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I've been reading this thread all afternoon and although it's reduced me to tears i feel it's helping me cope. My wee cat is called 'Storm' and he came into my backyard last autumn. A week ago he didn't come inside all night and i knew something was up. I took the next day off work and found him in the garden. He was wide eyed but his breathing was laboured. So i took him to the vets and they found he had fluid in his lungs. They drained the fluid and 3 days later I got the news that he had feline leukemia virus. This was why his lungs where filled with fluid. So I took him home yesterday. Since he's been home he's been hiding in dark places out of the way. I'm still glad i brought him home even though i'll probably get him put to sleep this weekend. He's eating and drinking very little and i don't want my little buddy to suffer. I'm actually very surprised that i'm so emotionally upset. 37 year old man crying about a cat. But he is a member of my family and maybe because he picked me to look after him makes him that little bit more special. He used to run all around the house making birdlike noises. Such a playful ,innocent and loving wee life. He used to love hugs and getting petted but now he just lays there. I think he wants to die. I've lost weight over the past week as i don't feel like eating. I hope I'll see him in the next life and he'll be back to his playful, loving self. Thanks for reading.
when my little guy Mako was diagnosed with FIP he went from an active, playful, super hungry little guy, to being lethargic and lonesome in just a few weeks. he would often go into the closet to be alone, which is something he never did. we always thought that he just didnt want us to see him that way. it was heartbreaking. the day he passed, i had left for work at 8 am and when i checked on him before leaving he stared up at me with his big eyes as if to say "good bye pop. love you". i cant even go any further. i miss that little dude.
and when my other cat broke his teeth running up the stairs he also hid under the bed until we got his root canals done. and gave him some pain meds. it seemed like he just wanted to be alone. or he was embarrassed.
Darryl - don't give up yet. Just because he had fluid on his lungs before, doesn't mean they will fill up quickly again. Focus on palliative care. If you can make hi feel better for the moment, for the here and now, continue to do so. We had a cat with lymphoma. So many people said to just let her go. We got an additional 13 months with her. When it was time, she let us know and we respected her wishes.
I think he showed up in your yard for a reason. Enjoy him and pamper him.
Here's an odd one: My parents had a feral tomcat who more or less just came around for meals. He was a full-grown cat when he showed up one day, he spend most of his time out in the fields and the woods, and he beat the odds by living at least 9 or 10 years that way. Until about this time last year, he never got within 20 feet of any people at that house. He'd sit out in the yard, watch the food get set out, and then he'd come in to eat after the people all went back into the house.
For reasons only he knows, about a year ago he suddenly decided to come closer when my parents fed him, and then eventually even came up onto the porch and enjoyed being patted and having his back scratched. But only if he was getting fed. It was a 180-degree turn from standoffish way he'd acted all those years.
He abruptly started into failing health, and you could see him slipping fast. He passed away about 2 weeks ago. Now, this was a cat who'd for years only showed up to eat, and then he went back to his woods and cornfields. But he came "home" to die. They found him peacefully curled up, under the steps to the porch where he'd eaten his meals. So, after all those years of being a loner, he came back to be near his people when he died. He's the tabby in this pic that as taken last September. Rest in peace, Thomas.
When my CRF Nic started to go downhill, he started hiding under the computer desk downstairs. It was absolutely heartbreaking...I knew we were approaching the end, and it was a very clear sign that he wasn't feeling well. I used to just sit near him and cry my heart out because I wanted so badly to be able to hold him and comfort him, but it wasn't what he wanted. Gah, I'm crying now just thinking about it.
JJ had his second eye removed at a major veterinary teaching hospital. He actually could see just a little from that eye- probably no more than light and shadow, but enough to see a laser light. Making the choice to remove the eye was very, very tough and I tore myself up over it. After the surgery, this active devil-may-care kitty sat in one spot for three weeks. He wouldn't play, didn't want to be touched- his whole personality changed. I thought he was depressed over losing the last of his sight- there didn't seem to any other explanation. We did blood work, multiple exams, etc., and his lab work was all normal. I felt like the worst person in the entire world- I broke my own cat. It got to the point where every time I looked at him sitting there all hunched up and sad I started to tear up.
3 weeks to the day after his surgery he was hiding under the bed (again, something he never did before). I pulled him out and it looked like someone shoved a tennis ball in his eye socket, the swelling was that bad. He was burning up with fever. We rushed him to the emergency room and they drained a huge abscess that had formed at the surgical site. Basically, the infection was encapsulated, which is why nothing showed on the blood work. In one day it finally ballooned to where it was visible and became systemic.
He was in hospital for two days. Day three he came home with a drain in his face and a giant cone on his head. He popped out of his carrier a new cat- the first thing he did was ambush his sister and bit her ears, and then it was off to play hockey with his balls in the kitchen. What I took for depression was just him feeling like absolute hell because of a hidden infection.
The moral of the story: If your cat suddenly has a personality change, get them to a vet!
Also, don't just assume 'it's their time' with older pets- even with a condition that is fatal, there are often things you can do to help ease the way.
