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Lost a kitty today ... not Moses
I posted earlier this year about our 14-year-old neutered black male
Moses, who we nearly lost to IBD before getting a handle on things with proper food, medication, etc., helped by info I received from nice folks here and elsewhere. I mentioned at the time that we had another cat, Bartholemew, also a 14-year-old neutered male, an orange tabby, who was the picture of health and had never showed any IBD symptoms. Over the last month or so, we started noticing that Bartholemew was not eating normally and appeared to be losing a bit of weight. It was noticeable because we'd been feeding him the same high-grade food we'd been feeding Moses, and Bartholemew actually got a bit pudgy on the diet. In hindsight, we probably should've taken him to the vet right off, but he's always been kind of a picky eater so we kept changing foods, etc., trying to find something he'd like, and there were times when it appeared that he was putting a bit of weight back on and he never did act obviously sick or anything, in a lot of ways he was his usual frisky self. However, over the last week to 10 days, he just about stopped eating and did start showing signs of being obviously sick, to the point of hiding from us all day long and not coming out unless we dragged him out. He got emaciated to the point of looking skeletal, went from being a bit thin to having lost nearly half his body weight really, really fast. So, we took him to the vet, they did the appropriate tests, exams, X-rays, bloodwork, etc., and found that he was absolutely riddled with cancer, definitely in the liver and most likely in the kidneys and gall bladder as well, probably pretty much diffuse throughout his abdomen. Our vet called this a.m. after discussing the case with some colleagues and said that there were things that could be done to "make him feel better" ... heavy prednisone, a few other things ... but that it would only be pallative treatment and that in the end, he would either lie down one day and die on his own or we would have to have him euthanized. He said the best-case scenario would be six months, but that in his judgment we'd be lucky to get anywhere close to that. My wife and I had already discussed this before the phone call ... he was her cat and predated me on the scene; she got him from the pound when he was a kitten and found out later that he was most likely only three weeks old at the time, when the youngest age at which a cat is supposed to be available for adoption is six weeks, so if she hadn't have gotten him, he'd likely have been euthanized within a matter of days, because he was sickly at the time and in fact nearly died from intestinal problems right after she got him, and she nursed him back to health. It's not registering with her now because she's grief-stricken, but I've told her over and over and our vet pointed out the same thing today, that she deserves a lot of credit for providing this cat with 14 years of good life that he all but certainly would not have had otherwise. Anyway, she made the point when we talked that if we took these heroic measures to try to buy him a few weeks, we'd be doing it for us, not for him, and that we should end his sickness and suffering ... which we did today. So, we have only Moses now, and I just wanted to thank everyone for the help they offered earlier this year, because we were within an eyelash of losing him as well, and now he's healthy and hearty and robust and hopefully we will have him around for at least a few more years. |
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Gregory Bailey wrote:
I posted earlier this year about our 14-year-old neutered black male Moses, who we nearly lost to IBD before getting a handle on things with proper food, medication, etc., helped by info I received from nice folks here and elsewhere. I mentioned at the time that we had another cat, Bartholemew, also a 14-year-old neutered male, an orange tabby, who was the picture of health and had never showed any IBD symptoms. Over the last month or so, we started noticing that Bartholemew was not eating normally and appeared to be losing a bit of weight. It was noticeable because we'd been feeding him the same high-grade food we'd been feeding Moses, and Bartholemew actually got a bit pudgy on the diet. In hindsight, we probably should've taken him to the vet right off, but he's always been kind of a picky eater so we kept changing foods, etc., trying to find something he'd like, and there were times when it appeared that he was putting a bit of weight back on and he never did act obviously sick or anything, in a lot of ways he was his usual frisky self. However, over the last week to 10 days, he just about stopped eating and did start showing signs of being obviously sick, to the point of hiding from us all day long and not coming out unless we dragged him out. He got emaciated to the point of looking skeletal, went from being a bit thin to having lost nearly half his body weight really, really fast. So, we took him to the vet, they did the appropriate tests, exams, X-rays, bloodwork, etc., and found that he was absolutely riddled with cancer, definitely in the liver and most likely in the kidneys and gall bladder as well, probably pretty much diffuse