In Shock

Last night I came home to find my beloved 7 year old kitty appearantly asleep by the front door. Waiting for me as usual. But when I greeted him he did not move. He was gone. He had no signs of illness other tha seeming a bit tired the day prior. But that day he seemed fine. I yelled for my husband and rushed him to the vet. It was too late. They tell us it was his heart or a stroke. Sudden death. I am having an autopsy done because I have to know. I am heartbroken. Devastated. He was the sweetest cat. Such a joy. So special. I feel so guilty. Like I should have realized something was worng. How could he jump up on the counter to eat dinner happily one minute and be dead within 30 minutes? I just held him in the grieving room at the vet and cried. How do you get over this? I feel like I failed to save him. But, I swear he seemed fine...just a little more tired than usual. And only for a day or so. And now my baby is gone. It's so hard to understand.

I'm so sorry for your loss! My thoughts and heart goes out to you, I couldn't imagine that. Keep you head up! Sending you love!

Very sorry to hear this, and I hope the autopsy results bring some comfort for you.  One thing - he probably didn't suffer with a long spell of ill-health.

I'm so sorry for your loss. It's bad enough when you know they've been ill, but to have it happen suddenly with no answers?.

I hope the autopsy brings some closure for you

Have fun at the Bridge baby boy

Oh i am so very sorry.  Just like people, animals can have no signs and leave us way too soon.  I lost my Beeshee Marie in January.  Only 2 years old.  Fine one day, and lost her 2 days later.  Bad heart.

Take comfort that your little one likely didn't suffer.  I hope you get your answers.

God bless you all.

That must have been a terrible shock. My sympathies are with you.

I am so sorry for your loss. It is always a shock when it is so sudden. We are never ready to lose them. Don't beat yourself up over what happened. Cats are masters at hiding their pain. There was no way you could have know. Even as with people, things can happen suddenly and they do. Your cat was loved and very blessed. Hugs to you and your family. I hope your memories of the good times will be a comfort and help you get through the coming days.

I'm so sorry for your loss.  It is a shock and I hope the autopsy finds out what caused this.  I lost one of mine suddenly last Christmas and he was only 2. x

Thank you for your kind words, everyone. Today was very hard. All my normal routines are not the same without my little guy hanging around causing trouble, asking for love and gnerally brightening my day. Preliminary report shows nothing as to the cause of death. He was healthy. They are running more tests asking about poison. But, I am really careful about things like that. And, I have another cat, who is fine. How could he just pass like that? It is so upsetting. My warm hugs to all of you who have lost pets. It is such a painful time.

i'm so sorry for your loss. i hope you find the answers you seek to help you cope with this tragedy...

jlc20m

This breaks my heart.  So sorry :-(

No news today. I am just getting through the day. For all of you who have lost pets...how long until this knot in my stomach goes away. I keep expecting to see my baby Theo everywhere. I "see" him in all his usual spots, I cry when those places are empty although I know they will be. I have a full life, a have children, a spouse, friends...but someone so special is missing. Is this normal? How did any of you move passed this? I know it had only been a few days, and Theo's passing was sudden and shocking, I expect to mourn. But, it hurts so much...I miss him so deeply. The level of grief surprises me. Any words of wisdom?

HUGS to you MissingMyCat.  How you are feeling is completely normal.    It is almost shocking how sharp the pain of grief is - to realize that you loved them even more than you knew.  It will take time but your won't always feel this bad though there are times grief will come up like a wave when you thought you were finally at peace with it.   You will get through this.

I'm so sorry for your loss of your beloved Theo. The pain and grieving does take a long time usually, to get through. I know how much it hurts. I'm so sorry. Were the two cats close? your other kitty may be grieving also. Make sure to spend plenty of time with her/him, and talk about Theo and what happened to him.

