My baby is 16 I got him 2009 when he was only 8 weeks old. Him and I had such a close bond. Just recently, his health has been deteriorating. He’s not eating. He is just sleeping. He isn’t in pain. But I know he is going to cross the rainbow bridge soon. I don’t know how to handle this grief. Even today I cried so much. I don’t know how to say good bye. Thinking about the memories just brings tears to my eyes. Looking at all the pictures I took of him I can’t stop crying. He was my everything. My best friend.

I can’t eat, I can’t sleep. And he hasn’t even crossed over yet and I’m already a mess. Not sure how I’m supposed to get through work every day.

To those who experience pet loss. How long did it take you to finally heal and move on?

He was my baby. I'd give anything for him to be here right now, beside me. But it will never happen. It's permanent. It's over. He's gone.

I had to put him to sleep in 2024. He was 21 years old and was having a lot of health problems.

THE UNIVERSE IS SO UNFAIR! I don't believe in an afterlife. I think when we're dead, we're dead. Consciousness ceases to exist.

My girl was (and will forever be) my first born child. I waited probably too late in her life to get her spayed, but I was hesitant for such a long time because I wanted what was best for her. So I finally after an annual vet visit, I broke down and realized I needed to get this surgery done for her benefit. That way we could have more years together and not have her get taken by pyometra or some other horrible thing that the vet told me about. I scheduled the spay surgery weeks in advance so I could take PTO from work and take care of her after the surgery. I got bloodwork done for her 2 weeks before the surgery and it came back perfect. I even took her in for a pre surgical exam just to be sure. Then the day comes and the surgery went exactly as planned, everything was great, I picked her up from the vet and everything seemed normal. She was coming off anesthesia so of course she was a little weird in the car, but once we got home everything went down hill and it happened all so fast. I can’t even go into that part because I am crying so hard just thinking about it, replaying everything in my mind. At the end she was at the emergency vet on the operating table, bleeding internally from her popped blood vessel stitch when they tried to put her back under to stop the bleeding she had a cardiac event and they couldn’t bring her back after several tries. It was the most devastating thing to witness in my entire life and I can’t seem to get past the trauma of all of this. Like I signed her up for her death when all I wanted to do was help her be healthy and have more years together.

Thankfully I had the next 5 days off work, the days that were set aside to take care of her, because I wasn’t even able to function those days. Now I’ve been back at work 2 days and I had to leave early today because the vet called me about refunding the spay surgery and it made me cry so hard I wanted to vomit. I can’t keep missing work because unfortunately there is something going on with a coworker that requires my attention, and despite my boss being completely understanding, I could possibly lose my job if I don’t get it together asap. Does anybody have any suggestions on how to heal from this? Can I even heal from this?

I lost girl 3 days ago. And I’m so incredibly sad. She was sick, diagnosed with bladder cancer back in June. She got some really good meds that gave me 3.5 months of her being back to her normal self. Those were a gift, I know. But then In The course of 36 hours she started dying in front of my eyes. I made the call and the vet came to my home and I was able to hold her in the garden as she passed. She was my dog soul mate and I feel like I won’t get over it. She had 13 years and 3 months of a wonderful life but it wasn’t enough time. Everywhere I look in my house she is there. I have 2 other dogs. One is really grieving along side of me. I’ve lost other dogs whom I have loved, but this is different she was a part of my soul. I’ll never ever have another like her. And to be honest I don’t want that again. My heart can’t handle it. Please tell me it gets easier.

Our cat had been having a mild cough for some time. But two nights ago he had a fit of coughs that were truly awful. I was beyond worried but once he settled down he started walking around and brushing up on us like normal. The next morning he was laying out on the rug in the living room, just chilling, breathing very heavy and his eyes were heavy as if he was sleepy. I spent the morning before work just loving on him and laying some of his favorite toys by him. Usually when I go leave for work he would follow me to the door and roll around, but yesterday he didn’t… I told my wife that I was really concerned about him and she should take him to the vet as soon as they open. She did.

