Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
CFoulke, I remember when my kitty Satay was very sick back in late '05/early '06, I finally knew it was time to say goodbye when she stopped eating and drinking. For a few weeks before then, I kept her in the master bedroom because she smelled "funny" to her littermate Mabel. I would go back to the master bedroom several times a day to just cuddle with her (the only saving grace was that she got sick during our winter break, so I was able to be at home just about 24/7 for over a month). Satay purred her head off all the time. She slept with me, and many times I would wake up in the middle of the night to check on her and she would just be sitting there like a sphinx, looking at me and purring. I am getting teary writing this.
I can't tell you how many times I was crying when I was cuddling with Satay. She would lick my face when she could (at the end, she couldn't lick for some reason), and just go on purring.
My point is that right now, since Opie is eating and drinking and using the litter box and cuddling with you and your husband, he still has some quality of life. Only you and your husband will know when it is really time to say goodbye. When that time comes, you have to keep remembering that whatever Opie is feeling will end -- it will be much harder for you than for him. Honestly, for me that is the only way I got through saying goodbye to Satay (and Mabel and Pudgie after her). I told her that she would be in my heart forever, and that is true, as Opie will be in yours and your husband's.
My heart goes out to you. I wish you and your husband strength for what is to come.
CFoulke, I remember when my kitty Satay was very sick back in late '05/early '06, I finally knew it was time to say goodbye when she stopped eating and drinking. For a few weeks before then, I kept her in the master bedroom because she smelled "funny" to her littermate Mabel. I would go back to the master bedroom several times a day to just cuddle with her (the only saving grace was that she got sick during our winter break, so I was able to be at home just about 24/7 for over a month). Satay purred her head off all the time. She slept with me, and many times I would wake up in the middle of the night to check on her and she would just be sitting there like a sphinx, looking at me and purring. I am getting teary writing this.
I can't tell you how many times I was crying when I was cuddling with Satay. She would lick my face when she could (at the end, she couldn't lick for some reason), and just go on purring.
My point is that right now, since Opie is eating and drinking and using the litter box and cuddling with you and your husband, he still has some quality of life. Only you and your husband will know when it is really time to say goodbye. When that time comes, you have to keep remembering that whatever Opie is feeling will end -- it will be much harder for you than for him. Honestly, for me that is the only way I got through saying goodbye to Satay (and Mabel and Pudgie after her). I told her that she would be in my heart forever, and that is true, as Opie will be in yours and your husband's.
My heart goes out to you. I wish you and your husband strength for what is to come.
God love you, Karen. Thank you so very much. I am sorry about your baby Satay and Mabel and Pudgie too. This has been a very hard year for us - we are still reeling over Boobert who we lost in late October - he was Opie's father, and I think Opie is missing him. I sometimes find him laying on the floor in the same spots that Boobert loved - in front of the fireplace and where the afternoon sun always makes a warm spot on the living room floor....ah, love.....it is a very complicated thing indeed.
A month after I helped Saber cross over I spoke to him with the help of an animal communicator, this is part of the conversation:
"Mom, I was fighting cause I wanted to live and also there was this strong angel woman that told me to hang on and I thought because I was going to get better but she said that you and I dont do well with rapid change and if we go through a week then mom can be prepared and also I can start seeing what heaven is like slowly. It was actually a good thing cause each day this strong angel woman would come back and she was a fighter and she would show me little snippets of cat nip in heaven, trees and fences I could climb in heaven, and a place that looks like our home in heaven. And then I realized that as I move on through the week the angel was slowly taking my breathe away and showing me beauty so mom although it seemed like I was getting worse I was also seeing a world that was more and more beautiful so when it was my time to die it was easier to let go."
....ah, love.....it is a very complicated thing indeed.
And with our cats love can bring pain, sometimes awful pain when we lose them... but think how empty our lives would be without them. Think of the love filled years they share with us.
And with our cats love can bring pain, sometimes awful pain when we lose them... but think how empty our lives would be without them. Think of the love filled years they share with us.
Thank you - all I can do is think about those years shared with each of them. Yesterday was a good day for Opie and one I will remember for a very long time. He came upstairs and looked us both over, came over to me and climbed up on my lap - facing me - and let me love on him and rub him, and talk to him for several hours. He was purring the whole time, and I laughed and cried -remembering the years. He seems very much at ease, does not resist the sub q shots a bit, his eyes are bright and clear, and his personality is wonderful. We have decided to monitor him closely and when he reaches a point where this changes, or if he crashes suddenly, we will let him go peacefully. In the meantime, we are enjoying these moments with him and imprinting him on our hearts - it will have to last us through eternity. Gotta stop this now, I can barely see to type for the tears....sorry....
We lost 3 last summer in just a few weeks. It can be so overwhelming. And with each loss, the "next one" in line becomes your new special kitty.
Enjoy every moment and lavish love on Opie. Our cats live for food, naps, play, and love. I know you and your hubby will make every moment count.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
