Worried about Mimi........advice?

[Logan]

She is continuing to decline. She has no obvious health problems. She was checked over, completely, a couple of weeks ago. She was 5.2 pounds that day. I think she would weigh less today.

She turned 17 years old on June 18. Oh, I love her so, but she is not happy. She doesn't want to eat, no matter what I offer. She doesn't want to come inside unless I force her. She doesn't seem to be in pain, but her jumping ability is just about gone and she cries out whenever we pick her up....I don't know whether that is pain or just grouchiness. How do I know what to do and when she is so bad that I need to let her go? I am fearful that I have been too distracted with Mack and with the loss of Zipper to pay enough attention to her, but I have tried, as has Helen. Her hearing is good and she usually comes when we call. I would like her to stay inside all of the time, but should I force her to stay inside now, after all these years? And would it make a difference? My greatest fear is that she will just walk away and die one day and I won't know where she is or what happened. If she is ready to go, I will give her a dignified death, but how do I know????

I'm just grasping for some suggestions and some possibilities right now. Do I need to try to find an answer at this late point in her life? do I need to just let her live out her life, as I have planned to do?

Please, be honest with me. Dr. Robinson will do whatever I want, but he is not one for heroics and neither am I.

Logan

[Catty1]

Could her pain be due to arthritis? that kind of pain would kill a critter's appetite.

There might be treatment for that.

You might try asking Dr Robinson what he would do if it were his cat.

Another question I have asked is: "If I decided to put my cat to sleep, would you say it was an inappropriate decision?"

These questions sound unfeeling...but they enable a vet to reply honestly, without deciding for you, if you know what I mean.

Love Mimi as much as you can! Maybe a well-protected heating pad would help her pain.

hugs
Catty1

[shais_mom]

Oh Logan I am so sorry to hear this.
Wow she's sooo tiny!
I fell that they will let you know when the time comes but in this case it is so hard to know.
hugs to you and gentle hugs to Mimi

[Laura's Babies]

To me it would depend on the quality of life she is having now and I would have to get her inside to watch and observe her and to keep her safe.

[Maresche]

I am so sorry to hear about Mimi.

What we did for Hana as she got older was make a list of her 3 favorite things to do. We knew it would be time to let her go when she would not or could not do those things anymore.

Fortunately, or unfortunately, her health declined so fast we didn't need the list.

I hope the decision is still a long way off for Mimi.

[catlover4ever]

Logan, I'm sorry to hear about Mimi. I know some of what you are going through. Miss Tucker is 23 and when you describe Mimi I would swear that you are describing Tucker as well. She cries when we pick her up, does not eat as well as she used to, sleeps almost all of the time, does not want to come inside for the night, she can no longer jump, etc.

I know a lot of the thoughts that are going through your head. Am I being fair to Mimi, is she just cranky, am I doing right by her....only you can answer that....it's hard.

I contemplate Tucker every day. She going deaf and her sight is starting to fail. When we pick her up she cries, she made me chase her 4 times over the yard last night because she did not want to come inside (but she has to come in every night)....will she one day walk away to die in the woods and I won't be able to find her. Having discussed Tucker with my vet he has told me that all these things happen to cats, some just decline at earlier ages.

I have to just trust in my heart that I will be able to tell when she has failed enough and my heart will make the decision to give her a dignified peace...and I know that I have to be strong enough to not second guess myself.

Our senior cats are very wise and knowing creatures....I think Mimi will tell you when her time has come. (((hugs))) --- Meg

[Rachel]

I can well remember the agony of facing each day the agony of watching the physical and mental decline of a pet. Sometimes I wondered which of us was suffering more.

Although it seems like the worst possible scenerio, if in fact one day she does go off and not come back, try to think of it as how she wanted it to be. As I write this, I am brought to tears as I know how dear Mimi is to you and your family. Even if you hadn't just had to deal with losing Murphy and Zipper, this situation is heart wrenching.

Whatever you choose to do, it will be a thoughtful and caring decision. You are capable of only that for your animals. Trust your heart.

[catnapper]

I am truly sorry to hear this. I have no experience with knowing when its time... I can only imagine the pain and heartache of wondering if you shold wait or take action. ((HUGS))

[moosmom]

will she one day walk away to die in the woods and I won't be able to find her.

My biggest fear would be the above. Since she is 17 and getting on in years, I would try to keep her inside. But that is only my opinion.

You've gotta do what is best for Mimi. When the time comes, I hope you will be able to do what is right for Mimi. In the meantime, love her with everything you've got, and make the most of the time you have with her.

(((((HUGS))))

Donna

[Logan]

Thank you all for your comments and advice. One thing I failed to mention is that she "hides" now. Zipper started doing the same thing when he got sick. She stayed inside all night (she is set up with a litter box and chooses to stay upstairs, most of the time, hiding in Helen's closet). This morning, I took a food bowl and water upstairs so she wouldn't have to come down to the usual spot to eat. Maybe that will help.

