RIP Munchkin

[itgirl]

i had to put my kitty to sleep tonight. we just found out last week that she has feline leukemia. we only had her for 3 weeks, she was a stray that we took in. munchkin was the best cat ever, and i am not a cat person. she was a lap cat, liked to curl up and sleep on me. the little darling was only 6 months old. there will never be another cat like her.

we were treating her for a cold she had and she suddenly went downhill all at once. she just recently began coughing up and passing blood, the worst of which she experienced today. my 2 girls took it real hard. i've spent the evening consoling them and trying to explain life's cruelty. i am taking comfort in knowing that she is no longer suffering. i miss her though.

i'll attach some pics from her better days...

[NONE_too_SOFT]

im not a cat person, but i do like friendly cats... thats why i'm going to refrain from some asshole comment about how cats suck and instead send you dirty pictures of pussies.

[BobTheBiker]

Sorry. having to send a beloved creature such as that off to the next life sucks, I've had to go through it too many times.

[itgirl]

thanks fellas. i am sooo not a cat person myself, but this one was different. she was a lap cat. not all aloof and disinterested like cats usually are.

[NONE_too_SOFT]

thanks fellas. i am sooo not a cat person myself, but this one was different. she was a lap cat. not all aloof and disinterested like cats usually are.

in my experience most kittens are. once they get older they tend to disassociate.

[comonboys]

Sorry to hear about your loss itgirl. I know I would be upset for weeks if I lost either of my babies (aka the cats that cutty likes to say are stupid). They are a quiet comfort when you are feeling sick. Both mine know when I don't feel good and like curling up with mommy to take naps.....

[OneSickPsycho]

Damnit, I'm gonna lose my mind when I have to put The Bear down. Fuck that shit.

[comonboys]

Damnit, I'm gonna lose my mind when I have to put The Bear down. Fuck that shit.

i know what you mean..... If I ever lost Devil or Sqweuki, i would be put in the insane asylum for a while. The Devil is now 7, so hopefully like her grandma that my parents had forever she lives to be 20..... I don't know by then if I will get a new one or what...... Cutty hates them. But by then we better have some kids running around so it would really depend on them...

[BobTheBiker]

I honestly dont know what I'm going to do when my best 4 legged friend dies. I'm sure its going to put me over the edge, and I know being alone wont be good.

These are most surely the best friends a person can have. mine even knows when he's done something wrong, and I think he even feels guilt.

[OTB]

Few years ago we lost our Golden and our 2-20 yr old cats within 3 months of each other..........coulnd't take much more.

We now have 2 Goldens, different ages and two cats different ages.........


Sorry about your loss.

[Amber Lamps]

My heartfelt condolences on your loss.:sorry:

[nhgunnut]

I am sorry for your loss. My cats are like family.

[Audiomechanic]

I know how you feel and I'm sorry for your loss itgirl. :(

I'm very much so a cat person (can't handle loud hyper animals) and EVERY cat I have ever owned has been a cuddle cat all the way til adulthood. It's always hard letting them go, especially when they're just a kitten. :cry:

[Gas Man]

I myself have 2 cats and obviously the new dog. And it was just a year past last november that we had to put our golden down. She was a good dog, but was suffering from intestinal cancer. I know she was better off but I felt like such a failure as her protector, such an asshole for having to have her put down. We stayed with her till the end that way she didn't die alone. She would have done the same for us. I still miss her when I think about her. Her collar is still in the garage on the cabinets in honor of her.

I know the pain that is caused by having to go thru that. I'm sorry you have to endure that. It will get better. I suggest you get a picture of her in a frame and put it out for display. One of her playing or just being cute. You may have to wait a while but then it will remind you of all the catnip heaven that she is in now.

[itgirl]

thanks for all the support, gang. i really appreciate it. i wasn't in the room when they put her to sleep. now i kinda wish i woulda been. i hate the thought of her dying alone in that sterile environment. i just hope she knows how much she was loved in her short stay with us.