throughout his abdomen. Our vet called this a.m. after discussing the case with some colleagues and said that there were things that could be done to "make him feel better" ... heavy prednisone, a few other things ... but that it would only be pallative treatment and that in the end, he would either lie down one day and die on his own or we would have to have him euthanized. He said the best-case scenario would be six months, but that in his judgment we'd be lucky to get anywhere close to that. My wife and I had already discussed this before the phone call ... he was her cat and predated me on the scene; she got him from the pound when he was a kitten and found out later that he was most likely only three weeks old at the time, when the youngest age at which a cat is supposed to be available for adoption is six weeks, so if she hadn't have gotten him, he'd likely have been euthanized within a matter of days, because he was sickly at the time and in fact nearly died from intestinal problems right after she got him, and she nursed him back to health. It's not registering with her now because she's grief-stricken, but I've told her over and over and our vet pointed out the same thing today, that she deserves a lot of credit for providing this cat with 14 years of good life that he all but certainly would not have had otherwise. Anyway, she made the point when we talked that if we took these heroic measures to try to buy him a few weeks, we'd be doing it for us, not for him, and that we should end his sickness and suffering ... which we did today. So, we have only Moses now, and I just wanted to thank everyone for the help they offered earlier this year, because we were within an eyelash of losing him as well, and now he's healthy and hearty and robust and hopefully we will have him around for at least a few more years. (((((hugs)))) and =^..^= purrs from Tucker and Hailey. I am so sorry. It hurts to be kind but you did the right thing and now he's playing across the rainbow bridge and having the time of his life. Pass the purrs on to your wife. God bless Hailey (and Tucker) |
#3
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Gregory Bailey wrote: snip I mentioned at the time that we had another cat, Bartholemew, also a 14-year-old neutered male, an orange tabby, who was the picture of health and had never showed any IBD symptoms. snip So sorry to hear of your loss. Please know you did the right thing. I am sure he knows you loved him. -L. |
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Gregory Bailey wrote:
So, we have only Moses now, and I just wanted to thank everyone for the help they offered earlier this year, because we were within an eyelash of losing him as well, and now he's healthy and hearty and robust and hopefully we will have him around for at least a few more years. I'm very sorry, it's a very diffficult decision to make and to know when exactly to do it. He had a good life, never long enough for those of us left to mourn them, but your pain will ease and you will remember him with happiness. I feel certain we meet them again someday. Candace |
#5
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"Gregory Bailey" wrote in message
nk.net Anyway, she made the point when we talked that if we took these heroic measures to try to buy him a few weeks, we'd be doing it for us, not for him, and that we should end his sickness and suffering ... which we did today./// I am so very sorry to hear this. Not only do you have my profound sympathies, but you also have my deepest respect for thinking of him rather than yourselves. We'll light a candle for his journey to the Bridge & keep him in our thoughts. Helen M -- Posted via Mailgate.ORG Server - http://www.Mailgate.ORG |
#6
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"Gregory Bailey" wrote in message nk.net... I posted earlier this year about our 14-year-old neutered black male Moses, who we nearly lost to IBD before getting a handle on things with proper food, medication, etc., helped by info I received from nice folks here and elsewhere. I mentioned at the time that we had another cat, Bartholemew, also a 14-year-old neutered male, an orange tabby, who was the picture of health and had never showed any IBD symptoms. Oh no, I'm so sorry You have my sympathies. What a shock! -Kelly |
#7
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I am so very sorry to hear about Bartholemew. My heart goes out to you. Carol "Gregory Bailey" wrote in message nk.net... I posted earlier this year about our 14-year-old neutered black male Moses, who we nearly lost to IBD before getting a handle on things with proper food, medication, etc., helped by info I received from nice folks here and elsewhere. I mentioned at the time that we had another cat, Bartholemew, also a 14-year-old neutered male, an orange tabby, who was the picture of health and had never showed any IBD symptoms. Over the last month or so, we started noticing that Bartholemew was not eating normally and appeared to be losing a bit of weight. It was noticeable because we'd been feeding him the same high-grade food we'd been feeding Moses, and Bartholemew actually got a bit pudgy on the diet. In hindsight, we probably should've taken him to the vet right off, but he's always been kind of a picky eater so we kept changing