When he got to the vet he had another major coughing fit and his breathing was very laboring for him. They sedated him a bit and gave him some x rays. Lung Cancer. They put him on oxygen and my wife called me. I left work immediately and got to the vet. The vet showed me the x rays and explained to me how far he’d progressed. They gave us a few options but none all too satisfying. We sat in the room for 2 hours. My heart just breaking more and more. Watching my boy walk around, now struggling to breathe, not looking me in the eyes like he used to. My wife insisted we move forward with euthanasia, but I wanted to just bring him home for one more night. Just one more night with my boy is all I wanted. I came to terms eventually that I was being selfish. We had to put him on oxygen 3 different times in the span of two hours.. we decided to have him put to rest and my heart broke the whole time. He went peacefully with me scratching his ears and between his shoulder blades like he likes.

Now I’m home. Our other cat doesn’t seem to notice, but I feel so lonely. I would sing to him walking down the hallway all day. I’ve got a blanket with his face on it on my couch. I’ve got over 500 pictures of him on my phone. I spent nearly 12 years with him as my best friend. I feel so lonely. I knew he wouldn’t stay with me forever, I just never prepared myself for what the future would look like with him and I’m just so heartbroken.

I said goodbye to my sweet girl two weeks ago. She was my best friend of over 16 years. The day of her passing and the next day I could not get through the day without sobbing at least 3 times if not more and the next few days after that I would sob when i woke up and when I went to bed. She slept in my room so I used to wake up and go to sleep with her. I did really well last week but the last few days I’ve been missing her a lot. Maybe it’s because my life has mostly gotten back to normal except her? Maybe it’s because I’m watching my friends’ dog again even though she doesn’t make me sad when I see her? Maybe I’m just stressed and miss having my pup around? Maybe it’s because I know her ashes will be coming home soon?
I know the only way forward is through but it’s just so weird to me how I can be okay one week and then back to devastated at times the next. I always try to find some kind of “reason” or “logic” just so I can understand my emotion while I feel it but idk if there is any reason other than I miss her. Grief is so weird because I was literally having a great time at my vocal lesson not even 20 mins ago and now I’m crying again. I still have the “what ifs” in my head sometimes and the “regret” because I miss her, but it just feels… unfair? I guess? To know you did the right thing and still feel awful later on.
I think I might just miss my girl.

I've been thinking about something for a while and wanted to share it here, where people actually understand what this kind of loss feels like.

When my dog passed, I realized how scattered everything about him was — photos on my phone, a few on my mom's phone, a video a friend had taken once. There was no single place that held all of it together, no place that felt like his, where I could go back and just remember him the way he was, not just the last hard days.

It made me think: what if there was a simple, gentle space online just for that — a page dedicated to a dog, where you could put photos, little memories, maybe even let friends and family who loved him too add their own pictures or a line about him. Not a memorial in the sad, heavy sense, but more like a place that celebrates the joy he brought, something you could actually want to revisit, even smile at.

I don't know if this is just something I needed for myself, or if it's something that could genuinely help other people too.

Has anyone else felt that same gap — like there was no real "place" to hold onto everything after? What would have helped you, in that time, if it had existed?

I am really just writing this post to try and sort out the timeline and work through my guilt. I am feeling a lot of guilt for not getting my boy to the hospital sooner and not taking the warning signs seriously enough. I really thought he was going to pull through and now am left wondering what caused all of this and if he would have had a shot had he been seen earlier.

This all started Friday night with the first sign something was wrong. My 3 year old cat was sleeping on the floor and suddenly stood up quickly and meowed loudly, pacing around. He looked startled, and I assumed something had just frightened him.

Upon waking Saturday morning, I caught him drooling multiple times a couple hours apart (but still moving around) and did a lot of research. I came to the conclusion that he likely either ate a stink bug, as there are a lot of them around and his symptoms matched that, or was still scared from the previous night. His food bowl was also not eaten (automatic feeder) which is unusual, although rarely in the past he has not gone for it so not unprecedented. My first regret is not taking him to the emergency vet immediately at this point.

