How did/do you know when it's time?

I knew when one evening my cat no longer had that sparkle in his eyes. It was like a light had gone out. He did not respond to affection and made very little eye contact. He only ate tiny amounts of food and spent most of his time in bed, but not asleep. I had to face it... his body was there, but his little spirit was leaving me.

The next day, I took him to his vet to confirm this sudden decline and said goodbye.

My last kitty was a great personality boy. He was getting old and less active but still hunted and played. As time went by, he was eating less and less and it was hard to find things that would tempt him to eat. He developed kidney disease and just went downhill from there. When I finally realized I had waited longer than I should have, I took him in to be put down. I said to the vet, "You should have told me it was time when I had him in two weeks ago." and He said, "It was, but I can' tell you something like that. You have to decide that for yourself." So I guess my best advice is this, you know your own pet. Don't maintain her past her own quality of life just because it is too hard to let go.

She'll let you know. Our dog was 13 1/2 with health issues & had stopped eating & was losing weight. Letting him go was a hard decision for us because be was our first dog & we loved him so much. But, you have to think of your furry child. She depends on you to do what's best for her. A quiet, peaceful passing may be a blessing for her. Best of luck & I feel for you.

When you think it is inhumane to allow her to continue on in life, then it is time to put the animal down. This may be when its hips go, or when it loses control of its bodily functions or even just because the cat looks too frail.

I know its a hard thing to decide but its best for your animal.

if you do not want your cat to suffer or you can't stand to see her suffer, then you should put her out of her misery. Also, it depends how old she is. a pretty old cat can live near 20 years

Yea if you dont want to see your cat in pain. U should put it out of its misery.

As hard as it sounds, when she begins to have trouble walking or breathing, then the time has come. Remember to be strong and when she finally passes, your family will be there for you.

I think you kind of know when the time is right - it's usually when their quality of life has diminished and keeping them alive is probably more for yourself than for them.

If her quality of life is bad, if she is in pain that can't be helped and she is unable to enjoy life anymore then that is when I think it is time.

http://www.pet-loss-matters.com/grief-and-pet-loss...