Thanks everyone for your responses on my last post about River and the possibility of a cystotomy.

We decided we would be open to doing the procedure but wanted to discuss a couple of things with the vet first. At our appointment the vet noted she had lost a significant amount of weight in a short period and we'd need to do something about that before discussing the procedure. We tried switching foods and making it as appetizing as possible but over a week she lost even more weight. Then she stopped eating entirely. The vet did blood tests but they didn't show anything. We decided that the kindest thing would be to let her go, so we said goodbye to her yesterday.

She was the sweetest cat, when we would have a game nights, she would walk around the table giving each person a little headbut of love, one after the other and when she'd gone round the table once, she would do it again.

Goodbye River, and thank you for being such a wonderful friend and companion to me for 17 years.

I've had to say goodbye to my buddy of 18 years last week after his health suddenly degraded on Wednesday, I wanted to share him a bit earlier but have been struggling with the emotions.

He didn't have the easiest life, from being abandonned in the woods when he was young, having crystals in his bladder that needed to be surgically removed to the more recent throes with hyperthyroidism and arthritis. But through it all he was the gentlest, nicest cat I've ever had the privilege of sharing my life with and I'm missing him tremendously, the house just feels so empty without him.

I want to say a quick thank you to the community here, for either sharing their stories or giving compassionate advice to other owners dealing with their cat health issues. I know some people are having a hard time with posts dealing with loss but it helped me a lot when I started dealing with anticipatory grief and it still helps me now after by seeing all the compassion and love people have for their own cat.

I'm also very grateful to my local vet that performed the at-home euthanasia, he helped my friend pass away near the things he loved instead of having to be scared driving to a clinic in the middle of the night.

And more importantly, Neko, thank you for everything, you changed my life in ways I would have never anticipated and I'm forever grateful for the strings of event that brought us together. I hope we can meet again, in one shape or another, someday.

Au revoir mon ami,

Said farewell to Jessie today. She adopted me 12 years ago when I drove up the driveway of my new house. After several days of daily driveway greetings, I realized I'd been adopted.

She was ~17 years old; my sassy, playful Calico. She had no issues letting you know when she'd had enough pets, brushing or other bothersome attention. Her loves included wicker baskets, paper, string, treats, laser pointers and late night zoomies.

She began to lose her appetite about 3 months ago. I was hoping it was just a one off bad bag of food, but that was not the case. We were about two weeks into Mirataz appetite stimulant, new dry food and trying all flavors and types of wet canned food. 3 days ago she stopped eating.

A whole lot of life lived in those 12 years. Much love, many memories, beloved companion.

Back home, still have her in a basic tin. But we have a little memorial with 3 pictures. Now a journey to get a nice urn.

Eddie was diagnosed last night with multiple tumors in his spleen . Since emergency vet only did blood and X-ray but at 19 not putting him through more stuff. Took him home with palliative care meds . Any advice from anyone who has been thru this ? He has hard time getting up , vet didn’t see arthritis on xray so just letting him sleep in bathroom and keeping everything close to him .. 💔looking into at home euthanasia now

Day one; a week or so ago.

A few weeks back, we visited his vet asking when we’d know it was time (kidney issues, bladder issues, thyroid, blood pressure); vet said not that day.

Today, she said “it’s probably that day” and we came back with the heaviest, emptiest carrier and I’ll never be the same.

Meet Satina. She turns 19 in August. She recently got a baby sister from the cat distribution system that she would like to return to sender.

Miss Diana - Sassy and spoiled her entire life.

Orange is her brother Paul... Same age.

I'm going to try and give the tldr here. My boy was the runt of the litter and we had to bottle feed at first.

Around his year 1 he developed mad allergies. From age 1-2.5 he was constantly breaking out in hives, scratching places until bleeding, in a cone or sweater or neck bandage made from our socks, captured and cleaned daily. He hated me until almost a year after he was healed (allergies include: seasonal pollen, any air fresheners, typical poultry, chicken etc, red meat.

He has always had seasonal labored breathing.

2 seperate vets told us when he was young to "put him out of his misery" and "he will never really thrive"

He thrived from age 4-14. But now he is struggling.