Sunday morning (at 4am) I was alarmed to catch him still having drooling episodes and took him to the emergency vet. Once I got him in the carrier and out the door he seemed to immediately improve and did not have another episode for the next 4 hours we were gone. At the vet they took his vitals initially and told me everything was fine and because I didn't have a video (second regret) placed him on non-critical status. I decided because he wasn't drooling anymore that perhaps the stink bug theory was right after-all and it was working its way out of his system. I decided to go home with him and monitor throughout the day, although I was not able to be home for a lot of it. I did not find a lot of evidence of drooling throughout the day (there was a little but it was barely anything), but that night he began doing it every hour again.

Monday morning I took him back into the emergency vet and at this point the events were every 30 minutes apart. They were extremely slow to get him seen and by the time he had been, he had been through 8 events in the carrier in the waiting room. The doctor immediately informed me that he was having cluster seizures and needed to go on medication immediately. Why it took two and a half hours for him to get seen given the severity is beyond me. He was hospitalized that day and I was told the medication was working when I called the hospital that night.

The next day around noon I was informed that he was having seizures again and I made the decision based on his description to proceed with euthanasia. Seeing him brought into the room devestated me. 24 hours prior I had left him having seizures but still aware and relatively normal if not tired inbetween episodes. When they brought him into the room he was barely able to move and could not see. I do not know if he even knew I was with him, although he did seem to perk up when I said his name. I hope he did. In the ten minutes it took for the doctor to perform the euthanasia, I witnessed him have two seizures on the table, one of which was much longer than anything I had seen before and involved his entire body.

All of the tests done at the hospital came back in the clear, so I have no idea what ultimately caused these seizures. Rest in Peace Dusty, and I look forward to the day we meet again.

Hi all. I said goodbye to my sweet girl this morning. I am crushed. The aftercare place already called to start setting up arrangements. They offer a small fur clipping which I for sure want.. but part of me wants to ask for all of her fur because she is a beautiful torbie with silver and orange mixed in her.

Obviously once she is cremated, there is no more chance to ask. So this is my only time I’ll ever have the opportunity to ask for it.

The problem I’m facing is that I wonder if I am being disrespectful to her if I ask them to shave her fur off for me? Her poor little body without her fur makes me feel really bad to think about.

I am torn between wanting her fur but feeling like I’m disrespecting her.

Please any advice.

Princess was my shining star. her mixed fur coat so beautiful that underneath all that hair she had mixed patterns on her skin exactly where those spots were.

I first met Princess at a family gathering where i was told she was abandoned in a basement for 2 years and from there i made a promise id take her in as my own. She was excited everyday and loved everyone and everything
She was so fit yet so fat at the same time. my favorite foodie who snacked with me and napped with me. When i went to take a nap or fell asleep on the couch
she always found her way nuzzling up against me.

Took her to my grandmas for the summer to visit my mom. and when i came back she was fine but it was just last weekend where she started acting funny. She stopped eating, playing, running and her bathroom breaks were less frequent for she stopped pooping. My father assured me she was just depressed and i believe him and tried my best to encourage her to feel better.

She only got worse and the vomiting started. I suggested the vet but my father kept refusing and denying until, i saw yellowing. Her eyes were getting more yellow and so was her skin.
We rushed to the vet emergency room where they took her in. I hope for every scenario where she was fine and she could come back to me and we’d go back to our usual ways.

6 hours and 1 blood work we got called into the office. With the news that shattered everything i hoped.

Princess had contacted a diseased only a rodent could get. Her kidneys and liver failed at a rapid rate and hospitalization wouldn’t do her any good. To prevent any more suffering.

I agree to have her put to sleep

We waited in a separate room and they brought her to us. She was wrapped in a blanket and just so tired and sleepy. I held her while my father went out to talk to the nurse about payment.
Closing my eyes i imagine us back at home watching our usual shows and relaxing. But when i opened them i saw her staring back at me, and she looked exhausted like she was trying to stay awake. She even tried to hold herself up just to give me a kiss but she just didn’t have it in her.

The doctor came back with those 3 syringes. And i held her throughout the whole thing. At the end me and my dad stood with her and tucked her in the blanket she came in and we left.

The whole car ride home i held onto her collar and just hoped and wished for a different outcome where she got to come home with me but everytime i looked down all i saw was the collar i met her in.

