Farewell to my little girl (feline)

[gpoehlein]

Well, looks like I get to join the ranks of those TRFers who have had to have a longtime beloved pet put to sleep today.

My 16 year old shorthair female (Misha) started losing some serious weight about a month ago. I took her in to the vet and we discovered she had a mass in her abdomen. The Vet said it was either Lymphoma (bad - kills in about a month) or another kind of cancer that is even worse and faster. After thinking about it, I decided my best course of action was to simply make her life as comfortable and pleasant as possible (no chance of cure and she was so skinny at that point she probably would not survive surgury any way). So I started feeding her canned food (we have used dry food for about a decade - the good stuff from Purina) and she perked up a bit for a while. But I got home from our regional contest Sunday night and she was really wobbly on her feet and ate very little. I called Monday morning and scheduled with the vet for this (Tuesday) morning. That had to be the hardest phone call I've ever made.

When I got home from work Monday night, she was barely standing, could not even get up in my lap and just stood around and stared at her water dish. She was also making little noises like she was in pain (she hadn't been before) - this all convinced me I had made the right decision. Didn't make this morning any easier though.

So now it's just me and my big Siamese male (at least until the kitten a friend of mine has is old enough to leave her mother).

So farewell, Misha. 16 years is a long time to get (and stay) attached to a pet, and in the grand scheme of things, all the good definitely outweighed this bad at the end.

 

[skycopp]

Condolences for your loss. Pets are one of the most wonderful gifts and companions that God could ever grace us with.

 

[hounddawgracing]

That stinks....cats can be so touchy sometimes. I had to put down my big paint mare (Sugar) on Thursday. I learned to team rope on her as a kid. She was 34yro bless her heart. She was funny, hated women. Throughout her life there was not one woman who rode her that didn't get bucked off...lol She was good at givin' big sloppy kisses

On the brighter side, my girlfriend is fostering a litter of kitties. I think I'm going to take a grey tabby with a white tipped tail I've been calling Spike. They're almost 4wks old now. I can ship you one

 

[Green Arrow]

My prayers are with you at this time of loss.

 

[Peartree]

My condolences. Putting our dog down several years ago was one of the hardest things I have ever done. I hope your new friend helps the healing but for now just hang out with the friend you have left and comfort each other.

 

[sylvie369]

My sincere condolences. I'm sorry to hear this.

 

[Starcommander]

Wow, so sad. I feel your loss and pain. My sincere condolences.

I just caught and have befriended a three legged cat. It is missing it's right hind leg from the joint down. Had him fixed and checked out. Very sweet and cuddly cat. I'm hoping my older two will accept this little guy. He's still shy of sudden movement and loud noises.

 

[DaveCombs]

Heartfelt condolences, Greg. You did right by your friend.

 

[shockwaveriderz]

Greg:

I feel your pain. I lost the love of my life "meow meow" in mid February. I guess I was selfish in that I didn't have him "put down" and he took his last breath while in my arms. I just hope and pray that he didn't suffer too much in his last day.

It literally broke my heart. I still think about him and miss him dearly as he was the little boy I never had.

terry dean
nar 16158

 

[gpoehlein]

Thanks for the condolences, gang - it really means a lot to me - I tend to think of this group as friends, even if I haven't actually met all of you in person yet (Slowly working my way through the people here - just met Chan Stevens this weekend! )

To Starcommander:

My remaining cat is a big siamese male with only three feet. (The umbilical was wrapped around his foot in the womb and had to be amputated when he was a kitten. Remember that that last joint that goes forward is actually the ankle/heel and that cats walk on the balls of their feet.) Because of all the attention when he was a very young kitten (vet and everyone else babying him because of his foot), he turned out to be the sweetest, most loveable creature around. He gets around pretty good limping on his three remaining feet and he is positively huge - I call him the Sumo Cat (his real name is Silver, as in Long John). So give your new kitten lots of love and attention, and introduce it to the others slowly (I usually keep my new additions in the bathroom and only let them out for supervised visits for the first week or two) and you will definitely be rewarded.

 

[NUBlackshirts]

Very sorry to hear that, Greg. We had to put our cat, Vinny, down a few years ago with the same problem your cat had. I felt miserable, but knew it was the right decision.

 

[AX'E]

My condolences on your loss Greg. They are furry family members. I've got one who is coming up on 17 years, he's still feisty, but his time getting short... I'm not looking forward to that.

AX'E

 

[AKPilot]

You know until I had pets, I never truly understood how attached you could become to one - until we had to put our dog down.

Unless you've been there's it's hard to explain or understand. My heart goes out to you and your family.

 

[quickburst]

Sad to hear of this. I have grown very attached to my little Corgy Dusti. I can only imagine the pain.

God bless.

