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Getting over putting a pet to sleep [long, wordy]
Koldanar
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
Let me start with a bit of background :
Our cat, Sam, had a congenital heart defect (Cardio-myopathy) common to his breed (Maine Coon). My Fiance first got him about 5 years ago, and only found out about the heart defect a month after adoption. She was told that he would have at most, a year, but probably more like 6 months of life.
I moved into her house about 2 years ago, this March. We noticed he wasn't acting as he normally would, so we took him into the vet. We then had a new diagnosis : Megacolon. He'd basically get backed up and not be able to go w/out medication, and special food. So, we did the medication, and the special food. Still, every so often, we'd have to take him in to get an enema, and get him cleared out. No biggie.
Last February, he got worse again, and was down to 10.5 lbs. (He was 16.5 lbs when I met him; he went down to 13 after I moved in and stayed there for some time) The vet started pacing around; he was concerned that this would be it. There was an operation that could solve the megacolon, but, with his heart, he couldn't avise the surgery. We had him cleaned out, and took extra-good care of him. Within 2 weeks, he was himself again.
This past May, we had our kitchen re-done. When the work was finished, we noticed he wasn't eating, again (You have to understand...this cat ate like a dog. He's stolen lettuce and an entire slice of bread from our plates). We got worried, brought him in, and had him cleaned out twice in one day. Another day later, he's eating, and happy. YAY!
Until Wed this week past...same symptoms. We took him in Friday, and the vet said his colon had failed, completely. We were devastated...this is the first time either of us have ever had to make this kind of decision before. He was still his happy, people-loving self, but he wasn't eating, and clearly was in some pain due to his issues.
Everyone I've spoken to has told me the same; we did the right thing. That part isn't at issue. I still do feel like I've let him down, or that there was more to do. Or hell, just ridiculously sad...we miss him terribly. Anyone had advice for getting past this?
tl;dr : Had to put a beloved cat to sleep; hard to get over.
Our cat, Sam, had a congenital heart defect (Cardio-myopathy) common to his breed (Maine Coon). My Fiance first got him about 5 years ago, and only found out about the heart defect a month after adoption. She was told that he would have at most, a year, but probably more like 6 months of life.
I moved into her house about 2 years ago, this March. We noticed he wasn't acting as he normally would, so we took him into the vet. We then had a new diagnosis : Megacolon. He'd basically get backed up and not be able to go w/out medication, and special food. So, we did the medication, and the special food. Still, every so often, we'd have to take him in to get an enema, and get him cleared out. No biggie.
Last February, he got worse again, and was down to 10.5 lbs. (He was 16.5 lbs when I met him; he went down to 13 after I moved in and stayed there for some time) The vet started pacing around; he was concerned that this would be it. There was an operation that could solve the megacolon, but, with his heart, he couldn't avise the surgery. We had him cleaned out, and took extra-good care of him. Within 2 weeks, he was himself again.
This past May, we had our kitchen re-done. When the work was finished, we noticed he wasn't eating, again (You have to understand...this cat ate like a dog. He's stolen lettuce and an entire slice of bread from our plates). We got worried, brought him in, and had him cleaned out twice in one day. Another day later, he's eating, and happy. YAY!
Until Wed this week past...same symptoms. We took him in Friday, and the vet said his colon had failed, completely. We were devastated...this is the first time either of us have ever had to make this kind of decision before. He was still his happy, people-loving self, but he wasn't eating, and clearly was in some pain due to his issues.
Everyone I've spoken to has told me the same; we did the right thing. That part isn't at issue. I still do feel like I've let him down, or that there was more to do. Or hell, just ridiculously sad...we miss him terribly. Anyone had advice for getting past this?
tl;dr : Had to put a beloved cat to sleep; hard to get over.
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Koldanar on
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Everyone feels guilty, wondering if they've let their pet go on too long or if they didn't do enough for them. You've heard this before, but I think you did the right thing. It'll suck but eventually, you'll look back and think about Sam with fondness instead of sadness
Most people, I think, would rather have a loved pet die suddenly rather than diminish over time, but seeing as I've had cats that experienced both I would prefer that a cat have a long life before passing on slowly. Many years ago one of my cats died in the middle of the night from heart failure at barely four years old. I was 9 and it was a pretty distressing experience. So perhaps you can take solace in the fact that you took so much enjoyment out of his life relative to how long you originally expected his life was going to be.
Unfortunately there isn't anything really that you can do, only time with make it hurt less. I'm going to be having to give up my cat of 9 years because my fiance is allergic...which is nothing compared to losing a cat, but one thing she suggested was to get another pet. Now, I know getting another pet will not make how you feel any better, but it could help you move forward.