My choices in this are largely driven by lack of money to do it.
Force feeding my cat - Dante's Last Days. Rest In Peace sweet kitty.
- Thread starter Overmind One
- Start date
Dante was moving around a bit last night, going to the different rooms, flopping down when his back legs were tired. His eyes are still open, does not feel feverish (actually a little cool), and he is still not eating. He does a sort of small groan meow now and then. This morning, he came into the bathroom and was laying on the floor, awake. There is a litterbox and food and water in there and he appears to be drinking water, even though I don't see it. Just before I left, I went back into the bathroom and he had migrated to the area on the side of the toilet between the wall and toilet, behind the door. This is hiding behavior and he has never done this.
I gave him his metacam dose (0.3ml), his amoxicillin dose, and a bit of food from the syringe before I left. And so I start my day as I have the past three days worrying about him when my mind is not working tasks at my job. He is not at all himself, and he is miserable. Tomorrow, the vet. Again, I won't know if he made it through the day until I get home from work. *sigh* this is so hard.
I gave him his metacam dose (0.3ml), his amoxicillin dose, and a bit of food from the syringe before I left. And so I start my day as I have the past three days worrying about him when my mind is not working tasks at my job. He is not at all himself, and he is miserable. Tomorrow, the vet. Again, I won't know if he made it through the day until I get home from work. *sigh* this is so hard.
I just texted Bluce and sent him a pic of my ALIVE Dante.
For the past three days I have been worrying about him during work, and when I got off I would be driving in traffic saying "Please be alive when I get home". Today, I cried at work. For me, crying is silent but with lots of tears. I could not stop crying every hour or so. Today, I was crying a bit on the way home. I was so happy to see him laying on the floor of the bathroom awake, I cried even more. He is getting his forced meal now and water with Pedialyte.I cant let him die. If he has some sort of terrible disease, then that might guide my decisions, but right now he is alive and I can enjoy him. I will do everything in my power to make him well again.
Okay, here is where we are at:
Came home, Dante was alive and awake and laying quietly on the bathroom floor. I immediately gave him his hugs and brought him out to the living room and force fed him about 10ccs of water. Then about 5ccs of pureed food. Upon examining him, his coat is healthy and shiny, his eyes are clear and no inner eyelid visible, temperature normal, breathing normal, heartbeat normal. It even appeared that he had been drinking water during the day because he was already hydrated (skin pinch test).
I was on the phone, texting Bluce, no less, and I watched as he got up off the floor, walked to the litterbox and PEED! It was normal pee, not dark or reddish (indicating blood). He came out and laid down, and I was stroking him and his rear flank and I felt a mass. The poor guy is clogged up, and that is what is causing this shit. When he walked to the litterbox, he did not wobble or fall down, but was obviously weak on his legs. Again, not unusual with constipation, even in humans!.
I have changed his vet appt to 740am tomorrow morning, and he will get an enema and whatever he needs to clean him out. Once that is done, his energy levels and movement should return to normal. Even if diagnosed with megacolon (severely distended colon caused by repeated constipation), he will survive and still get his back legs to normal. However, no more free feeding. No more dry kibble. It dries overweight cats out. I will have to closely control feedings, and have him only eat the wet food.
He will make it through the night for sure. And I am confident that he will be back to normal very soon and I will not have to think about the unthinkable. I don't know any of what is wrong for sure, but I think I have it nailed. For now, I will relax and keep him near me and force water but not food. He is next to me right now.
Came home, Dante was alive and awake and laying quietly on the bathroom floor. I immediately gave him his hugs and brought him out to the living room and force fed him about 10ccs of water. Then about 5ccs of pureed food. Upon examining him, his coat is healthy and shiny, his eyes are clear and no inner eyelid visible, temperature normal, breathing normal, heartbeat normal. It even appeared that he had been drinking water during the day because he was already hydrated (skin pinch test).
I was on the phone, texting Bluce, no less, and I watched as he got up off the floor, walked to the litterbox and PEED! It was normal pee, not dark or reddish (indicating blood). He came out and laid down, and I was stroking him and his rear flank and I felt a mass. The poor guy is clogged up, and that is what is causing this shit. When he walked to the litterbox, he did not wobble or fall down, but was obviously weak on his legs. Again, not unusual with constipation, even in humans!.