foods, etc., trying to find something he'd like, and there were times when it appeared that he was putting a bit of weight back on and he never did act obviously sick or anything, in a lot of ways he was his usual frisky self. However, over the last week to 10 days, he just about stopped eating and did start showing signs of being obviously sick, to the point of hiding from us all day long and not coming out unless we dragged him out. He got emaciated to the point of looking skeletal, went from being a bit thin to having lost nearly half his body weight really, really fast. So, we took him to the vet, they did the appropriate tests, exams, X-rays, bloodwork, etc., and found that he was absolutely riddled with cancer, definitely in the liver and most likely in the kidneys and gall bladder as well, probably pretty much diffuse throughout his abdomen. Our vet called this a.m. after discussing the case with some colleagues and said that there were things that could be done to "make him feel better" ... heavy prednisone, a few other things ... but that it would only be pallative treatment and that in the end, he would either lie down one day and die on his own or we would have to have him euthanized. He said the best-case scenario would be six months, but that in his judgment we'd be lucky to get anywhere close to that. My wife and I had already discussed this before the phone call ... he was her cat and predated me on the scene; she got him from the pound when he was a kitten and found out later that he was most likely only three weeks old at the time, when the youngest age at which a cat is supposed to be available for adoption is six weeks, so if she hadn't have gotten him, he'd likely have been euthanized within a matter of days, because he was sickly at the time and in fact nearly died from intestinal problems right after she got him, and she nursed him back to health. It's not registering with her now because she's grief-stricken, but I've told her over and over and our vet pointed out the same thing today, that she deserves a lot of credit for providing this cat with 14 years of good life that he all but certainly would not have had otherwise. Anyway, she made the point when we talked that if we took these heroic measures to try to buy him a few weeks, we'd be doing it for us, not for him, and that we should end his sickness and suffering ... which we did today. So, we have only Moses now, and I just wanted to thank everyone for the help they offered earlier this year, because we were within an eyelash of losing him as well, and now he's healthy and hearty and robust and hopefully we will have him around for at least a few more years. |
#8
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Oh I am so sorry to hear this. IT's a amazing how quickly that can come on
My sincere condolences. "Gregory Bailey" wrote in message nk.net... I posted earlier this year about our 14-year-old neutered black male Moses, who we nearly lost to IBD before getting a handle on things with proper food, medication, etc., helped by info I received from nice folks here and elsewhere. I mentioned at the time that we had another cat, Bartholemew, also a 14-year-old neutered male, an orange tabby, who was the picture of health and had never showed any IBD symptoms. Over the last month or so, we started noticing that Bartholemew was not eating normally and appeared to be losing a bit of weight. It was noticeable because we'd been feeding him the same high-grade food we'd been feeding Moses, and Bartholemew actually got a bit pudgy on the diet. In hindsight, we probably should've taken him to the vet right off, but he's always been kind of a picky eater so we kept changing foods, etc., trying to find something he'd like, and there were times when it appeared that he was putting a bit of weight back on and he never did act obviously sick or anything, in a lot of ways he was his usual frisky self. However, over the last week to 10 days, he just about stopped eating and did start showing signs of being obviously sick, to the point of hiding from us all day long and not coming out unless we dragged him out. He got emaciated to the point of looking skeletal, went from being a bit thin to having lost nearly half his body weight really, really fast. So, we took him to the vet, they did the appropriate tests, exams, X-rays, bloodwork, etc., and found that he was absolutely riddled with cancer, definitely in the liver and most likely in the kidneys and gall bladder as well, probably pretty much diffuse throughout his abdomen. Our vet called this a.m. after discussing the case with some colleagues and said that there were things that could be done to "make him feel better" ... heavy prednisone, a few other things ... but that it would only be pallative treatment and that in the end, he would either lie down one day and die on his own or we would have to have him euthanized. He said the best-case scenario would be six months, but that in his judgment we'd be lucky to get anywhere close to that. My wife and I had already discussed this before the phone call ... he was her cat and predated me on the scene; she got him from the pound when he was a kitten and found out later that he was most likely only three weeks old at the time, when the youngest age at which a cat is supposed to