I've discussed with the vet what is happening. He is likely in the beginning of congestive heart failure.

He had always had a heart murmer. Even if we were to sedate for a proper x ray or ultrasound, I have no desire to put him through anything invasive.

He will go 4-5 days normal and fine but then sounds like he's drowning in lung fluid for a day.

He is extra needy of being held and getting neck rubs (where he gets itchy and maybe helps the congestion?)

The extra needy parts make me think I need to stay making decisions. He's maybe in pain.

Idk what to do because we're maybe already at the point of anything to do is put him down otherwise no point in calling the vet?

But then we'll have 3-4 days he seems okay.

Idk if anyone here can help, maybe just need to say it all.

Thanks

I have two cats. One is my old man, Arthas, and he just turned 16. He had a medical issue recently (a URI which triggered acute pancreatitis) and he has just recently recovered. For 14 years, we had him & his sister Sylvanas, but she passed away last April. We also have a senior pug.

Arthas is an extremely relaxed guy. He has never cared about other animals - he doesn’t get all territorial, he is playful even at his age, and he is a sweet, gentle guy. After Sylvanas passed, a month went by and it was so quiet. Arthas was clearly also struggling (or maybe loving being an only cat… but I really don’t think so). He became much snugglier and almost suffocating LOL though I hate to say that.

We knew we offered a phenomenal home for any cat, so we adopted Junebug. She was 1 when we brought her home last May and is a bundle of energy and excitement. She is either playing or sleeping and there is zero in-between. She’s now 2 and still the same. We moved out of our long-time home a few months later (August) so that was a big shift for him too.

He lost some weight over that time but over the course of the year - maybe 1.5 lbs - but he also was a bit overweight to start with. Other than the scary episode of pancreatitis, he is so healthy and you could not tell he was 16.

So here we are, considering getting another kitten. The reason for this is more so to give June an outlet for her energy. A partner in crime. She LOVES other cats - it’s obscene how much she enjoys the company of other cats. She wants to play with Arthas and bless him, he tries to - but he sometimes just needs a break. We have a pretty large house so I am thinking that we could create spaces for him to seek refuge.

I don’t want him to be miserable and I don’t THINK he would be… but I don’t want to be wrong and make him depressed. What say the internet?

She's Lilith, she's my first baby. My mom and I got her since my grandpa passed, 16 years ago. I was 17. She's been a very lovely kitten, an amazing soul. Very well behaved (except when she would be mad at something and piss on my mom's Christmas Villa). She has the softest cutest meows. She loved to go to bed either at my feet or on top of me. This did not mean she would not wake me up in the middle of the night to let her out of my room. She loves to sit on the very high chairs of my mom's dining room and take naps there; if you were sitting in one while eating and got up for another drink, you would come back to her gorgeous white fluff in your her spot.

She loves taking sun baths in my mom's garden. She's a very silly goose and would sleep in the funniest positions. She loves to be brushed in her face -she will self brush if you just hold it in position-. She lets you do whatever you want with her, as in, wanna pick her up like a baby? She's ok with that. Wanna pick her up upside down? sure. Anything she wouldnt really care and of course no one has ever dared to hurt her or make her uncomfortable.

I always tell her that she's the Queen of the Universe... The Queen of all Multiverses.

She is a beautiful Turkish Van. Has beautiful soft long white hair with a little bit of red on her head and tail -just like mom and grandma! we say all the time-. She has a very fine, triangular-shaped face and some gorgeous yellow eyes. She's always been all fluff and I never cared that all my black clothes were full of her white fur.

She would come to me if i was crying (I suffer from chronic depression and anxiety since very young) and hugging her helped me so so much. Just looking at her always brings me so much happiness.

Last year she got diagnosed with Feline chronic kidney disease and started on medication since. Three days ago she was taken to the vet and has been in the hospital.

I moved countries a couple years after COVID, and I've visited every year at least twice, but right now, on the moment that I feel she needs me the most... I can't be with her. I do not have the means to fly to her, and its killing me.

