I have also posted this in Chat for more traffic. Is there anyone who could just hold my hand or give some advice/ input especially about heart problems or their verdict on this.. below orig post.. (obviously i don't know if is heart but trying to go by logic here..)
Our beloved pet died on Thursday. He had turned one year old this month.
He had no problems we were aware of and in the morning was his normal playful loving and active self. DP and I both left for work in the morning.
He was 99% an indoor cat by his own choice although had started sitting on outside window sill at night and would occasionally jump down (would always come back in within ten minutes). He was frightened of the outdoors in daytime and the times I tried him on a harness he just shook with fright and pulled me back in. In a way it was a relief to us as we wouldn't have to worry about him with cars etc or potential poisoning . So this is just to show the background.. mainly an indoor cat who seemed in perfect health, was chipped, neutered and had his jabs. We often spent more on his food than on ours! For a while DP was buying him expensive organic food.
I came home from work later than normal that evening and found him dead in the hallway , he looked peaceful and asleep so it was an absolute shock and I"m still in total shock. His mouth, ears, eyes, nose, back parts all clean. No vomit or diarrhoea anywhere in house (he could not get out of house). No signs of anything abnormal . I'm not squeamish as worked in a cattery years ago and helped out in the adjoining vets there - so i checked him fairly thoroughly. Didn't prise mouth open but lifted up lips and his teeth were clean. I smelt his mouth and there was nothing to detect in fact it smelt 'clean' even though he was dead
He was pure white apart from two faint little black spots on his head. His hearing was perfect and he had amber eyes. His last checkup was fine and vet said he had none of the problems that white cats had e.g. heart problems (is this true though? have googled this and it throws nothing up, only seems to associate deafness with them) I was told because of the black spots he didn't have the full white cat genes and therefore would be healthier (his mum is pure white half persian and dad we think is a black and white moggy)
His brother is totally 100% pure white but with odd eyes and has a heart murmur (is not deaf). My boy did have leg tremors. I can only describe it as like Parkinsons. I know cats twitch in their deep sleep but he started twitching his legs when merely relaxing like when was drowsy rather than deep sleep. (he didn't twitch when playing or fully awake but still)
So logic tells me this death was sudden and in his sleep (as body was so relaxed) and related to heart/ congenital
But I am also tearing myself apart and torturing myself. Is there a poison that doesn't show up. did he somehow get one of my thyroid tablets (thyroxine) which could cause heart attack. did he swallow something . etc etc. It's hell waiting for the results. What if it's something myself and or DP did as in missed, overlooked
You see, we have a messy house. DP is a hoarder. But it was always a house with cat. I moved in with DP last year and his ancient cat also passed last year. We got the kitten about a week after old cat passed (not as replacement.. we were going to have them both together was the plan)The house is messy & chaotic but I would not say unsafe for a pet. Before we got kitten we made sure we felt it was safe enough for a lively kitten. But i'm paranoid. Is there something we missed, overlooked. some nook and cranny he got into that we couldn't get into to see (it's an old dilapidated cottage). We never have things like anti freeze around and anything else has lids on and on high shelves. What if he ate an insect that got in house that was poisoned (our loo is semi outside... in outhouse.. always full of beasties) We should have sorted the house before getting kitten but it's DP's place and i cant change his hoarding so there was only so much i could do and more like rearranging of stuff as he wont chuck stuff out. (the worst is in a room we don't use though) it all happened quickly as kitten needed home quickly .
All I know is our baby is gone and I am heartbroken . I need peace of mind with the results that it was nothing we could have done. I just don't know. We don't have children and can't have children and he was our baby. Our whole world.