I have changed his vet appt to 740am tomorrow morning, and he will get an enema and whatever he needs to clean him out. Once that is done, his energy levels and movement should return to normal. Even if diagnosed with megacolon (severely distended colon caused by repeated constipation), he will survive and still get his back legs to normal. However, no more free feeding. No more dry kibble. It dries overweight cats out. I will have to closely control feedings, and have him only eat the wet food.
He will make it through the night for sure.
And I am confident that he will be back to normal very soon and I will not have to think about the unthinkable. I don't know any of what is wrong for sure, but I think I have it nailed. For now, I will relax and keep him near me and force water but not food. He is next to me right now.
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I feel so relieved. Mostly because I was able to verify something Bluce told me about renal failure and even more about the precursors and symptoms. One of them is the reduced ability to clean the blood, resulting in a distinct odor coming from the breath or skin (ketones). His urine would be dark, and it is not. His eyes and alertness levels would be below what they are, and he would be showing signs of yellowing in the gums and fur. The coat would change. It isnt a urethral block, or he could not pee and I actually observed him pee, and no blood in it which means it was not previously blocked. Temperature normal means no infection. Only constipation explains him not eating, as well as the mass and the weak read end. He flinches when I squeeze his feet. And I observed him walk to the litterbox and get in it and out. Since the last post, I found two very dried out poop pieces in the bathroom. Small, but they were not there last night. They were outside the litterbox.
After dropping him off, I will get the diagnosis and give them permission to perform whatever stuff they have to do to clean him out. short of surgery. He is resting, occasionally making a complaining meow (from pain) and he seems okay. He will survive the night.
After dropping him off, I will get the diagnosis and give them permission to perform whatever stuff they have to do to clean him out. short of surgery. He is resting, occasionally making a complaining meow (from pain) and he seems okay. He will survive the night.
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Bluce Ree
Tech Admin / Council Member
Stay with wet food. Make sure it's mostly meat and doesn't have too much filler (i.e. rice, wheat). They're carnivores.
Something like this:
http://www.wellnesspetfood.com/cat-wellness.aspx
Keep dry food as a treat, it's junk food to them.
Something like this:
http://www.wellnesspetfood.com/cat-wellness.aspx
Keep dry food as a treat, it's junk food to them.
Thank you very much. But Dante is a male!
He will appreciate your good wishes. I think he will be fine. Siete looked like hell when he had his abscess and when he was not eating. He lost a third of his weight and I lost as much sleep. But he recovered VERY quickly and he is active and playful and it's like a very distant memory. This one scared me more because of the wobbly walk. But overall, when he is laying down you cant tell anything is wrong with him at all except that he is fat. He was the worst the first day.I have specifically requested a cat enema and related fluids. I am sure the vet will attempt to get me to go for blood work, pancreatic check, x-rays (which might be wise), and who knows what else. Maybe not. This practice is independent and has only one vet and I have taken Siete there before. One thing I will not be open to is surgery.
http://ahorb.com/
Highly recommended.
I trust her.
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My last post before taking Dante to the vet this morning. I slept maybe....three hours? Dante in bathroom laying quietly (alive) on the floor. He is not growling in pain, but also no poop in that box or pee spots. He generally freaks out when I put him in the cat cage, and starts panting when the car starts moving, but what can I do? I considered carrying him freely since he is too fat and clogged up to run, just put him on the seat and take the cage with me? To be safe, its gonna be the cage. I know he will be secure in there when the car starts moving.
Such a sweet, gentle kitty. I am hoping he will be all better.
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Dante has been to the vet, and the news was not good. Dante is at the end of his life. His abdomen is filled with fluid, and all of his organs are failing. This is not new, or caused by constipation, but the end of a long building combination of issues which has led to this last end stage of his life. I am going to have to say goodbye. 
The vet told me within 5 minutes that he was "at death's doorstep". She showed me that the "mass" I thought I felt was not really there, and that his entire abdomen is filled with fluid. He knows he is going to die, and his not eating is just part of the end stage. She showed me that he is severely anemic, and told me that there is nothing that can be done for him except making him comfortable and preparing his spiritual journey in as little pain as possible.
I had them give him a painkiller injection, and they were able to get him to lap up some Friskies chicken gravy (first thing I have seen him eat on his own in a week!). I am devastated, but I also need to make his journey peaceful and loving. I have never faced this, having to euthanize a pet. But now that I know there are no other options, I am preparing. The painkiller shot will last for a day or two, and I have metacam. I am weighing my euthanasia options, and I think I want him to pass at home in my arms where Siete is and where he has lived for the past 5 years, and not some cold steel table at a vet's office which he hates. I want to take lots more final pictures of him, plan his passing and find a way to keep something in memory of him.
