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Short update: Gambo is still with us. It has been 2 months since his lymphoma diagnosis. He gets his prefnprednisolone cream every second day in his ear. Since a few days ago, he started hissing at us when we apply it. He has never hissed in his entire life!! Not sure why but he starts to hate it. The liquid is not an option so we work through it. He ist still eating baby food and A/D with lots of water as well as his temptation treat and kibble. He still follows us around, very slow, but he normally shows up when we shower, watch TV, cook etc. His eyes are a little dialated (one bigger than the other sometimes), and sometimes he looks at us like he doesn’t know who he is, but I guess it’s part of the process. We enjoy every day with this little stinker, and continue to keep a very close on his physics and behaviour.
Last edited by Jackiemohro; 01-29-2019 at 07:50 PM..
What a sweet looking kitty Gambo is. Very sorry to hear he is not well.
A few thoughts. About his not looking up...when a cat gets older and ill he can often have a problem with neck muscles and can look down and out and side to side pretty okay but not up.
I find it upsets the cats when we are upset about them. I find it best to keep a calmness going and doing a lot of the things we always do but at a lower and slower pace. They don't really need us to be upset at that time.
They do feel safer hiding when they are ill. One of ours with CRF and Hyper T waited in a certain spot in the living room for the sun to shine in and then laid in the middle of that spot. Others did not want heat but sought out the a/c registers toward the end. They needed the cool.
They all wanted relative peace and quiet. One came to me one day and looked like she wanted to lead me somewhere like it was something that just came up, a sudden need. (She had been slowing down and having some issues.) So I followed her as she walked and looked behind to be sure I was following her. Down the hall to the bedroom. She looked at me, looked under the bed, looked at me, and went under the bed. As if she was saying this is where you'll find me now. I think she wanted me to get under there with her but I didn't fit or I would have. I got a pillow and laid on the floor beside the bed a lot. That little cat like the others knew when things were progressing, when it was time and what she needed and wanted from us.
You have to keep your eye on ill cats' locations. They can decide to move and hide too well and you want to be able to help them if need be
The one with the neck issue had spent a lot of time with me on the sofa as that is where I did a lot of work on the laptop in front of the fire or by the windows. That was like a safe room...just the sofa...for her and me. When she moved to get down, she'd look at me out of the corner of her eye and I'd lift her gently down so she didn't have to tax her system with a hard landing. I wound up feeding her there on the sofa. Then I wound up using cheaper more flexible small paper plates for her food because the plate needed to move, not her, as she ate. I held it gently at different angles and then slowly rotated so the food would come to her, in a sense, instead of her moving toward the food. She could still go to the litter box fine. Loved that sofa. She had a couple of seizures and trusted me greatly then. And it was time for her to pass on then.
Another slowed down and I found him one day in a closet with an open door. He could look into our home office but stayed in the closet. He just decided it was time to hide a bit because he wan't up to par. So I folded up a soft towel for him. I put down a pillow for me and we laid head to head quite a bit. He liked to lay in the short-sided litter box on the litter. A first for me. I thought he felt it comfortably molding to his body like a bean bag chair for humans. But I also realized he was seeking the coolness of the litter. Something they like at the end.
Let me toss in that for short legged cats and for ill cats I used bankers box box tops with a dark plastic bag covering for a litter box. There are actually more short sided litter boxes now as well. Easier for the cat who really wants to do the right thing till the end when he can.
Another thing about the ill/elderly cat neck issue. With ours it was not bad socially vis a vis the other cats that she knew in our house. (Can't speak for new ones coming in.) Our alpha would check out the animal parade, cats and dogs, as they peacefully formed a line and entered the kitchen. Every morning he'd do a double check on the one with the head down. He'd bend to sniff her and she would extend her leg forward, let her claws out to indicate she was good, alpha would know ok all good with this one, and the line would move on.
With all of them, I could take them out to the screened porch, which they loved. Thank goodness, since they were passing, at least it was always nice weather. They loved to relax in the warmth and smells of nature, daytime and evening.
