The Loss of a Pet - Page 3

On January 01 2011 08:10 Avarice wrote:
I never had the opportunity to have a pet until I was in college, and got my first cat at age 21 or so. (Well, two cats, but that's another story.) Once he got comfortable, I knew I was so lucky to have gotten such a great cat. He was quirky, laid-back, and extremely personable; everyone that ever visited the duplex I lived in instantly fell in love with this cat.

So when Wilbur developed fatty liver disease out of nowhere, I had no idea what to do. This cat who had been ravenous all his life had suddenly decided to stop eating. To this day, I still do not know why. After enough time had passed, and several vet trips later, I was faced with the most difficult choice of my lifetime thus far. The only way to get my emaciated, now jaundiced best friend to eat again would be to force feed him through a tube surgically implanted in his neck. This expensive, labor intensive process required at least one week of suffering for a 50/50 shot at coming through. I decided to do it- a decision I'm still not certain was morally right, but I just couldn't let go.

His stomach would no longer tolerate the presence of food, so the 3 required feedings per day almost always meant 6-7. I had to watch my poor, suffering cat throw up his 'medicine' and force him to take it again, time after time. Futility set in so fast. My friends and family had already given up, and now I was clinging to a fool's hope. Every day I grieved for him, even while he was still in my lap.

Then, one day, I walked out of my room to find the feeding tube and the makeshift shirt I had used to keep it in place just lying there on the floor. With equal parts sadness and hope, I began to search for the cat to figure out why. In just as spontaneous a manner as his cease, Wilbur was now happily munching away at the specially formulated vet food I'd put in his bowl over two weeks ago. He recovered fully and is sprawled out on my closed laptop as I write this post.

One day, this cat will die, and it will break my heart. But having felt his loss already, I can now so easily treasure every day that he his still here. That, I think, is the point of this thread. It's a simple thing to tell someone never to take a friend for granted. To convey what that actually means is almost impossible. These tales of loss are the closest thing; even if you don't want to watch the video, (I didn't) you should read some of these stories and take away their true message: It's all worth it.

On January 01 2011 07:15 TheMunkey wrote:
This thread reminds me of this:
http://i.imgur.com/Sb0Bl.jpg

I just got a pup and hes only five months old. She is always hyper but I love her for being that, wouldn't want it any other day because one day she will be gone but I will always love her.

For now, always remember that the time your pets spend with you is the greatest time of their lives. They live to be companions, they live to hunt mice, they live to greet you at the door, they live for when you refill their water, they live just to enjoy life as an animal can. It's hard to part with a loved pet, but always know that the time you spent with that pet makes their stay on Earth more fulfilling and beautiful than any of us can ever hope to live our lives.

On December 31 2010 21:55 braammbolius wrote:
I had to put down my cat becouse it had gotten cat-aids. Yes......cat - fucking - Aids.

In case you're thinking "lol, you're joking right", that was my exact response when the vet called with the test results....

Buried her in my mother's garden with my sister helping, was sad as shit
Mushi Nevarforget

On January 02 2011 07:26 BritishBeef wrote:


I had a cat called Sally that died of cat Aids
I also had a cat called Harry that got ran over

The next kitten we had was called Thomas and my dad got him as a gift, and my dad used to be jealous that he just loved me (i was in the house a lot.. gave the cat attention) Then shortly when we started letting him go outside he got ill and died I remember everyone in our house crying went out and toasted to the cat

Now i have 2 more Moggies from my sister Toby (My fav) and Stella (She just wont shut up )

Is it bad to have a fav cat ? I mean i seriously love one but the other gives me a headache.. im just trying to play starcraft and shes all like meow meow i need attention i need attention.. She reminds me why me and Righty have gotten on so well over the years

On January 02 2011 07:30 UberThing wrote:


How did your cat get AIDS? I'm just curious.
In humans the main ways are unprotected sex (promiscous people)
intravenous drug use, blood transfusion and mother-child transmission

On January 02 2011 09:00 Sanguinarius wrote:
I had many pets when I was growing up (my mother was a vet), but the death of my dog really hurt me. She was a greater Swiss mountain dog and we got her when I was ~8 years old. For the first few months all my other siblings would yell if they didnt get to play with her, and me, being the eldest, would have to wait. Well eventually their interest wore off and she and I began to spend more time together. I would take her on a walk everyday after school. She was the most well behaved dog. She would never get mad (even with kids jumping all over her) and would always be at the door when we came home. We grew up together and I loved her.

I went to college and always looked forward to coming home and seeing her. Now, I am telling this story here partly because of guilt also. When I was home one summer it was just me and her. My parents and siblings were on a trip and I was working. My parents explicitly told me that she was not allowed to come upstairs (she never had been, the bottom floor was wood and the top floor had lost of carpets... plus I think my mother wanted all the dog hair downstairs). Well, I thought "no big deal...she can come upstairs with me". Well I woke up one morning and found that she had thrown up on one of my parents super old oriental carpets from our grandparents. I knew my parents were going to kill me, and I was pissed at the dog. And I dont mean a little bit, I felt completely betrayed. I had let her come up stairs and she destroyed a rug. I was so mad at her and I looking back at it, I think she knew it. I could tell by her eyes. I left to go back to school a few days later and I remember still being mad at her and not even giving her a hug.

I got a call a few weeks later. Apparently she had been getting sicker and sicker and my parents finally took her to the vet. She had advanced stage liver cancer with mets all over her liver. She didn't have long to live and my parents were going to have to put her down as she was in alot of pain and not eating. I came home immediately. When I walked in the door, she couldn't even get up, but her face did brighten and she began wagging her tail. I spent the next 2 days with her and was holding her as she passed away. She had completely forgiven me and loved me nonetheless. I loved her, but I have never forgiven myself. But even in her death, she taught me a valuable lesson I practice to this day - love everyone and dont sweat the small stuff... you never know when it will end.

It still makes me cry to this day when I think about her, and its been almost a decade. I still have her picture in my wallet.

On January 02 2011 07:30 UberThing wrote:


How did your cat get AIDS? I'm just curious.
In humans the main ways are unprotected sex (promiscous people)
intravenous drug use, blood transfusion and mother-child transmission