Abstract
In 2023, the number of domestic cats was the largest ever, and the experience of end-of-life care for cats is expected to increase in the future. Existing research on human and animal end-of-life care emphasises the role of professionals who support the end-of-life parties, and also focuses on reality disjuncture in the experience of pet loss and the process
of recovery from pet loss. In response to this, this study, which is part of cat sociology, interviewed 48 survey participants with an interest in cats from July to October 2021 about their end-of-life experiences in order to gain a structured picture of the overall experience of end-of-life care for cats. The interview data was analysed using the qualitative synthesis method（ KJ method）, and the experiences of end-of-life care for cats were categorised into seven symbol marks: [Hesitation to keep], [Impulse keeping], [Familialisation of cats], [Grief of becoming non-living objects], [Death returning to nature], [Grief that will not disappear] and [End-of-life care and acceptance of death without regret]. Of these, we consider that [Hesitation to keep] and [Familialisation of cats] are elements common to end-of-life care for humans and other pets, while [Death returning to nature] is an experience unique to end-of-life care for cats, and [Grief of becoming nonliving objects] is an experience unique to end-of-life care of pets, including cats. When considering the conditions under which [Grief that does not disappear] can be transformed into [End-of-life care and acceptance of death without regret], the principle of 'respecting the individuality of another newly welcomed' in 'veterinary grief care' was considered to be important.
