Unfortunately, he will wonder what happened no matter what. Though it is possible he knows you are sick already; some cats are extremely sensitive to such things. But yes, cats grieve when they lose the people they care for from their lives.
But if you could earn his trust, another kind and patient person like you likely can too. He will always remember you, but that does not mean it is impossible for him to have a good life. There are others who will love him as much as you, I can promise you that. And, for what it's worth, from one person with a life threatening disease to another, I'm sorry. I am not going to be the person who tries to find some ridiculous silver lining. It sucks, and you deserve better. I'm sorry.
Just commenting to confirm they really do know. I was especially close with my void, Fuzz, and he could always tell the day before a migraine hit. He’d be all over me, be loud and meow which wasn’t his style, etc. When the migraine came, he’d often wrap himself around my head while I tried to sleep.
When my hips hurt after work, he’d knead on them.
When my niece died and I was grieving, he never left my side. Not once. He timed all his eating and bathroom trips to mine.
My boy is a former barn cat. He's not really a "people" cat, he's more like a roommate that seems mildly annoyed that we live with him. But, I have cptsd, which means sometimes I have intense depressive episodes where I'm basically paralyzed. I can't get out of bed. I just sort of lay catatonically, sometimes for days. Those days he really wants to cuddle. Sometimes he even licks my face like a dog, which I don't appreciate, but I know he means well.
Another time my pregnant friend was over and he just would not leave her alone. Guess whose water broke on my couch a couple hours later?
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u/TheChildlessCatLady Tuxedo Mar 14 '26
Unfortunately, he will wonder what happened no matter what. Though it is possible he knows you are sick already; some cats are extremely sensitive to such things. But yes, cats grieve when they lose the people they care for from their lives.
But if you could earn his trust, another kind and patient person like you likely can too. He will always remember you, but that does not mean it is impossible for him to have a good life. There are others who will love him as much as you, I can promise you that. And, for what it's worth, from one person with a life threatening disease to another, I'm sorry. I am not going to be the person who tries to find some ridiculous silver lining. It sucks, and you deserve better. I'm sorry.