Sudden Death of Our 3 Year Old Cat Simba

christellize

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We're trying to find out if you would have any idea why our nearly 4 year old cat Simba died. We came home from vacation the other day and found him dead. We spoke to the person who was taking care of the cat and here's the information we can give you:

* Our sitter saw Simba on Friday, healthy and purring
* The sitter did not see Simba on Saturday, which is odd behavior for him as he always comes to the door when someone is home.
* The sitter saw Simba lying on our bathroom floormat (near food and water) on Sunday, but he didn't respond at all. This is also unusual behavior as he always gets up to greet people.
* The sitter saw Simba still on the floormat on Monday, which is where we found him dead when we came home on Tuesday.

Specifically, he had no marks or scratches on him at all, the only thing I could notice is that one of his eyes looked like blood vessels had popped (it was red). There was also faint white vomit in 4 locations in the house. He was completely healthy other than the fact that he would breathe heavily sometimes.

Poisoning isn't a possibility - there wasn't anything for him to get into.

I've read that something getting stuck in his intestine or a heart attack are often reasons for death in young cats.

We would really appreciate any thoughts - we and his sister Darla (she's 3) are devastated by his loss.

Thank you.
 

kluchetta

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First of all - I am soooo sorry about your Simba. That is just devastating.


My first guess would be an intestinal obstruction - only because of the white vomit, and going downhill so quickly - it is what we had with Elsa and nearly lost her while we were in England, and only extremely quick action on the part of some of our neighborhood people saved her.

I'm so sorry.
 

van

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My condolences for your Simba, I know how hard it is to lose a cat you love.
Such a shock. An unexpected death can be devastating.
RIP Simba
 

4badcats

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You poor thing - a sudden shock like ths is horriffic - even worse when you can't explain it. Thinking of you
 

mzjazz2u

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I'm very sorry for your tragic loss. That must have been quite a shock to come home to. It's hard to say what happened, especially with no medical history on the kitty. But I just wanted to offer my condolences.
 

lsulover

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I am so sorry to hear about Simba, I know that it is hard.

I am sending prayers and hugs from Mississippi for you.

 

alleygirl

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I don't know what it could have been. Can you call the vet and describe what happened? Maybe they have a suggestion?

I'm so sorry that you lost him. Whatever it was, he is happy and free from pain now. Rest in peace Simba.
 

javern

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Hard to say what happened but I'd use another sitter next time, if I were not getting a response from a cat who sat in the same place 2 days I'd call the owners or a vet
 

kluchetta

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Has the vet examined him? That is exactly what happened with Elsa - the sitters thought she was "hiding" from them - and my daughter's day care lady actually was the one who figured out that she might be sick, and got the key and came over and found her close to death, under the stairs! They couldn't call us overseas, and told the vet to go ahead and operate.
 

duchess15

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I am sooo very sorry about simba.
Death is always hard to deal with, even if you know it is coming, but something so sudden and unexpected is such a devastating situation. I would consider another sitter. If I noticed an animal in the same spot, not being responsive, that would send a huge red flag up. Especially, if the sitter knew the behavior of the cat. Again I'm so terribly sorry...
 

mooficat

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Oh my I am sorry to hear about this, it must have been a very, very sad and upsetting thing to come home to
I have no experience of what you describe, but after reading some of the other replies I think you can get some sort of an answer. If you feel up to it, maybe an autopsy would give you more definate answers.

RIP Sweet Simba, your new fur-family is waiting to meet you
 

gardenandcats

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I'm so sorry about your loss. If only your sitter would of called you or taken Simba to the vet when she noticed her unusuall behavior.
 
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christellize

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Thank you all for your replies.
We still can't believe he's gone. Other message boards have suggested the white vomit was probably due to an intestinal blockage. We just feel so bad we weren't there with him to notice and comfort him. Oddly enough Darla is the one who tended to eat things she shouldn't, not Simba.