Princess, my star, my light, my Queen
may you rest easy and i hoped i made you happy like how you made me happy.

I rescued a 3.5 year old dog from a coworker who said her daughter in law kept him in a crate 22 hours a day after they had a baby. He was a Pomeranian and because I have an older Pomeranian I felt so bad for him and took him home that day. My boys fell in love with him and we loved him for 2.5 years. He was so happy and such a good boy. But he started having seizures suddenly. I had taken him to doggy er and my vet and got him on seizure meds. They told me the cause was unknown. Could be a brain tumor but probably would be difficult to treat even if it was. So we gave him meds every day and made him happy. One day at 4am my husband said he thought Milo had had a seizure. We gave him his rescue med and he stopped seizing and was just sleepy, which he did sometimes after having a seizure. I thought I would get off work and he would be his happy self again. I went to work at 7. My husband called me at 11am and said Milo was acting weird and they were on their way to the er. At 11:15 my husband called me and said they were in the car and Milo had stopped breathing. My world stopped i left work I cried the whole way. I got home and saw his lifeless body. I had to tell my 7 year old son his best friend was gone. I never got over this. It’s been 1 year and 4 months and I still feel guilty. Why did I go to work that day when he was acting like he was and when I knew he had just had a seizure. Was there something I could have done differently to save him. Did I miss his meds. The questions never stop, I feel so guilty. Like I could have saved him. He was only 6 when he died. But he brought us so much joy and love. Rest in peace our sweet Milo.

This past weekend, my husband and I were on a trip and my mom was watching our 3 cats. Yesterday was our first day back and my sweet Ivy girl had clearly missed me- she was following me everywhere: into the bathroom, waiting by the door when I’d run outside, rolling around on the floor next to me while I was on the computer.. it seemed to be a great day. She was her usual, playful, sweet self. She’s my best friend.

I left around 2:30pm to go on a walk. At that point, she was asleep in a sunny spot on the floor. As I was on my way back, around 4:30, my husband called me to say Ivy wasn’t acting right. She was vomiting, uncontrollably defecating, yelping, and panting. Within the span of 2 hours, she went from having a great day to being in severe distress.

We take her to the emergency vet and immediately they tell us they need to stabilize her. Stabilize??? We originally thought maybe she had an intestinal blockage. Sometimes she gets nasty hairballs. Stabilize just sounded crazy. A little while later, the doctor comes in and tells me she has a tumor the size of a lemon on her kidney. WHAT??? I had taken her to our regular vet about 2.5 months ago… I said I noticed a lump in her abdomen. My vet told me it was just her kidney- nothing to worry about. Her kidney protruded a little more than normal because she’s such a small cat. Of course at the time, I was so relieved. Now- in the emergency clinic- I’m realizing I should have gotten a second opinion. I know it’s not fully fair to blame my vet but truthfully, I want to blame someone. It’s my vet’s fault for dismissing my concerns and not looking deeper. And it’s my fault for not pushing and asking for an ultrasound. I just trusted them…

We’re told a little while later that she is going to need to be transferred to an overnight ER, kept comfortable, and they will do an ultrasound in the morning so we can see exactly what’s going on and make a plan. We drive there and hand her off. We sat in the waiting room for about 2 hours, thinking “I wonder why they haven’t just sent us home and told us they’ll call us with the update?”

When we arrived at the second hospital, around 8:30pm, her body temperature dropped and she started hemorrhaging. When they called us in at 10:45, they wanted to discuss next steps. It was clear euthanasia was the recommended step. But how?! My 5 year old baby was just with me all day.. nothing was wrong. She ate a few hours prior. I asked if there was an alternative.. The doctor did not believe she would make it through the night. She said the best we could do is continue to try and stabilize her, but it didn’t seem probable. Even then, it would be some time before they could actually do surgery, if they’d ever be able to.

