How strange, the way the world is with animals and pets.

[mfree]

When I bought my house from my now ex-roommate, it came with what was her cat... Oatmeal. He's a rather odd cat that seemed to be scared of you most of the time, probably a stray that adopted her. But, he was my cat, or rather the "house" cat.

Over the last year, he's become my little buddy, or as little a buddy as a 14 pound light orange cat can be.

Last month I took him to the vet for a big lump in his side... turned out to be lymphoma. Vet said it would be 3-6 months *after* chemo, so I figured to bring him home and make the best of the time, lots of kitty treats, catnip, and lap time.

Last night, after making him run for his treats, I realized what sounded like a very loud purr was actually gasping breaths. He was breathing hard from trotting across the kitchen. Right about that time I noticed another lump, this one on his throat and probably interfering with breathing, blood flow, et al. He had also been eating less, dropping weight, and acting a little off.

So I called the vet, not but 5 minutes ago, to schedule one last appointment.

Isn't it strange, knowing exactly when your pet will die? We have life or death control over our pets... it's only our morality and the way that we were raised that tells us when and how to exercise that. I can't say that I didn't think about ending things quick and dirty, but I don't have that in me... so his last moments will be with a stomach full of kitty treats and a massage from his human.

It's just... stuff like this is hard to process, you know? I'm generally a cold, objective person and this is a slap in the face.

[wingnutx]

I'm sorry to hear that. Give the little guy a kitty treat for me.

[richyoung]

I'm generally a cold, objective person ...

Sometimes we convince ourselves we are.  Sometimes the Great Architect puts small lives in our charge, to show us that, at our core, we really are not.  I feel bad for you for your impending loss - best wishes -

Rich

[spinr]

You're not alone, mfree.

I generally find myself not caring about most other people in the least.  Unless I'm attached to someone or relate to them in some way, I'm just not bothered by their situation or what happens to them.

Animals on the other hand... get me every time.  Can't stand to see any creature in pain or suffering otherwise.  

Weird.

I guess it's because animals are just animals.  They don't possess the traits that make humanity bad.  Give a little attention & affection and you get it back a thousand times over.  They don't get jealous, they don't hold grudges.  Treat them right and they don't care if you're dirt poor or Gates-rich.  

They're everything we shoud be, but aren't.



Sorry 'bout your kitty, mfree.

[Perd Hapley]

richyoung, you're a Mason?

[richyoung]

richyoung, you're a Mason?

NO, unfortunately.  I'm not at a point n my life right now to give such an activity the amount of time, energy, and money it would deserve.  (Not that I actually KNOW how much of those are involved - but I would like to find out.)   However, many relatives, co-workers, and family are, as well as one of my favorite authors - Robert Heinlein, and I admire them all greatly.  I grew up going to Masonic and Eastern Star spaghetti suppers and catfish fries in southern Alabama.  The "Great Architect" line I lifted from Heinlein - it provides me a way to appoach conceiving of the Almighty in terms I can understand - as a proud, caring craftsman, still overseeing his project...

Rich

[Perd Hapley]

Oh, OK.  Me neither.

[Guest]

Losing a friend is never easy...but there will always be memories of the good times you had together.

As hard as it might be, being with him to ease the way will help. And a tear or two is ok.

[Brad Johnson]

And a tear or two is ok

Get ready, it will be more than two. I may be a big, strapping 240 lb guy, but I bawled like a baby the last time I had to put a pet down (a cat to cancer, no less).

It's okay. Your buddy will be better off for your kindness.

Brad

[Lee]

That's a tough thing to go through.  I have a big ol dog-like tabby that follows me around.  I think he thinks he's human.  It will be a painful ordeal for me when that time comes for him.  I think my next pet will be a parrot, so he will outlive me.

[Monkeyleg]

It hurts, no matter how "tough" you are.

Their lives seem to revolve around food, sleep and "going outside," but they're always there for you with unconditional affection.

My best wishes go out to you.

[grampster]

I told my Gizmo and Tubby about your friend.  They are extending a feline hug your pal's way just now.

[Antibubba]

We've all pondered why we can see victims of genocide, starvation, car bombs, and the like, and think about what we need to do tomorrow, but are utterly caught up when we hear about a sack of kittens tossed in a river or an abused puppy.  I've thought about it too, and I just came up with an answer:  

On some level, when we see people in those situations, we think that they have some say in the matter, they have a choice.  Dogs don't.  Cats don't.  They haven't a clue.  And while it may show the depths of my cynicism, a small part of us sees these "sheeple" and think "They brought it on themselves.  In some small way, they deserve this", whereas we think of pets truly as innocents.  They are in our care.  Somehow, other humans have stopped being "in our care".

 It isn't necessarily the only answer.  I hope it isn't.  


Mfree, your cat has been a good person, I'm sure.  my heart goes out to you.

[wingnutx]

Pets are like small children in that regard. I know I am certainly more incensed when I hear of a child being victimized than an adult. I think we're wired that way. Probably to keep us from killing our kids when they act like little bastards.

[peteinct]

Call me cynical but most dogs are better than most people. I had to put my dog down last week and it still breaks me up sometimes. All I can hope is that there is place for her in the happy hunting ground.

mfree sorry about your cat. Realize that people here are with you.

pete

[defcon5]

We lost a sheltie on Christmas Eve three years ago that had been in our family for almost 14 years. I made a fool out of myself when my wife and kids brought him home - and thirty minutes later he was sitting in my lap chewing on the end of a $40 tie while I laughed more than I had for awhile. I was holding him when he drew his last breath and there isn't a day that goes by that I don't think about him.

Cats are smarter than dogs. You can't get eight cats to pull a sled through snow.
Jeff Valdez

[BobCat]

mfree,

Please accept my condolences.  It is never easy but time will help.  You will remember Oatmeal with smiles and no tears, after a while.

