I dont understand how my cat died oe wether putting him down was right thing to do?

[SizzleSquid]

my cat was put down after suddenly collapsing and breathing heavily. he was meowing alot too. We took him to the vet and for the next 2 days he seemed to get better, although he was very wobbly on his feet and leaned to the side when he walked. We thought it could have been a possible poisoning, and the vet did blood tests which came back clear
He was finally allowed home, after being told he was on the mend, although still a little wobbly and off his food, and 4-5 hours later he developed severe breathing difficulties and was panting severley, so we rushed him back as they were about to close and the vet said he had alot of fluid on his lungs. He was breathing like this for around 30mins and the vet tried him with meds, which did not help remove the fluid. I asked if we didnt put him down would he recover and the vet said probably not, and as he was in alot of distress i agreed to put him down, but now i feel very guilty, that we didnt wait longer.
Surely we could have waited more than 30mins? i asked why did they release him in the first place and all the vet kept saying is that the cat must have deteriorated in those 4 hours we had him back home. He was on a drip for the two days he was there-could that have caused the fluid on his lungs? his initial x rays were clear. I dont understand, i had him for 12 years im so sad
His paws were also curled under, and when vet did autopsy she said he had cancer of lungs heart and kidneys, however he was an active, happy cat who showed no symptoms of this. Initial blood tests were clear when we brought him in the first time. Are they lying to us?

[lindapinda]

I'm so sorry sizzle,I understand the shock and grief you have right now. All i can say,is that the drip would have been rehydrating him and would not have been affecting his lungs. His lungs would have filled with fluid because his heart was not working. The heart keeps the lungs pumping to clear them of fluid. I don't know whether they are lying,but,the one thing I can say,is that,as affected by cancer as he was,you definetely made the right decision,as any further surgical intervention would have increased the suffering,cos there was never going to be a cure realistically. You made the best decision because you loved him. It breaks us all when we have to.

[Messalina]

So sorry that you went through this. Lindapinda is right in what she says. Just remember that your cat is not suffering anymore & remember the happy times you had with him.

[mccfluff]

sorry to hear this :-(

[Old_Geezer]

We all have to make urgent and important decisions in life, and we choose our option as best we can. There is little point in beating ourselves up afterwards worrying about whether it was the idea solution or not. You did what you thought was right at the time, that's all any of us can do.

In the event it seems as if hanging on would not have left you with a healthy content cat anyway. I don't see that the vet has any reason to lie, they also made the decision they thought best so have nothing to hide.

Grieve by all means but accept unfortunate things do happen and it is pointless to try to place blame.

[andy-hughes]

Part of the grieving process is anger - it comes before acceptance.

Your feelings of guilt at your pet's death are normal, again part of grief.

From the storyline you have described, your cat was seriously ill and suffering, and highly unlikely to have recovered enough to enjoy sufficient qualtiy of life to avoid putting him out of his misery.

Vets make decisions based on what they see - and obviously cannot allow for what may happen to your cat when he is back home. Accept that they did their best for him, as did you, but it was his time, and you made iot as painless for him as you could.

He is at peace now - and you will get past these awful feelings of guilt and loss, and remember all the pleasure you bot had together.

This is sucxh a hard time, but try to think that you did what you needed to do ,even though it did hurt you - and continues to hurt you now.

You cannot have loved him any more than to let him go when he could no longer stay with you. Keep that thought in your mind.

[ganesh]

One of my cats had a stroke,they think,at 13yrs,and was very distressed and walking in circles.She got better for a day,and they let her home,and then the symptoms came back and they suggested we put her down.
Like you,I felt guilty and always wondered if she would have recovered and we shall never know,but in the end you just can't see your cat suffer and you have no choice.Don't blame the vets,they really want to keep an animal alive but they too don't want to let it suffer like that.
Sorry for your loss,and it's always harder when it happens suddenly,but I'm sure he had a lovely life.

[Sqad]

I am not a vet, but it certainly sounds as though he may well have had a heart attack followed by a cerebral embolism (stroke)

If the heart was "struggling" following the cardiac incident, that would cause the fluid in his lungs (Left ventricular Failure)

<<<<could that have caused the fluid on his lungs?<<<

It could.

<<<<<when vet did autopsy she said he had cancer of lungs heart and kidneys, however he was an active, happy cat who showed no symptoms of this.<<<<

That does not add up.

Look....in your situation, I would have done the same as you......you gave him a good and loving life and he gave you a lot of pleasure.
Nothing in life is forever, so just move on, as you cannot bring him back.

[dotty.]

My Tom went in seconds and didn't seem to know much about it, he was 13, it was a blessing that he literally dropped dead, the vet said it was his heart but there was no examonation involved. It was a shock and I can feel for you but he could have suffered if you had not let him go.

[barb1314]

I really feel for you.Please don't blame yourself. I had to take my good friend and her poorly cat to the vet last year. The cat had literally collapsed and was also breathing heavily.It was really distressing to see.She had been absolutely right as rain 10 minutes before. She had an embolism and nothing could be done. My friend just took comfort in knowing that she had been with her and been able to prevent her suffering any more and that it hadn't happened when she'd been on her own. Take care and I hope you can start to move forward soon. The very hardest part of being a pet owner. xx

[garner]

So sorry for your sad loss, time heals,and you will remember the good times.But he will always leave paw prints on your heart.

[SizzleSquid]

thanks guys ur answers do give me comfort-i still think everything doesnt add up in regards to his illness, but i do take comfort in what i had with him. im never going to get that attached to a pet again i literally based everything around him..loved him too much x

[pussnboots]

I had to have my dear oldboy put to sleep 5 weeks ago he was 17. Although he had been a bit doddery for a while he was eating, drinking and going out even up to the day before. I found him almost collapsed on the kitchen floor and he'd had a massive nose bleed. Took him straight to the vet and vet said he had a weak heart, kidney problems but couldn't give a reason for nose bleed without further tests. Anyway vet advised us that he would never be fit and well again and would probably hang on for a further week or two. We had him put to sleep there and then coz I didn't want him to suffer. I felt really guilty about it, should I have brought him home for a bit longer, was I too quick to make a decision. Thinking back now I know I did the right thing, he had the best of everything all his life, we loved him to bits. Please don't feel guilty, and no, I would not think a vet would lie to you.