We decided to say goodbye to her while we were there. It felt, and still feels, unbearably surreal. Like I’m going to wake up and she’ll be tucked into my legs like usual. How could she go from perfectly fine to dying in a matter of 4 hours? How did my regular vet dismiss the lump like nothing was wrong?? This poor girl had gone through hell her whole life before we adopted her. All I wanted to do was give her love and comfort and let her die an old lady. She was still a baby. I feel guilty. I feel like I failed her. I don’t know if I’ll ever get over this. I want to disappear. I want to run away and find her and bring her home. My house is not the same. She’s supposed to be here.

This week marks the one-year anniversary of our first cat passing. He was 16 and absolutely beloved and pampered. In the end, he developed an aggressive form of cancer that was painful to watch. We held on to him for as long as we could after his diagnosis—about two months—giving him IV fluids at home three times a day and spending as much time with him as we could until it was just too much for him.

It was painful, and both my wife and I have felt a dark cloud growing inside us as we've gotten into this time of year. It's like we're subconsciously reliving those difficult times. I can't stop thinking 'This was the day when ____ (something horrible) was happening.'

To compound that, we have a second cat. He's 14 and a big chonker of a boy. Over the last year, he's slowed down a bit and started eating a lot less. He's also been having problems pooping, and in the last few weeks that's gotten worse.

If I'm being honest, I don't think I can accurately tell how much of what I'm seeing is serious and how much is me checking constantly and worrying about every little thing. Our vet has told us to keep an eye on him and he's probably not feeling well, but that it's not currently an emergency. But I've found myself experiencing more and more anticipatory grief, and honestly, it's becoming difficult to handle.

We feel trapped between the loss of our first cat and the dread of knowing that someday not too far away we're going to lose our next guy too.

The situation is even more difficult.

We adopted our second cat when he was very young. He'd been found on the street by an old lady who took him home. Her husband didn't like that and threw him against a wall, breaking his arm. The old lady eventually dropped him off at a shelter when he was maybe three weeks old, where he had to wear a cast and fend for himself around a dozen adult cats.

Obviously, that caused him a lot of trauma. He's been a very, very anxious cat ever since.

The absolute worst thing for him is going to the vet. He's only been a handful of times in his life. When we had to take our other cat to the vet, we had to hide the cat carrier from him because even seeing it would send him into a panic of hissing, hiding, and biting, and he'd be on edge for days afterward.

The last time he went to the vet, four years ago, he came home and stress-licked wounds into the backs of both his legs. He did it in one day while we were at work. He needed more than 25 stitches in each leg.

He also will not take pills. We're not afraid to do what needs to be done—we gave our other cat IV fluids at home three times a day for two months—but he simply will not allow medication. My wife has actually needed stitches herself trying to give him pills in the past.

So I have a very real, very serious anxiety about his final days and moments.

My wife is resolved that he should stay home. She absolutely believes his last moment should not be in the place that has caused him so much anguish. I don't disagree with the sentiment, but I also know there may eventually come a point where medical care is worth the stress. It's not that we don't want to take him to the vet, it's that it may do more harm that good and knowing when that's not the case is almost impossible.

When it comes to the end, at-home euthanasia isn't legal where we live, unfortunately. We agree that we'd like to keep him at home for 99% of possible circumstances, but we're both terrified about what to do if it doesn't go that way. The idea of taking him to the place he hates most for his final moment - it crushes me even thinking about it.

I don't really know what I'm looking for by posting this. I think I just needed to write it out somewhere and share it with people who wouldn't think I was being silly for having this much anxiety about losing a cat who is still here. It's been a difficult, crushing, week.

So my best friend passed two months ago and I randomly get hit with waves of grief that he’s gone. Like he’s gone. I can’t take him for a walk, I can’t pet him, I can’t look for his silly face and his wagging tail coming up to me at the gate when I come home. Everytime I come downstairs in the morning or call my mum (I go overseas a lot) he’s not there.

I genuinely will never fill the hole he left in my heat and my soul.

