My Kitty is the final stages of CPRD and cancer. I have noticed her breath is so shallow?

Well, this is going to be a tough one to answer....it brings back so many sad memories from my own past. I know how sad you must be...seeing your baby waste away.

Please know that this next question IS NOT out of cruelty to you. I think it's a question that each of us has to ask ourselves when we have a very sick pet that is most certainly going to die fairly soon.

Cuddle your kitty to you and ask yourself if you are force-feeding her for you, or for her. It's not simply that she's terminal...because, earlier on in your journey with her, it made sense to do whatever you could to prolong her life...because she still had a decent quality of life to support. Sadly, though, now, she's worn out. She's fought the good fight with your wonderful care and precious love, but now, her tired little body is worn out.

For my own part, and if I am understanding her condition correctly, my personal decision (if she were my baby) would be to have her euthanized. I would cuddle her before and during the procedure. It's very hard, but what you don't know is if she's hurting. At this time, she has no good quality of life to speak of. And, I wouldn't be able to convince myself that letting her "waste away" until her last breath would be the best thing for her.

That being said, it really IS a personal decision and it's YOUR decision, not mine or anyone elses that may weigh-in on your question. It's not for any of us out here to make a judgement about what you finally decide.

I know that this is an awful time for you. I even know that it's better that we outlive our precious furbabies, because who would take care of them if they outlived us?? But, it's heartbreaking and we never really are the same after we've lost them.

I held both my babies in 2006...7 days apart.... a really awful time that I work hard to not think about since it still hurts!!! One was my dog Lissa that had had a massive stroke. I was trying to give her a chance to recover, since her vet had seen animals recover from worse-looking cases and NOT recover from cases that didn't seem as bad. She just didn't know. So, I elected to give my baby girl the time to recover if her little body/brain would. Unfortunately, 5 days into this, she had a seizure and was failing very rapidly. I decided that the kindest thing I could do for that sweet baby was to let her go. To make matters worse, 5 days after that, I notice that my sweet cat Simba was VERY wobbly in his hindquarters. I called the vet the minute I noticed and was told to bring him immediately. The news was really bad, he was in full renal failure. Three animals drinking from the same bowl had prevented me from notciing that he might be in trouble. His vet spent the next two days trying to jump-start his kidneys but it didn't work, so two days later I had to say goodbye to him. I held them both. I had them both cremated. I'll never fully be over it, but I know I did the best I could for them. And, the one thing that I would do differently if I could would have been to ask my vet to come to my house for Simba. Lissa wasn't conscious enough to be uncomfortable in her surroundings. But, Simba was very aware that he was not at home in familiar surroundings. It just never occurred to me to ask for the home visit.

Now, if you decide to continue on your current path... to "let her go" naturally, well, doing what you're currently doing is all you can do. That her breathing has become so shallow certainly sounds as if she's close. ,And, that she wants to be in your arms, next to you or spoon with you ... well, that IS are part of her saying goodbye. She knows she's loved...you can be sure of that!!!

I'm very sad for you because I still miss my babies so much.

My heart goes out to you and to your dear sweet kitty.

God bless!

Lee

It sounds like you have already made your decision to let her pass at her own time of choosing.

Just continue the supportive care you are giving her now. Give her human tuna if that's what she desires. My deceased cat only wanted steamed chicken tenderlions in his last days and that was what we fed him.

Is it an option ($) for you to request pain relief medication (such as Buprenex) for her?

YOU need to start looking at grief support websites and be mentally prepared when the moment is here. It will be a painful experience, time will ease the pain but you will always tear up for a long while after she passed.

http://www.lightning-strike.com/

http://petloss.com/

Good luck.

The needles as a rule do not trouble them, for those who do it frivolously and quietly. I gave insulin injections two times day-to-day to our largest cat and he by no means even indicated he felt something. What I can endorse is you pass over to the YahooGroups referred to as Handicats, and submit there. The house owners there have actually noticeable all of it, and will advocate you from their enjoy.

If she is suffering, have you considered euthanasia?