I've had Zellie for 16-17 years.

She's taken a turn for the worse this last couple of weeks.
Doesn't eat or drink...Just stays on the end of the bed taking short breaths.

I held her in my arms and was pretty sure she was going to die tonight.
Looks like tomorrow morning we get to take her to the vet for the last time.

I hate this.


KT

bummer trek. a good pet for a long time. scratch under her chin and keep her warm.

k

I'm sorry. 3 years and I still havent gotten over having to take our old cat in. I am not sure if I can get another. You have my sympathy.

Sorry to hear that Trek. We just put our oldest current cat down ~a week ago. It is tough...

Our favorite kitty went thru this after 19.5 years with us....that was tough and then 2 months later we lost our Lab.

The cat we just lost was only with us about 10.5 years, but suffered from a thyroid disorder for the last year. She fought it till the end...

condonlences to you and your wife.

I'm so sorry! I understand. It's so hard to lose a beloved pet.

I hope the end is painless for your good friend.
Stacie

I appreciate the comments.

It's hard for me, as this cat has been a good companion for a long time.

She used to be a hefty 18 pounder. Now I'm guessing 8?

Here's a picture from about five years ago:

Have the vet make a house-call

That's what my family has always done. Much easier, less stressfull for both the owners and the pet! In Oregon you have the option to keep the pet or let the vet take them away. In the last instance, we had to put down Lucky, our furry bladder (cocker spanial) at home. The vet then took him for cremation ($75) and we later picked up his ashes. It's hard, BTDT many times, but doing it at home is far better for all than in the cold, unfamiliar vet office. Sorry man

Im sorry to hear about your cat, be sure to remember the good times, it sounds like you've been a good companion for her.

there's something about a black cat. we called him *coal*.

k

It's hard to loose a friend, especially a little furry one. Condolences.

Aw, Trek, I'm so sorry to hear about Zellie... Hold her tight and let her know she's loved.

http://petloss.com/poems/maingrp/rainbowb.htm

Jen

Dublin (blonde) and Senna (black) agree that cats are not their favorites, but they told me to tell you to always remember that your creatures love you.

Here's my favorite. In the Rio Grande:

She's beautiful...looks just like my Cooper. He's been gone four years and i still wake up sometimes wondering where he is. It's amazing the impact they have. Hang in there.

I know.......



Clayton

She's so safe.... and you made it so...

Lucky... them, and all of us.


M

Sorry to hear about your kitty.

I wish you all the best.

Black cats are the best! I had my Rascal over 20 years. We now have another black cat. I still call her Rascal by mistake sometimes. I guess that means I am getting old also. Sorry to hear about your friend.

I had a cat ever since I was five or so. My family got me the cat to help comfort me after the loss of my sister at that age. Anyway, I had that cat up until last year, he was 14 when we had to put him down. He had the hyperthyroid thing and it just tore him apart.

I still miss that cat, I think about him all the time.

"I grieve with thee..."

Yea, it's a geeky thing to say, but it fits. Betty had 2 cats when we started dating, and they adopted me when we got married. I cried like a baby when they died.


And they are never truly gone as long as someone remembers them and still loves them.

I am so sorry to here about your kitty. You did not say what the medical problem is with your cat other than not eating anymore. About a year ago one of my cats (I have 15 cats & 2 dogs) stopped eating, after a blood test my vet guessed he had FIP (fatal). I was not willing to give up on him until we were sure but I knew he would not make it if he was not eating no mater what he may have. As a last resort we tried force feeding him. I got Hills prescription diet a/d from my vet and the largest syringe they had. I mixed a little water with the food with a hand held blender, sucked it into the syringe and with my brother holding him on his back in his arms ( like you would a baby) I put the syringe in the corner of his mouth and slowly squeezed the syringe and he ate. It took a couple of days to get good at it and after 2 weeks of feeding him this way, twice a day he started eating on his own and has been fine ever since. I don't know if this is an option for you since I don't know the cats medical history but if you would like to try it and have any questions please email me at goodporsche@aol.com

Good luck

Sorry to hear about your friend Trekkor. I haven' lost a friend since I was a kid but I remember how hard it was...