We lost RedFang O'Feral to intestinal lymphoma last year.  In fact, we lost three last year - Captain Midnight to heart disease, Red, and Caldedonia to another kind of lymphoma (but chemo had got her four extra years of good life).

Oatmeal is lucky you have the strength and wisdom to let him go on ahead, instead of hanging on.

When you are ready for it, go to petloss.com and read the Rainbow Bridge story.

Purrrs to you and yours,
Andrew
of Andrew & Lizzie
Texas Highway 36, Purrkins Diesel Cat, Hopper, Little Fuzzy (Fuzz-Xena), Zoro, Zippy, Wellington, - and PC! - and Alpha, Beta, Ruffian (aka Tactical), and Suzi-Q (aka Mama-mama), in East Bernard, Texas USA
and Orange Julius, Oscar, Mr. Earl, Frisco, Bastet, Captain Midnight, RedFang O'Feral and Caledonia, at the Rainbow Bridge

[James Fitzer]

Damn.... I'm sittin over here in iraq, with a pile o' 203 rounds next to me, some radios, and a bunch of hard-chargin killahs living to the left and right of me....

and i got teary eyed readin about your kitty cat.

I hate it when animals suffer. They're more loyal than ANY human companion.

Terribly sorry to hear about your loss, but I think your decision is sound. If it was a human with a terminal disease, we'd do the same. Lots of love, and spending their last time in the world surrounded by people we care about.


Damn.... here it goes again. :-(

[Felonious Monk/Fignozzle]

I hate cats.

I hate the way they so quickly tear down my manly defenses and turn me into a baby-talking, googoo gagah blob of emotion.

I hate the way my huge orange tabby, Sandy, gets a pat as he sleeps on the end of my bed, even if it's just as I come back to bed after my 3am pee stop.

I hate the way the stupid little buff-colored rescue cat, Dixie, snuggles my leg as if she knows my gruff exterior is all a fake.

I hate the way the gorgeous little blue-tipped full-blooded Siamese kitten, Koda, jumped up in my lap at a friends' house, and looked in my eyes, right as they told me he had been pushed out of a passing car in front of their house the night before.

I hate the way a Wal-Mart run always includes a new cat toy or two.



...I hate that Oatmeal's mortality has come to fruition.

My condolences, mfree.

[Gewehr98]

I feel for you, Mfree, I myself dread those moments.

My weiner-spaniel Missy, while obviously not a cat, is 18 years old and on her last legs.  She's blind from cataracts, deaf, and endured a horrible pyometra infection last year, which she survived, but just barely (Lots of antibiotics, and lots of bleeding, the house looked like a murder scene).  In the process, we think she suffered a stroke.  She now sleeps close to 20 hours a day, and the remaining 4 just walks around in left-hand circles, oblivious to the world around her.  She has no bladder control any more, and yelps when night falls and her world turns dark.  

So I have to take her to the vet for that one last trip.  The wife knows it, and what a lump in my throat it creates, but Missy's quality of life is such that we feel she's suffering, and that's the last thing I want for her to endure for my own selfishness.  

My two bigger dogs, mere pups at 3 years, will someday decline.  I dread that day, too, and take solace in the fact that it won't be for many years.  Somebody needs to develop a dog breed that has the same longevity as humans.  

(Missy a couple years ago, camped out under the coffee table - Quinn at 6 months nosing into the picture)

[Guest]

My condolances for everyone considering the last great responsibility of a pet owner.

Be aware that in most areas I've lived there are vets who make house calls at very reasonable rates.

[mfree]

'tis done.

[Robert Sears]

mfree,
   Our pets give us uncontional love. All they aske is for the same in return. You have shown your pet the greatest love man can give to their furry frineds, knowing when It is time to let go. I had to put down my best friend in 2001 and still miss him terribly.

Bob

God saw you getting tired
and a cure was not meant to be,
So he put his arms around you
and whispered "Come to Me".
With tearful eyes we watched you,
as we saw you pass away.
Although we loved you deeply,
we could not make you stay.
Your Golden Heart stopped beating,
hard working soul at rest.
God broke our hearts to prove to us,
He only takes the best.




When I am gone, release me, let me go.
You mustn't tie yourself to me with tears.
You can only guess how much you gave me in happiness.
Grieve for me a while, if you grieve, you must then let your grief be comforted by trust.
And then, when you must come this way alone, I'll greet you with a lick and bark, "Welcome Home"

- Author Unknown -



FROM A GRATEFUL FRIEND

You're giving me a special gift,
so sorrowfully endowed,
and though these last few cherished days,
your courage makes me proud.

But really, love is knowing
when your best friend is in pain,
and understanding earthly acts
will only be in vain.

So looking deep into your eyes,
beyond, into your soul,
I see in you the magic that will
once more make me whole.

The strength that you possess,
is why I look to you today,
to do this thing that must be done,
for it's the only way.

That strength is why I've followed you,
and chose you as my friend,
and why I've loved you all these years&
my partner till the end.

Please, understand just what this gift
you're giving, means to me,
it gives me back the strength I've lost,
and all my dignity.

You take a stand on my behalf,
for that is what friends do.
and know that what you do is right,
for I believe it, too.


So one last time, I breathe your scent,
and through your hand I feel,
the courage that's within you,
to grant me this appeal.

Cut the leash that holds me here,
dear friend, and let me run,
once more strong and steady,
my pain and struggle done.

And don't despair my passing,
for I won't be far away,
forever here, within your heart,
and memory I'll stay.

I'll be there watching over you,
your ever faithful friend,
and in your memories I'll run,
& a young cat once again.

[grampster]

Peace, Mfree.  Blessed peace.