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#1
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A warning before you euthanize your cat. (sorry--it is long)
Hi
My first time posting here, but I need to say something that might prevent others from having the sad experience I had yesterday regarding our wonderful cat, Merlin. My husband and I took our beloved 18 year old Merlin to our vet yesterday to be euthanized because his body had just finally given out. (He was very ill, couldn't eat, was very weak, and was no longer responding to any medical treatment--just mainly sleeping all the time.) He still recognized us and responded to us and it was very hard to make the decision, but it was a kindness to him to let him go. We had never had to have a pet 'put to sleep' before, but we trusted our vets and we thought that they had explained the procedure pretty thoroughly and we thought we knew what to expect. (We were so wrong!) They told us there would be an injection, and he would lose consciousness, and shortly after that, he'd be gone. They explained that he might appear to struggle to breathe, but not to be alarmed, as that was reflexive and he wouldn't be conscious or feeling any distress by then. My husband couldn't face seeing it done, but I wanted the last touch and the last voice that our precious kitty heard to be my familiar voice and my loving touch. Above all, I wanted him to be able to drift away into death very peacefully, feeling loved and secure. The vet said it was fine for me to stay with him. The reality was very different from what I had hoped. When they tried to put the needle into a vein in his leg for the injection, it clearly hurt him a lot and he fought and struggled as they held him down and tried to find a vein. I tried to talk to him and reassure him but he must have felt that I had delivered him into a torture chamber. They failed to find a vein, and went on to try several other sites in quick succession while he struggled, yowled in pain and fought to get away from them. A second vet came in and made another attempt. At this point, I managed to get myself together, tears flooding down my face, and tell them to stop! I said "Please Please can't you give him some kind of sedation before you try any more to give him the injection." They did stop then, as I had asked, and one of them went out for some kind of 'gas' machine. The other vet didn't want to use that and he went out and got some other kind of injection that he said would not hurt if he put it into the abdomen, and that is what he did. It seemed to render Merlin unconscious--or at least paralyzed and unresponsive. One of the vets stayed with him and me while we waited at least 20 minutes for his dear heart to cease beating. This didn't happen, and eventually, the other vet came back and shaved a place on his leg, found a vein, and administered the fatal injection. Then, we brought our sweet pet home and made a grave for him in our back yard. I couldn't sleep last night for thinking how traumatic, painful and frightening Merlin's last moments on this earth were, and how I wasn't able to protect him and give him the loving and peaceful exit that his gentle heart so deserved. Today I cry every time I think about it. I am flooding the keyboard as I type this now. We have taken our two cats to these vets for ten years. Until yesterday, we had trusted them and felt that they were caring people and were doing a good job. I truly feel blindsided by what happened. I am posting this in the hope that if the time ever comes when you are faced with having your cat euthanized, you will learn from our experience. I suggest that you impress upon your vet that you want your cat pre-sedated in some manner to avoid having his/her last moments spent in fear and pain. I also wish so much that I had had the presence of mind to stop the proceedings the first instant that I saw that it was causing pain and fear. I am devastated by this and as desperately as I wish I could--I can't go back and make it better for my dear kitty, but maybe someone here will learn from our experience. Thinking about that possibility may help my heart begin to heal from this. Right now I feel like I failed my best friend when he needed me the most. Thanks for 'listening.' AJ |
#2
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"AJ" wrote in message om... Hi My first time posting here, but I need to say something that might prevent others from having the sad experience I had yesterday regarding our wonderful cat, Merlin. AJ, I am so sorry this happened to you. On top of the loss of your Merlin, the experience at the vet must be unimaginably painful. I don't know why it happened as it did, I'm just so sorry it did. |
#3
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"AJ" wrote in message om... Hi My first time posting here, but I need to say something that might prevent others from having the sad experience I had yesterday regarding our wonderful cat, Merlin. AJ, I am so sorry this happened to you. On top of the loss of your Merlin, the experience at the vet must be unimaginably painful. I don't know why it happened as it did, I'm just so sorry it did. |
#4
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"AJ" wrote in message
