5 dogs and 1 cat that all lived long happy lives, the last 3 we used an in-home service, I think it was helpful for them, like they knew and appreciated it since their little bodies we too worn out, and the other pets could know and say goodbye after the fact before cremation. My service looks like local to only to N Colo, not sure where you live but if or when you feel like looking I found this link Home
These are the days that we know we will face when we pick out the bouncing puppy or find the kitty in the woods. Timber has had a wonderful life w/you. Can't ask for more than that. Think of her first. Be with her and make sure she knows that you are there, to the end. Go the distance. Can't ask for more than that. In the end, there are no words to ease this pain. Blessings!
Sorry to hear this RCBS , I too have been through this with cats and dogs. As has been said before try your best to do what is best for her in the end as far as making sure she is comfortable. The tough thing is they cannot tell us how they feel so we have to trust our judgement. As far as having someone come to the house or taking her to her vet she knows I would not stress over that personally as long as you are by her side when it is time.
Yeah, not easy to say goodbye to the little furballs after 17 years when they "picked you" like that! Sorry man.
You all are awesome. Great advice and insight. Thank you. I am somewhat happy to announce that she seemed to get through the procedure good. I have even gotten her to eat a little since getting her home. I don't know if the pain meds haven't worn off fully though. My spirits have been lifted a bit. I have more antibiotics to give her, ugh, and the main thing to do now is keep her eating. I laid out mashed up deli turkey breast, a can of fancy gravy food and broke some of her treats up into tiny pieces. She ate a little of the turkey, lapped up some gravy and even had a bit of the treat powder. She ended up having one tooth extraction and a very much needed teeth cleaning. I know I am making the right decision about biopsy and all that. There is a mass, but it is not very large as of yet. I'm going to do my best to try and turn my attitude around and stop concentrating on something I cannot prevent. Maybe then, I can start concentrating on trying to spoil her even more than before. If there was a cat Disneyland, I'd take her there! She's back for more gravy as I type this. I hope her condition is the same tomorrow morning, when I know the meds have worn off. I hope everyone is giving their furry friends some extra attention today after reading this. We truly do not know what they mean to us until they are gone. Everyone who sees her compliments her coloring. She's a cutie for sure. That was the first thing the tech said this morning when I dropped her off. The other thing is her name. Funny that...the night I brought her home I sat her on the couch while I scrambled to get dishes for food and water. When I came back to the room she was "gone". I start looking around and under calling for her, no reply. After looking for a minute or two, I notice movement on the couch. She had curled up on my camo jacket that I tossed beside her on the couch. Couldn't see her as she blended right in with the pattern. The name of the camouflage was Realtree Advantage Timber. Bingo. We have a name!
Good to hear she's doing better RCBS. I've always had cats too and since we've had our own house have also had dogs. Currently five cats and two dogs. We have our own little pet cemetary that is visible from the East side of the house so they're always still close to us and in our hearts. You'll do the right thing when the time comes and we're there with you.
My mom was a cat person. Growing up I didn't mind them much. Now that I'm older and wiser I think back fondly of them and really love the cats we have today. We have two cats and two dogs. All four of them have different personalities, and they are all wonderful. Not much different than our kids. One second they are all getting along, the next they are fighting. Toby is our all black cat strictly indoor. He'l sit on the door step if you leave the door open for him, but that is as far as he'll go. His demeanor reminds me of Bagheera. Wish we had named him that. At times he is as skittish as they come, but when he really needs to be he can be fearsome. During the burning season he loves to come get in my lap when I fill the stove at night. It gives us some alone time where I can pet him and enjoy the warmth of the fire. He's a special cat. The rest of the day he's often off hiding where our dog Piper can't find him. Piper loves to bully him. Drives me nuts. One more quick story for you. Growing up, my dad was not much of a cat person/pet person. He got a kick out of them at times, but really didn't have the time for them. An old friend of his passed on, and his son invited my dad to come look through the barns to see if there was anything he might want. As they walked barn to barn, the barn cats would go scurrying off. Tons of them. By the second barn, this orange one came up to my dad and started rubbing his leg and purring real loud. That cat stayed with them the rest of the morning. At the end, my dad found a few items he was interested in. After putting them in the truck, the orange cat was still there. Now my dad would never, and I mean never bring home a cat. There was just something that struck my dad about this cat. The son asked my dad if he wanted to take him, and my dad said sure. He named the cat after his friend Reuben Brown. We had that cat for many years, and he turned out to be something special. Old Reuben could open our back door. He'd get himself wedged between the screen door and the backdoor and use his paws to turn the backdoor knob. Never seen anything like it. When my parents would go away, he'd climb the oak tree and come across the roof to my bedroom window and pick on the screen for me to let him in. I hope Timber makes it through. You obviously have that special bound like the one my dad had with old Reuben. Jason from RI
Morning update on Timber for those interested... A little more sluggish this morning. I figure the pain meds have worn completely off. She was however, interested in food. I even noticed that sometime last night she had eaten a little bit of the regular kibble. I think she's hungry and has appetite, but obviously eating is a bit uncomfortable. I am feeling much better today. I went from thinking about a good place for a grave, to thinking of foods that I know she cannot resist to keep her eating. She greeted me with some purring this morning when I woke up. Always a good sign! Overall I am pretty pleased thusfar. I had been figuring she would come back home miserable, but so far I have been wrong. Timber wanted me to Thank all you members for your support as well!
Wow, tough read! I have 6 indoor cats and two big dogs. All get along well. Been through many animal looses over my 70 years. We have a pet cemetery in our back yard. I do have kids and grandkids, but my fur friends are with me much of my day every day. I have PTSD and find their company very supportive. You will know when it is time to do what ever is needed, just as you knew she needed to have her tooth taken care of. Glad you were able to share with us. Enjoy you time with your special fur friend. Larry
I'm feeling positive again because I think I am going to have more time with her than I thought, based on how she's acting. Working on getting another bottle of antibiotic in her. I do think she was on the verge of giving up prior to the first visit to the Vet. I will not give up on her as long as she is still eating and purring. Going to get a shoestring out tonight and see if she will play a bit.
Very encouraging to hear about timber after reading this thread all the way through. I'm glad to hear she's doing better. You do what you can, and she'll appreciate it.
New obstacle. Having trouble differentiating between 'this is uncomfortable to eat' and 'I can eat this if i want to, but I'm being picky'. lol Frustrating. At least there is appetite anyways. Swelling seems to have gone down on her face in the affected area and watery eye has subsided a bit. More purring this morning.
Could be low appetite from antibiotics? As she slows down, her eating will, too. At any rate, give her a warm hot water bottle wrapped in a soft cloth to cuddle up to where she sleeps.
Could be the medicine I suppose. It is likely partly my fault also as I have been throwing everything and anything in front of her for the past month trying to keep her eating to my satisfaction. I've been mixing the AB into the gravy food instead of forcibly injecting orally. Seems to work well as she will lap the gravy up, but leaves the meat. Would just like to see her take on a lb or two. She is at her lowest weight I can remember. Vet chart showed 11lbs in 2011 (last time she was there), and she's at 8lbs and a bit too thin in my opinion. Never was able to feel her hip bones when petting as I do now.
Cats will do that at anytime. Esp. when there isn't competition with another cat. With another cat they eat to make sure they get their share. If I were in your situation, I would just make sure I kept a fresh small amount of food available. Also there is a cat's milk available at the pet store. Don't use cow's milk. Good luck.
