Table 2.
Median (IQR) differences in euthanasia-related statements among persons with different educational backgrounds treating injured wildlife (n = 78, Likert-scale on which 1 represents complete disagreement and 7 complete agreement); IQR: interquartile range; the numbers within a row lacking a common letter differ statistically significantly.
| Statements | Median (IQR) | p | H (df = 2, n = 78) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Veterinarian | Other animal-related education | No animal-related education | |||
| I do not as easily euthanize endangered species, but I try to treat them for longer than less endangered species. | 5.50(1.50) a | 3.50(4.75) ab | 3.00(4.00) b | 0.019 | 7.88 |
| If the costs of the treatment are starting to become high, I end up euthanizing the animal. | 4.00(3.00) a | 1.00(2.00) b | 1.00(2.00) b | <0.001 | 20.23 |
| I end up with euthanasia if I believe that the treatment will cause the animal a lot of stress. | 5.00(2.00) a | 5.00(2.00) a | 3.00(3.00) b | <0.001 | 19.15 |
| Whether or not the animal will survive in the wild after treatment does not have any impact on my decision to euthanize. | 2.00(1.00) | 2.00(5.00) | 2.00(3.00) | ns | 1.26 |
| I end up with euthanasia if I believe that the treatment will cause the animal a lot of pain. | 6.50(1.00) | 6.00(2.00) | 6.00(3.00) | ns | 3.34 |
| It is unlikely that I will euthanize the animal if it can easily be returned to live in the wild. | 7.00(1.00) | 7.00(0.00) | 7.00(0.00) | ns | 0.23 |
| I end up with euthanasia if the animal’s ailment requires more than half a year of treatment, and if it is not of a species that hibernates. | 6.50(2.00) a | 2.00(3.00) b | 1.00(2.00) b | <0.001 | 23.72 |
| I end up with euthanasia if the animal’s ailment requires more than half a year of treatment during which it would hibernate for part of the time. | 4.00(3.00) a | 1.00(2.00) b | 1.00(1.00) b | <0.001 | 20.84 |
| If there is no known end-of-life solution for the animal when it is brought to me, it should be euthanized immediately whatever its species and condition. | 3.00(2.00) a | 1.00(2.00) ab | 1.00(0.00) b | 0.003 | 11.9 |
| If there is no known end-of-life solution (setting it free in the wild, a place in an enclosure for wild animals) for the animal when it is brought to me, I will start treatment regardless of its species and condition, but any end-of-life solution should be known within 2 days at the most. | 5.00(3.00) a | 2.00(3.00) ab | 2.00(4.00) b | 0.021 | 7.68 |
| If there is no known end-of-life solution (setting it free in the wild, a place in an enclosure for wild animals) for the animal when it is brought to me, regardless of the species and whether it is endangered or not, treatment can begin until an end-of-life solution is found. | 3.5(4) a | 7.00(1.00) b | 7.00(1.00) b | <0.001 | 16.57 |
| If there is no known end-of-life solution (setting it free in the wild, a place in an enclosure for wild animals) for the animal when it is brought to me, if it is of an endangered species, it could be treated indefinitely until an end-of-life solution is found. | 4.00(3.00) a | 5.00(4.00) ab | 7.00(2.00) b | 0.005 | 10.67 |
| If there is no known end-of-life solution (setting it free in the wild, a place in an enclosure for wild animals) for the animal when it is brought to me, it should be euthanized immediately if it is of a common species. | 3.00(4.25) a | 1.00(1.00) b | 1.00(0.00) b | <0.001 | 15.52 |
| If there is no known end-of-life solution (setting it free in the wild, a place in an enclosure for wild animals) for the animal when it is brought to me, treatment can begin only if it is unlikely to cause the animal a lot of stress. | 5.00(1.00) | 3.00(3.00) | 4.00(4.00) | ns | 3.68 |
| If there is no known end-of-life solution (setting it free in the wild, a place in an enclosure for wild animals) for the animal when it is brought to me, treatment can begin only if it is unlikely to cause it a lot of pain and suffering. | 5.50(2.00) | 5.00(3.00) | 5.50(3.00) | ns | 0.64 |
Bolded rows indicate comparisons where overall p < 0.05, ns: p > 0.05.