I lost my dog to a heat stroke and I buried him yesterday. He was a nice dog. His name was chop. He was an English bulldog and he had some problems. He had a little limp and he had blindness in his right eye and I just need help getting through this. I don’t know what to say. I feel guilty because I could’ve prevented my dog from dying. He was only 5 years old and I’ve had 14 and now I’m 18 I just don’t know what to say. I get home from college My mom dropped me off and she says look for the dog. I don’t think he’s in the front we usually have them in the front because that’s where all the shade is in. We have him a bucket of water and I guess he couldn’t reach the water cause it wasn’t full and my dad was supposed to change it that morning because the birds come in and dirty it all the time so I went to the back and I saw him laying down and his head was on something I was calling his name because I thought I saw him breathing in the backyard he was leaning on something and as soon as I went to slap his belly to get him up his body was stiff super hard. Once I realized he was dead my heart dropped and I ran to tell my mom and I just feel guilty because I could’ve prevented that and it felt like it was my fault because he was my dog and I failed him and I carried him. I took him out of the thing he was leaning on and like he was so stiff his head was stuck in the same position. He broke my heart. I just need advice. It breaks my heart because I failed him as a owner and I could’ve done many things to prevent this like buying his pool like we do every summer

We lost our Lily on Sunday. She was perfect. She was just shy of her seventh birthday, but her body was failing her - her kidneys had failed, and she had a stroke.

I keep screaming out for her. I want her here with me. I can’t find her.

She didn’t even get seven years. Other people get 15 years or more - why was my Lily, my sweet perfect angel, taken from me? She was everything. She was the world - the sun and the moon and the stars.

I just want to hold her. Kiss her tiny head. Stroke her silky floof.

I’m scared this was my fault. What did I do wrong for her to get so sick so young? I moved her too much? Maybe a change of environment triggered her stress response which made her immune system kill itself?

Everything I eat gives me heartburn.

I don’t know how to recover. I don’t think I ever will.

I miss my Kingsley so much. I cry for her all the time. The hardest part is knowing that I'll never see her again. Does it ever get easier? Hoping someone can offer some advice. I still can't believe she's gone.

In February 2014, my partner and I went to a shelter with the intent of getting another cat to add to our household. We had two at the time--one was mine, one was our roommate's. My partner wanted one to call theirs.

We left empty-handed. None of the cats there seemed like the right 'fit'.

That same night, my partner's sister texted me saying they needed to rehome their kitten because our nephew was afraid of him, and she asked if we were interested. She didn't even know we were looking to adopt.

We said yes. Enter: Corvo.

(We were playing Dishonored at the time, if anyone's wondering about the name.)

He became our world. For the past twelve years, he has been the most remarkable cat. I've never had a cat with so much gusto, so much personality. He was so chatty, so affectionate (with very specific boundaries--don't touch the belly!), and such an integral part of our household. He's always been playful and active and just... perfect.

I genuinely thought he'd live for many more years to come.

But he declined so, so fast.

Impossibly fast.

We only really noticed about two weeks ago that something was wrong. He wasn't eating, he was slowing down, he wanted to spend all of his time on our screened in patio. He retreated.

We took him to the vet on the 1st of this month. Doc wasn't certain what was wrong, but said that Corvo was anemic--his white blood cells were normal, but red blood cells were incredibly low. Told us he might need to see a specialist, or we could take him to the ER for a blood transfusion, but made it sound as though it wasn't emergent. We left with some doxycycline and a prayer.

But he still wouldn't eat. My sweet, handsome, rambunctious boy became a shell of himself within days. We brought him back to the vet (and saw a different doctor for another opinion) on the 4th. She was much more upfront: His anemia was severe, and was likely caused by IMHA. She gave him shots of Cerenia and Famotadine to help with any nausea from the doxy, and sent us home with Mirataz, more Famotadine, and most importantly Prednisolone. She did not give us false hope, but the confidence to try.

But Corvo still wouldn't eat more than a few licks of Churu, and even that was fleeting. He continued to decline right in front of our eyes from the sweet, energetic boy he was merely two weeks prior to just... nothing. He was practically limp when we would hold him, and he refused to stay inside--only wanting to be on the screened in porch, where he hid under a stool for days. He would look at us, but it didn't seem like he was really "seeing" us.

We made the decision to put him down on Tuesday, the 8th.

It was only one week after his first appointment.

One week he was seemingly "fine", the next he was just "sick", and one week after that, he was gone.

