skimomma Posted December 7, 2018 Share Posted December 7, 2018 My sweet 20 yo kitty is nearing the point that we will need to put her down, probably early next week. We have never done this before. Can anyone tell me what to expect and if there is anything we can do to better prepare ourselves or kitty? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephanier.1765 Posted December 7, 2018 Share Posted December 7, 2018 i'm all ears because I'm presently weighing this for my 17 yo dog who is blind, deaf, arthritic and has begun to urinate in the house. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zuzu822 Posted December 7, 2018 Share Posted December 7, 2018 (edited) I'm so sorry! I've been through it twice in the last year... first with my Zuzu (of username fame) and just a few weeks ago with Nunzio. In both of these cases, we went to the vet knowing it was a possibility, but not a sure thing. Our vet asks if we want to be present (we do), then takes kitty to have a catheter inserted and brought them back all wrapped up in a cozy blanket. They left the room, and let us have a few moments alone. Then the vet came back, and began to flush the line before inserting the drug. In Zuzu's case, she was still meowing a little and rubbing against the vet; with Nunzio, I was holding him and he was being very still but purring. After a few moments, the purring stopped and he went more limp. It was very quick. They checked for a heartbeat, then gave us a few more moments alone with them, before taking them to wrap up. Our vet has you settle the bill before the process starts, so once it's over, you can whisk right out the front door and around to the side where they'll bring your pet out (if taking him home to bury). They did warn us that eyes don't always close, so if you have kids with you, that's a possibility. Our vet in general is so lovely and sweet about the whole awful process. They took our kitties' paw prints and made ornaments which they sent us with a condolence card. Honestly, it sucks, but they made it as painless as possible. Again, I'm sorry your family is facing this! The loss of a pet is rough...my office chair is so empty without Nunzio this month! 😞 Edited December 7, 2018 by Zuzu822 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BeachGal Posted December 7, 2018 Share Posted December 7, 2018 We had to put our kitty down last year. We chose to have her euthanized at home by a vet who was awesome and very kind. Our cat was curled up on my lap and the vet gave her a shot around her front toes to calm her (I think) and then several minutes later, gave her the final shot. It was quick. She let us be alone for awhile and then placed her in a basket and took her away. Our cat was cremated and we got the ashes about a week later. It’s very sad to think about it now but we wanted to be with our kitty. Giant tear fest, though. I still miss her a lot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted December 7, 2018 Share Posted December 7, 2018 All the vets I have used give the choice of saying goodbye and then leaving the room for the actual euthanasia or staying to the end . I prefer to leave the room. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KrissiK Posted December 7, 2018 Share Posted December 7, 2018 I was there with our sweet kitty. It was fine. She was so old and sick that it was a blessing. They couldn’t find a vein, so the vet had to inject directly into her heart.😢 but it went so quickly. I just petted her and loved her and she was gone within seconds. It wasn’t as bad as I thought, probably because watching her decline was harder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Okra Posted December 7, 2018 Share Posted December 7, 2018 21 minutes ago, Zuzu822 said: I'm so sorry! I've been through it twice in the last year... first with my Zuzu (of username fame) and just a few weeks ago with Nunzio. In both of these cases, we went to the vet knowing it was a possibility, but not a sure thing. Our vet asks if we want to be present (we do), then takes kitty to have a catheter inserted and brought them back all wrapped up in a cozy blanket. They left the room, and let us have a few moments alone. Then the vet came back, and began to flush the line before inserting the drug. In Zuzu's case, she was still meowing a little and rubbing against the vet; with Nunzio, I was holding him and he was being very still but purring. After a few moments, the purring stopped and he went more limp. It was very quick. They checked for a heartbeat, then gave us a few more moments alone with them, before taking them to wrap up. Our vet has you settle the bill before the process starts, so once it's over, you can whisk right out the front door and around to the side where they'll bring your pet out (if taking him home to bury). They did warn us that eyes don't always close, so if you have kids with you, that's a possibility. Our vet in general is so lovely and sweet about the whole awful process. They took our kitties' paw prints and made ornaments which they sent us with a condolence card. Honestly, it sucks, but they made it as painless as possible. Again, I'm sorry your family is facing this! The loss of a pet is rough...my office chair is so empty without Nunzio this month! 😞 This is very similar to how my vet does it. She asked if we wanted cremation or home burial, and also asked if we wanted paw prints, fur, or whiskers. So, you might want to be prepared for those questions. I'm sorry, it's always really hard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VaKim Posted December 7, 2018 Share Posted December 7, 2018 24 minutes ago, Zuzu822 said: I'm so sorry! I've been through it twice in the last year... first with my Zuzu (of username fame) and just a few weeks ago with Nunzio. In both of these cases, we went to the vet knowing it was a possibility, but not a sure thing. Our vet asks if we want to be present (we do), then takes kitty to have a catheter inserted and brought them back all wrapped up in a cozy blanket. They left the room, and let us have a few moments alone. Then the vet came back, and began to flush the line before inserting the drug. In Zuzu's case, she was still meowing a little and rubbing against the vet; with Nunzio, I was holding him and he was being very still but purring. After a few moments, the purring stopped and he went more limp. It was very quick. They checked for a heartbeat, then gave us a few more moments alone with them, before taking them to wrap up. Our vet has you settle the bill before the process starts, so once it's over, you can whisk right out the front door and around to the side where they'll bring your pet out (if taking him home to bury). They did warn us that eyes don't always close, so if you have kids with you, that's a possibility. Our vet in general is so lovely and sweet about the whole awful process. They took our kitties' paw prints and made ornaments which they sent us with a condolence card. Honestly, it sucks, but they made it as painless as possible. Again, I'm sorry your family is facing this! The loss of a pet is rough...my office chair is so empty without Nunzio this month! 😞 Our experience, exactly. We had to have two of ours put down (not at the same time) earlier this year. Feline leukemia 😞 . They were very sick, so it went really quickly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happi duck Posted December 7, 2018 Share Posted December 7, 2018 Many (hugs) We lost our dear kitty this summer. It still makes me cry. We miss her so much. We called a group called "Lap of Love" that comes to the house. They were very compassionate. Our experience was similar to others who posted already. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skimomma Posted December 7, 2018 Author Share Posted December 7, 2018 I'm so sorry for everyone who has been through this. Thanks for sharing. It sounds like there is little potential for trauma for the cat? That is my biggest concern. We don't have at-home options here, which I would very much prefer. Trips to the vet are the very worst thing ever for my poor kitty but I think she is sick/weak enough to not really know what is going on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milovany Posted December 7, 2018 Share Posted December 7, 2018 Having just lost our kitty last Saturday, I'm sorry for all your losses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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