Last night I had to make the hardest decision I have ever made in my life. I had to put my little baby to sleep. It was a horrible experience but I really hope we did the right thing and I hope it was the right time. Two days ago she started to really go downhill and when we brought her to the vet they said her kidneys were starting to fail and she had a large mass developing in her liver. She was 20 years old and came into our family as my 8th birthday present. She quickly became way more than just a pet and boy did she have a personality. I can’t even tell you how many pieces my heart is in right now.

I really feel for you and let me express my most heartfelt sympathy. Many pet owners have to face this experience and I lived through the same thing with my second dog after having her as a companion for 13 years.

It's a grueling decison and because of its finality, there is a tremendous amount of second guessing. Yet, as time passes, you will find that making this decision was the best thing that you could do to ease the suffering of one your best friends. You will always treasure the 20 years spent together and will always lovingly speak with fond memories about this great cat you had in your life.

You have my deepest sympathy.

I have owned a lot of cats. Being outside cats, they tend not to live that long and mostly just don't come home one night. Either that, or I find them on the road. As tough a way as that is to lose a pet, by far and away the hardest on me was the little one that was slowly dying of cancer before my eyes. I eventually made the same tough decision you did last night. You made the right one for both of you.

You have our sincerest condolences.

Losing four-legged family members is just as hard as any loss. Just think of the smiles and laughter she brought you over the last twenty years. Pets are a such a blessing. Be assured, you made the correct decision.

R

I'm so sorry for your loss. I think as pet owners, we've all experienced the pain of losing the little family members that gave us so much joy and unconditional love. My deepest condolences to you and your family at this time.

sorry for your loss.
you get some extra prayer time from us.
the picture you have up is a beauty.
remember... Great memories!!!


"Grieve not,
nor speak of me with tears
but laugh and talk of me
as if I were beside you...
I loved you so...
'twas Heaven here with you"

Isla Paschal Richardson

I'm sorry for your loss. :sad:

Some years back, my wife remarked that she had never seen me cry. Well, she finally got to see it happen two years ago when we had to have our 14 year old dog, Dumas, euthanized. I cried like a baby. It still hurts to think about it, even though I know it was necessary. I am very sorry for your loss.

Last night I had to make the hardest decision I have ever made in my life. I had to put my little baby to sleep. It was a horrible experience but I really hope we did the right thing and I hope it was the right time. Two days ago she started to really go downhill and when we brought her to the vet they said her kidneys were starting to fail and she had a large mass developing in her liver. She was 20 years old and came into our family as my 8th birthday present. She quickly became way more than just a pet and boy did she have a personality. I can’t even tell you how many pieces my heart is in right now.

Please accept my heart felt sympathy and that of my wife and son. After having lost a dog a couple of years ago we thought we would never get another pet. One day my wife shows up with a little kitten her sister gave her. I was upset (not being a cat person) and din't want it in the house. That was over a year ago. I never thought I could get so attached to a cat. Knuckles (my son named him) is an unbelieveable cat with a personality you wouldn't believe. He has given me a totally different outlook and I couldn't imagine life without him. I love em to death and am so happy my wife over-ruled me on this one. Believe me I know where you're coming from on this one. All the best..........................................

You have the sincere condolences of LL and myself on this. The passing of a companion is the loss of a family member; no more, no less. As such, our hearts go out to you during this time of grief.

It sounds like both of you were lucky to have each other, and for such a long time.

Be Well.


---- Mark

A Blessing For You

Grant us the strength not to dwell on our loss.
Help us remember the story of her life with the love she has shown us.
And grant us peace as we celebrate her life
by sharing those memories with others.

Let her remember us as well
and know that we will always love her.
And when it's our time to pass over into paradise,
we know she will be among those who will come to bring us home.

Thank you for the gift of her companionship, for the time we've had together.
And thank you for granting us the strength to give her over to your keeping now, until we are together again.

Know she flew heavenward on wings of your love! You will be together again. Remember that animals do not fear death, but see it as merely another adventure.... with wings.
May peace and comfort be yours - and when the time is right - honor her memory by visiting a shelter and welcoming a new fuzzy, purring bundle of love into your life and your heart. You cannot replace her but know the lesson she leaves you is that with each new love, our heart just grows bigger to embrace another.

It sounds like your baby did the same thing my Smoky did four years ago. We came home from a vacation and she was crashing; we had to make that horrible decision just a few days later. The vet had said she was in the early stages of kidney disease only a few weeks before. It happened so fast.

She was 17 and had been with me a long time. I feel your pain. Please accept my sympathy for your loss.

To me, there is almost nothing harder than saying goodbye to a creature that has depended on you for everything. They love unconditionally and never judge or criticize.

My deepest sympathy to you and my warmest wishes that you enjoy the memories you have of your precious baby.

Sorry cai88 about your loss ! When I was 16 , I had a german shepard that had a tumor , after the surgery they determined that the abscess had grown under his ribs and had to be put to sleep . King was only 1.5 years old , and I used all of my Mc Donalds earnings myself to pay for the surgery . I'll never forget seeing king in the basement of the vets office after surgery , he was clearly still under , but had the strenght to pick up his head and wag his tail . Sorry I never owned another pet since ! Too heart breaking ....


Hoping , you peace


RUBY NYC

I'm so sorry for your loss. :sad:

So sorry to hear this. Don't question your decision, you did the right thing. Feline heaven is a happy place, my first cats Izzy and Morty are there, they will do a good job welcoming your long time friend!

