they navigate their pets’ decreasing quality of life.
Q: Beyond in-home euthanasia, Lap of Love offers telehospice and in-home hospice options. How do these services help pet parents manage pain and assess their pet's quality of life leading up to the final decision?
Dr. Sunshine: Telehospice lets pet parents have a conversation with one of our veterinarians online to help them assess their pet’s quality of life. The goal is to help families understand more about what their pet might be experiencing and what solutions might be best. If they want more specific recommendations for their pet including the option of having comfort medications prescribed to them, then In-Home Hospice will allow the vet to examine their pet in person and go even more in-depth into their individual medical and environmental management needs going forward. Both of these options can also be very helpful to guide the family in discussing their different points of view with each other so they can make these decisions together.
Q: Grief is a significant part of losing a companion, and Lap of Love provides dedicated pet loss support. How important is this ongoing emotional guidance for families after they say their final goodbyes?
Dr. Sunshine: It’s wonderful to have the support of other people who can truly understand the irreplaceable bond you shared with your pet. People who can sympathize with the many complex feelings that are part of grieving someone who was your responsibility and who meant everything to you. Our animals are not “just” pets, they are our family, our babies, our friends, and often the brightest source of love and joy that we have. Losing them is nothing to take lightly.
Q: As a veterinarian exclusively focused on hospice and end-of-life care, what specialized training or mindset is necessary to support families through such a vulnerable transition?
Dr. Sunshine: As veterinarians, specialized training in End of Life Care is vital to help fine tune our approach to hospice and euthanasia. It’s a different mindset to the one we use when preventing and fixing health problems in general veterinary practice. The goal changes from prolonging life to prolonging only quality of life. It’s also a time when we can’t rush, we want to allow all the space needed to listen to families’ concerns, answer questions, share our expertise and support them through very emotional decisions.
Q: What advice would you offer to a local pet parent currently struggling with the anxiety and guilt of making end-of-life decisions for their ailing pet?
Dr. Sunshine: First, I would say that you’re not alone. The guilt and anxiety are normal, they show that you care deeply and aren’t taking your pet’s well-being lightly. That’s beautiful. As challenging as it may be, my advice would be to start by accepting that our pets’ lifespans are much shorter than ours and resisting the urge to avoid the topics of hospice and euthanasia. Death is not something we can avoid, but we can avoid unnecessary suffering. We must educate ourselves and be strong and selfless for their sake. By consulting End of Life veterinarians and the many resources available (for example on LapofLove.com), we can do our absolute best for them at the end just as we’ve done since they first came into our life.
The approach to end-of-life veterinary care continues to shift toward the comfort of home, allowing pets to experience their final moments in peace. Providing structured options like telehospice, in-home hospice, and ongoing grief support empowers families to make informed, compassionate decisions. This holistic model alleviates physical suffering for the animal while addressing the emotional needs of the caregivers.
As the human-animal bond deepens, the demand for dignified, empathetic pet care remains vital. Lap of Love’s presence in Honolulu represents a crucial step forward in making specialized hospice services accessible to more pet owners. Prioritizing home comfort and compassionate guidance ensures that every pet's final chapter is written with dignity and love.
To learn more visit https://www.lapoflove.com/
