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It's such a hard decision to make. I've only had 1 pet that died at home and his death was unexpected, he had cardiomyopathy. I think in yur heart you know he is ready, or you would not be posting the questions here. A good death is sometimes the last best thing we can do for our beloved pets, to slip into sleep, then go, rather than to struggle to breathe at home. So sorry....
My decision came quite late with our beloved Tortie. She was dying in her kitty bed, and I had said that I'd prefer she die naturally at home but when the time came I just couldn't stand to see her struggling to breathe. We rushed her in to be euthanized and I have never regretted that. She was helped along in a very serene way.
In the days (and even weeks) before her death she was showing signs of wanting to live, but more to the point, maintaining the instinct to live, as all creatures do, to their own capacity.
Her capacity had diminished drastically. She had no muscle tone in her legs. She was like a ragdoll. She was skin and bones. She suffered from intestinal lymphoma and that disease caused severe diarrhea. She could eat huge amounts of food but none of it "stuck." It ran right through her.
Anyone watching her daily life would say she was suffering the loss of a quality of life she once had.
Nevertheless her instincts were to keep putting one paw in front of another.
I've never had an animal display anything that looks like surrender, in a total sense. They all showed signs of wanting to go on, even the smallest of tasks, yet it seemed against all odds, and sad because I knew what they didn't about their prognosis.
So in a way, ignorance is bliss. They don't comprehend their condition and will keep on keeping on despite all frailties. After all, animals exist on instinct. They are hardwired this way at birth. I also believe that they have a definite sense of the end of life and accept it far better than human beings.
This choice of yours is one of the most unbearably difficult. Try if you can to consider Mike's situation without investing any of your own wishes for him. I feel that we all drag our feet mainly to avoid feeling the loss, rather than hoping our pets will recover. Intellectually we know better.
If you know he will never recover his health the choice is a little easier. In human terms, he is in hospice care now and the family is waiting to make their peace.
However you choose to go, I wish you that same peace.
I am so sorry you are having to go through this agony. I know how you feel having gone through this twice in the last 4 months. No one knows Mike better than you do and I believe you will know when it is time. As far as Christmas, I understand how you feel about that and I believe that our cats know it is a special time too. They pick up on the excitement in the house, all the pretty, shiny decorations and of course the tree! So I don't think you are being selfish. I would just take things one day at a time. And never give up on hope...with out it what do we have? My mom had a cat that the vet wanted to PTS...he said he might last a week. Duke lived for another 5 years...a good life too.
You will know what to do for Mike...he'll tell you. Believe in yourself...Mike already does. I will keep you both in my thoughts and prayers.
It all depends on Mike's quality of life. It's a hard decision to make, but I think you will know what to do. I've been through it several times, and it is very trying. But I can tell you don't want him to suffer. My thoughts go out to you and poor Mike.
Our cat, Mike, is dying. He's old, about 12-13, we're not sure, since we adopted him as an adult.
To make a long story short, he has a variety of problems, including hyperthyroid, arthritis, and cardiomyopathy. He's under a vets care, we've taken him to speciality clinics. I feel we're doing all we can for him.
He's lost a lot of weight and is basically skin and bones. Getting meds down him is harder and harder. He resists pilling, we use ear creams, I crush his pills up and mix with tuna water, anything to get meds in him.
He had difficulty breathing today, his breathing was rapid and shallow. We took him to the vet, they prescribed prednisone, which was difficult to get down him.
Its only a matter of time before he goes. I was hoping to keep him for one more Christmas, but now I'm wondering if I'm being selfish. He doesn't know and look forward to Christmas like people do. He just lives a cat's life. Are we just allowing him to suffer for our own "enjoyment" of having him for one last holiday?
He's in a "gray area" right now, he has good and bad days, its not a clear cut decision.I'm just tormented wondering if we should put an end to his suffering now or let him live out the rest of his time. Its a difficult decision, I wish I had some sort of answer!
God bless you in these sad times. You will see Mike again in Heaven, please let that console you somewhat in this time of sorrow.
You have got a rough road ahead of you. I understand all too well what you are going though. I had a Tortie cat with bone cancer that spread to her stomach, digestive system, back legs and Lord only knows where.
She only lived about six months after her we were told she had bone cancer.
So we took her home where she lived pretty normally for awhile.
But along came late summer and she started going downhill. She wouldn't eat and we had to remind her to eat. She wasn't cat boxing properly and thought the laundry was a good idea and anywhere else. She'd lost tons of weight and wouldn't come out of a bedroom she was in unless it was to get a drink or not use the cat box properly.
My mom would bring in food to hand feed her and sit there for up to an hour in her final days coaxing food down her. I was the only cleaning up all the cat messes.
It got so bad my mother and I were adjusting our lives around the cat so someone would be home. This lasted about a month before I said....hey this has gone too far. By now she really was skin and bones.
She's lost her dignity and quality of life. She wasn't enjoying life and when she was weighed she was like 4.5 pounds, wayyyyyyyyyyy down from her healthy fat 16 pounds!
I was literally throwing up sick when I made the call to the vet. I didn't want to have my buddy taken away from me. I travel a lot for my job and she was always there helping me pack and bargaining with me not to go. She's even get in my suit case as I was packing to try and keep me at home.
When I made the call to the vet I really felt like a heel and the worst scum of the earth. I’d been gone a week and came back home to find my buddy in sad shape. So I only had one more night to be with my buddy. We had to have her laid to rest.
You’ll always miss your friend. And yes, it’s selfish to want to have you pet with you. But is it really? No. Sometimes we love so much we get blinded by it. We enjoy the company our buddies bring for us. So why is it selfish to think that way? My buddy told me when it was time to go and it wasn’t something I was ready for. However, when it was her time to go she wasn’t the same buddy as I recalled her to be.
My advice to you is the cat will tell you when it’s ready to go if Mike already hasn’t. Look for Mike’s lost dignity and quality of life. And if you’re readjusting your life to fit around the cat’s life- maybe you need to stop and ask yourself….hey would I want to live this way?
You’ve given the cat a good life and I can see you really care about your buddy. Take solace in the fact you’ve done what is humanly possible for Mike. I understand it’s gonna hurt like nothing else to make this decision. However, it’s something that you gotta do that you don’t want to think about it.
As you stated in your post Mike is dying. It's very slow and it might be horrible and painful. I sure as heck don't want to go out that way. As you said, he's having good days and bad days. But how many good days is he having and how many bad days? When he's having more bad days then good days that should tell you something.
I am very sorry for you and best of hope in your hard times.
Oh, these threads are hard to read. Try your best to make the right decision. If, in your heart you know it is right, you will eventually come to terms with it.
And I just want to add that some of the posters in these type of threads must be some of the best people on the interwebs.
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