subject: The Sad Loss A Cat And The Trauma On Survivors [print this page] Yesterday evening I was forced to suffer through one of the most stressful predicaments pet owners will ever face. It is never painless saying goodbye to a loved cat, however it brought a lot of things into perspective for me and my family.
What looked like a typical Friday evening would develop into a sad shock to my family. My cat, who was known as Grip, was very sick at night. Inside of a few hours, we were driving him to the animal hospital. He went downhill so quickly that I thought the car travel, which he never liked, would be his demise. He made it through the trip to the animal emergency room and the Veterinarian assistants rushed him inside and put him on an IV and placed him on oxygen to help him breathe. In a few minutes, he was placed on a device to help him breathe. The Veterinarian, whom was speaking about the critical condition with me, was pulled from the meeting room since my cat had gotten far worse. Minutes later, I had a Veterinarian informing me there was no chance that my cat would make it.
My whole world had arrived at a stop at around 1:00 AM. There I was at the pet hospital, with my spouse and two children, and was obligated to make the hardest decision a large number of pet owners hate. Observing my cat in the serious condition he was in made a decision very simple for me to make, and I did approve ending my cat's suffering. Our family had a few minutes to say their remaining goodbyes, but not ahead of a continuous flow of tears and crying. For Grip was nearly sixteen years old and was a part of the family well before my marriage and the birth of our two children.
Now it's one day after Grip's passing. When I got up this morning, I was not greeted by a hungry cat that would wait for his morning food. Rather, I awoke to such a overwhelming sense of loss that I broke down and started crying. While time can help to treat my wounds, Grip's memories will forever carry on. And the delight he brought to my family shall always be remembered.
Looking back on the whole situation, I have come to the conclusion that no cat owner can be prepared to say goodbye. The additional difficulty of explaining the passing of a cat to children also causes it to become harder to deal with the loss. As a parent, I could not help but feel even more anguish for the suffering my son and daughter were dealing with.
As individuals, I now recognize there is never a method to honestly plan for the loss of a pet. The closest we are able to come to being ready for the time is to have provided our pets exactly the same love they've provided to us all through their lives. If nothing else, this dramatically minimizes any regrets and allows us to rest in realizing that we loved our family pet as much as they loved us.
