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When is it time? (Kinda long)



 
 
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  #1  
Old July 6th 03, 09:05 AM
Suzie-Q
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default When is it time? (Kinda long)

I have to decide whether or not to put down my 19-year-old
cat, Bubba. His littermate, Dufus, died of natural causes in
February. Until then, Bubba seemed fine, but now he's getting
thinner and weaker day by day. He eats and drinks as much as
he ever did. He poops and pees the normal amount.

As I said, he's getting thin and weak. He has trouble walking.
He can't completely straighten or lift his back legs, and can
only go about 10 feet before he has to stop and rest. When he
walks, the tops of his back paws sort of drag because he can't
lift them. You can even hear his claws dragging on the floor.

He can still jump, but not as high as he used to, and his brain
hasn't figured that out yet. I have had to limit his access to
the highter counters, tables, etc., because he was getting up
there, losing his balance, and then falling off onto the floor.
And in his current condition, he doesn't fall on his feet. He
falls on his butt or his back or his head. He frequently loses
his balance -- even just while he's walking or trying to sit up.

His eyesight and hearing seem to be excellent. I had to give him
a bath because he no longer grooms himself and he was getting
pretty stinky. He hated it, but was too weak to fight it.

He alternates between using his litter box and going on the
newspaper that is on the floor outside of the box. (Before the
newspaper, he would go on the floor.) It doesn't seem to
matter what condition the litter box is in -- clean or not so
clean. When he goes on the paper, his back legs, and sometimes
his tail and even his belly, get wet with urine, so I have to
clean him up.

I have always thought that the time to euthanize is when the
animal's quality of life has gone way down, when the animal no
longer has any joy in his life. Now that I'm faced with this
decision for the first time, I find myself rethinking the
quality of life issue. How bad does it have to get before you
put down a beloved pet and companion of 19 years?

Bubba still recognizes me, wants me to hold him, and shows
pleasure when I do. But I can't stop thinking of the pain he
must be in and the effort he must have to make to get around.

That's why I'm here. I would like to hear some honest and
compassionate opinions from people who have been where I am
now. Please let me know what you think.

Thank you,

8^|~~~ Sue (remove the x to e-mail)
~~~~~~

"I reserve the absolute right to be smarter
today than I was yesterday." -Adlai Stevenson
*************************************************
http://www.eckhardt.net/suzanne/
*************************************************
Due to the receipt of unmanagable amounts of SPAM,
I have had to add an extra letter to my e-mail
address. Remove the "x" to contact me directly.
  #2  
Old July 7th 03, 04:59 AM
Suzie-Q
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

Kalyahna wrote:

"Suzie-Q" wrote:

I have to decide whether or not to put down my 19-year-old
cat, Bubba. His littermate, Dufus, died of natural causes in
February. Until then, Bubba seemed fine, but now he's getting
thinner and weaker day by day. He eats and drinks as much as
he ever did. He poops and pees the normal amount.

As I said, he's getting thin and weak. He has trouble walking.
He can't completely straighten or lift his back legs, and can
only go about 10 feet before he has to stop and rest. When he
walks, the tops of his back paws sort of drag because he can't
lift them. You can even hear his claws dragging on the floor.

He can still jump, but not as high as he used to, and his brain
hasn't figured that out yet. I have had to limit his access to
the highter counters, tables, etc., because he was getting up
there, losing his balance, and then falling off onto the floor.
And in his current condition, he doesn't fall on his feet. He
falls on his butt or his back or his head. He frequently loses
his balance -- even just while he's walking or trying to sit up.

His eyesight and hearing seem to be excellent. I had to give him
a bath because he no longer grooms himself and he was getting
pretty stinky. He hated it, but was too weak to fight it.

He alternates between using his litter box and going on the
newspaper that is on the floor outside of the box. (Before the
newspaper, he would go on the floor.) It doesn't seem to
matter what condition the litter box is in -- clean or not so
clean. When he goes on the paper, his back legs, and sometimes
his tail and even his belly, get wet with urine, so I have to
clean him up.

I have always thought that the time to euthanize is when the
animal's quality of life has gone way down, when the animal no
longer has any joy in his life. Now that I'm faced with this
decision for the first time, I find myself rethinking the
quality of life issue. How bad does it have to get before you
put down a beloved pet and companion of 19 years?

Bubba still recognizes me, wants me to hold him, and shows
pleasure when I do. But I can't stop thinking of the pain he
must be in and the effort he must have to make to get around.

That's why I'm here. I would like to hear some honest and
compassionate opinions from people who have been where I am
now. Please let me know what you think.

Thank you,

8^|~~~ Sue (remove the x to e-mail)


I had a purebred Persian when I was little. I was only seventeen when she
got sick.
She suffered, day after day. She couldn't control her bowels and eventually
had to be confined so she wouldn't mess everywhere. She cried continually,
refused to use the litterbox. I tried medication, and eventually the vet
decided she likely had cancer of the bowel wall, but she was too weak to
survive any surgery to be sure. I took her in to see him hoping for the
best, and took her body home to bury her in my mom's flowerbed.

To this day, I regret that my selfishness made her suffer.

We all know that choices like this break our hearts, and we will all grieve
with you, but if your cat cannot keep his balance and your vet has no ideas
for what's behind this... realize that 19 years is a tremendously long time
for a cat to live, he's had the best in this world with you, and you
will -always- have your memories of him.


Thank you for your thoughts.

8^)~~~ Sue (remove the x to e-mail)
~~~~~~