That sucks Trek. We have two cats that I surprised my wife with right after we got married. Had 'em for ten years now. Its going to be a sad day when they are gone. Cats are cool.

Sorry to hear about your cat Trekkor. Losing a pet is a tough thing to go through. Take care

Thanks again for the comforting words and experiences.

This old cat has been getting smaller and weaker this past year.
Seems to be happiest sleeping on the end of the bed.

Our other two young cats always make the mad dash to the food bowls while Zellie would come at the seniors pace.

She slowly started skipping meals. We would carry her in and she would eat.

Sometimes bring in a bit of cantelope, one of her favorite snacks, to her.

Eventually, she just seemed to give up. Shes just old.
I'm looking over at her on a blanket, laboring to breath, but not in pain.
She doesn't cry. Only I do.
It's almost time to go...


KT

Trekkor, really really sorry ! I know too well what it's like (extended the life on mine with insulin shots for years). Anyway - it's both a blessing and a curse that we can love these furry little munchkins so much, yet they have such a limited time on earth. Love 'em while they're here, and miss them when they're gone, but know that while Zellie was with you, it was made to be the way it was, and that was done through love.

Man, this sounds exactly like my cat Bernie (Bernadette). Two years ago at age 15-16 she just slowed down and then stopped eating. Just wasn't interested in any kind of food - and I tried everything. She laid around (more than usual, if that's possible !) and wouldn't move unless I carried her. Massive weight loss, though she wasn't big to start with. One remarkable thing about animals : they seem much more able to accept pain and death than we humans. It was obvious that she was dying, but she would just lay there with dignity. (And this cat could definitely express her dissatisfaction !) Anyway, years before she had had a horrible experience going to the vet (my wife and I decided to have her declawed - I'll never do that again!) and from that day I couldn't get her into a pet carrier without her freaking out and peeing all over herself. So I decided to let her die at home, in her own time, unless it looked like she was starting to suffer. For the last day or two she stayed on my bed, and although she didn't like being petted, she seemed happy that I was there. In the middle of the night, she started "running" like in a dream, her eyes staring off into the distance. That sort of peaked and then she was gone. No words for how sad that day was. I wasn't sure I'd get another cat - how can you "replace" a friend ? - but a week or so after, I knew I had to have another cat. I got two, and haven't regretted it for a moment.

Hang in there, Trekkor. We're thinking of you.

Don't want this to turn into a hijack, but yeah I was totally shocked when I realized (aftewards) what a major surgery it was. Biggest problem is that after the surgery you can't explain to your cat "Don't jump or it's gonna hurt a lot and your feet will start bleeding again..." Cats don't think that way.

Several years ago, the house we were living in caught on fire. Called 911 to report it and they said "get out of the house now, don't take anything with you." So of course the first thing I did was track down Bernie and try to get her into the carrier. She was terrified - thought I was taking her back to the vet....

Sorry to hear about your cat, Trek.

I'm sorry Trek.

It's done...

Vet said she prolly had cancer. We made the right decision.


KT

print that pretty picture of her and frame it. save her collar if she had one.

k

I know it was the right decision, it doesn't make it a lot more easy...but it was the right thing. I had my Siamese kitty for 17 years, together we went through the birth of 3 kids, a new home, a divorce... I was very glad to have her sitting in my lap purring every night.....especially after the divorce. Like a best friend. Well.... I have another now, can't ever replace her, they are very different....but, he is a cool kat and I am glad he is there. So... after a while, think about getting another one. Actually, around here, they just seem to show up.

I'm sorry Trek.


Get drunk, it helps.

Sorry to hear the news. It's always tough losing a part of your family - especially a pet that relies so much on you and always has unconditional love. Sometimethe right choice is the hardest one to make.

Sorry Trek....
BTDT with dogs and cats..... Had to put down my pal Simon a few years ago, coolest dog ever... Similar issue with a tumor....

Sorry to hear about this Trek. Its always tough. Sheilah and I have always had a lot of cats and now dog. They are great little companions.

I had a kitten once. It was a Siamese. When I was 5, my dad was working in the Yard, and accidently stepped on it. I learned this 20 years later. He always told me Coyotes got it.