be available for adoption is six weeks, so if she hadn't have gotten him, he'd likely have been euthanized within a matter of days, because he was sickly at the time and in fact nearly died from intestinal problems right after she got him, and she nursed him back to health. It's not registering with her now because she's grief-stricken, but I've told her over and over and our vet pointed out the same thing today, that she deserves a lot of credit for providing this cat with 14 years of good life that he all but certainly would not have had otherwise. Anyway, she made the point when we talked that if we took these heroic measures to try to buy him a few weeks, we'd be doing it for us, not for him, and that we should end his sickness and suffering ... which we did today. So, we have only Moses now, and I just wanted to thank everyone for the help they offered earlier this year, because we were within an eyelash of losing him as well, and now he's healthy and hearty and robust and hopefully we will have him around for at least a few more years. |
#9
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On Thu, 11 Aug 2005 06:07:02 +0000, Gregory Bailey wrote:
I posted earlier this year about our 14-year-old neutered black male Moses, who we nearly lost to IBD before getting a handle on things with proper food, medication, etc., helped by info I received from nice folks here and elsewhere. I mentioned at the time that we had another cat, Bartholemew, also a 14-year-old neutered male, an orange tabby, who was the picture of health and had never showed any IBD symptoms. Over the last month or so, we started noticing that Bartholemew was not eating normally and appeared to be losing a bit of weight. It was noticeable because we'd been feeding him the same high-grade food we'd been feeding Moses, and Bartholemew actually got a bit pudgy on the diet. In hindsight, we probably should've taken him to the vet right off, but he's always been kind of a picky eater so we kept changing foods, etc., trying to find something he'd like, and there were times when it appeared that he was putting a bit of weight back on and he never did act obviously sick or anything, in a lot of ways he was his usual frisky self. However, over the last week to 10 days, he just about stopped eating and did start showing signs of being obviously sick, to the point of hiding from us all day long and not coming out unless we dragged him out. He got emaciated to the point of looking skeletal, went from being a bit thin to having lost nearly half his body weight really, really fast. So, we took him to the vet, they did the appropriate tests, exams, X-rays, bloodwork, etc., and found that he was absolutely riddled with cancer, definitely in the liver and most likely in the kidneys and gall bladder as well, probably pretty much diffuse throughout his abdomen. Our vet called this a.m. after discussing the case with some colleagues and said that there were things that could be done to "make him feel better" ... heavy prednisone, a few other things ... but that it would only be pallative treatment and that in the end, he would either lie down one day and die on his own or we would have to have him euthanized. He said the best-case scenario would be six months, but that in his judgment we'd be lucky to get anywhere close to that. My wife and I had already discussed this before the phone call ... he was her cat and predated me on the scene; she got him from the pound when he was a kitten and found out later that he was most likely only three weeks old at the time, when the youngest age at which a cat is supposed to be available for adoption is six weeks, so if she hadn't have gotten him, he'd likely have been euthanized within a matter of days, because he was sickly at the time and in fact nearly died from intestinal problems right after she got him, and she nursed him back to health. It's not registering with her now because she's grief-stricken, but I've told her over and over and our vet pointed out the same thing today, that she deserves a lot of credit for providing this cat with 14 years of good life that he all but certainly would not have had otherwise. Anyway, she made the point when we talked that if we took these heroic measures to try to buy him a few weeks, we'd be doing it for us, not for him, and that we should end his sickness and suffering ... which we did today. So, we have only Moses now, and I just wanted to thank everyone for the help they offered earlier this year, because we were within an eyelash of losing him as well, and now he's healthy and hearty and robust and hopefully we will have him around for at least a few more years. "...rise up slowly, Angel. It's hard to let you go..." MLB |
#10
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Gregory Bailey wrote:
Anyway, she made the point when we talked that if we took these heroic measures to try to buy him a few weeks, we'd be doing it for us, not for him, and that we should end his sickness and suffering ... which we did today. This is so difficult. I am SO sorry for you, your wife and your precious furbabe. Hugs, purrs, headbutts, all those warm and fuzzy things. Kitty is no longer suffering and he has you to thank for that. HUGS!!!!!!!!!! pam, luna and dudley |
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