Thank all of you for your great comments and pulling for him (and me). This 4th of July weekend will be his last, and I will make the most of it for him. I love him too much to allow him to suffer, and I am grateful for being given the opportunity to prepare and plan for his passing.
The vet told me within 5 minutes that he was "at death's doorstep". She showed me that the "mass" I thought I felt was not really there, and that his entire abdomen is filled with fluid. He knows he is going to die, and his not eating is just part of the end stage. She showed me that he is severely anemic, and told me that there is nothing that can be done for him except making him comfortable and preparing his spiritual journey in as little pain as possible.
I had them give him a painkiller injection, and they were able to get him to lap up some Friskies chicken gravy (first thing I have seen him eat on his own in a week!). I am devastated, but I also need to make his journey peaceful and loving. I have never faced this, having to euthanize a pet. But now that I know there are no other options, I am preparing. The painkiller shot will last for a day or two, and I have metacam. I am weighing my euthanasia options, and I think I want him to pass at home in my arms where Siete is and where he has lived for the past 5 years, and not some cold steel table at a vet's office which he hates. I want to take lots more final pictures of him, plan his passing and find a way to keep something in memory of him.
Thank all of you for your great comments and pulling for him (and me). This 4th of July weekend will be his last, and I will make the most of it for him. I love him too much to allow him to suffer, and I am grateful for being given the opportunity to prepare and plan for his passing.
Gate_Boarder
Well Known GateFan
Having various members of my pet family being attacked by coyotes and raccoons over the years. Let me honestly say that having your family member die in your lap will turn out to be the easiest solution of all.
Bluce Ree
Tech Admin / Council Member
In this case, it may be cruel. Dante is starving to death, which is an excruciatingly painful way to go. Sometimes, we need to put the "me" part of the equation aside.
Ok, my final solution is this: I am going to take him to the vet around the corner from where I live tomorrow and say goodbye. They will give him two shots. One to sedate him, and I will be holding him. And the second one will stop his heart. No ashes. I have bought materials to make a memorial for him, and he will always be in my heart. This is my last day with him. I will take him in tomorrow.
I just got home from work and he is on the floor in the bathroom. He looks so weak and miserable I may decide to do this sooner than tomorrow.
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I have to relieve his suffering. I have scheduled his passing for one hour from now. 
He will be in my arms, and the nurse will give him a sedative shot which will gently put him to sleep. Then after he is unconscious, he will get a second shot which stops the heart. He will die in my arms and I think that is good by him and by me. I gave him the most loving home he ever had. I will miss him.
He will be in my arms, and the nurse will give him a sedative shot which will gently put him to sleep. Then after he is unconscious, he will get a second shot which stops the heart. He will die in my arms and I think that is good by him and by me. I gave him the most loving home he ever had. I will miss him.
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He's gone. I will never forget him.
I understand completely. I have had to put dogs down before and it is not the best experience. But it was best for the dog.
You did right by Dante. You and Siete will need to adjust to Dante's absence. It won't be easy but losing those close to you never is. As time goes by you will be able to move forward, remembering the good times with Dante.
You did right by Dante. You and Siete will need to adjust to Dante's absence. It won't be easy but losing those close to you never is. As time goes by you will be able to move forward, remembering the good times with Dante.
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Fisher is balancing that out. He really has taken a liking to Siete and they frequently sleep close to each other. With Dante gone, Siete is the one most likely to perhaps go looking for him. But he is only really particularly attached to me and not other cats. Losing him would be 1000% worse than this experience.
Dante is no longer suffering. For the past three days, he had stopped eating, drinking, and his organs were shutting down and I did not see it coming even though looking at some of the past pictures of him he was swollen in the gut even then. And I thought it was cat fat. Prolonging his death by force feeding him and force hydrating him was selfish. Now I understand why euthanasia has to be an option in terminal illnesses. I know he is no longer suffering and I was forced to see my selfishness. I feel no guilt with my decision. I will miss him and his snuggles.
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shavedape
Well Known GateFan
I'm really sorry to hear that. You have my sympathies. Just know that you did the right thing in the end. It was no doubt a hard decision but it prevented needless suffering to a loved one. That's what's important.
I've been through this with my dog when she got cancer. She was in agony and prolonging her life would have been selfish of me. I just couldn't stand to see her suffer. Letting her go was the right decision.