My cat had to be put to sleep last night.
Last edited Sun Feb 5, 2012, 11:09 PM - Edit history (1)
He was about a month shy of his 11th birthday.
He'd been off his dry food and was drooly, I thought he had a bad tooth, and was waiting for my income tax refund to take him to get his teeth sorted. I was feeding him wet food instead until it came in. Last night I went downstairs for a glass of juice - I've had a nasty stomach flu - and he was sitting in front of his untouched food like he wanted to eat but couldn't get the energy to do it. So I took him to the emergency vet.
It wasn't a bad tooth, or even a recurrence of calcivirus (he'd been exposed when he was a kitten and he's had a few mouth ulcers from it over the years).
He had a tumor in his mouth that the vet said started on one side and, since he'd only been showing symptoms for a little while, she believed it was cancerous. It had already spread into his jaw and under his tongue to the other side. Treatment would have required a specialist, radiation or chemotherapy if it was cancer, and regardless of if it was cancer or not, he would have had to have an artificial jaw placed, which most cats don't tolerate well and would have been difficult to fit to his smushed-up Himalayan face anyway.
He went to sleep purring.
I'm gonna miss my Ninja kitty more than I can say.
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As one with a aging cancer-stricken "pup"-- knowing I am facing that sometime soon, I can only say that I understand the pain.
May your kitty's lifetime of happy memories stay with you and ease your pain.
I've been there, and yes it is tough...
But you know they rely on us to take care of them. He would have died anyway, but in terrible pain. And what a beautiful boy he was...
He knew you loved him...
He felt safe; that's why he went purring.
Your Ninja kitty is in a happy place now, across the Rainbow Bridge, I promise.
It's hard enough when you know it's coming, but it's even worse when it's out of the blue like this. Hugs.
Grieve not,
nor speak of me with tears,
but laugh and talk of me
as if I were beside you.....
I loved you so --
'twas Heaven here with you.
--by Ilsa Paschal Richardson
We also put a loved one down last week. I'm so sorry. It is unbelievably hard to say good-bye to our dear companions.
They have our heart and we never forget them.
Tikki
saying goodbye to a furry friend for the last time.
Peace to both of you.
He had you to take care of him his whole life, and love him, and then help with a very peaceful end.
It's sad right now, but his life was great because of you!
What a beautiful kitty.
I had a very similar incident with one of my girls a few years ago.
From the time I noticed the lump on her face until the time she was gone was about 10 days. It was so fast. She was only 3 years old.
You did the right thing for your sweet kitty!
He is a beautiful kitty and I know you will miss him terribly.
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She was almost 18, but the Shelter told me she was 4 years younger, so I wasn't as vigilant in looking for cancer as I might have been. She had a tumor in her colon, but like your baby she never suffered. She died at home, but we would have put her to sleep if it had been necessary.
It's so hard. They're your babies, your family members and we will miss them. But here's hoping for paths lined with catnip, trees to climb and feathers to pounce on. Happy trails, Kitties!
