In a world where human beings often struggle to get adequate or even life-saving healthcare, this can be shocking. But it's really a lot saner than you think.

 

People with pacemakers can donate them, upon their death, to a vet or institution for use in animals. The pacemakers are removed from the body, cleaned and resterilized, and then implanted in an animal.

 

Pacemakers must be removed prior to cremation; their removal prior to burial is optional.

 

Years ago, some countries accepted donations of  "used" pacemakers that had been extracted from a corpse but the U.S. no longer permits the export of such devices for reuse.  Today, there is virtually no way to re-cycle a pacemaker after its original owner passes away except to donate it for use in animals.

 

This "donation" is not as unusual as one might think. If a pacemaker owner wants to donate his or her pacemaker for subsequent use in a four-legged friend, these instructions should be written in the will and discussed with family members. Most funeral directors are familiar with this sort of thing and can make the necessary arrangements. The device can be donated to a vet hospital or clinic or a university veterinary medicine department.

 

Such donations are not the only way animals get pacemakers. Animals are sometimes recipients of pacemakers that, for a variety of reasons, manufacturers find themselves unable to sell. Sometimes the product is expired (that is, the battery is depleted to the point that the device cannot deliver the expected service life) but may be brand-new and in the box. Sometimes pacemakers "fall off the line" in manufacturing because of flaws that may make them unsuitable (and illegal) for use in humans but they function well enough for animals.