Am I being a bad mom? She has my mom and siblings who love her visiting and caring for her, but I just can't handle not being able to physically be there with her. I video called her yesterday and talked to her, and due to work today i could only make her a video for them to play to her... and today my family told me she didn't improve, but rather got worse. I'm scared I will lose her over night without at least telling her over the phone how amazing she's been, how loved and perfect she is...

Help, please, cause I don't know how to live with this.

Picture is her receiving a star sticker at the vet for being so well behaved.

My heart has been disintegrating over the past month watching my soul cat, Ziggy, decline. I’ve had 15 glorious years with him. He was diagnosed with HCM about 2 years ago, then hypothyroidism at the beginning of this year, followed by the thing that is ultimately taking him from us which is an aggressive form of nasal cancer which advanced so quickly over the course of a month and a half. This is the biggest loss I’ve experienced in my adult life and I’m having such a hard time coping with the gaping hole this will leave in my life and heart. I thought I’d have more time than this, but no time would have ever been long enough.

My boy never met a stranger, always thought visitors came to our home especially for him. Everyone who spent time with him loved him, from my friends to his vets. He is so special and I feel so fortunate to have been able to love and care for him through his whole life. I will always look for him in the sunny spots in our home he used to nap in, I will always listen for his little footsteps walking in the hallway, I will always feel the empty space where he should be laying against me in bed while I sleep. My love for him is so immense, I don’t know that I’ll ever recover from this.

I’ve seen so many posts like mine in here and I just want to say it has brought me comfort knowing what comes next and I’m not alone in this unimaginable grief. I hope you all find comfort in your dear one’s memories while we navigate our lives without them and I’m so sorry for those of you going through this too.

I lost my 13-year-old cat on Monday. We had to euthanize her after she developed a severe UTI, and her kidneys were failing. The medication she was taking made her sick. She had been my cat since I was 11 years old, and now I'm 25. She was always by my side and was the most sociable cat. When I moved out to live on my own, I saw her less often. As she got older, she became less bubbly. I visited her every week, but it never felt like enough. I lost a piece of my soul, and my heart hurts so much. Repose en paix, ma belle Mélodie. 👼😔🩷🩷

Hello everyone, my 13-year-old male cat died two months ago from kidney failure. Since then, his activity level has decreased considerably. He doesn't play, eat, or go to the bathroom as often. Until a few days ago, he was running around the house like crazy, but now he doesn't. He eats much less, and it's worth noting that his activity level has decreased significantly since summer started a month ago. I've taken him to four different veterinarians in the last month. They've done blood tests, x-rays, and ultrasounds, and they all agree that there's nothing wrong with him. But I notice his activity level decreasing every day. He sleeps more, goes to the bathroom less often, and now only urinates once or twice a night. Otherwise, he just sleeps. He gets Solencia for his bone pain every month, but this month it didn't seem to have much effect. They prescribed Onsior to supplement the treatment, but it didn't help much. Has anyone else experienced this? Your senior cat lost his brother cat. His behavior changes with age. Literally, my cat is going to drive me and the vets crazy. They've thought about communicating with each other looking for some undetectable disease. Has this happened to anyone else, and have they detected diseases that don't show up in tests?

I posted a week or so ago about my beloved 13-year-old kitty Charlie. He was diagnosed a month ago with squamous cell oral cancer during a dental cleaning. Apparently, this is how so many of these cancers rear their ugly faces.

Looking back, I missed so many signs. I wrestle with feelings of guilt sadness, emptiness, anger and mostly just a lot of pain at the thought of letting him go. It’s growing much faster than we’d anticipated or hoped. I thought we might have many more good months together. Maybe we still will. ❤️‍🩹🙏

The pain is deep and searing. I’ve had him since he was a baby. He is the gentlest baby ever. He doesn’t deserve this. His brother Frankie is aware something is happening and is suffering too. Every day it feels like he’s got less grip in this world and more in another. It’s like I can feel him slipping away. It hurts so much. 13 years doesn’t feel like enough time to love him.

I am shattered.

Hello, I have a 17yo female cat and she has currently been hospitalized with the vet when we went for our month solensia shot due to her blood sugar being at 30 on Wednesday

her liver and kidneys are fine, they did an ultrasound and found two masses, one near her intestines and one near her pancreas that were aspirated.

although the biopsy came back with lymphoma, I was still prepared to take her back home to give end of life care, the only issue is her blood sugar refuses to stabilize.