I am so sorry for your loss and I do know how you feel.  I was searching the internet for support groups & read your posts.  I just lost my 10 year old cat, Baby, on Thursday, 11/1.  I found her laying on her favorite chair when I woke up that morning - at first thinking she was asleep, but I could tell from the way her body was that she wasn't ok.  She had been happy, playful, eating, energetic & feisty the night before.  I actually saw her sitting in that same chair around midnight before I went to sleep.  I was never so shocked in my life to find her like that & I can't get the image out of my head.  I do have 4 other cats - one who is 10 years old & fighting kidney disease - I always thought she would be the one to pass away next.  I talked to the vet's and decided not to get an autopsy - they told me it might not be conclusive and give me closure - I still wonder if I did the right thing in not getting one, but I decided to have her cremated.  From my research on the internet, it would seem like her heart stopped working.  I am seriously devastated; she was definitely my buddy and she always made her presence known in the house. It's hard to see the chair where she slept so much & where she would later pass away.  The only consolation I guess is that she lived her life to the fullest without pain, medicine & tests.  I have lost 4 other cats - 2 to kidney disease; 1 very quickly to liver disease; and 1 to cancer, and I dont know what's worse - knowing they're going to die or not having any notice.  I keep wondering what I could have done or should have done.  I miss her when I give the other cats treats in the morning; I miss her jumping up on my lap and sleeping on me.  Ugh.  I've cried so many times.  When I picked up her ashes yesterday I just bawled in the car for 5 minutes.  If you do find out what happened to your kitty, please post.  I had no idea until now that so many cats just up and die from an unknown heart problem that really cant be diagnosed.  Even though I have other cats, she can never be replaced.  I really feel your pain.  Please post some more about your kitty & how you're feeling.  I think it helps to talk about it. 

Take care.

I am so sorry for your loss. I know how you feel about the chair. I feel the same about the place Theo passed. It is right by the front door. I sat there the other day and just cried and cried. I can't get the image out of my mind either. I miss him all the time. All the things he used to do. When I feed my other cat and he is not here. His presence is till so large in this house. But he is missing. I did not know that a pet could die so suddenly without any warning either. So many people post about it. Even if I had taken him to the vet that morning there would likely have been nothing to indicate a problem as he had no symptoms. His heart looks healthy. The only indication they have that is was acute heart failure is that he had fluid in his lungs. Which they told me is a clue. I guess fluid enters the lungs after the heart stops. But, they still do not really KNOW. Otherwise all the see is a strong healthy cat. I am having further testing and tissue samples done because not knowing is destroying me. But, it may be inconclusive in the end. How can this happen? I can not really make sense of it yet. I have had other pets and they have passed. Old age and cancer. But, this has hit me so hard. I cry at least 3 times a day. I picture him healthy and happy sitting next to me purring. I know what you mean about having a buddy. He was my buddy. Always with me. Always into something. Making me laugh. He was one in a million. Please update me on how you are doing. Hugs.

Let's see, today I cried about 5 times (so far anyway). I missed my girl when I went to bed last night & this morning.  But I was looking at some of her pictures I have on my computer & my phone and some of them actually made me laugh instead of cry.  I would try to take pictures of the both of us together - she doesnt look too thrilled, but she accommodated me.  She definitely was a character.  Sometimes out of the blue I remember some of the quirky things she used to do - like whenever I would change the sheets on the bed, she would fly under the blankets and then complain because she didn't know how to get out haha.  I would try to make the bed quietly or close the door so she wouldnt hear because she would be so annoying - even though I would pick her up and put her on the floor, she would keep jumping back up.  Now I wish she was here to do it & I would NEVER complain about it again.  It's true that some of the things that used to drive you crazy now you would give anything to have them do it one more time . . . I put a fresh blanket on the chair where she passed away today; and just a few minutes ago my sick kitty threw up on it . . . can't win some days.  That one's been in and out of the vet's & I'm trying to keep her comfortable, but honestly I feel like I've been on auto pilot the last few days.  I don't even know how I worked on Friday.  I do have a boyfriend that loves cats - he has 2 males; but I've lived by myself ever since I got divorced and my cats have always been here with me, day & night, and not having Baby here is sooo difficult.  I don't know if it's because she was taken away so suddenly or if I never realized how much I LOVED that little ball of fur - because I'm having a really hard time with this.  The last cat I lost was 4 years ago (doesnt feel like that long) to kidney disease (like my sick one now), but she was 18-1/2 and I knew when it was time to put her to sleep and I felt ok with it.  Yes, I missed her, but this feels stronger & different.  I hope your days are getting a little bit easier for you.  I know in time I'll be remembering her more with happiness than sadness, but it seems to be a long way off . .. Hugs & best wishes to you . . .

Grief works through in it's own time. It will be one year November 29 that my Tolly left me. Today I discovered that, even though I still miss him terribly, I was able to talk about him with a friend, not just happy memories, but about his death too, without breaking down completely. The pain never completely goes away, but....in time it won't hurt quite so much. Consider this, if we didn't love them so much, if they weren't so important to us, it wouldn't hurt so much. I'll take the pain, because the love is soooooo much more.

You're right. And I know that I would adopt her all over again even if I knew she would leave me suddenly 10 yrs down the road. I try to take comfort in the fact that I was able to be her "mom" and she knew she was loved & she loved me back. I always say that my aunt (who passed away when I was in high school & loved cats) takes care of all my kitties up there until I see them again ...