 

[Donaldsrockets]

It's never easy to have to have the decision to put down an animal but rest assured, you made the right decision.

I've got two cats that are about 10 1/2 years old and are still just as active as they were as kittens.

Hang in there. It will be rough for awhile but there will be brighter days ahead.

 

[Race58]

Greg,, I am very sorry to hear of your loss. Like I have said in a previous thread, I know what you are going thru. I had to put my K9 partner asleep and it was the hardest thing I have ever had to do. I still think about that day and of him regularly and it has been almost 20 yrs now.
Ed

 

[SecretSquirrel]

We're very sorry to hear about this.

 

[judo]

Prayers and condolences. Sounds much like my Bob who I lost a few months ago. Now his brother George has gotten more social but more demanding of attention.

Ironically, I had an online class cancelled today because my instructor had to take her unresponsive, diabetic cat to the emergency room this morning.

Take all the time you need.

 

[hokkyokusei]

I'm very sorry to hear that.

 

[ounderfla69]

When I lived in NY we never had to put down a cat, the road outside did it all. We had to put down one of our cats she was 16. Last year we adopted a litttle American Bobtail Tabby mixed from a feral cat rescue. We thought she was having some problems going from mothersmilk to hard food. Turns out she had a stomach parsite and then she devolped an upper respitory infection. She almost didnt make it but with a little force feeding and 3 antibotics she made a full recovery. People said that we should have taken her back but I was in no way giving up on my cat I was attached to her the first time I held her. I am sorry for your loss of your cat and old friend.


Mark

 

[Delta-IV]

Sorry and sad to hear this.

Some many years ago my sister begged me to take a little furry critter in. I had just gotten out on my own and this little furry thing lived almost 20 years.

She was my girl for awhile (in her eyes), my girlfriends and future wife all got tail whipped when she got up on the top of the couch behind them. She was jealous. She sat upright on the chair at the kitchen table and insisted she was one of the family.

When her health failed, it was the toughest decision I had ever had to make, she didn't show pain, but I knew she was.

You did your pet right, remember all of the fond memories it will help.

 

[roadkill]

So sorry for your loss,
it is hard after all those marvelous years.

We lost both our old kittycats three years ago; Mama was 26 years
and Alex 19... After Mama left Alex just kept on looking for her around the house and yard and howled heartbroken... He followed her in three months for what I believe was not wanting to go on after losing his partner of so many years...

Wonderful memories remain forever...

 

[black_cat_13]

Really sorry for your loss.
We had to put our 14yr old Golden Retriever down 2 days after Christmas ( :cry: ) , so I know how you feel.

 

[Starcommander]

Thanks for the condolences, gang - it really means a lot to me - I tend to think of this group as friends, even if I haven't actually met all of you in person yet (Slowly working my way through the people here - just met Chan Stevens this weekend! )

To Starcommander:

My remaining cat is a big siamese male with only three feet. (The umbilical was wrapped around his foot in the womb and had to be amputated when he was a kitten. Remember that that last joint that goes forward is actually the ankle/heel and that cats walk on the balls of their feet.) Because of all the attention when he was a very young kitten (vet and everyone else babying him because of his foot), he turned out to be the sweetest, most loveable creature around. He gets around pretty good limping on his three remaining feet and he is positively huge - I call him the Sumo Cat (his real name is Silver, as in Long John). So give your new kitten lots of love and attention, and introduce it to the others slowly (I usually keep my new additions in the bathroom and only let them out for supervised visits for the first week or two) and you will definitely be rewarded.

Thanks Greg. It tooks months of him coming to me to be fed. I worried all winter about him. Could never figure out where he went. Got him in the garage, and the door into the hallway is open so Punkin and Bogart can see him, and he them. They can all walk through. Bogart is a big Maine Coon and not happy at all. Punkin is better, but wary. I think this guy was abused and abandoned. He is a little guy but has heart, and is not afraid of me now. He earned his name, Snuggles.

 

[gerbs4me]

Sorry to hear of your loss

My prayers are with you

 

[RoyGreen]

Well, looks like I get to join the ranks of those TRFers who have had to have a longtime beloved pet put to sleep today.

I'm so sorry.

My cat Pooter turned 16 a couple of months ago, and as someone else expressed it earlier, she's like the daughter I never had. I've had a couple of scares with her over the past four years (always hard to deal with since they can't tell you what's wrong or how they're really feeling), but now, knock on wood, she's doing great. I've had some friends have to put down their 18yo cats recently, and another had a 20yo cat killed by a neighbor's dog. That and a neighbor recently lost their sweet old black labrador. So it's been a tough quarter.

But on the other hand, they did get to a ripe old cat age, and there are currently a number of really old cats I know, ranging from 16-25. I've never known such a large group of old, reasonably healthy pets, so we all must be doing something right. To have them around for so long has really been a blessing.