"I reserve the absolute right to be smarter
today than I was yesterday." -Adlai Stevenson
*************************************************
http://www.eckhardt.net/suzanne/
*************************************************
Due to the receipt of unmanagable amounts of SPAM,
I have had to add an extra letter to my e-mail
address. Remove the "x" to contact me directly.
  #3  
Old July 7th 03, 01:55 PM
blkcatgal
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

Before you make any decisions, I would take Bubba to the vet to make sure
there isn't anything medically wrong with him that can be corrected. You
are right, quality of life is what is important. But it is possible that
there is something that can be done medically to make Bubba more
comfortable.

Sue

"Suzie-Q" wrote in message
...
I have to decide whether or not to put down my 19-year-old
cat, Bubba. His littermate, Dufus, died of natural causes in
February. Until then, Bubba seemed fine, but now he's getting
thinner and weaker day by day. He eats and drinks as much as
he ever did. He poops and pees the normal amount.

As I said, he's getting thin and weak. He has trouble walking.
He can't completely straighten or lift his back legs, and can
only go about 10 feet before he has to stop and rest. When he
walks, the tops of his back paws sort of drag because he can't
lift them. You can even hear his claws dragging on the floor.

He can still jump, but not as high as he used to, and his brain
hasn't figured that out yet. I have had to limit his access to
the highter counters, tables, etc., because he was getting up
there, losing his balance, and then falling off onto the floor.
And in his current condition, he doesn't fall on his feet. He
falls on his butt or his back or his head. He frequently loses
his balance -- even just while he's walking or trying to sit up.

His eyesight and hearing seem to be excellent. I had to give him
a bath because he no longer grooms himself and he was getting
pretty stinky. He hated it, but was too weak to fight it.

He alternates between using his litter box and going on the
newspaper that is on the floor outside of the box. (Before the
newspaper, he would go on the floor.) It doesn't seem to
matter what condition the litter box is in -- clean or not so
clean. When he goes on the paper, his back legs, and sometimes
his tail and even his belly, get wet with urine, so I have to
clean him up.

I have always thought that the time to euthanize is when the
animal's quality of life has gone way down, when the animal no
longer has any joy in his life. Now that I'm faced with this
decision for the first time, I find myself rethinking the
quality of life issue. How bad does it have to get before you
put down a beloved pet and companion of 19 years?

Bubba still recognizes me, wants me to hold him, and shows
pleasure when I do. But I can't stop thinking of the pain he
must be in and the effort he must have to make to get around.

That's why I'm here. I would like to hear some honest and
compassionate opinions from people who have been where I am
now. Please let me know what you think.

Thank you,

8^|~~~ Sue (remove the x to e-mail)
~~~~~~

"I reserve the absolute right to be smarter
today than I was yesterday." -Adlai Stevenson
*************************************************
http://www.eckhardt.net/suzanne/
*************************************************
Due to the receipt of unmanagable amounts of SPAM,
I have had to add an extra letter to my e-mail
address. Remove the "x" to contact me directly.





 




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