[neebelung]

:( Oh sweetie, I'm so sorry......

RIP lil Munchkin.

[Gas Man]

Well Kim its a double sided sword on being with them. Its hard to be there, watch it... I'm sorry for making you question it... I was just trying to tell a story. <hugs>

[Audiomechanic]

I myself have 2 cats and obviously the new dog. And it was just a year past last november that we had to put our golden down. She was a good dog, but was suffering from intestinal cancer. I know she was better off but I felt like such a failure as her protector, such an asshole for having to have her put down. We stayed with her till the end that way she didn't die alone. She would have done the same for us. I still miss her when I think about her. Her collar is still in the garage on the cabinets in honor of her.

I know the pain that is caused by having to go thru that. I'm sorry you have to endure that. It will get better. I suggest you get a picture of her in a frame and put it out for display. One of her playing or just being cute. You may have to wait a while but then it will remind you of all the catnip heaven that she is in now.

My God, Gas. Beautifully worded, well said.

Itgirl, I'm thinkin about you, hun. It's amazing how much animals can become major parts of the family.

[the chi]

Im sorry for your loss sweetie...I know exactly how you feel and the only thing I can say is, just remember how much you loved her and did your best for her.

[Dave]

im sorry for your loss itgirl, my kitten started vomiting the other day from something he wasnt supposed to eat and i was panicing about that. i couldnt imagine having to let him go like that

[itgirl]

Well Kim its a double sided sword on being with them. Its hard to be there, watch it... I'm sorry for making you question it... I was just trying to tell a story. <hugs>

no, it's okay. i was in the room with my mom when she had 2 dogs put down. i grew up with those dogs, so i know what it is like to hold them as they take their last breath. this vet we took the kitty to didn't really make it seem like an option to stay with her as she was euthanized. she said we could say goobye and let her know when it was time. when she did give me the option i was trying to console the kids and opted to go out to the other room with them instead. i think if they weren't there at the time i would have stayed in for it. i must say that watching your pet die is the hardest thing i have ever done, other than watching my father die. it's never easy, whether they are 6 months old or 20 years old. i think not being in there for it may have helped me stay strong for the kids though.

[Gas Man]

Oh yeah I still remember even the sound of my golden taking her last breath. It was horrible and the sound will haunt me till I am in her place taking my last breath.

You can see her collar (on the right) as I said hanging in the garage in memorial.

http://i99.photobucket.com/albums/l311/cjclark69/BDM/OUCH/Rebuild/Day15025a.jpg

[the chi]

Holding your beloved pet while they pass is by far a terrible and scarring event, and is not something you'll ever forget. My first time was at the age of 11, and for 10 years I never had another pet.

Weighed against you holding your pet tho, or consoling your children, Itgirl you made the right decision. She passed peacefully and your children needed and will need you far more than she did at that moment. Not to mention, if it was that hard for you being out of the room, it would have been much worse if youd been there.

[NONE_too_SOFT]

Holding your beloved pet while they pass is by far a terrible and scarring event, and is not something you'll ever forget. My first time was at the age of 11, and for 10 years I never had another pet.

Weighed against you holding your pet tho, or consoling your children, Itgirl you made the right decision. She passed peacefully and your children needed and will need you far more than she did at that moment. Not to mention, if it was that hard for you being out of the room, it would have been much worse if youd been there.

try doing it with a person.

I've been there twice, not with a relative of mine, but a person none the less... the first time was scary. She was comfort care only (basically we're only going to dope her up until she dies, because she'd signed away continuing care) and slowing watching her heart rate and blood pressure drop on the monitor was surreal. she had no family, and it was early in the morning, so nobody was really around. by the last ten minutes we just take her off the monitors, and you know they're dead when they stop breathing. then we bag em up. Its a scary reminder of our own mortality.

[the chi]

try doing it with a person.

