Saying goodbye to pets

I can't believe I'm doing this but today I'm booking an appointment to say goodbye to my namesake, Mittens (her appointment is on Tuesday). After 15 years of life, she developed cancer of the mouth. It's gotten so bad recently that she's not eating, not grooming and blood is coming out of her mouth. This has been the hardest decision I've ever had to do because sometimes one wonders whether it's time. I do know it is because well, she's not happy no matter how much she tries. It always amazes me as to how much animal companions give to us without asking much in return -- and give it totally without judgement or much complaining.

But as hard as this decision is, I know it is the right decision for her. So I say goodbye to the kitten who was given to me to help me deal with my mom's murder and ask nothing more of me than to be loved. Good bye, little mittens.

Sorry to hear that MsM,

I know how you feel, as I had to have one of my guys put to sleep a few years back.............. he had cancer as well.

It is not an easy decision but in the end their quality of life must come first.

I am so sorry to hear that Ms Mittens

I have had to make that decision a couple of times now...and it never gets any easier.

Nihil is right...sometimes you have no choice...it is the best decision you can make.

OMG...I have a tear in my eye

MLF

My heart is crying for you. 2 years ago I had to escort my autistic son through this process with his yellow lab. The dog was his best friend.

We all laid down on the vet clinic floor, my son hugging the dog, me hugging both of them when the shot was given. I've been through a lot in my then 47 years, but that was the worst day of my life. The decision is easy, carying it out is the hard part.

We never replaced that dog, we couldn't.

I lost my 14 yo Brittany this week (Remy), so I feel for you.

I don't envy you that. I came very close to having to do it but the day of the appointment the dog died on its own, just a few hours before I was supposed to go.

Sorry to hear that, I too had the same issue to face with our little dog about a year ago. 3 months ago our neighbour was going to get their 6 month old puppy put down, we now have her and she's mad as hell and makes us all laugh.

Moral of story: it is very hard but it is the right decision - quality of their life comes first. I would encourage you to take time to heal but don't say you will never get another pet again, you've had a pet in your life for a long time and got great company from her, so it's a part of your life that needs to continue when you are ready for it.

Wolfe.

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Originally Posted by WolfeTone

Sorry to hear that, I too had the same issue to face with our little dog about a year ago. 3 months ago our neighbour was going to get their 6 month old puppy put down, we now have her and she's mad as hell and makes us all laugh.

Moral of story: it is very hard but it is the right decision - quality of their life comes first. I would encourage you to take time to heal but don't say you will never get another pet again, you've had a pet in your life for a long time and got great company from her, so it's a part of your life that needs to continue when you are ready for it.

Wolfe.

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We have 3 other cats, including a new addition that looks like a miniature version of Mittens. We just got her and her sibling about 2 months ago. There is a reason for everything, IMO. And thank you everyone for the support.

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Originally Posted by MsMittens

We have 3 other cats, including a new addition that looks like a miniature version of Mittens. We just got her and her sibling about 2 months ago. There is a reason for everything, IMO. And thank you everyone for the support.

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So sorry to hear of your poor kitty, losing a pet is like losing a family member. Sometimes i like my dog better than certain people in my family.


:(

3 weeks ago, I lost my black lab. He was only 7. I completely understand your feelings along with the agonizing decision to let go. Think of it this way, you provided the best life possible for her lifespan. Unfortunately, pets don't live as long as humans. Your making the right choice. It takes a great deal of compassion and love to perform the ultimate act of humane treatment.

--TH13

Sorry to hear about that. I've lost lots of pets over my life. I still miss my Piranhas to this day.

One thing that may be worth thinking about, look at something call an African Parrot. These things can live for 70 years which is much more than a dog or a cat and they also can "talk". They're also really good pets. The price to buy one initially is going to sting a bit at up to 1,000 dollars but they do make really nice pets, they let you pet them, you can even teach them things as they're very intelligent.

The longer life span is one reason I brought that up. It would most likely outlive the owner.

I've had a crap load of pets in my life. Everything from Birds, dogs, cats, fish, reptiles, and they all have something to add to your life.

We had to have our cat put down last year and it was REALLY hard. What seemed to help, was giving it two weeks, and getting a new pet right away after that.

We adopted Pumpkin, our new cat, and he helped get over that part of it.

We also adopted another cat now that we're in a bigger house and named her UNIX. She's small, fast and light weight so the name stuck lol.

They play together good and help keep each other from getting to bored.

If you like Reptiles at all, I recommend a Bearded Dragon, or a Leopard Gecko. Those are the most "attention friendly" of the reptile world.

For fish, since you're in the north, go with Red Belly Piranhas. They're very good pets too and neat to raise.

Also for fish a Red Devil is a great pet. Mine I trained to eat from my fingers without biting and even let me pet it.

Another cat is obviously an option too. It's better than feeling like there is an empty space somewhere.

