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Got back from the vet a couple of hours ago, had to put my oldest cat down, Gidget (I didn’t name her). She was 16 years old and got very sick about a month ago, she just started throwing up all over the place, so much so I had to buy one of those Spot Bot’s to clean the carpet. She was a barfer all her life, she was feral and would hide and when no one was around she would run to her food, gorge herself and sometimes throw up afterwards. She was always pretty fat but she lost weight which I thought was good but then got skinny and couldn’t keep any food down so I took her to the vet two weeks ago. So here is where I feel guilty..... The vet really pressured me to put her down. He kept saying he couldn’t make the decision for me but really pushed/hinted for me to put her down and that if I wanted to treat her I would have to “go hard” with the treatment and diagnostics that would cost thousands of dollars and most likely would have the same end. I went through this with her brother 4 years ago, he just swelled up like a balloon and then would leak water like a bucket spilled, my local vet and the other expensive pet hospital in Reno did all kinds of tests and couldn’t tell me what he had. He then stopped eating and I force fed him for a few days which people said I was wrong for doing and then had him put down. He just refused to eat a single bite and no one could tell me what was wrong with him. With Gidget I had them hydrate her, give her some kind of vitamins and anti-vomiting drug then do some tests which again revealed nothing and I took her home, that cost me $400, money I really couldn’t spend right now but did anyways. She got worse, fur and bones, she barely ate so I had her put down today. That was another $200 because I paid an extra $100 and had her cremated, like her brother. I’ll get the ashes in a few days. Am I bad for just wanting to try SOMETHING and going against the vets recommendation before putting my pets down? Am I needlessly putting them through unnecessary pain and suffering because I want to just give them some sort of shot at surviving in hopes they will “bounce back”? If the vet said 100% they knew what was wrong I would have NOT hesitated in putting them down. I just wanted to give them some sort of shot after a diagnosis of “No idea, maybe Cancer, lets put her down.”...
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Jul 24, 2018 04:03
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| # ? Apr 27, 2024 00:29 |
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Outside of a few fringe cases, people who care about their pets generally put their animals down when it's appropriate to do so. It's just one of those things that usually works itself out automatically - Your desire to keep them in your life keeps you from doing it too soon, and your desire to keep them from suffering prevents you from doing it too late. Everyone always doubts themselves, but from an outside view, people usually seem to get it right. I'm sure you're no different. Nobody here knows exactly what your cat's quality of life at the end was, and neither honestly does your vet - Only you do. If you can honestly say there were more good days than bad, then you did the right thing.
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Jul 24, 2018 04:44
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Thank you Slugworth very much. I just feel like poo poo, she looked so bad when I took her in today and I just keep asking myself if I waited to long to put her down. Thanks again for your kind words, they mean a lot. I’m just kinda a wreck right now, this is always the worst part of being a pet owner.
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Jul 24, 2018 08:49
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I'm so, so sorry for your loss, Frank -- and for what it may be worth, I agree with Slugworth. It's natural to want to have the chance to save somebody that you love, and it sounds as though you loved Gidget very much. It's never easy parting with a pet, and while you're currently second-guessing yourself over trying to give her a little more time, I suspect that if you had followed the vet's advice to put her to sleep on that first day you visited, you'd be forever wondering what if? over that, as well. Wanting to try to save her doesn't make you a horrible pet owner. In fact, that you did all you could for her, and then were strong enough to let her go, may well make you a great one. I'm so sorry again. 
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Jul 24, 2018 19:44
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No you are not a horrible pet owner. You'd be surprised how many people don't even bother with vets.
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Jul 24, 2018 20:12
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My vet said something that gave me a lot of comfort when my cat Connie was dying of cancer- "better a week too early than a day too late." You did good.
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Jul 25, 2018 16:02
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Bummer about your pet I also have a barfy cat that is really skittish and eats too much then barfs it up, does the spot bot work?
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Jul 27, 2018 00:36
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Doorknob Slobber posted:Bummer about your pet It works amazing! Even on old stains it works great on. One of the best investments I've made. If you can find one on sale get it. It took out every stain I could throw at it. Thank you everyone for your kind words. Gidget was a feral cat and kept to herself but 16 years you kinda get used to them being around. Her brother was more outgoing. My Mom actually got the whole litter, their Mom hid them inside of a hollowed out cactus tree. My Mom and her friend caught the whole litter plus their Mom and grandpa, my Moms friend took them all to her farm and adopted them out and the ones that didn't get adopted lived their lives out on the farm. Sadly Gidget was the last of her line. I got her ashes today, here she is next to her brother:  It's a $100 but I just couldn't have them throw them away in the garbage. Cremating them was a reasonable price, they do it in Reno at a place that specializes in cremating pets. I know, it's just a shell of what they were but it just feels better that their remains aren't thrown away to me.
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Jul 28, 2018 06:41
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You are not a horrible pet owner. I remember when I was a kid, I was devastated when my cat got cancer and had to be put down. This was decades ago but I still remember it: a family friend knew how upset I was, and told me the white lie that all bodies can and do break down, but the spirit is eternal, so there's a good chance one day a cat, or dog, or bird, some animal will cross my path and it's really my cat, but in a new body. I guess he didn't quite want to use the word reincarnation but it helped. You are not a horrible pet owner for making the call that had to be made. Out of the dozens of pets in my life, only one of them has ever died peacefully in her sleep (Dixie, an ancient ex-coon hunting dog, who was beaten by her past two or three owners.), and for all the others, I've had to make the call. It's quality of life that is the issue.
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Aug 12, 2018 23:21
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This thread is exactly what I needed to read right now-- we had to put my cat Stanley to sleep yesterday, and I'm just so sad about it. They don't know for sure what was wrong with him-- he definitely had kidney and thyroid problems, but over the last day or two he got really withdrawn and yesterday he could barely walk. His red blood cell count had dropped down into the single digits and he stopped eating. I had had him for fifteen years, and he got me through some rough times, and this has been loving heartbreaking. The advice about it better to be a week too early than a few days too late is as reassuring as anything in this situation can be, so thanks for that.
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Oct 14, 2018 15:04
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| # ? Apr 27, 2024 00:29 |
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I'm so sorry for your loss, too, Owls.
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Oct 14, 2018 17:55
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