That's my only experience with ever owning a cat, but I know what it's like to lose a long time friend. I put down my 14 year old Springer and Best companion "Echo" a couple of years ago. I got her in high school, and always joked about how she outlasted all of my other women.
She was hit by two cars, Had Tumors removed 3 times over 5 years, Suffered from Bloat twice , had her stomach stapled the second time..........etc. and it still brings a tear to my eye to think about her.

But now we have "Buddy" and he's GREAT!

He doesn't replace Echo, but he's good to have around.

Hang in there

Sorry to hear it.
Cancer is rough on anything that is alive.
I lost one cat a few years back to fairly aggressive cancer that was on her nose.
She was around 20-21 when she died.
I lost another cat just a few months ago.
We don't really know what was wrong with her, but it was terrible to see her in the end. She had gone mostly blind (blew her corneas due to high blood pressure) and wasn't eating anymore. She was 19 and I knew her all of my life.
We feel for you.


Charles

Trekkor,
Sorry to hear this. We have three cats and two dogs and they are our kids. Always hurts to take one to the vet for the last time. Had to do it several times and it never gets any easier.
Tom

Trekkor,

Sorry to hear about your cat. It is never easy to help one leave, especialy after all those years. I have never met more dignity, kindness, caring, devotion, honor, honesty, and a playful sense of humor than from my cats.

Think of the things your cat taught you. My cat taught me a lot. He spent hours trying to get me to speak "cat" and always seemed to appreciate it- no matter how bad I did. He was a 914 parts and tool finder extrordinary. I always would drop and lose small stuff and after moving everything around and cussing, he would come over, butt me with his head and insist I pet him- greasy hands and all. He persisted until I would pet him which would calm me down. When he moved away, I always found the part immediately. He just licked the grease off his fur and purred.

One other thing he taught me was "time spent petting your cat is not wasted, it is free time added to your life". I hope you and your cat had lots of free time added to your lives.

Morn for your faithful friend. Someday, when it is time, you will find another. In my case, a mom cat got killed and I ended up with 2 kittens desperately in need of a parent.

Take care, you will see her again.

Ken

It really means a lot to me seeing these nice comments.

I came home and it hit me again when Zellie wasn't on the end of the bed.
I miss her.


KT

Zellie was leash trained. Her harness had a little bell on it and when I would get it out she would hear the bell and come running for a little trip out of doors.

A couple of days ago I took her outside and let her wander around without the leash. She was pretty slow, like a sloth.
She still enjoyed being outside, because she always complained when it was time to go back in the house.

Last night she was too weak to stand on her own...

good-bye old cat...


KT

Sorry to hear it Trekkor. Losing pets is always rough.

---
Don't be like me. I didn't get another dog for 8 yrs because I knew there
would never be another dog like our Poco.
Then one day i was talking about how great a dog Poco was with a friend
who had just brought home a puppy. He asked why i didn't have a dog.
I said that there would never be another dog like Poco.
He said that it would honor Poco if i were to have another dog.
I had never thought about it like that before...
Meet Bingo & the g/kidz.

Of course there would never be! Never think that getting another family member as a 'replacement'! Completely wrong attitude.

Hey Trek,
So sorry about the loss of your family member. We have lost 2 of our 4 cats over the last 2 years. Each of our 3 sons had one and one little yellow manx "stumpy"...see below. WE all cried each time one passed on...to a better place. In the end it is so tuff to see them listless, very sad. I remember Angel only would drink milk at the end of her days. Best wishes my friend.
Greg

Click to view attachment

Hey trekkor,

Again, I'm so sorry to hear about Zellie. It's hard to see them go, and afterwards its hard when they're not there. I think we each have to find our own way to deal with it, but one thing you might think about is animal recue groups - they always need volunteers, and you can either spend a Saturday hangin' out with kittens/cats at an adoption fair, or even more helpful, you can be a foster partent : keep a cat/cats at your house until they get adopted. It all depends on how you feel, but if you want to spend time with cats and aren't sure about getting another right away, it could be a good option.

Good wishes...