George has a Mysterious Condition

That's very tough. You have my sincere sympathies.

A lot of people can't understand how some of us can become so emotionally tied to "just an animal."

When my dog died a couple of years back I blubbered like a baby and I still miss her - truth be told, more than my mother because Nala was infinitely more loving than my severely damaged mom.

In any case, the only advise I can offer is based on what we went through.

We knew Nala was growing old and it was painful for her to move around, but we didn't know how bad it was. When she had a devastating episode, my wife and daughter didn't want to take her to the Vet because they feared he would say we needed to put her to sleep.

We did take her and found she was riddled with cancer in her bones and lungs. The Vet said she never saw such a bad case and was amazed Nala had lasted this long (I should point out that this was a new Vet and not the hacks who missed her horrible condition).

Clearly there was no option but to put her to sleep.

Your cat may not be in as horrible a position as my dog was (I hope for his sake this is the case), but an animal that is constantly losing weight is ill. If your cat is not eating that is a very serious sign.

We're fortunate enough to have been able to afford all of the tests. Unfortunately our regular Vet never recommended any of them

I can understand how someone may not be able to afford these tests because they are certainly not cheap.

You are in a terrible position: Do you hope for the best and unintentionally allow your beloved pet to suffer or do you take a step that is utterly final? I don't envy you.

The only thing that I would throw out to you is that animals have a much higher threshold for pain than humans and their reaction to it is much different than ours.

Do some research and see how cat's express pain. (For some dogs, it is excessive panting). If you see the signs, you have to make a tough choice, but,ultimately, I'm sure you would rather your pet die before his time than suffer terribly.

All the best with this.

Of course you will do the humane thing and be sure the animal is not in pain.

Welcome to A2k.

As soon as my vet gets back to me with a time, I will be taking George in to do euthanasia. Might be today or in the next 48 hours, depending on when they say. He has begun to struggle more, and I want to do it before he is really suffering . It might be the hardest thing I ever do. To honor George I will write an obituary and put it here and in Facebook. Thanks to everyone here who has been supportive.

Oh, I'm so sorry. Their only flaw is not living longer.

My condolences.

So sorry to hear this, but sometimes it's the only thing besides a long slow lingering.

I was there for Harmony. I spent the last two hours with him, petting him and making him comfortable, talking to him, saying not good-bye but more "see you later on", in which I believe. I held him when his time came, and saw his surprise at the sudden relief from pain just as he fell asleep.

That last second with him in my arms was enough to completely convince me that I did the right thing. I know he's patiently waiting to greet me again, somewhere, with his good friends Hatha and Belle at his side...

I truly hope you find peace of mind as I did, by giving him peace from his hardships.

Bless you for your compassion.

That sucks. Pets are so much members of the family.

Damn. Life can be a right bitch sometimes.

So sorry to learn of this sad news. I hope George's suffering is minimal. You're doing the right thing as his time is winding down. My sympathies go out to you and your family.

P.S. FWIW, my 2 now-deceased cats Bonkers and Sugar (Meshuganeh) were both black cats too.

Very sorry to learn this but you are doing the right thing

Speaking of black cats -

Here is an old photo of Cinque, the black cat who was the mother of Spackle, who was squashing her:
https://able2know.org/topic/270077-1
The post is about 6 posts down.

How we loved them! This was in the seventies, but memory remains.

Much sympathy, snood.

George and Joe have been part of your life for so long. They truly are family.

Sending hugs and scritches for you and George.

I'm so sorry.

Very sad to hear this

I just got home from the vet. They were kind and helpful. The vet had just had to do the same with one of hers last week. I held George and said goodbye as he drifted away. It's going to take me awhile. Thanks again to all for your kindness.

It will take a while, but it will get better. Not really all that different from losing a human loved one. It's been over a year since we had to put our dog down and for weeks, every time I walked through the front door I expected to see here come greet me. Every time I walked into our bedroom, I expected to see her lying in her bed. Every time I heard a noise outside my office I thought for a moment it was her coming to see me as her claws made noise on the wood floors. It lasted for months but less and less frequently as time passed. Just a couple of weeks ago when I returned home after a week long trip, it hit me again and I expected to see her when I came through the door. It may have been because it was almost a year to the day from when she passed. I don't know.

Everybody copes with loss in their own way, but I found it comforting to regularly scroll through photos of her, and my wife and I never shied away from reminiscing about her. It worked for us, and maybe it can help you, but regardless, as you've noted, it will take time, and as many have noted, it will get better.

Better to have had the pleasure of George being in your life and going through this now, than never having had him as your friend. Be well

There will be paw-prints on your heart for a long time...

With your kind indulgence I want to tell you about my boy Georgie.

I spent about half of my life thinking cats were mostly just annoyances. But this cat George turned out to become very special to me. From the start, him and I just sort of hit it off. I got him and his brother Joe when I got divorced from my first wife and couldn’t have a dog at the apartment I moved into. That was about 16 years ago – he was 8 months old when I got him.

George was unique. You’d notice right away that he didn’t ‘meow’ – he had a raspy, hoarse thing he always did in place of a meow. That sound, and a grumpy sort of ‘hmph’ sound were about as verbal as he got. He insisted on watching TV with me. He would always position himself on the chair arm so that I would be wedged in. But his all time best trick was to stand on my lap and do a ‘digging’ motion on my chest until I open my shirt, jacket or robe and let him snuggle inside then close it with him inside. He would get down in there and just peer out at me with those orange eyes and purr (he had a unique purr too – kind of broken and uneven). He followed me around everywhere just like a dog – I used to tell him if he got busted doing that he would lose his cat membership. He was strictly an indoor cat, but every once in a while, he would sit by the door and make an escape when it opened. Some escape. About 3 or 4 feet outside, he’d flip over on his back and squirm contentedly. Just wanted to get some fresh air, I guess – and then he’d race right back inside. Goofy boy.

That’s just some of the stuff I’ll miss. But mostly just that he has Always. Been. Right. There. If he wasn’t in easy line of sight, he wasn’t far. The only exceptions are when he was sick or felt bad – then he would hide under the bed. That stoicism is what makes it hard to know when cats are really suffering.

About a year ago, he started losing weight, ever so gradually. It ends up it was some kind of gastrointestinal lymphoma. Very hard to diagnose and treat. He also started being arthritic about the same time. After a year he was very slender, and finding it harder and harder to get around on his sore joints. You just got the feeling that he wasn’t enjoying much. When he stopped purring when I pet him and lost a lot of interest in eating, I told him ”I’m not going to watch you waste away and suffer.”

So I loaded him up for one last trip to the vets. They were very kind and helpful. The vet had just had to do the same for one of her own pets less than a week before. They gave George a sedative shot in the rear flank to put him to sleep – you could tell the shot hurt, but he drifted pretty quickly into deep sleep. I just sat with him and stroked him as he relaxed and went limp, telling him goodbye and loving on him. The second part is a shot of something like pentobarbital to stop the heart. I didn’t stay for that part, and I opted not to keep his remains – they offered to take care of that. That little body wasn’t George anymore, and I have a million memories.

He was with me through a second marriage and moved with me to four different states. Besides my immediate family, George and his brother represent the longest relationships I’ve had with a living thing.
I saw someone else say about a beloved pet they had to put to rest that it had been the closest thing to a parent/child relationship she had ever had. I understand that. I lost a big piece of my heart - a big piece of me. Goodbye my excellent friend and loyal companion. Thank you letting me love you and loving me back as only you could. George Washington Carver Blount.

I understand perfectly. I have been through this with several pets, all dogs, but for a couple of cats.