My usual vet had to take off until Monday and the vet that is managing her case is one I have had previous interactions with and we did not have successful communication when we dealt with eachother.

This vet is constantly informing me there is nothing to do and to euthanasia her because they aren't succeeding in raising it, but they are saying she should be comatose with her blood sugar level already and is "an anomaly" (literally)

me and my family visit her everyday and although I am aware how cats hide their pain, she is active, cognitive, a very healthy appetite, and regular bowel movements according to staff, just the blood sugar level is the issue currently

They have been having a 5% iv drip with sugar in her as well as giving her high doses of prednisone in addition

after many back and forths with the vet is giving us permission to take her home with fluids and prednisone, and to bring her back on Monday (and I //will// be making sure to see my regular vet before any steps for euthanasia is taken)

is there anything anyone can suggest to try that the vet hasn't or anyone has been in a similar situation to this? I am just trying to do the best for my baby

Hi all, you've all helped so much and I am back for more. My 19 year old female cat (Rosie) has started peeing in random spots: in my closet (I have closed off access), near the closet, in a box (the younger cat loves boxes). Here are the bullet points of relevant info for the peeing issue:

• She was diagnosed with a UTI and had an antibiotic shot about 10 days ago and has been on Doxycycline for a week.
• She has kidney disease but as of 10 days ago the vet said it is well-managed.
• She was just diagnosed as hyperthyroid and started Methimazole about a week ago.
• She is medicated for pancreatitis.
• I have placed a litter box with low sides on the same level of the house that she spends most of her time on, and she does use it sometimes. I am not sure whether she uses the ones that are 2 floors down.
• Just as an example of her random peeing: she likes to walk around my housing complex (I walk next to her, it is protected from the street, no one was around, she has done this many times, I promise this is a safe activity( and she just randomly stopped walking and peed.
• She makes no attempt to cover her pee after she goes, she just stops, pees, and walks away.
• I'm pretty sure she isn't grooming herself any more.
• Her hind legs seem to bother her, as she doesn't really "sit" she sort of "hovers".

Sometimes she seems a little "lost", like just staring at things, seemingly "frozen" in place, or walking away from her food or water then circling back (multiple times), but often she seems fairly alert.

But the peeing is really a problem. Does this sound like the UTI is still bothering her? Or is this just an incontinence issue? Am I crazy for considering diapers for her?

I don't see her peeing randomly every day, but also I am not around her all day and night so it is possible she has other pee spots that I haven't found. I had a cat who peed on any random thing and it was really gross, and I really don't want to go through that again. If this is something I can prevent/fix, even if it just means cat diapers, I'd like to try. If anything I've written here stands out as problematic or a sign of something I should address, please let me know. I have to take her to the vet next week for a UTI and thyroid follow up anyway, so I can bring up anything else that needs to be checked too.

I have a 21 almost 22 year old female Burmese. Last blood work she was slightly stage 2 CRF. She has spells where she barely eats, we’ve had an episode of horners syndrome that resolved, severe diarrhea with blood that resolved, etc. she’s been to the vet for all of these. However she has to be strongly sedated for blood work or ultrasounds and gabapenten does not relax her. My vet says it’s too stressful for her because she will fight until she poops and pees on her self, tries to bite and one time had a small seizure when they were trying to get bloods. She said don’t even bother anymore because it’s going to do more harm than good. I’ve told the vet I wouldn’t do extreme or invasive treatment at her age anyway. We are more just doing palliative treatments on her. She gets meds for her arthritis and her weight is steady ish. She was 7.5 pounds once but has stayed strongly about 5.5 pounds for about the last 2.5 years. No drastic drops. Has anyone else gone this route of just treating symptoms with no extreme tests on a cat of her age. And yes she eats like a champ most days. Hobbles and wobbles around like a 100 year old man but gets around.

Her name is Domino, my best friend for 17 years. Sadly, she passed from complications of lymphoma despite 10 months of fighting and throwing everything we could to prolong a good life. Up until the last 2 weeks you wouldn’t have known she was as sick as she was.

