You are here:
- Home
- Animals/Pets
- Cats
- Cat Training and Behavior (Domestic and Feral)
- 22 yr old cat in pain
Cat Training and Behavior (Domestic and Feral)/22 yr old cat in pain
Advertisement
Question
Hi,
I am sure my cat is dying. She won't stop woewing about every 20 minutes. You go and pet her and she purrs and settles down for the next 20 minutes. She can barely walk and is in obviuos pain. The Vet says she needs to be put down or sedated. I feel both of these are far to extreme. She needs to be able to eat and drink, etc. or she will die. What can I do to ease her pain for the short time she has left in our lives?
Pauline,
I'm sorry about your kitty. At 22 she is well over 110 years old.
I would find a vet that specifically deals in geriatric cat care and conditions (not all vets do). They have "comfort meds" that can make a cat comfortable in his/her last days.
I have gone both ways, letting a cat live that still has the will to live and watched it slowly die, which is hard. I've also had them put to sleep so they didn't suffer, and I always wondered if I did the right thing. It isn't an easy decision either way.
I think now I would call a mobile vet if I had to have a cat put to sleep so the cat would be home and no stress would be added to the poor cat that he would get by traveling and the vet's office where they can smell things unpleasant.
Tabbi
Related Articles
- Have you had to put a cat to sleep because of the rising costs of veterinary treatment
- Have you had to put a cat to sleep because of the rising costs of veterinary treatment
- Have you had to put a cat to sleep because of the rising costs of veterinary treatment
- Have you had to put a cat to sleep because of the rising costs of veterinary treatment
- Have you had to put a cat to sleep because of the rising costs of veterinary treatment
Answers by Expert:
Dear Tabbi
Expertise
My expertise is in helping people understand their cat (or cats) and their behavior. Questions are welcome even if you don't have a cat....just a question about them. Hopefully my experience, suggestions, and comments will be of help to you...and your cat (or cats). Looking through my past responses to questions will give you additional information and/or answers too. Domestic Cats = cats (no matter what breed) who are tame or not wild, or abandoned cats who were pets that became wild, but can be tamed again. Ferals = cats who are born with one or more parents who were wild stray cats. They usually have had no interactions with people. They have an inbred distrust of humans and are difficult to socialize. They are skittish, hide, and are afraid of people. They take a lot of time and patience to work with them. A lot of kittens from shelters had a feral parent.
Experience
Since I was a child, over 45 years, I have been owned by a LOT of cats and kittens of almost every temperament, behavior, and personality. I have had experience with neurotic, disabled (including blind), stray, and 'problem child' cats and kittens. (A few normal cats too!) Plus all the things a lifetime of owning cats and research has taught me. I also have experience in feral cat behavior (which is different from domestic cats), and some experience with feral colonies that includes colony feeding and feral cat TNR (trap/neuter/release).
Education/Credentials
***********
Awards and Honors
* One of the top 50 Experts Of 2008 *
©2012 About.com, a part of The New York Times Company. All rights reserved.