Dear Gabby,
What does the Catholic Church teach on euthanizing pets? I will probably have to put down my old dog after years spent with our family. My kids will no doubt ask about whether or not they will see our dog in heaven. What does the Church say about that?
-Greg
Hi Greg-
So sorry to hear the bad news about your dog. It is certainly difficult to lose a beloved pet and even harder perhaps to make the decision to put it down.
Your questions have both an easy and hard answer. The easy answer comes from the theology of the Church itself. Since animals are not made in the image and likeness of God and do not have immortal souls, it is acceptable to euthanize an animal humanely.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church doesn’t say directly say that pets will or will not go to heaven but it does give some guidance. All living things have a soul (it’s what makes a body alive) and when it does, the soul is separated from the body. In man, the soul is immortal so it keeps on living but the soul of an animal, or plant even, is not immortal and simply ceases to exist once the body perishes. Also, a key difference between humans and animals is that humans have the intelligence to choose God’s will or not, and after death will see God…or not.
Which all leads to the hard answer – how do you tell a child that they won’t see their favorite pet in heaven? Well, first, in heaven we won’t really be concerned with anything besides living in God’s glory (he will be sufficient) and secondly, with God all things are possible so I suppose that whenever we get to heaven, we can ask God for some time with our favorite pet.
For Him,
Gabby
Have a question for Gabby? Send to stmichaelsociety@gmail.com.
My son, when he was five, figured out the answer this way.
1. Cat = noun.
2. Noun = person/place/thing
3. A cat is neither a person or a place, so it must be a thing. Science says there are living things and non-living things. A cat would be a living thing.
5. Things, even living things, don’t have souls.
6. Only souls go to Heaven.
7. God gives us cats/pets/animals to help us be happy on earth. Once in Heaven, we know supreme happiness with God, so we no longer need our pets. God is enough.
I love that his answer matches this teaching so well. When we used his explanation for a friend when they euthanized their pet, it was comforting.
I had to put our dog, Oscar, to sleep the day after Easter. I told my kids that Scripture talks about a new heaven and a new earth. It also talks about a lion laying down with a lamb. So it seems there will be animals in the new world. Whether or not it will be the same animals we knew as pets, we don’t really know. But we can trust that God will do whatever is best.
http://www.kingsalomon.net/2011/04/25/rest-in-peace-oscar/
You can always teach them about the Rainbow Bridge and tell them that they will see their pet on their way to heaven.
I’m SO sorry to hear about your dog, I’ll ask for St. Francis’ intercession. Hopefully, we’ll get to see our pets in eternity.
Pets in Heaven….. My comment is God spelled backwards is dog & I believe they are like god’s creatures to help us receive comfort & bring joy in our lives, & like God they Never say a Word.. We have to follow our Catholic Belief and Believe in God 7 trust He Will take care of His creatures.. Thank You for your time …
I agree that animals are not made in God’s image. Human’s are unique and are able to have a personal relationship with their Creator. However much of the answer suggests Heaven is a disembodied place where souls reside, implying the absence of physical bodies and soulless beings. But if “Heaven” is shorthand for a restored cosmos, including both the heavens and this earth, then it is likely animals will be part of that restoration (Rev. 21). Since animals were part of the original creation, and pronounced good, it is likely they will be part of the new creation. That doesn’t suggest that our dead pets will be raised. Christians who are resurrected to eternal life will suffer no unrequited longings. If we want our original pets, they will be in the new creation. If they are not, then we won’t long for them.
maybe they are not made in the image of God, but they were made as helpmates to man. if He notices every sparrow that falls from the sky and love never ceases to exist within us, i cannot imagine God as not having a plan for the animals. it may not be for us to understand in this part of life. what i do understand is that they give…and give and give…they have no voice but the one we speak for them. to me that is a very exemplary life, maybe even a holy life in some parallel sort of way to saints, or angels and God…as animals are to man. isnt one of the blessings of children the opportunity to be a father/mother/parent as God is our Father? we gain a small sense of what our relationship to Him is through the parent-child relationship. so, why not a parallel in other relationships man has with God’s creations? to say they cease to exist just because the scriptures are not specific about something seems just as much an assumption to me as the ones i am trying to reason through.
God seems to have created a world for us to dwell in which there is constant opportunity to learn and grow closer to Him, to come to some sort of understanding that we might have a relationship with Him. Is not the relationships we have with animals in many ways parallel to some of our understandings of God and heaven? there are no real answers to the questions or we wouldnt be asking or talking about it; but, i just cannot believe that a God of such love and mercy would so easily dismiss the soul of any living thing of His own creation…whatever kind of soul it maybe…if He loves so much to restore every hair on our head someday and notices the fall of every sparrow from the sky, He must have a plan for all His creations…it just is not for us to know right now…some things must be left to faith in Him and His LOVE.
the love i have experienced from God is so powerful and beautiful and amazing and overwhelmingly bigger than anything i can feel without His help…how could that love not include all of creation? no, i dont believe that the soul of any living thing is so easily dismissed as to say it just stops existing as if it never was at all…we simply do not need to know, but rather must have faith in His Love for all. Jesus taught us to love God above all else…to love what the Father has created and He created ALL that is in our world, to love as He loves. and, love is one thing we DO get to take with us when we leave this life. surely, they will at the very least continue to exist within that love…ours and HIS. exactly how is not important right now…but FAITH is.
i mean no offense to anyone who differs with my weak attempts to find a way to explain what i am trying very poorly to say. i simply think that God’s love is great enough to have a plan for all of His creations, the animals and all living things. maybe it is just not for me, or us, to understand (or become despondent or stressed or worried about). it is a matter in which we should trust in Him; and, that is the very nature of faith…trusting in His love, His will, and all things being done in His time.