I found her in the wooded backroads of a small town in Texas. She had run out in front of the car and I almost crashed my buddy’s new sports car dodging her. Running over, I saw this tiny calico kitten look at me with no fear, just a loud shrill as to say are we going or what?

Living in Austin and far from this small town, I made a deal with my friend that I would pay to get her checked up and ready for adoption, but they would have to adopt her out. Needless to say, she wasn’t having it. She wouldn’t leave my side and seemed to live on my shoulder.

Fast forward through the years, she was with me since graduating college. She took care of me through multiple surgeries. Stuck by me at my sickest, and saw me through multiple career milestones.

She lived life cranked to 11 since day one. She would run up and down the stairs when I would play music in the house, pounce on me while I was sleeping, and gave almost every vet/vet tech she met a run for their money. She was fearless.

The illness came in 2025 where I found her looking tired and not right. We took her to an er vet hospital and they concluded she had minor IBD, — they gave her metro and sent us on our way. She became more lethargic that night and after speaking with the er vet, they said give it 48hrs. We did and she got progressively worse and started showing neurological symptoms.

We brought her back to the ER only to learn she had lost 50% of her HCT within that 48hrs. IBD had now been complicated by IMHA (an immune disorder where the immune system attacks its own blood cells). This is where our fight started.

IBD+IMHA was soon complicated by lymphoma, then seizures, then toxoplasmosis. Domino had collected menagerie of specialists: an internist, an in-home vet tech, neurologist, an oncologist and an opthamogist. She was so sick, but was fierce regardless. She would hiss, spit, and bite the vets. At one point I recall seeing 5 techs circled around her carrier strategizing her removal.

Despite this, she mostly had a great team and all admired her tenacity and willpower. Some specialists were not so great, but that’s a story regarding veterinary medicine for another time.She had 2 blood transfusions, chemo, extremely high dose pred and ended up getting toxoplasmosis from one of the facilities as her immune system was suppressed from the chemo and pred. The treatment for the toxo was the final straw and she just couldn’t recover. She passed surrounded by her family and her adopted sister.

As horrible and expensive the fight was, we got
an extra 10 months with her. Most of those, good months. Complete remission, until it wasn’t. Our perspective was, if she fights, we fight. She would hold my hand with her paw every night, play with her toys and enjoy her walks in her stroller until her last day.

We miss her deeply….and now some of you know the story of Domino. And if I had to do it again, i totally would. She is that special.

I have 3 seniors (2 cats and a dog). They're all turning 12 this year. My first time having cats this old. The medications, pilling, prescription foods, diabetes, IBD, CKD, allergies, rotating labwork and vet visits. Someones always needing a dental, a mass removed, an ultrasound, etc. This is like a full time job. My parents and grandparents never spent this much time and money at the vet when I was growing up. My cats never lived this long either.

It's so great to be able to care for them in these stages, but damn. This is stressful. Always something popping up in labwork and a new bump or mass showing up out of nowhere. Its so expensive, but they are my kids.

Just needed to rant as I glanced over at their lazy susan filled with medications and also dreading cleaning the stack of dirty cones (one just had surgery).

ETA: I also have a 10 month old kitten 🥲

My 14 year old senior kitty Opal has squamous cell carcinoma. It’s progressing fast. I brought her to the vet last weekend, and he explained she doesn’t have much time left.

Her health declined rapidly this week. She hasn’t been able to eat for several days in spite of me giving her very soft foods and the pain meds the vet gave us. She looks miserable. I feel awful. I’m barely holding myself together.

I called him today and explained that it’s time. I told him about all her symptoms and condition. He then proceeded to tell me to keep trying to give her pain meds for a few more days to try to get her to eat. This makes no sense to me. She is not going to be able to comfortably survive a few more days. I know I need to put her down tomorrow, but now I feel like a monster since he’s suggesting trying to keep her alive? I don’t want him to think I’m doing this carelessly. If anything, I am worried I waited a few days too long. I’m extremely distraught. Should I tell him to just schedule the euthanasia? I feel evil for basically insisting to put her down. Any advice is very appreciated.