Kokopup I think the term Canine was used by the author to reference the canine tooth, which a lot of animals have (anyone know why that particular set of teeth is refered to as the canines as opposed to anything else? Im curious now...)

Personally, I think the author is rather jaded if he thinks all vets are this way. I also get the feeling that he makes a blanket statement about not wanting to ever prolong an animals life. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't but the judgement call is ultimately up to the owner of the animal whom I would hope has the best interests of the animal in mind (although sadly quite a few don't)

For my animals I would do anything to make sure they don't suffer. Quality of life is better than quantity and I would hope someone would keep that in mind when dealing with ME in my final hours lol. Sadly animals can't communicate what they want just by simply filing a form with the vet and the can't sign (or not sign) consent forms for surgery, so it is left up to us to guess. Thats why second (and third and sometimes fourth) opinions are vital to making a decsion. I would hope a vet would be professional enough to understand that.