We lost our beautiful boy on Wednesday who slipped away in his sleep aged 15 and a half. I am absolutely devastated as didn't see it coming at all and I loved him so much. I now can't stop thinking that we should have taken him to the vet and that we let him down. He'd always been a big cat and for a long time had been overweight having been overweight when we took him and his brother in when they were 9. We got his weight under control by changing his diet and he'd been healthy since. But recently he started losing weight and had gone from 5.5 kg to about 4ish. He was getting old and so I thought it was that although was going to mention it to the vet at his annual vacs and check which we were about to book for him. But now he's gone and all I can think now is what if it was the sign of something more serious that he could have been treated for and then he'd still be here. It's all I can think about. But he had no other symptoms, showed no sign of pain, was drinking normally although was eating a bit less which we thought was just as he was getting older his appetite had decreased. Nothing that made me think we should take him but now he's gone I just wish we had in case we could have prevented his death. I know noone can say for sure but wondered whether other people would have taken their cat straight to the vet if they had lost weight? Photos attached. First for cuteness, second from last year for comparison and third the night before he died.
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The litter tray
The losing weight can be a thyroid thing but it wouldn't cause him to suddenly pass like this.
FWIW by not taking him to the vet you could well have saved him from a barrage of intrusive tests that wouldn't have saved him. (Of course if he wasn't eating at all it was in pain or had any obvious symptoms you'd have taken him.)
He was loved and at home with you. Sounds peaceful.
RIP gorgeous ginger
I agree with miss Clarke and I'm sorry he's gone
If eating a bit less was all that you noticed I don't think there was anything you could have done differently. I'd be up the vet every 5 mins with my cat as some days he eats loads and then can go for weeks being really picky.
He really was gorgeous
What a beautiful boy, I'm so sorry for your loss .
He looks very like our old boy who we lost a couple of years ago, after 18 years so I know what you're going through. Try not to dwell on the questions that can't be answered just remember the lovely life he had with you for 15 years x
I think that when it's time to help them along, you know it's time. You just do, honestly. The fact he was able to go at home, in a safe place with no stress is honestly a good thing - I think especially for cats, any trip to the vet is slightly traumatic whereas a dog at least usually enjoys the car journey.
My only experience of a cat death, so far, has unfortunately been cancer in a very young cat which resulted in him being put to sleep, but I've been told before that when cats are ill and in pain with it they will often hide themselves away, even at home. It doesn't sound, to me, like your boy was suffering
Sorry for your loss.hes a beautiful boy, rip gorgeous boy. You did nothing wrong op. I have a very close bond to my 2 cats and couldn't imagine losing them, so can only imagine what your going through
As hard as it it, it sounds as though he had the ideal death. Just went to sleep in his own home. Surrounded by people who loved him. No prolonged suffering or stressful trips to the vet. It's what I would hope for for my girls when the time comes. He was such a gorgeous cat.
I'm so sorry for your loss. He looks gorgeous and his friend in the last photo is similar to the cat we lost earlier this year.
You mustn't torment yourself, but weight loss is a good cause to head for the vets, just for future reference for your other cat. Unfortunately when our cats have lost weight it has always signalled something catastrophic. Our first had metastatic cancer and nothing could be done for her. Another lost a significant amount of weight both when he was diagnosed with IBD and later a serious heart condition, although by some miracle he has responded to treatment and is still with us. The last cat we lost, turned out he had a tumour. Very tragic as he had overcome a rare fibrosarcoma 18 months prior and the tumour that we lost him to was also rare, had it been millimetres in a different location, we could have had it removed.
As a result I'm very anxious when they lose weight. I have a set of baby scales and weigh my cats about once a month and record it.
That doesn't mean the outcome would have necessarily been any different for your lovely boy, just wanted to say it is worth a check up. Be kind to yourself, they really are family members
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