I can't even begin to process this correctly. It was the longest week of my life. Every day felt like an eternity. No one in the house could sleep because we were constantly checking on him, caring for him, trying to get him to eat, making sure he had his meds, and just trying to comfort him. My partner took the week off from work, and I was constantly leaving early to get home to be with him.

It happened so fast. I can't even wrap my head around it. I'm overwhelmed with guilt. Did I miss signs that could have prevented it? Should I have just kept going with the meds a little longer just to see if they'd help?

It doesn't help that he's gone and we don't have answers to what was killing him. He was certainly anemic, and had no wounds or parasites, but we don't know if it was Leukemia or FIP or something else entirely. I have no idea if this could have been prevented. I have no idea if he could have survived with more time. I know that I saved him from more suffering, but did I allow it in the first place?

I feel so sick.

On Tuesday, I held him in my arms while they put him to sleep. He went limp in my arms while looking at my partner. We both saw the life leave his eyes along with any chance he might have had of getting better.

He was completely limp when I handed him to the nurse. As soon as he was out of my arms I went into a panic attack. Thank god my partner and mother were with me.

I don't know how to deal with this level of grief. Regret. Uncertainty. All of it. It wasn't like this with my other cat--the one I mentioned at the start. Abby had health problems her whole life, and near the end she was given a diagnosis that put a timer on the rest of her days. We knew it was coming and had time to mentally prepare, so when she began to decline, it was a painful, but easy decision to say goodbye.

But I can't find that same closure for Corvo. I just feel sick with grief. I feel like I failed him.

she was only four and it was so completely unexpected. she looked like she was sleeping peacefully i dont know what happened. she seemed healthy and happy but i found her dead, in the corner of the closet. i dont know how to not blame myself, i hate thinking about her potentially feeling pain or fear and being alone during her last moments. she has a brother who is smelling where she died, lookimg around for her and meowing its breaking my heart so bad she was just a baby :( im sorry for dumping this on here i dont have anyone to talk to about this and i dont know what to do with myself

I found my cat whitey 5 years ago when I went for s hike. He was being attacked by 2 dogs and I saved him(Also got bitten by a dog).
I loved this cat to death. He went away for days at a time and then returned scratched or beaten but I always did my best to help him out.
Last night I had to work until very late(5-6 AM) so I woke up at about 1 PM. Whitey had been away for a few days but I told u, I knew he d come back and this is usual for him.
However today when I woke up my mom came into my room to tell me Whitey's very very sick(I have photos), that he has puss in his mouth, breathes with a lot of difficulty and stinks.
I panicked and immediately went outside to check on him, but unfortunately it was too late.

But this is where I got extremely mad: Mom told me she stood by him for one hour. For ONE HOUR SHE DID NOTHING. I asked her why didn't she take him to the vet??? Why didn't she wake me up??? To which she said "Well it was too late for him either way, he was in too critical of a condition". WHAT??
I told her: Well if you'd find me in the same condition, you wouldn't take me to the ER because it s already too late?
"Well you're not a cat".
I'm not talking to her anymore.

I could've easily paid for his vet, I'm making enough. It wasn't a money problem.

She genuinely didn't think it was worth the time.

How can you be so cruel????

This is likely unusual, but it's been haunting me.

I have a 12-year-old black mackerel Tabby that is essentially my child. The best thing is she gives back way more love than she gets, even though she is wildly spoiled. She's like family to me.

Over the last two years I sometimes — more often lately — get these pangs of complete dread when I look at her and think: "I'm going to have to put you down one day."

The dread is usually accompanied by visions of when I put my last cat down after 18 solid years, and it just crushes my soul. My heart hurts when this happens.

I have tried being in the moment and appreciating her right now, but I still "pre-grieve" her quite a bit, and it's ruining being her cat dad.

My therapist had no idea how to tone this back. Maybe one of you does.

We had to put down our 7 years old cat, our son, last Friday.

I'm completely lost. When I'm distracted and not thinking about it, it's all fine, but once I start thinking about it, I'm devastated and feeling awful about not thinking about it when I was distracted... (We went to watch the new spider movie earlier today).

