Print
May 25th, 2008
462 Views
1 rec
10 Comments
I
had to have my cat put down this morning. :(
He was the sweetest, most loving pet I've ever had. He found us in the parking lot of the apartment complex we lived in a year ago... three times. He really, really wanted to live with us. He would not take no for an answer. He came to us skinny and dirty, with fleas and tapeworms, but we cleaned him up, inside and out. He came into our home as a stray, but left as a member of the family. We only had him for a year, but I fell so in love with him.
Unbeknownst to us, he had cardiomyopathy, and developed heart failure a few days ago. He wasn't able to breathe well because of the fluid in his lungs, so we took him to the emergency vet clinic this morning to have him put down. He wouldn't have ever recovered from the cardiomyopathy. The best we could have hoped for was some symptom relief for a couple months, with many tests and medications filling his final days. That would have been horrible for everyone. So, we opted to have him euthanized, and we buried him under a pretty young tree in our backyard this evening. He was only 2 years old.
As the vet gave him his injection, she said "Sorry, sweetie... you just had a bad heart." Truth is, he had the best 'heart' I've ever known any creature to have.
I've dealt with a lot of crap in my life, but that was one of the worst things I've ever experienced.
The moral of this story is NEVER trust the word of one doctor. Always get second opinions. Do your research. We had lived in this city 2 months when we found this cat, and had no idea where to take him for veterinary care. We chose a friendly older doctor in our neighborhood that seemed to know what he was talking about... but after speaking with the emergency vet today and doing several hours of research last night, it seems that he not only neglected to diagnose Linux's condition when he heard a heart murmur 7 months ago, but he also failed to make us aware of the severity of the poor boy's condition, meaning that had we listed to his advice, we'd have likely let our cat suffer through another awful week of not being able to breathe, or let him die in distress. If he'd been properly diagnosed months ago, he could have lived for another year or more with one daily medication. Never trust one doctor's opinon. Never.
I am going to miss that cat.
 Comment (10)
 Share Your Story
 Flag
|
| Comment on this Story | |
  | Posted May 30th, 2008 at 6:10PM I'm sorry for your loss. It is never easy to loose something that is such a part of your daily life. God bless. B   |
 | Posted Apr 25th, 2009 at 7:31PM I'm sorry for the pain you are experiencing. I empathize with you so much. One of my cats just disappeared...I'm almost sure a neighbor down the street has been trapping cats. She was just a year old, and SO full of love. I miss her so much. I just try to remind myself that I loved her as much as I possibly could while she was with me. |
 | Posted Jul 23rd, 2009 at 1:18PM i am sorry for your loss.You maybe gave the kitty the most love he ever had in his whole life. i am proud of you for opening your hearts and home to an unfortunate soul who really needed you.bravo,will you be willing to do it again should the need arise?? i hope so. |
 | Posted Aug 15th, 2009 at 2:32PM I am so sorry to hear of your loss. I agree with you about finding a good vet. I think my vet was about the money and not about my poor baby. She was a Maine Coon and the most gentle little girl. He diagnosed a "brain tumor" after about 500 dollars worth of tests that were inconclusive. He said I could take her home and maybe she would get better. After a week at home where she fell down the stairs and didnt eat, I took her back for euthanisia. Why give me hope when there is none? |
| Posted Aug 18th, 2009 at 9:09AM I know how you feel! Our cat passed away from Feline Leukemia and the vet said she could be fine and live a normal life and not to put her to sleep...she was like an angel as she bought peace to all the male cats in the house, and the one male cat Sammy who always chased and harassed the other male cats, stopped as soon as she came into the house. Pretty made Sammy and all the other cats feel so peaceful that they all hung out in their favorite places and no more fighting...she started coughing and stopped eating and just slept!! We took her in and she said she was dying of her disease...I could not put her to sleep as I was hoping she would just go to sleep at home, but she stopped eating and her body fluids were giving way...so we had to put her to sleep...it was like putting an angel to sleep as the peace and joy and the companionship was gone for Pretty and Sammy...now he fights all the time with the one male...so we took in two male kittens well now the house if filled with to psychotic male kittens chasing, biting and going crazy with their kitten tactics like: dive bombing each other from a high vantage point.. I know it is hard to have to put down a beloved friend...I had to put down a dog (14 years old) and an older cat on the same day!! At least I had a vision of them going up together to heaven like when my brother passed on I had the same vision...yes our beloved friend/pets go to heaven.. |
 | Posted Aug 21st, 2009 at 3:19PM Very sorry. I always remember that they gave me so much more than their passing costs. Be well. |
 | Posted Sep 17th, 2009 at 8:04AM hi my name is rainbow im glad there are others that feel like me i put my cat sugar down yesterday i havent stopped crying yet .... it will get better ! sugar was also a stray she was so beautifull ! |
 Feeling accomplished | Posted Sep 21st, 2009 at 10:24PM I think I'm going to cry!!! I miss him too.. Honestly.. My cat was born in my daughter's room four years ago..If anything happened to him, I seriously wouldn't know what to do.. They bring so much love into our lives. May God bless kitties and kitty mom and dads everywhere. |
 | Posted Sep 27th, 2009 at 10:20PM I am so sorry. It seems unfair that animals -- who are members of our family -- live such short lives. Take care of yourself. |
 | Posted Oct 18th, 2009 at 10:03PM Although your cat death occurred some time ago, I'm sure it still tugs at your heart. I hope that time has helped lessen the feeling of loss. Like yours, I got my cat as a stray that was out in the country. My 2 1/2 year old cat died Friday Oct 16, 2009 from blood clots caused by heart problems. In my case it was very sudden and he died about 3 hours after I got him to the hospital. |
Share Your Comment
...then continue the discussion in the story's forum or, send this story to a friend
|
Polls for I Have Lost a Beloved Pet
Here are some polls created by members of this group: See more polls for I Have Lost a Beloved Pet, or create your own poll |
Questions & Answers for I Have Lost a Beloved Pet
Here are a few Questions and Answers for I Have Lost a Beloved Pet
| Have Lost a Beloved Pet Open Questions |
| There are no open questions yet. Why not ask a question now? |
| Have Lost a Beloved Pet Resolved Questions |
| There are no resolved questions yet. Why not answer a question now? |
|
Forum & Chat Board for I Have Lost a Beloved Pet
Here are popular forum topics for I Have Lost a Beloved Pet See the Have Lost a Beloved Pet forum to chat about these topics and more! |
|
Music, Song, Artist, Book and Movie Recommendations
|
|
Show this Story's Author Some Love
There's lots of ways to show you appreciated this person's story from the experience group, I Have Lost a Beloved Pet. Send them a virtual gift, make a gesture, scribble on their whiteboard, or send them a private message. |
|
Translate this Story
Read this story in your own language
|
|
|||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||
Be a part of the biggest social experience on the web. Where who you are is more important than who you know. Share what matters the most and find others who just "get it."
Join now and get started in seconds, or learn more about Experience Project
Your experiences are something to be proud of! Show off your number of experiences with widgets for your blog, Facebook, or wherever!
Get your badge!
Of course, we love to hear Your Story, whatever it happens to be. You can be yourself here!
|
||||||||||||||
