When to euthanize an elderly cat?

breezy51

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I have a 19 year old male tuxedo cat named Boo Boo. He has good days and he has bad days. The last 5-6 days have been bad, He still eats drinks and uses the litter box.

It was only 2 weeks ago that  he was doing his favorite thing----catching socks and howling to let us know of his victory.

Because of his age I'm not going to put him through the trauma and stress that comes with a visit to the vet. I friend recommended a group that  does in home euthanasia. 

He has been sick before and has rallied before.

I just don't know what to do.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
 

ginny

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Has he ever seen the vet in the home or office and been diagnosed?  When you say he has good days and bad days, what does that look like?  Without knowing any more, I'd say if he quits eating and drinking, then it might be time.  

I'm so sorry Boo Boo isn't feeling well.  Nineteen years is a long time to have a kitty so it's understandable you want to do the right thing for him, and at the right time as well.  
 

ginny

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One more thing.  When I read my note to you, it seemed a bit hasty to me. So I would say this.  I wouldn't give up on Boo Boo just yet.  Maybe there is a fixable reason for his illness.
 

donutte

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In the absence of actual illness (I can't tell if your cat has illness or not by your post though), I usually use eating/drinking/litter as a gauge when they are old. If they are still eating and drinking and using the litter box, and nothing else seems to be wrong with them, I let things be. Only when they stopped eating did we take them in to at least be checked out.
 
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breezy51

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Thank you for replying so quickly to my post.

I'm at the "let it be" stage right now. I'm just going to keep a close eye on him in the days to come.

He doesn't have any one illness. He has arthritis, sleeps a lot (which older cats do) so I would say his diagnosis is old age.

Here's my struggle:

Am I keeping him alive for me?

What if I wait too long?

What if it's too soon?

Trying to make this decision without "my" emotions coming into the equation is impossible.
 

talkingpeanut

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Can you say a bit more about what good days and bad days look like?  
 
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breezy51

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Can you say a bit more about what good days and bad days look like?  
Bad days = Him staying in his hiding spot. Not letting his girl friend (our siamese) sit next to him and groom him. He looks dazed and his eyes aren't shiny. Not catching socks and singing his song of victory.

Good days = Doing all the things I mentioned above.
 

ginny

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Too soon vs too long?  That's the quandry all of us fear, I think.  With Gracie, I sometimes feel I waited too long, other times too soon.  It seems to be a real catch-22 situation.  I'm sorry I'm no help there!
 

talkingpeanut

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He doesn't sound like he's suffering too much, even on his bad days.  I think you'll know when he starts to go downhill and it's time.  If he's not eating at all, can't make it to the litter box, isn't having good days, etc.  
 
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breezy51

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Too soon vs too long?  That's the quandry all of us fear, I think.  With Gracie, I sometimes feel I waited too long, other times too soon.  It seems to be a real catch-22 situation.  I'm sorry I'm no help there!
No need to be sorry. It's a tough call for any cat lover

.
 

donutte

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Eating is the big indicator for me with all my cats, illness or not. I agree with Talkingpeanut, it doesn't sound like his bad days are all that bad. It sounds more like he just has "off" days. And that's ok, older people have off days too.
 
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