om... Hi My first time posting here, but I need to say something that might prevent others from having the sad experience I had yesterday regarding our wonderful cat, Merlin. My husband and I took our beloved 18 year old Merlin to our vet yesterday to be euthanized because his body had just finally given out. (He was very ill, couldn't eat, was very weak, and was no longer responding to any medical treatment--just mainly sleeping all the time.) He still recognized us and responded to us and it was very hard to make the decision, but it was a kindness to him to let him go. We had never had to have a pet 'put to sleep' before, but we trusted our vets and we thought that they had explained the procedure pretty thoroughly and we thought we knew what to expect. (We were so wrong!) They told us there would be an injection, and he would lose consciousness, and shortly after that, he'd be gone. They explained that he might appear to struggle to breathe, but not to be alarmed, as that was reflexive and he wouldn't be conscious or feeling any distress by then. My husband couldn't face seeing it done, but I wanted the last touch and the last voice that our precious kitty heard to be my familiar voice and my loving touch. Above all, I wanted him to be able to drift away into death very peacefully, feeling loved and secure. The vet said it was fine for me to stay with him. The reality was very different from what I had hoped. When they tried to put the needle into a vein in his leg for the injection, it clearly hurt him a lot and he fought and struggled as they held him down and tried to find a vein. I tried to talk to him and reassure him but he must have felt that I had delivered him into a torture chamber. They failed to find a vein, and went on to try several other sites in quick succession while he struggled, yowled in pain and fought to get away from them. A second vet came in and made another attempt. At this point, I managed to get myself together, tears flooding down my face, and tell them to stop! I said "Please Please can't you give him some kind of sedation before you try any more to give him the injection." They did stop then, as I had asked, and one of them went out for some kind of 'gas' machine. The other vet didn't want to use that and he went out and got some other kind of injection that he said would not hurt if he put it into the abdomen, and that is what he did. It seemed to render Merlin unconscious--or at least paralyzed and unresponsive. One of the vets stayed with him and me while we waited at least 20 minutes for his dear heart to cease beating. This didn't happen, and eventually, the other vet came back and shaved a place on his leg, found a vein, and administered the fatal injection. Then, we brought our sweet pet home and made a grave for him in our back yard. I couldn't sleep last night for thinking how traumatic, painful and frightening Merlin's last moments on this earth were, and how I wasn't able to protect him and give him the loving and peaceful exit that his gentle heart so deserved. Today I cry every time I think about it. I am flooding the keyboard as I type this now. We have taken our two cats to these vets for ten years. Until yesterday, we had trusted them and felt that they were caring people and were doing a good job. I truly feel blindsided by what happened. I am posting this in the hope that if the time ever comes when you are faced with having your cat euthanized, you will learn from our experience. I'm sorry about what you went through w/Merlin. Otoh, I don't think this is a common scenario. I've have 2 cats euthanized so far, & both were calm experiences. And have been on this ng since '98, but very few (none that jump to mind, at any rate) horror stories about euthanasia. My first cat who was euthanized was very feisty, even when incredibly ill, & knowing this, my vet gave her a pre-euthanasia injection for sedation in the her foreleg, before the fatal injection. Both injections went fine. My second cat who was euthanized - she received just the fatal injection, & it was over with within a few seconds. Cathy -- "Staccato signals of constant information..." ("The Boy in the Bubble") Paul Simon I suggest that you impress upon your vet that you want your cat pre-sedated in some manner to avoid having his/her last moments spent in fear and pain. I also wish so much that I had had the presence of mind to stop the proceedings the first instant that I saw that it was causing pain and fear. I am devastated by this and as desperately as I wish I could--I can't go back and make it better for my dear kitty, but maybe someone here will learn from our experience. Thinking about that possibility may help my heart begin to heal from this. Right now I feel like I failed my best friend when he needed me the most. Thanks for 'listening.' AJ |
#5
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"AJ" wrote in message
om... Hi My first time posting here, but I need to say something that might prevent others from having the sad experience I had yesterday regarding our wonderful cat, Merlin. My husband and I took our beloved 18 year old Merlin to our vet yesterday to be euthanized because his body had just finally given out. (He was very ill, couldn't eat, was very weak, and was no longer responding to any medical treatment--just mainly sleeping all the time.) He still recognized us and responded to us and it was very hard to make the decision, but it was a kindness to him to let him go. We had never had to have a pet 'put to sleep' before, but we trusted our vets and we thought that they had explained the procedure pretty thoroughly and we thought we knew what to expect. (We were so wrong!) They told us there would be an injection, and he would lose consciousness, and shortly after that, he'd be gone. They explained that he might appear to struggle to breathe, but not to be alarmed, as that was reflexive and he wouldn't be conscious or feeling any distress by then. My husband couldn't face seeing it done, but I wanted the last touch and the last voice that our precious kitty heard to be my familiar voice and my loving touch. Above all, I wanted him to be able to drift away into death very peacefully, feeling loved and secure. The vet said it was fine for me to stay with him. The reality was very different from what I had hoped. When