I've been reading this thread all afternoon and although it's reduced me to tears i feel it's helping me cope. My wee cat is called 'Storm' and he came into my backyard last autumn. A week ago he didn't come inside all night and i knew something was up. I took the next day off work and found him in the garden. He was wide eyed but his breathing was laboured. So i took him to the vets and they found he had fluid in his lungs. They drained the fluid and 3 days later I got the news that he had feline leukemia virus. This was why his lungs where filled with fluid. So I took him home yesterday. Since he's been home he's been hiding in dark places out of the way. I'm still glad i brought him home even though i'll probably get him put to sleep this weekend. He's eating and drinking very little and i don't want my little buddy to suffer. I'm actually very surprised that i'm so emotionally upset. 37 year old man crying about a cat. But he is a member of my family and maybe because he picked me to look after him makes him that little bit more special. He used to run all around the house making birdlike noises. Such a playful ,innocent and loving wee life. He used to love hugs and getting petted but now he just lays there. I think he wants to die. I've lost weight over the past week as i don't feel like eating. I hope I'll see him in the next life and he'll be back to his playful, loving self. Thanks for reading.
Darryl
There is nothing wrong with men who cry in grief over the loss of a pet or human being. The toughest man I ever knew was a Don C, retired detective from the NYCPD. He cried for days when his elderly cat died. She was with his family at least 20 years ... moved to FL from Queens NY with them. She was there as his two sons grew up and left for college. No one thought any less of him because of his honest show of grief. Crying helps us deal with our grief and loss. I'm so sorry you'll be losing your cat. Please keep in mind there are many other cats in shelters who need homes and love.
From a cat........
When humans die, they make a will
To leave their homes, and all they
Have to those they love.
I too would make a will, if I could write.
To some poor, wistful, lonely stray
I'd leave my happy home,
My dish, my cozy bed, my cushioned chair, my toy,
The well-loved lap,
The gently stroking hand,
The loving voice,
The place I made in someone's heart,
The love, that at the last
Could help me to a peaceful, painless end
Held in loving arms.
If I should die,
Oh! Do not say:
"No more a pet I'll have
To grieve me by its loss."
Seek out some lonely, unloved cat
And give my place to him.
This is my legacy,
The love I leave behind,
'Tis all I have to give.
Will cats ever relocate to a secluded location away from their usual territory on their way to dying? Is this a common thing?
Yes!
When my 11 month old kitten was sick with FIP, I came home one day and could not find him. I looked in all the usual spots and began freaking out. I couldn't find him anywhere. Finally and after several minutes, I found him where he'd never been before; under the recliner, which was a tiny space.
A friend at the time told me cats will hide when they are feeling very vulnerable and weak. He died a few days later, poor baby.
When my 11 month old kitten was sick with FIP, I came home one day and could not find him. I looked in all the usual spots and began freaking out. I couldn't find him anywhere. Finally and after several minutes, I found him where he'd never been before; under the recliner, which was a tiny space.
A friend at the time told me cats will hide when they are feeling very vulnerable and weak. He died a few days later, poor baby.
i lost a baby to FIP as well. he was just over 1 yr. was the saddest thing to watch. the overall rapid degeneration of his body was really unexpected.
There is nothing wrong with men who cry in grief over the loss of a pet or human being. The toughest man I ever knew was a Don C, retired detective from the NYCPD. He cried for days when his elderly cat died. She was with his family at least 20 years ... moved to FL from Queens NY with them. She was there as his two sons grew up and left for college. No one thought any less of him because of his honest show of grief. Crying helps us deal with our grief and loss. I'm so sorry you'll be losing your cat. Please keep in mind there are many other cats in shelters who need homes and love.
From a cat........
When humans die, they make a will
To leave their homes, and all they
Have to those they love.
I too would make a will, if I could write.
To some poor, wistful, lonely stray
I'd leave my happy home,
My dish, my cozy bed, my cushioned chair, my toy,
The well-loved lap,
The gently stroking hand,
The loving voice,
The place I made in someone's heart,
The love, that at the last
Could help me to a peaceful, painless end
Held in loving arms.
If I should die,
Oh! Do not say:
"No more a pet I'll have
To grieve me by its loss."
Seek out some lonely, unloved cat
And give my place to him.
This is my legacy,
The love I leave behind,
'Tis all I have to give.
-- Margaret Trowton --
This makes me think so much of the last cat we lost, Mike. He was old and sick, cancer, we had him PTS. Exactly 3 days later Marshmallow entered our lives. I was helping my ds boy scout troop at the local animal shelter, and found Marshmallow, a beautiful, mostly white Maine Coon, sitting in the back, on "death row". Another day and he would have been gone. I can't believe its been two years now,!
When we brought Marshmallow home, we hadn't cleared out Mike's things, his bed, toys, etc---Marshmallow took them over. He had a chip, when we took him to the vet they found it, I called his former owner. An elderly lady who was in a nursing home---she cried when she found her "baby" found a home. I tried to call about a month later to give an update, found she had passed away.
Everything happens for a reason---Mike passed on so we had room for Marshmallow, who was saved from "Death Row" and his former owner was able to be at peace for her kitty.
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