Go Back   Pet forum for dogs cats and humans - Pets.ca > Discussion Groups - mainly cats and dogs > General Forum for cats and dogs

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
  #1  
Old October 5th, 2013, 08:52 PM
Willowsmommy Willowsmommy is offline
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: Midwest
Posts: 3
Feline Leukemia and end of life decisions

5 months ago we brought an older kitten (estimated age 9-12 months) into our home. She was a rescue who was fully vaccinated. She is a thin cat. A few days ago, we noticed that she was acting strange (not playing, lethargic.) The next morning, she was breathing heavier than normal so I took her to the vet. Long story short, she was diagnosed with feline leukemia, fluid on the lungs, and anemia. The vet started her on clindamycin and lasik orally. She was mildly improved yesterday but is the same today as yesterday. She will not eat but will drink "cat" broth and lick the gravy off of wet food if we bring the food to her (which we are doing approximately every 2 hrs or so during the day time.) She uses the litterbox, and will occasionally purr or attempt to play for a very short time.

How do you know when it's time to euthanize? I don't want to euthanize if she's improving but I also don't want her to needlessly suffer.
Reply With Quote
  #2  
Old October 5th, 2013, 09:17 PM
pbpatti's Avatar
pbpatti pbpatti is offline
Senior Contributor
 
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: Edmonton
Posts: 2,874
I am so sorry that you have to make this decision for such a young cat. I really do not know much about this disease as I am mostly a dog person. I hope that someone will come along soon and give you their thoughts on this. Love your kitty until she needs to leave. Thank you for adopting.
__________________
It Is What It Is
Reply With Quote
  #3  
Old October 6th, 2013, 09:41 AM
marko's Avatar
marko marko is offline
Administrator - Pet lover
 
Join Date: Mar 2001
Location: Montreal Quebec Canada
Posts: 12,651
It's the toughest part of being a pet owner and I'm so sorry you are going through this.

Here's an article that i really like that may help you with this terrible decision.

http://www.pets.ca/dogs/tips/euthana...e-pet-tip-228/

I hope it may help - Sincerely
Marko
__________________
Please tactfully EDUCATE or IGNORE posters you don't agree with.
Please PM me & Include URLs and post #'s for any issues and it's my pleasure to help.
I'm firm - but fair. Mind the Rules and enjoy your stay.
Newcomers FAQ - How do I post on this BB?
Pet facebook group
Check out the Pet podcast
Follow me on Twitter
Reply With Quote
  #4  
Old October 10th, 2013, 08:43 AM
Willowsmommy Willowsmommy is offline
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: Midwest
Posts: 3
Thank you both for your kind words (and for the article.) We made the difficult decision to euthanize her yesterday. Her intake was too low and the lasik dehydrated her. We discontinued the lasik on Saturday, took her to the vet for IV fluids on Sunday. They also gave her an injectable antibiotic, discontinued the clindamycin, and gave her a vitamin B12 shot to boost energy and appetite. She ate well Sunday night so we were hopeful. Unfortunately, without the lasik, her little lungs filled back up with fluid and her breathing was painful - retractions/nasal flaring. Tuesday night she stopped eating. It was a difficult decision for our family, especially given her young age, but was the right decision for Willow.
Reply With Quote
  #5  
Old October 10th, 2013, 09:41 AM
Barkingdog Barkingdog is offline
Senior Contributor
 
Join Date: May 2012
Posts: 4,371
Yes that is a very hard difficult decision to made for your pet. I am sorry to hear you had to euthanize your sweet kitty. I had do this too when my last dog was not able to eat anymore. He had cancer.
Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off


Forum Terms of Use

  • All Bulletin Board Posts are for personal/non-commercial use only.
  • Self-promotion and/or promotion in general is prohibited.
  • Debate is healthy but profane and deliberately rude posts will be deleted.
  • Posters not following the rules will be banned at the Admins' discretion.
  • Read the Full Forum Rules

Forum Details

  • Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8
    Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
    vBulletin Optimisation by vB Optimise (Reduced on this page: MySQL 0%).
  • All times are GMT -5. The time now is 04:29 PM.