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Original poster

Should kids see cat being PTS?

36 replies

PoorOldPuss · 05/10/2020 19:00

Our poor sweet old boy is 20 and has severe renal problems. It's looking increasingly likely that he may need to be PTS in the next couple of days.

Our kids are 12 and 15 and I don't know whether they should be there or not. Are these things guaranteed to be peaceful? Any distress to the cat would obviously mean it would be totally inappropriate for them to attend. They love the cat very much and want to say goodbye to him. (He is in the vet's overnight at the moment.)

I also don't know whether it's even going to be possible for any of us to be present, given Covid restrictions. Ideally we would like to bring him home so that he's in a familiar environment, but I don't know whether any vets are doing home visits (our own vet isn't) . We have a garden where it could be done without the vet going inside, if that makes any difference. It just breaks my heart to think of the old darling being PTS in a strange building with nobody he knows there.

Sorry, I'm a bit confused and upset, but would be grateful for any advice.

OP posts:
Original poster
PoorOldPuss · 06/10/2020 13:53

Thank you so much, everyone, for your kind thoughts and advice. There are lots of ideas here which I hadn't thought of.

The poor old boy is still at the vet's on a drip and not showing any improvement. He has basically got to the end of the line now. I've been trying to find a local vet who would come out to our home, but just nobody seems to be doing that here. In any case, he is apparently very dopey and sleepy and not really taking notice of his surroundings. So we are going to need to have him PTS at the vet's this afternoon (which at least saves him an extra journey and upheaval) and make the best of it.

They say we can go in one by one with masks to say goodbye to him, and then one person can stay while he is PTS (that will be me). The kids really want to say goodbye to him, so we can go there when school finishes. I will take one of his special blankets that smells of home (he already has one with him, but it may have lost its smell by now).

Thank you so much everyone. You have helped at a very difficult time. I will miss the old darling so much. He's a really loving and affectionate boy who followed me around the house and climbed up for a cuddle at every opportunity. Really the most lovely cat. ❤️

OP posts:
randomsabreuse · 06/10/2020 14:00

Most go easily but some don't, and it's not predictable. Our dog "ran" for quite a while once he was gone (he had spinal arthritis, worse than we realised) which would have been distressing for a non vet ( DH is a vet and got a colleague friend to do it, while he was there for the dog).

Weaker animals can either go really easily or have such bad circulation it can take longer for the heart to actually stop.

Routinely there may well be a gasp as the heart stops

viccat · 06/10/2020 14:07

I would say no.
My old girl was PTS last year and she had to be given a sedative first which then made her feel sick and kind of restless before she calmed down (it took about 5 minutes but felt really long). The actual end bit is quite peaceful but I read about how it may be and it's possible the pet will react by making a sound or twitch or lose control of their bladder or bowels. That didn't happen to my girl but it's possible and I think could be distressing for children to watch, I suppose as adults we can understand it in a different way.

So sorry you're having to go through this.

ApplestheHare · 08/10/2020 20:01

So sorry to hear he's reached the end of the line. It's heartbreaking when they're a real part of the family Flowers

AlCalavicci · 08/10/2020 21:06

I hope his passing was as peaceful as it could be . It must of been hard for you and your DCs but I think you did the right thinh=g in letting the say good bye .

He is at peace now Flowers >> mumsnetty hug

Original poster
PoorOldPuss · 08/10/2020 21:09

Thank you ❤️

In the end only one person was allowed to be there anyway (although the kids did get to give him a final cuddle beforehand).

It was very peaceful and gentle. He was very weak and sleepy, but I cuddled him and talked to him and he started purring. So he knew I was there. I gave him a good long cuddle until he just slipped away.

We are all sad, but it does help to know that he had a good comfortable end to his life like he deserved.

OP posts:
paintmywholehousepink · 08/10/2020 21:09

No.

AlCalavicci · 08/10/2020 21:20

@PoorOldPuss,
I am glad it went well ( you know what I mean Sad ) You gave him a long and happy life full of love and cuddles . I suspect he was a very happy cat .

@paintmywholehousepink
For god sake RTFF esp with something that is so hard for the OP Angry

Dreading2020sSeasonFinale · 08/10/2020 21:58

I was younger than a teen when I started attending our animals being PTS (we've always had a number of pets and a farm) and all have been peaceful. We have also had animals euthanised in horrific accident situations so I had to be able to deal with stuff like that. My sister however, even though she was older, couldn't.

I would say it depends entirely on what you think your children can handle. Are they the type to be able to deal with a pets last moments?

We have a cat who means the world to our kids and should the worst happen I would be okay with my kids being present.

Dreading2020sSeasonFinale · 08/10/2020 22:01

Apologies, the last page didn't load before I replied.

Sorry for your loss. I'm glad it was peaceful.

Anordinarymum · 08/10/2020 22:05

@PoorOldPuss

Our poor sweet old boy is 20 and has severe renal problems. It's looking increasingly likely that he may need to be PTS in the next couple of days.

Our kids are 12 and 15 and I don't know whether they should be there or not. Are these things guaranteed to be peaceful? Any distress to the cat would obviously mean it would be totally inappropriate for them to attend. They love the cat very much and want to say goodbye to him. (He is in the vet's overnight at the moment.)

I also don't know whether it's even going to be possible for any of us to be present, given Covid restrictions. Ideally we would like to bring him home so that he's in a familiar environment, but I don't know whether any vets are doing home visits (our own vet isn't) . We have a garden where it could be done without the vet going inside, if that makes any difference. It just breaks my heart to think of the old darling being PTS in a strange building with nobody he knows there.

Sorry, I'm a bit confused and upset, but would be grateful for any advice.

Think of your cat and not your children. He is being put to sleep. Do it with no fuss. No crying. Just calm.
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