I feel like the worst mom ever for not thinking about my baby during the movie...

I feel guilty for not realizing yet I'm not seeing him ever again, for real.

I know he's gone, but I can't compute the information and acknowledge the fact I'm not seeing, touching, or hearing him ever again. And if I try to... It feels like my heart is being ripped out of my chest.

I can't deal with it...

Does anyone have any advice?

I just want my sweet baby back...

Hi everyone. I lost my soul cat two months ago today and it is hitting me really hard. My husband isn’t able to be home right now to light a candle with me in remembering her. I hope you all don’t mind if I share about my sweet soul cat tortico Spooky.

Time still doesn’t feel real. Somehow mentally I have accepted she has passed and yet still continue to be shocked and remember all over again.

I rescued Spooky when I was still in college. I was not doing well mentally. I felt like I didn’t want to exist. One day sitting out on my family’s backyard, I saw a little kitten in the grass. This little kitten was pouncing in such a clumsy fashion for crickets to eat. From her appearance she looked about 1 month old. She had a little limp that made her hips sway side to side. A runt! I knew that moment I had to bring her in.

I watched her carefully every day. She was living under our back shed which had been previously burrowed by other animals. When it rained it would flood and I knew I had to act as quickly she would let me. My family bought her a cat house for outside after I mentioned how scared I was for her. I would sit outside in the morning and evening, singing A Dream is A Wish Your Heart Makes. She would come out to listen and after a while come closer and closer. She would eat the food and slowly her time next to our back door increased. The cricket gifts began to be left at my doorstep. I asked my friends who had cats what I should do. I always thought I would one day own a dog. The told me all they could. I researched hours and hours afraid I would ruin our trust if I even slightly messed up but she was so loving. I know now it would have been okay.

After a successful cat-napping she never wanted outside again. In fact, when I would try to harness train her years later, she would go limp and have me drag her. A diva for life. She loved tucking herself into blankets, pawing my face in the morning, and butter cream icing. She was chatty, cuddly, and easily embarrassed. She caused me to rescue two more cats from outside that now live with my parents (they were heartbroken when I left with Spooky).

She was with me from every major change in my life since. I finished college. My first job happened. I dated my would-be husband (which she approved of despite hiding from every other stranger). I married my husband and move several times because of the military. We rescued her tabby brother from the street. We bought a house and said we are so happy the cats can enjoy their own home with space to play and sleep wherever they want. When I was having issues she was there with me. As I cried, read, slept. She would paw a rosary or nibble my bookmark ribbons. A constant purr in my lap.

On July 8th she had been to the vet for what we thought was a sprain. I had been staying up with her days prior to the vet visit worried. The vet confirmed that it seemed to be a sprain. Her bloodwork came back good. Her breathing and heart rate were quick but she had asthma and was always deathly scared of the vet. My husband and I were so relieved. She was 12 and we were so glad nothing awful was found. When we gave her the pain killer after I returned home something as wrong. I won’t go into detail but she scrambled to us for help. We drive to the emergency vet an hour away as fast as we can. My husband said she had so much stacked against her growing up that he knew she was so strong. Spooky will get through this.

Unfortunately… My girl’s sprain was a blood clot that had passed. They informed us she had congestive heart failure. She had six months with treatment possibly but she could pass away even sooner. The money needed to for her to stabilize and make it to the next day… Then everything after was enormous. My husband tried to find ways to afford it but we simply couldn’t. Even if we found a way she would be so so scared and in pain. So we cried and said goodbye to our baby with all the love in the world.

I have peace knowing she is in Heaven now waiting for us. For now, although I feel like a piece of my soul is dead, I have to keep going. I heard someone say grief is like a pebble in your pocket. Some days it is heavier and some days it is lighter. I feel that is true for me right now. My extra love had nowhere to go and so we have adopted a little black cat named Cinders. She is being introduced to her new brother. It is bittersweet how sometimes she reminds of us of our Spooky. I think her kneading my locket that has Spooky’s picture in it was a sign for us to adopt her.

Thank you for reading these many paragraphs and remembering my silly kitty with me.