Put Cat To Sleep - was it too soon?

FabSascha

Hi everyone, me again! I came on here a few months ago regarding the passing of my cat as I was struggling with the grief. Unfortunately, a few weeks after Cookie's passing, my other cat was diagnosed with a very aggressive Lymphoma. She lost weight very quickly and went into Renal Failure.

I started her on Chemo and various medicines and a few times she perked up, but generally she didn't seem to get completely better and kept losing weight. She had 3 sessions of chemo in total. By last week, she hadn't eaten for 3 days, nor had she been to the toilet and was sleeping a lot. She also seemed disinterested in loving which was something she used to really love. I decided on the Sunday night that it was time to stop putting her through it all - the vet trips and the nightly meds - so on the Monday I took her to the vet.

The problem I have is that she perked up considerably at the vets and it became a really tough decision. I tried to take in the bigger picture - she had a poor prognosis and would get another year best case scenario - and I went ahead with the euthanasia. It was a horrible experience but ever since then I've been wondering if I gave up too soon as she perked up at the vet.

I'm now starting to worry if maybe it was the fact that it was so cold in the bedroom (where she slept) that she was kind of hibernating; is it possible that she would stop eating and toileting if that were the case?

She had such a sad life and when she came to live with me she really started showing signs of gaining confidence and she completely trusted me, so I'm just worrying that I gave up too soon.

Does anyone have any thoughts on this please? I won't take it the wrong way if they're not reassuring, I'd just like to know. TIA

curlycabbage

You did what you felt was best at the time and that's all anyone could have expected of you. Cheer up - it's time to move on now.

ItchyFeet

I think if you're wondering if it was too soon, it was exactly the right time. That way you can know that your poor baby didn't suffer any more than was necessary. Imagine if you had waited until you were sure - that would mean that her suffering would have been really apparent and in my opinion that would have been too late!

You need time to grieve now and i think questioning that you did the right thing is natural. We always want more time with the ones we love.

cheeeky_monkey

I agree with the replies. You need to move on now. Maybe get another pet.

MrsAtobe

Better a day too early than a day too late, and in this case I think you got it just right. It is one of the most difficult decisions us pet owners ever have to make. Sorry for your loss, run free at the Bridge,little one.

bacardi66

Please don't think that - you did the kindest thing possible for your cat and made sure she wouldn't suffer any more. A vet told me years ago when it comes to putting a pet to sleep "better a week too early than a day too late" I have friends and family who feel they left it too long before letting their pets go and then feel guilty that they let the cat\dog suffer for too long.

The questioning is just a natural part of the grief process, after one of my cats died suddenly from a heart attack 3 years ago I tortured myself worrying that there was something I should have spotted beforehand, that I should have taken him to the vet etc etc and that kind of questioning is the last thing you need to do to yourself when you are grieving.

Try to focus on the time you had with her and the fact you gave her a loving home.

cavework

You did the absolutely right thing ..you respected your pet and stopped her from suffering ongoing pain
That is the final and ultimate loving thing that any responsible pet owner can give and you did it at the right time,
xx

FabSascha

Thanks so much everyone xx

chunkychocky

Our cat has lymphoma. He was diagnosed in February last year after progressively worse and worse vomiting. The day we got the diagnosis we didn't actually think he was going to make it through the night as he seemed unable to recover from the operation from having his biopsies. Had we been stronger people we would have had him put to sleep then. Somehow he pulled through and within two weeks was well enough to start the chemo and steroid treatment. He has a chemo tablet once a fortnight and steroids every day. It probably took until April or May before he stopped vomiting and probably reached his normal weight again around June. In December he started vomiting again, and has been doing so on and off ever since. It is probably twice a week at the moment, and he is losing weight. On the other hand he is still happy, cleans himself, purrs lots and comes to sit with us in the evenings for lots of strokes.

I'm telling you this as I think lymphoma is a terrible, terrible disease where there is no right or wrong. Who knows if it has been fair on our cat to have not had him put to sleep when we got the initial diagnosis. He was in incredible discomfort, and some days now even when he is not sick he still feels nauseous (he breathes oddly and makes a strange noise, which we have grown to recognise as him feeling nauseous). Maybe we should have him put down now, but it is too difficult a decision when sometimes he looks incredibly ill and other times very happy.

You are a strong person and you made the right decision. If I was stronger I would have had Tigger put to sleep last February and knowing what I know now I would have no regrets. Hindsight is a wonderful thing though! Now that we've put Tigger through what we have, we are finding it difficult to decide when enough is enough. We've discussed different 'targets' such as vomiting 3 days in a row, or lost a third of his original body weight, but to be honest I don't know if these arbitrary stakes in the sand are the right ones, and sometimes I wish we had just made the decision when he was at his worst before as I don't want him to get that bad again but don't know how to call it quits before that.

Sooz00

So sorry about your cat FabSacha. I lost one of my cats to surgical complications last year but he also had high grade large cell lymphoma that was very resistant. Letting him go was the hardest thing I've ever done and I miss him terribly. You did what was right of the time and you did that because you wanted to spare her pain and suffering. It was your last kindness to her and you made the decision out of love. Try not to second guess yourself.

For ChunkyChocky and anyone else with a lymphoma cat, the group below may help. They were a huge support to me. I hope Tigger achieves a reasonable remission.

http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/feline_lymphoma/messages

rising_from_the_ashes

ItchyFeet wrote: »

I think if you're wondering if it was too soon, it was exactly the right time. That way you can know that your poor baby didn't suffer any more than was necessary. Imagine if you had waited until you were sure - that would mean that her suffering would have been really apparent and in my opinion that would have been too late!

Awwwwww hun, I know just what you mean.

I've tormented myself both with Smude and Ben that I let them go too soon.

With Smudge, he'd had kidney problems for 8 years so I was lucky to have him so long but he'd lost his zest for life (although not suffering) and, as there was no hope of a cure, it was the right time and to have kept him going longer would've been for my sake and not his.

Ben is a more difficult one to come to terms with - it was a sudden, shocking situation - not helped by my vets (now changed to a new one) and I do still wonder "what it" .... however, again, I do know it was right as he was in pain and I just couldn've have let him carry on like that overnight.

So sorry to hear of two loses in such a short period of time .... please take some comfort that Cookie and your other cat (sorry don't know her name) will be reunited in Rainbow Bridge.


RIP sweet ones, play hard at the bridge, together again xxx