I've been there twice, not with a relative of mine, but a person none the less... the first time was scary. She was comfort care only (basically we're only going to dope her up until she dies, because she'd signed away continuing care) and slowing watching her heart rate and blood pressure drop on the monitor was surreal. she had no family, and it was early in the morning, so nobody was really around. by the last ten minutes we just take her off the monitors, and you know they're dead when they stop breathing. then we bag em up. Its a scary reminder of our own mortality.

Sadly enough, I have but it was someone i knew. It still makes me cry.

My neighbor and her husband were friends of ours. One morning she comes screaming for help, I thought the dog was sick. Turns out it was her husband, she was so distraught she couldnt function. We thought it was a stroke or something, I corresponded with 911, I held him in my arms, tried everything they told me and I was the last person he ever saw. By the time help got there he had slipped away and never woke up. He died the same day. It was an aneurism. I never want to be there again.

[MikeSP1]

It sucks, it always does. I had to put down three dogs when I was growing up. All three of them were awesome, they just got old. Not something I'm gonna forget. Sorry that you had go through the same thing.

I also watched my great-grandfather pass in the hospital a couple years back. I can honestly say that I do not want to do anything like that ever again. But I also realize that many of the people around me are honor-bound, and I was there was to honor him as he passed (almost like an honor guard). People get old and eventually we all die, it's just a fact of life and even at that age I understood it. It was just being there with him as he went just so that he wouldn't go alone.

[itgirl]

i've been there myself as well. had to remove my father from life-support. i coulda chose to wait outside, but i never woulda forgiven myself for not being there holding his hand as he transitioned from this life into the next. he went very peacefully though. no side effects or anything. he was ready. that was a life altering experience that forever changed the person i am.

Holding your beloved pet while they pass is by far a terrible and scarring event, and is not something you'll ever forget. My first time was at the age of 11, and for 10 years I never had another pet.

Weighed against you holding your pet tho, or consoling your children, Itgirl you made the right decision. She passed peacefully and your children needed and will need you far more than she did at that moment. Not to mention, if it was that hard for you being out of the room, it would have been much worse if youd been there.

thanks, rae. that was beautifully worded. i think i made the right decision in the end.

[NONE_too_SOFT]

i've been there myself as well. had to remove my father from life-support. i coulda chose to wait outside, but i never woulda forgiven myself for not being there holding his hand as he transitioned from this life into the next. he went very peacefully though. no side effects or anything. he was ready. that was a life altering experience that forever changed the person i am.



thanks, rae. that was beautifully worded. i think i made the right decision in the end.


lol, please forgive me for being a smart ass in a sad situation, but what are typical side effects of death?

[itgirl]

lol, please forgive me for being a smart ass in a sad situation, but what are typical side effects of death?

:lol: well, not to take you too seriously or anything, but the doctor warned us that he may make gurgling/gasping noises or may shake or something (i don't remember everything exactly, was in shock a bit myself). things that might make it appear violent to us, so that we may prepare ourselves. none of that happened though. when the machines stopped, he just slipped quietly away. that's what i was referring to, butthead. :)

[NONE_too_SOFT]

:lol: well, not to take you too seriously or anything, but the doctor warned us that he may make gurgling/gasping noises or may shake or something (i don't remember everything exactly, was in shock a bit myself). things that might make it appear violent to us, so that we may prepare ourselves. none of that happened though. when the machines stopped, he just slipped quietly away. that's what i was referring to, butthead. :)

i know IG, but we refer to those as death complications or adverse quietus . most people dont have those sort of problems if they were relatively healthy before being hospitalized. just poking your ribs.

[Gas Man]

i've been there myself as well. had to remove my father from life-support. i coulda chose to wait outside, but i never woulda forgiven myself for not being there holding his hand as he transitioned from this life into the next. he went very peacefully though. no side effects or anything. he was ready. that was a life altering experience that forever changed the person i am.



thanks, rae. that was beautifully worded. i think i made the right decision in the end.
Oh with your girls with you... by all means you made the right decision. At the end of the day they must be your ultimate concern.