My husband's favorite cat is dying of heart failure...

Just spent $338 at the vets to have her tell me that Annie is most likely in heart failure. I had to decide whether or not to have her put down immediately, because she was in obvious discomfort with respiratory distress.

I didn't want to make that decision without consulting my husband because he really loves that cat. Once, when he was loving on her and sweet talking her, I suggested that if Annie had been a human female, he would have kicked me out in favor of her... And he answered that he probably would have.

The vet suggested giving Annie a cocktail of Lasix, an antibiotic, and steroids to see if it helped her. It did somewhat. She is breathing a bit easier, but her throat is swollen and she cannot drink water which distresses her and her breathing is still labored albeit much less so than before the drug cocktail.

Annie was a rescue cat off the street that my husband brought home one night. She is a really beautiful tortoiseshell calico with the most docile disposition. I can't say that I was thrilled to have another cat in the house; we already had five at that time. But Annie is really sweet and I'm a soft sell when it comes to homeless cats too.

She spent the first two or three months in our home barely moving. She lay on the same spot on the table for hours and hours day after day only getting down to eat drink and use the litter box. I remember wondering if she was really depressed. She only came alive for my husband.

Gradually, she began getting up more and getting around and then even decided that she liked going outside. I caught her canoodling with neighborhood male cats on several occasions and was less than thrilled about another litter of kittens in our house after having the last momma spayed. But she never got pregnant.

We've had Annie for just about a year and a half. Considering her first three months of complete lethargy, the fact that she never got pregnant, and that she has never had the muscle tone that the other cats have (she's like one of those really soft plush toys), I begin to think that she was probably in bad shape when she first came to us (even tonight, the doctor said that her heart sounds fine, but that X-rays tell a different story) and that having the stress of street life off, regular meals, warmth in the winter and air conditioning in the summer added extra time to her life.

Unless there is a marked improvement in her condition by tomorrow morning, I'm probably going to have to have her put down. I've had too many precious feline and canine family member die in the last fifteen years. I think that when the current crop is all gone, I'll get no more...

My beloved Siamese has Kidney failure. It can be treated to prolong his life, but it is expensive. It is worth it though. We had a miracle with ours last week. I hope you have one with yours as well.

Just hug her and tell you how much you love her.

how to give him the intravenous saline and I gave it to him at first twice a week, increasing that to every day as the kidney failure progressed. In the end, he became so weak and had so many other problems secondary to the kidney failure that when he became too week to stand for more than fifteen seconds, I finally decided to have him put to sleep. That was so hard. But we added nearly six months to his life.

(By giving the intravenous saline to Boy Cat myself, I saved him the stressful ride to the vet's and saved lots of money. In the end, I only had to pay for the saline bags, the tubing, the needles. And I was able to groom him while I gave him the saline.)

Good luck with your Siamese baby.

It's a hard place to be!

She had a heart murmur that just kept getting worse. She was on Lasix and a couple of other drugs for the last few months, and it made her miserable. We eventually had to put her to sleep. I'm so sorry about your friend - what a terrible decision to have to make. I'll keep all of you guys in my thoughts. :hug:

I came back from work one day, went to feed them, and he just collapsed in front of me. Boom. Gone. Just like that. I was crushed. Loved that cat. I also said I wouldn't get another, and I haven't.

I'm sorry you have to go through with such decisions. I'm sure whatever you decide, that will be best for the cat. Let's hope she's better tomorrow! :)

:hug: That is such a hard position to be in. I would maybe give her special food tonight if she can eat, and just love her, as was already mentioned here. Having a pet put to sleep has to be one of the hardest things to confront in life.

Were you able to talk to your hubby?

I'm not sure it was the right decision. She is still suffering. We'll see how she is in the morning.

I don't think it is a bad thing to have one last night to love the cat. Just treat the poor thing like a queen.

:hug:

There are alternative meds that work with (not as a substitution for) regular meds (lasix, enacard etc.) If I were you, I would give her a day or two to see how the meds are working. Ask your vet about Co-enzume Q 10 and L-lysine. My dog was unable to walk and within 2 days of starting the Co Q 10 she was able to climb stairs. She lived for another 2 years before the meds caused her kidneys to fail.

It sucks when this happens. :(