hello out there all of you animal lovers

i lost my beloved cat of fifteen years named shabu. he was black and white big big cat. well not so big at the end as he went down to 5 pounds from his original 13 pouns.  he had kidney disease and a hyper thyroid condition and thru medication we were able to give a quality life for tow years right until the end. they say that animals pick the time to go when they know you are ready for it. its so strange...he waited until i got back from vacation and then one week later on the friday i came home from work....he went downhill. very quickly.its weird....its like he was waiting for the right time. he was waiting for me at the door when i walked in which is unusual becuase it was my half friday. he cried for some food, ate something, crawled into his bed, and then started to slow down.  it was not my usual time to come home so its weird that he was waiting for me. this morning he passed away. just him and i. i called for a vet to come over but he passed over before he got there. i am beside myself as i feel i could have shortened his pain, but the vet said its better when they die naturally as long as the suffering isnt too prolonged and it happened very quickly. just 3 nights ago he was crawling over my legs looking for leftovers.  the pain is so bad it feels like someone cut me to the bone. i am looking to see if there is anything i could have done better. i miss him with all my heart. i dont think i could have loved him anymore than i did. i loved him with every ounce i had in me and then some. i just cant believe hes not here in all of his favorite spots and corners in the apartment. 15 great years that i will never forget. i am consumed with gratitude for how lucky i was to have had him for that long. i love him more than i can say. he was my bubbytiger and i will love him forever and always. i know that i am very lucky that it happened when i was home. it was a slow deterioration over two years but he pretty much kept eating right up until the last few days. for all of you animal owners who have lost your pet too...my heart goes out to all of you. we are lucky to be able to miss them so much and to have this love for them. to feel pain cant be bad because its because you loved them that much. some people arent as blessed with this compassion. i feel lucky

First of all I want to tell you how sorry I am about Shabu.  I had a cat named Pawley that I had for about 4 yrs.  I found her when she was just a few weeks old.  She started losing weight.   I took her to the vet and they didn't know what was wrong, they did some test and sent her home with some meds but nothing helped.   I woke up one morning and found her in my dogs bed' she died in the middle of the night.  I did all that I could but it was her time.  I really miss her.

I also had a dog named Taz.  I had her for almost 18 yrs. When she was ready she told me that it was "OK she was tired and wanted to go to the Rainbow Bridge.

My grandmother lived in Canada.  We got a phone call saying she's dying and we needed to get there as soon  as possible.

When we got there we went in and visited her. She passed within an hour it was like she waited for us, to have a chance to say goodby.  I believe that animals and people know when it's time and wait for thier loved ones, to give them the chance to say goodby.

Don't ever question wether you did the right thing by letting go or holding on.  Our family, furry and non furry will let us know when they are ready and if they need help or not.  Just know you did right by Shabu and she's at the Rainbow Bridge happy, healthy, playing with all the ones that came before her, and waiting for you when you know it's time.

I am so sorry to hear of your loss. I just lost my dog Halston this past Thursday of 15 years. It came along very fast within the past month with several worrisome ailments of heart problems, not eating, vomiting diarrea, and collapsing. We finally on Wed had to go to the emergency room with a very bad collapse and discovered what had been going was that he had advanced tumors in his liver and fluid in his abdomen. The vet stated his condition grave and would not last much longer. We decided to put him down to ease the suffering. It is very sad and I have never grieved like this before. I know what you mean about missing seeing them in their little nooks they use to love. I am finding great comfort with this site, and have started to make a memory shelf for his ashes. I hope things start to get better for you, I know I will miss and think of my Halston daily and appreciate what a gift from God it was that he enriched my life how he did. God bless.

I am so sorry to hear about your loss...my thoughts are with you.

Rodo...I am so sorry honey...my thoughts are with you too.

Im sorry for your loss. My little dog Buster died last year of kidney failure,he was 16. Although the pain will get better with time ,I still miss him every second of every day.

Dear jojo

I am so sorry for your loss.  It is so very hard to lose our friend, but please don't beat yourself up about the way you handled this.  You obviously loved your baby, so what you did was right.  It takes time to heal our hearts.  My love and thoughts are with you

so sorry for your loss.  It sounds like you did everything you could.  You should concentrate on the happy times you had with him.  take care Helen and Lassie

Sorry to hear that you lost your companion.  My heart goes out to you as I have been there in that pain a number of times.  In fact as recently as last year just before Christmas.  It is hard to loose them but I believe we will see them all one day.  God Bless, I will pray so you will have the strength to get through this tough time.