I think my cat is dying

Rappel

Wed, Sep 13 2023, 3:13 pm

She's been showing the symptoms of kidney failure for a while, but now she looks like she's really at the end.

She's old, and we had a poisoning scare a few months ago, so I'm not terribly surprised that this happened. But we've been a long road together, and I like her. I'm sad she's going now.

My heart goes out every time she calls. I don't think it's right to euthanize, but it's hard.

I made her comfortable in the living room, and now I'm just sitting on the sofa watching her.

I'd appreciate sympathy, or tips toward helping her feel comfortable.

Elfrida

Wed, Sep 13 2023, 3:21 pm

Have you spoken to your vet? My friends cat had kidney problems, and we used to inject fluids and a potassium solution subcutaneously. It didn't stop nature taking its course, but the cat lasted longer and was more comfortable.

On another note, if she does die over Yom Tov, a dead animal is normally mukzah, but you don't want it around the house for two days. There is room to move her, but you should probably clarify the details.

In the meantime, much sympathy.

Rappel

Wed, Sep 13 2023, 3:47 pm

Elfrida wrote:

I'll ask him about it.

She's really truly done though. We thought she was going through kidney failure a few months ago, until she made a full recovery, and then we found out that a neighbor has put out an unbelievable amount of mole poison in their yard. But I expected damage, and I guess there was.

That time, it was overnight. This time, it was slower coming on, and she has progressed to the point where she's not eating, not drinking, filthy, and not walking if she can help it. My elegant little lady is reduced in circumstance, but has not yet abandoned her graces, despite all the filth.

I put her in a vegetable cardboard box to help her not slip on the tile, and gave her a hot water bottle because she seems very cold to me.

And now, we wait.

---
We had a shabbat/Yom tov animal crisis before. Two years ago, our dog was struck on erev Shabbat/pesach. She died that evening, and we had to ask a sheilah what to do with a large dog body in our living room.

The Rav said that we should put something muttar in a wheelbarrow, and the body into it as well, and wheel it down a little-used road so we can dump the body into a wadi.

It was a few months until we could walk that way again.

BadTichelDay

Wed, Sep 13 2023, 4:14 pm

Rappel wrote:

I put her in a vegetable cardboard box to help her not slip on the tile, and gave her a hot water bottle because she seems very cold to me.

That coldness could be a sign that she's centralizing. If that's the case, I would suspect that she'll go in the next very few days. I tried to raise 3 orphan kittens last year, they didn't make it and each of them went cold and wouldn't warm up a day or two before the end.

It's always so sad when pets pass away. Our old dog a few years back could hardly walk any more and had been mostly lying around in the house for weeks, but then suddenly she stood up, wobbled outside and lied down in the garden and 15 minutes later she was dead.

Rappel

Wed, Sep 13 2023, 4:22 pm

BadTichelDay wrote:

That would make sense to me. If she makes it through the night, I'll put her out under the trees tomorrow morning, so she can warm herself and enjoy the fresh air. I'm working as an assistant ganenet until YK, and I can't stay home tomorrow morning. We'll see. My MIL will be watching my baby, but she is not an animal lover, so I won't tax her with her care.

BadTichelDay

Wed, Sep 13 2023, 4:30 pm

Rappel wrote:

Outside might be pleasant for her, as long as it's sheltered and no other animals can harrass her.

Elfrida

Wed, Sep 13 2023, 4:34 pm

BadTichelDay wrote:

It's always so sad when pets pass away. Our old dog a few years back could hardly walk any more and had been mostly lying around in the house for weeks, but then suddenly she stood up, wobbled outside and lied down in the garden and 15 minutes later she was dead.

Sometimes they need to be alone to let go, the same as humans.

I had a street cat who adopted me, and lived with me happily for a few years. During the early weeks of the first corona lockdown I noticed her getting weaker and less interested in food. On Shabbat haGadol she came to sit next to me, and tried to crawl into my lap but didn't have the strength, so I picked her up. She barely weighed anything, but she snuggled down very contentedly and tried to purr. After a while I had to go bed, so I got up and gently put her down on the couch and covered her with a blanket. The next morning she had died, still in the same place.

A few months later a little street kitten decided she wanted to be a house cat, and adopted me. The next year, on Shabbat haGadol, she had three little kittens! It felt like closing the circle.

(She has since been to the vet, and will not be having any more kittens!)

Rappel

Wed, Sep 13 2023, 4:44 pm

Elfrida wrote:

Something about that story is very sweet to me. I'm glad she found peace with you.

I do think that the animals that seem "more than normal" are gilgulim. It sounds like your little queen was something special.

I think my cat is just a cat, and not a reincarnation. On the other hand, she came into our lives right after my grandma passed away, and my big regret is that my grandma never met my son. This cat has been uniquely devoted to raising and caring for my kids for nearly 7 years now. So... Maybe?

amother

Almond

Wed, Sep 13 2023, 5:41 pm

Rappel wrote:

Sometimes the right and humane thing to do is euthanize.
Hugs and luck.

Elfrida

Thu, Sep 14 2023, 8:54 am

Rappel wrote:

I think my cat is just a cat, and not a reincarnation. On the other hand, she came into our lives right after my grandma passed away, and my big regret is that my grandma never met my son. This cat has been uniquely devoted to raising and caring for my kids for nearly 7 years now. So... Maybe?

I don't know much about gilgulim, but I understand that a human neshama suffers in the body of an animal. So if she's fulfilled her role in this world, and is ready to leave, you can be glad that the suffering of her neshama is over.

PinkFridge

Thu, Sep 14 2023, 9:12 am

Rappel wrote:

Or maybe your grandmother was a melitzas yosher, sending you the healing you need in the form of the cat.

Last edited by PinkFridge on Thu, Sep 14 2023, 11:30 am; edited 1 time in total

Rappel

Thu, Sep 14 2023, 2:55 pm

Thank you all.

She had her day in the sun, and stayed in the area where the children played, although I don't think she could really see us at that point.

Around 7, she slipped into a comatose state, and she's been stretched out and just breathing since.

The kids said goodbye before they went to bed, and we talked about what a good cat she is. My oldest was worried "but what cat will guard me when I sleep? Who will be my friend when I wake up in the middle of the night?"

She was a very good cat -- very social with people, very motherly over all the children. She always looked after my babies, and warmed them and washed them and slept with them until they got to the pulling age. She never had a problem moving houses: as long as she was with us, she felt at home immediately. She was ridiculously confident, and expected the world to move around her. I don't know what she said to other dogs and cats, but she rarely had to fight; they would just look at each other, and then the dog would turn and run. Whenever my children left the house, she circles them to make sure there was no danger, and would come and get me if my toddler was doing something concerning. She's always been very polite about table matters - her food is in her bowl, and she waited patiently for tidbits to come to her there.

She walked with us where we walked; if we drove away, she waited there, and hopped up to greet us and make sure we were safe when we parked again.

She's a good cat.

Last edited by Rappel on Thu, Sep 14 2023, 3:07 pm; edited 4 times in total