It broke our hearts to have bring Mr. Whiskers to the vet one last time. He was an old-timer and his health really deteriorated over the last 2 months. The poor thing lost the ability to walk two days before. Getting old sucks.
He was already a member of my the wife-to-be’s household. I was told he was fearful of strangers, but to everyone’s surprise he took to me immediately. He was a handsome cat, jet black with a white apron, and a small chalk mark on his nose.
We miss him terribly. I think this is the dirty secret of being a pet owner - I have yet to have a pet that dies peacefully at home in his sleep.
I’ve been told by a psychologist that pet grief is one of the last taboos. It is real and people are uncomfortable talking or hearing about it. More power to you BwanaBob. Condolences on Mr Whiskers.
Losing pets, particularly old ones is so so rough, about 6 years ago lost a 20+ year old cat at home (had a massive stroke on a Sunday). Two years ago had to have our 17 year old cat put to sleep due to just old old age. Then, two weeks ago had to have the 17 year old shitzhu dog put to sleep, again just due to old age. Then just a few days later the other dog was paralyzed with pain one morning and was rushed to vet. It sure looked like poisioning to me. I about lost it. Turns out it was a slipped/ruptured/inflamed? disk in the back. Shots and meds seem to be doing the trick but now this condition will haunt the crap out of me because one day it might get worse or cause paralysis and I’ll again get to choose when to have a beloved pet put down. And, among all this got several friends,relatives and good neighbors dead, possibly dying, or having medical conditions that could take a serious turn for the worse at any moment.
I am not ashamed to say it. Having my pets put down is the most gut wrenching thing I’ve ever gone through.
Sorry for unloading there.
But I sure do understand your grief and wish you the best.
I’ve had cats and dogs my whole 45 years on this planet, and the pain of losing each and every one of them is consistently gut-wrenching. And after a very short time of initial grieving, a new furball is added to the household, because, selfishly, I find I simply cannot call my house a home without the furry presence of a pet. Pets are the souls of a house, IMHO. And I’ve come to realize that it really is a fair trade off…they give us the very best they have for however long we have them, without complaint and with unconditional love and acceptance, no matter how messy we humans are TO love and accept And all they ask is that we step up at the end and give them a humane, gracious and respectful departure from this world. It is NEVER an easy to call to make, and I hope you have a compassionate veterinary team to work with when you do have to make the call.
A previous poster is correct, it always sucks, and the pain of loss does subside with the passage of time. I think it is a worthy measure of how much and how deeply we love them and they affect us, by how much it friggin hurts to let them go. See, now I’m gonna get all verklempt, and it’s been a year and a half since we went through this with our last kitty, Pippa.
You are in very good company, BwanaBob. We’re sad with ya…
Thanks all1966, petwise, we’re now down to 1 dog, a 5 year old Corgi. She’s missing her sparring partner; she keeps looking down the steps to the den, where we used to feed Whiskers (to keep her from eating his food). I found her laying on her front paws looking down there last night. She also isn’t eating. I’m sure that surviving pet(s) feel the loss too.
Mrs Bwana says that after she finishes her degree in the spring that she’d be up for rescuing a couple of cats, so life will go on, eventually.
I’m sorry too and I completely understand how hard it is. My calico cat was close in age to Mr. Whiskers. She died at home this past April. I miss her everyday. RIP Mr. Whiskers…
My condolences, BwanaBob. He had a good, long life with loving people. Agreed with other posters–losing a pet is so, so hard.
(Indeed, I’ll probably be making one of these threads very soon :(. Our own 15-year-old Frizzle kitty is going through pretty much the exact same thing.)
Heartfelt condolences, BwanaBob. Mr Whiskers lived long, and he was loved. That’s a good life. For anyone. May your grief settle softly with a small chalk mark on its nose.
One of the hardest things I ever had to do was bring my cat of 15 years holding her while she looked into my eyes while the vet administered the shots. I have no problem saying I balled all the way home, then some. Never thought it would affect me like that but it did, she brought nothing but joy, smiles with her unique personality and was definitely a loved family member.