Dr. Robinson does not work on Thursday, so I will call him in the morning and see if he has any advice about stimulating her appetite.

Mimi has been with me since she was a six week old kitten in 1989 and has been the healthiest, easiest pet I have ever had. And oh so loving. My goal in the last year has been to let her do what she wants, when she wants and where she wants. If outside is where she wanted to be, I have been able to trust her to stay in our yard, usually sleeping in a flower bed or under the car. Thank goodness we don't have problems with stray animals around here or I would be more fearful. But if I can keep her in, that is what I plan to try and do.

I will keep you posted. I didn't even share pictures of her on her birthday because she looks so bad. I would prefer for you guys to remember her when she was healthier and a little more plump.

Tucker is amazing at 23 years old. Wow! I guess I've always thought that Mimi would live forever. Its not just that I'm still grieving for Murphy and Zip, although that does play a part in my struggle right now, but I just don't want this huge piece of my life to leave me. Not yet. She has been the one stable thing in my life, through thick and thin, for the last 17 years.

Logan

[Tubby & Peanut's Mom]

Oh Logan, I'm so sorry to hear this. But, along with Meg, I know exactly what you're going through since Peanut's tumor is getting worse - I can tell by the amount of blood in her urine.

I would suggest that you do whatever you can to make Mimi comfortable and let your heart guide you the rest of the way. Either she will die peacefully and you will find her afterwards, or she will give you some kind of sign that it is time. My first thought about leaving her outside was "if that's what she wants, that's what she gets" but the thought of having her wander off and die is just too horrible, so I would keep her inside also, and if the upstairs closet is where she prefers to be then that would be good enough for me - as long as I knew where she was.

She could have arthritis making it painful when you pick her up. I gave Tubby Cosequin for his arthritis and it seemed to help a bit. Also, when Tubby was at his worst, I finally got him to eat a bit of baby food. What I did was put the dish in the microwave for about a minute to make it warm, then I put the baby food on the warm dish. That way it was warm - making it more smelly so they're more likely to eat it - but it wasn't HOT which wouldn't have been good. Tubby preferred the beef and turkey mushy baby food. The only other thing I can think of to stimulate her appetite is prednisolone. It's a steroid which makes them hungry and usually you have to worry about them gaining weight when they're on it, but it sounds like that would be a good thing in Mimi's case.

I'm just so very sorry this is all happening right now. You've been through so much in the last few months with losing precious pets, and this is the last thing you need right now. I will be hoping and praying for a positive uppydate, but know that we are here for you no matter what the news. {{{hugs}}}

[catmandu]

I think that she would be better inside, as at that advanced age she could not get away from danger.
And you can keep Mimi a lot more comfortable if you could keep her indoors, and we pray that you can help that Poor Old Cat.

[Pam]

I can well remember the agony of facing each day the agony of watching the physical and mental decline of a pet. Sometimes I wondered which of us was suffering more.

Although it seems like the worst possible scenerio, if in fact one day she does go off and not come back, try to think of it as how she wanted it to be. As I write this, I am brought to tears as I know how dear Mimi is to you and your family. Even if you hadn't just had to deal with losing Murphy and Zipper, this situation is heart wrenching.

Whatever you choose to do, it will be a thoughtful and caring decision. You are capable of only that for your animals. Trust your heart.

As always, our dear friend, Rachel, has said what I would have said only in a much better way. (((Hugs))) to you Logan. I know Mimi has been your best friend for many years.

[jazzcat]

Logan I'm so sorry. Having gone through trying to decide with Disney just a year ago I am a bit familiar with this. It's heart-wrenching. You've had to deal with this pain too much.

My thoughts and prayers are with you.

((((HUGS))))

[Logan]

I'm going to get the baby food this afternoon. Thank you, Debbie, for that reminder. I know that you know exactly what I'm dealing with, as so many of you do. She came downstairs, earlier, and let me hold her. I gave her milk, but she ignored it. I gave her canned food, which she ignored, too. I will try tuna later and see if she will eat it. And maybe the baby food will do the trick. Funny how there is no competition with Butter any longer. I guess she doesn't have the energy. She saves it for Mack, who has learned, through constant "No No" from me, to leave her alone most of the time.

I almost wish there were an obvious reason for her decline....a tumor, something......sounds sick for me to even type that out. It is just old age. Her kidney function is fine, her heart rate was off the map, but it was because she was so nervous at the vet. We'll just wait and see what Dr. Robinson says tomorrow and I might call Butter's vet. Dr. Anderson, too, just to get her input, since she specializes in cats. She has never seen Mimi, but she might have a suggestion. I'll do anything to prolong her life as long as she can enjoy living. Otherwise, I know what I must do.

Logan