Our Kitten Died today

Our beloved Spike was dead on the lawn when we came home from a few hours visiting today.  We got him and his sister Bella in September as tiny kittens so he was only about 5 months old.  He was so gorgeous, loving, playful, we all loved him so much.  The 2 cats are were very spoilt and spent most of their time indoors but over Christmas we were leaving them outside more and more.  We thought it would be nicer for them to roam as they pleased, we live in the countryside and they have plenty of room. Anyway he was dead with no marks on him.  I came on the internet for advice as these are the first cats we have owned.  It seems he may have just dropped dead from a heart defect from reading posts.  Bella misses him, and my 3 children are heart broken,  I loved this cat like he was my baby and I am so upset and heartbroken,  Could he have died from over-feeding as he loved his food?  I feel so guilty, it was our first time to leave the cats out while we went out for a few hours.

Very sorry for your lost.Without vet autopsy,you may never know.Love the other all the more. Doesn't help now.

So sorry for your broken heart.

A heart defect is possible.  There are also poisons that he might have eaten, or had been eaten by some prey he caught and ate.  There are cruel people in the world.  There are poisonous animals and insects that might not leave a mark.  Cats who go outside are subject to many dangers that those who stay indoors are not exposed to, which is why we mostly recommend cats be kept indoors.

By the way, there are plenty of dangers indoors, too, especially for young cats or very inquisitive cats.  Cleaners, house plants, pesiticides, deodorants, all sorts of stuff.  And, being cats, they just don't seem to understand us when we try to explain the dangers to them.

Even with a necropsy, there is every possibility you might not be able to determine a cause of death.  And, had you been standing right there when it happened, you might not have been able to help.  This is the heartache of pet ownership; they almost always live shorter life spans than we do.

You might want to check out www.petloss.com, a site for grieving pet owners.
 

I am very sorry for your loss. My three-year old cousin lost his kitten in a similar fashion. The kitten had a seizure of some sort while outside and just dropped dead. I cannot imagine the shock you must have went through. 

Spike

I'm so sorry for your loss.  Spike will be safe and well again at the Bridge 

I´m very so sorry for your loss... my condonlences...
My prayers for her soul...

I am very sorry for your untimely loss. It's always harder when they are so young. I do believe in Kitty Heaven. He is most certainly there!

Very sorry for you loss. I lost a cat like that years ago. He was found under the leaves of a pumpkin plant. Looked like he was curled up sleeping.It is harder when you dont know what happened to them. Could be poison as already mentioned or a plant he ate. Sometimes a cat will eat a mouse that has been poisoned .

Anyway again I am very sorry for your loss.

Elinor

My condolences. RIP, little Spike.

I'm so sorry for your loss.  Please don't feel guilty; it very well could have happened whether you were standing right there or not.  If it was his little heart, it would have happened whether he was inside or not.  You gave him a good life for the time that you had him and I'm sure he knew you loved him dearly.  Be kind to yourself.  RIP little Spike...
 

I´m so sorry for the loss of Spike.. my deep condolences... RIP to Spike & a big hug to you my friend...