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Originally Posted by gore

Also for fish a Red Devil is a great pet. Mine I trained to eat from my fingers without biting and even let me pet it.

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I had a big cichlid that would do that years ago. It was a Jack Dempsey, great fish.

I thought about the parrot thing, they always seemed pretty cool. I just didn't know if I wanted a bird that would outlive me possibly.

The problem with pets outlasting their owners is the fact that they usually go "mental" when they know their owner will no longer be there for them.

Case in point: about 3 years ago, around my dad's birthday, my grandmother died of pancreatic cancer. She had a chihuahua, named Bitzi, which was about 13 or 14 years old. We were all gathered around her bed when she died, struggling to breathe through all the fluid in her lungs. The dog immediately jumped on the bed, and began growling at all of us after she died. After we buried my grandmother, we gave her dog to one of my aunts.

The dog wouldn't let anyone else get close to her, and she would often bite. Finally, about a month and a half after my grandmother's funeral, Bitzi ran away from my aunt, into the road where she got ran over and died.

Just explaining why getting a pet with a long life may not be the best thing, is all...

MsMittens: I am so sorry for your loss. I have a little kitty named elis [short for elisty] that is one of my favorite things. I cannot imagine the pain I will feel when she departs our company. Your plight definitely brings a tear to my eye... I pray that the void will be filled. Keep your chin up.

Sorry to hear about your cat. I've lost two peach faced love birds as a kid and i know it must be a pretty painful time. My prayers are with you in this hard time...

MsMittens, so sorry to hear about your kitty. It's not an easy choice to make, but there was great comfort to me in knowing that I had given my dog the best life possible, and I was there to hold and comfort him in the end. That was very preferable to me to allowing it to possibly die in pain and alone while I was at work. I felt like it'd had my love for years, and it deserved to have my love in the end too.

It's an empty spot in your life, but the memories will start to overtake the sad hole before too long.

You can see the original of this post with pictures here

Well, we're back and Mittens is now out of her suffering. Forever a character to the end, she spent part of this morning playing with the water in the toilet. I never knew why she was so fascinated by it but she did like to paw at it and make little waves. It went quick once they did inject her. Someone had said that I would be glad I did it now and that I would probably have feelings of regret for not doing it sooner. And they were right. The vet weighed her and she had lost 2lbs in the last month! (keep in mind she was about 10-10.5lbs during her last visit, which was at the end of Jan/beginning of Feb).

But I don't want this to be a sad post. For many of you who never met her, I want to tell about how this amazing kitten impacted my life. She was given to me around September/October, 1992 -- a few months after my mom's murder. I was teetering on the edge of full blown depression and here I had this little bundle of furr in my arms, purring madly, looking at me. The first night I put her beside me on my pillow and for the next 15 years, she pretty much remained there. Mittens was kind and gentle but also playful and inquisitive. Here are some of my memories of her:

When I lived with my dad I would take Robbie, the family corgie, out for walks. And who would follow us through the park and into the woods but Mittens.

I remember coming home one day and seeing Mittens with another cat (almost a duplicate of mittens but larger). They had caught a bird, a feat for Mittens since she was declawed in her front paws.

I remember walking home from the vets after Mittens had been groomed. She had a pink ribbon around her neck and insisted on following me rather than being carried. We walked down the whole street (it was a quiet street in Mississauga) until we got home.

I remember a big winter storm in Mississauga that dumped about 2-3 feet of snow and see just a little black tip as Mittens played in the fluffy stuff.

I remember Mittens playing tag with Robbie and knowing where every carpet was so that Robbie slid into the walls while she turned on a dime.

I remember having my first apartment and Mittens catching about 9 mice one night! Claws or no claws, she was an expert mouser.

Mittens always tried to convince the birds they should play with her. She would attempt this by "chirping" at them.

Mittens always looked for a lap because she knew if she found one she'd also likely find some petting and would purr loudly for it. She was also talkative, "answering" questions posed of her.

She knew how to find little cubby holes to hide from the youngins' when they got out of hand but loved a good piece of string or a fake mouse at any time.

She aptly got her name when she hid in a bunch of mittens to get away from Robbie. There were times I would open a drawer and find a furry kitten head pop out. She had this ability to climb up the back of the dresser and sleep in my clothes. To this day I do not have a piece of clothing that is not covered by black fur from her sleeping on it.

Goodbye, my little Mittens. I will miss you but I am ever so grateful and thankful that I had you in my life for the last 15 years.

You can see a video of Mittens here

My heartfelt condolences :(

I've lost a good number of critters over the years and I can only echo what horse said. Seems like you made the most of the time you were given together, which is the best anyone of us can ever hope for.

Take care, MsM. Making that decision is undoubtably a painful one.

Lost many pets in my youth due to thier natural death...old age, disease, lost in the woods somewhere and killed by predators, etc. Never had to put any of them down professionally and by choice. It must hurt something awful.

RIP Mittens.

O

Sorry to hear about that :(

Thoughts are with you.