The one in the closet...he especially loved the outdoors. I thought we'd bring him to the vet next morning for help passing on. Even ill, he was excited to go out that evening. It was a cool night. He loved being on the floor and moved around a little. (You have to keep your eye on them. Another one a different time wanted to get out the screened door to the yard in the evening and I did not want her to pass away alone and not found.) I stayed with him a good part of the night. Sure, I timed his breathing just to see how he was doing, and texted with a good cat lover friend on his condition. He fell happily asleep about 2 a.m. I brought him inside. He looked at me blissfully like he was saying thank you for the great evening. Then he passed on in my arms at that moment.
It's a sad thing, sure. But it's also a beautiful thing to give our pets (and humans, but we're on pets here) the best passing/homegoing/going away/see ya later/however one says it...the best possible.
My advice is too soon is better than too late. The suffering can come on very quickly, and then it is almost too late.
I lost a cat to colon cancer three days ago. She started to go downhill Sunday night, she was on 3 pain meds, but even the bupe wasn't helping her as much. I was at the vet first thing Monday morning to let her go. There is great peace in knowing I did not make her suffer. It's about what's best for them, not us.
If Gambo is fighting the meds, he may be trying to tell you he's had enough. Please, pay attention to what he is telling you.
Remember cats hide pain until they are in absolute agony. It's little signs like hissing when you give him his meds that you have to look for.
Dear Catsmom, I am so sorry to hear about your loss. I can’t even imagine how you feel right now but I am happy to hear that your little girl is now happy and without pain.
Yes, I agree with your statement to rather have them go too early to avoid pain. My petsitter told me the same , it might be pain and he is getting short tempered. I was actually out of own town this weekend and my husband took care of Gambo. He loves loves loves him but he is just not as sensitive with him. I will see tonight how he is handling his medicine. Yesterday (his medicine free day) was very good. Gambo ate, came to my bed in the morning (he hasn’t done that in months), watched TV with us, no hissing, no confused starring.
My husband is leaving this coming weekend (we cancelled our Christmas family trip and split it up now, so one of us is always home). We done some serious thinking to do ....but I feel we are getting closer :-(
My advice is too soon is better than too late. The suffering can come on very quickly, and then it is almost too late.
I lost a cat to colon cancer three days ago. She started to go downhill Sunday night, she was on 3 pain meds, but even the bupe wasn't helping her as much. I was at the vet first thing Monday morning to let her go. There is great peace in knowing I did not make her suffer. It's about what's best for them, not us.
If Gambo is fighting the meds, he may be trying to tell you he's had enough. Please, pay attention to what he is telling you.
Remember cats hide pain until they are in absolute agony. It's little signs like hissing when you give him his meds that you have to look for.
Cats hide their pain really well. I agree with catsmom21 as hard as it is on you better too soon than too late in situations like this one. No point in letting the cat suffer.
Sorry about your Kitty. Those little furballs get under our skin and into our hearts all at the same time.
I agree with the previous poster about not being upset all the time in front of your cat. They can sense our distress and that in turn stresses them.
I had to help two old kitties last year get over the rainbow bridge. Both had kidney failure. The first one was really old, almost 21. He hung on for a week, getting weaker, not eating but still wanting to be around us. After a week of saying goodbye, we took him to the vet It was the only humane thing to do. Once the vet says Kidney failure, its game over.
The second one also came down with kidney failure 7 months later. We took one day to say goodbye before she went to the vet as well. I miss them both.
Thanks to all of you for sharing your experience and feelings!!! It’s a tough touch time. I learnt not to put eye cream on in the morning as it burns when I cry :-(.
Well, Gambo took his medicine like a champ yesterday but he hardly ate this morning. We will see tonight if he eats during the day but he didn’t look too happy this morning. We will see and maybe have to go the last way this weekend (unless he rebounces and is happily standing in front of us later today). My husband is gone all next week so it’s not the best timing. Will talk his vet later today to discuss as well. :-(
When the medicine works, and the orednisolone worled very well for him over the last 2 months, you forget that their time is limited.
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