Sorry to hear about your loss.This last march i had to put my cat down after a year long battle with lung cancer.One of the toughest things i ever had to do...but i knew it was for the best.

I am so sorry to hear about your loss. :sad: Feel comfort in the fact you made a good decision. Your kitty is in a much happier place now. Wow, it is great that you had 20years together. I've had many pets, and never one for that long. Cherish the time and remember the cute and silly stuff and she will always be with you.

I'm very sorry for your loss. This is the hardest moment for pets lover... You did the right thing...

Of course all pet owners feel your sadness. Sadly, that's the inevitable part of pet togetherness...we almost always outlive them. Twenty years is a damn long life for a cat.:) Now pick it up and move along. :|

Thanks everyone. I printed out this thread and shared it with my family. I'm still pretty lost. It feels very empty here. I didn't want to rush out and get another pet but I'm seriously considering adopting a special friend next week.

We had Katie cremated and she is here with us. In our area there is a very special lady who owns a pet crematorium. She really helped ease the pain.

What a great, long life your kitty had. It is hard enough to lose a beloved pet but when making the decision on exactly when they will go is absolutely brutal. My heartfelt sympathies on what you've been going through. :sad:

When I was losing my 14 year old Samoyed a few years ago (liver and kidney), I put any thoughts of another dog out of my mind. Thought it would be years, if ever. The pain of losing Buck was absolutely searing and the decision on when to put her to sleep was horrendous, despite having a wonderful vet to guide me. I took a week off to deal with it and grieve.

Two weeks after Buck was gone, I was desperate for another pup. And two months later a breeder referral brought me to Gidget. My now 4 year old Samoyed.

It was the best remedy. I still tear up in loving memories of Buck when I talk of her to others. And then I give Gidget a belly rub.

Best wishes to you and prayers for your lost loved one, who is surely romping up there in cat heaven as dogs next door in dog heaven look on with interest.

I'm so sorry to hear of your loss. We had to do this only once with our horse Midnight and after all of these years I still miss her even though all I did was clean her stall and her hooves.

Before I got married I knew the basic shape of animals but never had one I was really attached to. 11 years and two cats and one dog later I can't imagine being without.

Your memories will never been taken from you.

Well it's been a week. Everyone here is still hearbroken. My mom hates being alone she just breaks down. Last night we sat down and made a family decision to bring a little one into the house. We decided on a puggle and hopefully if everything goes well we will welcome this little girl on September 8th

very sorry for your loss, and what a great looking puppy, wish you the very best.

cute pup.
look at the size of those paws.

Tennessee says hello, and good luck.
http://img136.imageshack.us/img136/6462/tennessee82906oc0.jpg

or at least he opened his eye.... just ran 1.5 miles with Meredith.

I agree with the others who have said the ONLY bad part of owning pets is we will almost always outlive them...

You did the right thing - since they depend on us for everything and cannot tell us what their wishes are, as far as prolonged, drastic medical care, we must protect them from those long, painful deaths as well. There are no easy answers... Your kitty would forgive you.

Good luck with your puggle:)

I am sorry for your loss and I fully understand how it feels.

Only two hours ago I had to put down my 14 year old dobie, Arlo. I was planning to leave with him this morning for a road trip up to our new house Washington. My wife and I felt that this would be his only chance to "sniff " the new property as his age would not likely have let him be around to make the final move with us next spring. It was not meant to be. His existing medical problems took a bad turn last night and a visit to the vet this morning made it clear that the time had come.

While we had so many good years together and we knew that he had a very good, long life it was still very difficult to do what had to be done......

My E and trailer sit packed in the driveway and I sit here at the computer.

Arlo is now with Tess and Mick and Sweep, all who have gone before. I'm sure that they are having a great reunion.

Our remaining dog, Dazy, will need another playmate soon. We will "rescue" yet another and provide the best home and care and love possible. When I think of the fate that could have befallen each of the dogs that we have taken home from the rescue it makes it a bit easier to deal with what ultimately occurs years down the road.

Arlo had a very good life here and has now relinquished his spot to make way for another to join our family. We have our pictures and our memories.

Sidecar
That is the only consolation in the circle of life - that with each new love our hearts grow bigger to add another. Never the same but all so loved and so special. Just think of the crowd of joyfully wagging tails and happy faces who will come to take you home one day.
Some Native Americans believe our worth to enter paradise will be judged by every animal who crossed our path in life. Somehow that seems a fitting way to judge the real character of a person. How he treats those who cannot speak or increase his wealth or standing. Some rewards are intangible except in our hearts.

Sending you healing and comfort in your grief. Arlo awaits you and remains your dear and loved friend always. He lives now forever in your heart.

Cai88-

I am very sorry for your loss... The thing you have to know is that you gave Katie a best friend as well... Knowing that you gave your loved one better times for 20 years than anyone else could have should fill your heart with the same love that Katie did.

I hope that your new friend will also bring your family joy.

Sidecar-I'm so sorry for your loss.

"God looked around his garden and found an empty space,

He then looked down upon this earth and saw your tired face.

He put his arm around you and lifted you to rest,

God’s garden must be beautiful, he only takes the best.

He knew you were suffering, he knew you were in pain.

He knew you might never get well upon this earth again.

So he closed your weary eyelids and whispered "Peace be thine"

It broke our hearts to lose you, but you never went alone,

For part of us went with you the day God called you home."

Author Unknown

That's beautiful blue cow. Thank you.