We always used friends who love cats in the past and all has gone well. These were friends who would play with them for a good amount of time, and they would even call us on vacation so Simba could hear our voice over the phone. He was a very human-like cat and would purr on the phone. We moved last August and our friends in Boston don't have cars so we used a neighbor who is very nice. We wanted to pay her but she wouldn't hear of it and just asked that we return the favor for her dog when she goes away. Still I told her I'd treat her to dinner but she said no. She told me aftewards that she came for 10 mins every day, and only saw Darla one time, but was surprised at how friendly Simba was since she was a stranger to him. I know he just craved human attention. I wasn't surprised at Darla since she gets scared when visitors come and needed more time to warm up. I told her to call me for any little reason and stressed that point.

I can't blame her entirely I just wish she had called me instead of calling her friends who have cats. They told her it was fine that she didn't see him one day and found him on the mat the next day, that cats like to sleep a lot (we're pretty sure he was gone by that time, even if he was lethargic he would have at least looked up to see who was home). She looked to see if he had released his bowels/bladder as some animals do when they pass but he looked fine. I asked if she petted him to see if he was alive that day and she said she didn't want to startle him awake. She called her vet on Monday I think when she realized he was dead and the vet just told her to put a towel over him and not move him. She did but didn't cover his head in case he was somehow still alive.

It's just so unfortunate and we miss him so much. It isn't right what happened to him, and the home is feeling a big void. Darla howls now, and has become much more attached to us and affectionate. I feel so bad for her to have been there for at least 2 days with her dead brother. She was frantic when we came home. We're currently looking for a new kitten because even if we go to the grocery store she is crying at the door when we come home. We don't want her to be lonely. If anyone knows of any in the New England area please let us know.

We didn't get an necrospy done b/c the 2 different vets we called discouraged us. They said since he had probably been dead for more than 24 hrs some tests might not be accurate and it would cost about $200 depending on how extensive we wanted to go (we didn't care about the money), and it may take days to get some results back, and that they couldn't say for certain that the vet could even do it that same day. We really wanted to give him a proper burial that day and not wait for a few days, so we just buried him at a nearby pet cemetary (the oldest working one in the nation).

We know we can never use this pet sitter again. She's a good person, and takes care of kids at preschool (pretty trustworthy) but we need firm assurances before we can even think of going on another vacation.

Thanks again for your replies.
 

lisalee

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I'm so sorry for your tragic loss of your baby Simba. My heart breaks for you at this difficult time. Rest in peace Simba, you will someday be reunited with your family again sweetie.
 

kluchetta

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That is just Soooo sad. I'm glad you're looking for another kitten - it may be too soon for you, but I think Darla needs it. Are there any shelters or rescues near you, or are you looking for a purebred? Have you gone on Petfinder?
 

lsulover

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I am so sorry that the sitter didn't at least call you to see what you wanted her to do. I am sure that she did what she thought was the best thing to do, but still.

My neighbor always looks after Opie when we are away and we can't take him with us. She knows that if something happens to take him to the vet, we use the same one.

And she took care of our beloved Sambo too, and if he wouldn't eat for her she would call us up and find out what to do. She usually tried stuff on her own before she did that though. She was very good with him, and she knew all of his habits and stuff.
 
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christellize

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Originally Posted by kluchetta

That is just Soooo sad. I'm glad you're looking for another kitten - it may be too soon for you, but I think Darla needs it. Are there any shelters or rescues near you, or are you looking for a purebred? Have you gone on Petfinder?
Yes, I agree. It feels a bit too soon, but Darla's sad cries make my heart wrench. We've checked a number of shelters, paper's classified ads, and petfinder. Kittens seem to go within a day. I also emailed my old coworker from where we originally got Simba and, a year later, Darla. She kept trying to get the mom spayed, but inevitably she would get pregnant right away (a few days before her vet appt).

We found a potential person who says they're available immediately but they have been a little slow to get back.

We've also filled out long applications for people who have pregnant cats so the very least we should have one in 8-12 weeks. I just hope Darla can wait that long, I'd rather not for her sake.
 
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