they tried to put the needle into a vein in his leg for the injection, it clearly hurt him a lot and he fought and struggled as they held him down and tried to find a vein. I tried to talk to him and reassure him but he must have felt that I had delivered him into a torture chamber. They failed to find a vein, and went on to try several other sites in quick succession while he struggled, yowled in pain and fought to get away from them. A second vet came in and made another attempt. At this point, I managed to get myself together, tears flooding down my face, and tell them to stop! I said "Please Please can't you give him some kind of sedation before you try any more to give him the injection." They did stop then, as I had asked, and one of them went out for some kind of 'gas' machine. The other vet didn't want to use that and he went out and got some other kind of injection that he said would not hurt if he put it into the abdomen, and that is what he did. It seemed to render Merlin unconscious--or at least paralyzed and unresponsive. One of the vets stayed with him and me while we waited at least 20 minutes for his dear heart to cease beating. This didn't happen, and eventually, the other vet came back and shaved a place on his leg, found a vein, and administered the fatal injection. Then, we brought our sweet pet home and made a grave for him in our back yard. I couldn't sleep last night for thinking how traumatic, painful and frightening Merlin's last moments on this earth were, and how I wasn't able to protect him and give him the loving and peaceful exit that his gentle heart so deserved. Today I cry every time I think about it. I am flooding the keyboard as I type this now. We have taken our two cats to these vets for ten years. Until yesterday, we had trusted them and felt that they were caring people and were doing a good job. I truly feel blindsided by what happened. I am posting this in the hope that if the time ever comes when you are faced with having your cat euthanized, you will learn from our experience. I'm sorry about what you went through w/Merlin. Otoh, I don't think this is a common scenario. I've have 2 cats euthanized so far, & both were calm experiences. And have been on this ng since '98, but very few (none that jump to mind, at any rate) horror stories about euthanasia. My first cat who was euthanized was very feisty, even when incredibly ill, & knowing this, my vet gave her a pre-euthanasia injection for sedation in the her foreleg, before the fatal injection. Both injections went fine. My second cat who was euthanized - she received just the fatal injection, & it was over with within a few seconds. Cathy -- "Staccato signals of constant information..." ("The Boy in the Bubble") Paul Simon I suggest that you impress upon your vet that you want your cat pre-sedated in some manner to avoid having his/her last moments spent in fear and pain. I also wish so much that I had had the presence of mind to stop the proceedings the first instant that I saw that it was causing pain and fear. I am devastated by this and as desperately as I wish I could--I can't go back and make it better for my dear kitty, but maybe someone here will learn from our experience. Thinking about that possibility may help my heart begin to heal from this. Right now I feel like I failed my best friend when he needed me the most. Thanks for 'listening.' AJ |
#6
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Thinking about that possibility may help my heart begin to heal from
this. Right now I feel like I failed my best friend when he needed me the most. Thanks for 'listening.' AJ I'm very sorry, AJ. I've had a few of my cats euthanized and it almost always is swift and peaceful. However, I did have one where it was not that way and she yowled and fought. Her yowling was only for about a minute and it was awful but she was a cat who always reacted very badly at the vet and the vet had said there might be a problem so she did it "differently" than she normally would have. It still upset poor Miles but it was nothing like your experience. I'm very sorry. Candace (take the litter out before replying by e-mail) See my cats: http://photos.yahoo.com/maccandace "One does not meet oneself until one catches the reflection from an eye other than human." (Loren Eisely) |
#7
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Thinking about that possibility may help my heart begin to heal from
this. Right now I feel like I failed my best friend when he needed me the most. Thanks for 'listening.' AJ I'm very sorry, AJ. I've had a few of my cats euthanized and it almost always is swift and peaceful. However, I did have one where it was not that way and she yowled and fought. Her yowling was only for about a minute and it was awful but she was a cat who always reacted very badly at the vet and the vet had said there might be a problem so she did it "differently" than she normally would have. It still upset poor Miles but it was nothing like your experience. I'm very sorry. Candace (take the litter out before replying by e-mail) See my cats: http://photos.yahoo.com/maccandace "One does not meet oneself until one catches the reflection from an eye other than human." (Loren Eisely) |
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#10
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Thinking about that possibility may help my heart begin to heal from
this. Right now I feel like I failed my best friend when he needed me the most. Thanks for 'listening.' AJ Good Lord... I am so sorry for what you've been through. Don't beat yourself up over it. You did what you thought was best, and that's all we can do. The important thing is that you were with Merlin, and he knows that. Sherry |
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