The Rainbow Bridge

my special little boy was diagnosed with congestive heart failure in 2021. at that time we were told to expect 6-12 months more with him. we said goodbye to him on Sunday. he was 14. unfortunately his heart meds (including diuretics) caused irreparable damage to his kidneys. his cardiologist had concerns about his kidneys at his last checkup and lowered his dosage, but i suppose it didn’t help. we didn’t get a chance to try and treat his kidneys before they were too far gone. he didn’t make it to his 6 month re-check we had scheduled on the 17th. he was so lethargic in the end, wouldn’t eat and could barely stand on his own. i’m trying to take comfort in the fact that he was with us many years longer than expected and that we were lucky enough to be able to say our final goodbyes where he was most comfortable, by my side on our bed. he fought as hard as he could until the very end and remained himself even though the worse days. always looking to me when i was leaving the room, always trying to follow me anywhere i went around the house. he has been with me my entire adult life. he came everywhere i went, he was my sidekick. i would have given up everything to keep him. no one will ever love me more than that little guy did, and i’m not sure if i’ll ever love anything more than i love him. i feel so empty without him. there is a giant hole in my chest and pit in my stomach. i haven’t eaten in two days. everyone keeps telling me it will get easier but it’s hard to believe. he was my everything. the light of my whole life.

She was 14 years old, but full of life and I didn't fight hard enough for her to still be here and everyone just keeps telling me I should be over it by now when I can't even go to my front door without tears in my eyes at how much I just wish I could walk her one last time.

I'm so sorry

I hate her for leaving For making me love her so much

I love her so much

The unthinkable has been thought

The looks between vets

Words that have no meaning except the end of her battle

She fought so hard

She tried so hard to adapt

She's leaving tomorrow, they're coming to my home

I'm paying to have her killed, if she were sleeping she'd wake up.

I can't eat, food tastes like ash

I can't sleep I might miss something funny or cute she does

Her beautiful eyes cloudy

Her spice has gone

My heart is shattered

I want to scream, cry, tell, hit something

Hit someone

I want time to stop

I want more time with her

My grand old dame isn't old enough I hate that I love her so much

Now we can save money

Now we can go on holidays

I would live in a box under a bridge and save the dryest warmest corner for her.

I'm so angry she's stopped fighting

I'm in awe of the fight she fought and she lost

I am a mess

Ugly crying

I am so sorry she's suffered even a day more than she had too

And my heart has lost a piece

I don't know how to say goodbye

But I have too

So

Goodbye my darling girl

Thank you for letting me exist in your world even though it wasn't near long enough

I love you Vale Hollie

It's never easy saying goodbye to a pet, but my cat - my girl, Monica was so special to me. She was shy, but also the most affectionate cat I've ever known. Only a few short months after turning 10,she started losing her appetite. I was worried, but she still ate regularly enough, until the day she stopped eating.

I brought her to the nearest emergency veterinary clinic and she had blood work done, with an ultrasound. Four agonizing hours later, results came back with a troubling prognosis. The doctor believed she was suffering from two separate ailments; Lymphoma and Heart Disease. The two diseases had likely compounded and afflicted her in a way that was greater than the sum of their parts.

My husband and I made the decision to euthanize her shortly after to minimize her suffering. It all happened so quickly that I've got emotional whiplash. Yesterday, she was with us, and today she's gone.

She was such a good girl. It feels as though when she departed this world, she took a piece of my soul with her. I miss her so freaking much. I don't really believe in an afterlife, but if there is one, I hope to see her there someday. I feel so empty without her right now.

my cat died on saturday evening from a stroke. she was 20 years old, and used to be my grandparents cat until i started taking care of her about a year and a half ago. after that we completely bonded. before she was with me she hated people, would hide, and wouldn’t let anyone touch her. now she’d let anyone pet her and was very sweet and vocal.

i knew she wasn’t going to live for another year but this was completely unexpected to me. it all happened in the span of 8 hours. i’m so heartbroken and i miss her so much. my room triggers me because that’s where she stayed. i keep going to refill her food and water then i stop myself. i keep seeing her on her cat tree and on my bed. i keep feeling her presence there but then i remember im completely alone now. it’s like shes haunting me. i had to put down my childhood cat a year ago but even that didn’t hurt me as much as this did. i don’t know how im going to move on because i just burst into tears as soon as i walk into my house

Really I’m just looking for prayers. This is the worst pain I’ve ever felt in my life. It’s unbearable. I don’t know what to do with myself.

I'm really struggling with the loss of my dog. I got my rescue 7.5 years ago when I was 17, I was going through an extremely rough period in my life and my mom chose her for me. I have been completely bonded to her since, wherever I went, she went (besides work lol)

I'm REALLY struggling to cope with the loss due to it being extremely sudden, unexpected and out of nowhere and I mean on Tuesday she was running around, eating, sleeping, cuddling, doing our very regular routine having a blast. 8-9 hours later I wake up to her acting a little strange but nothing concerning (quiet and not as enthusiastic when waking up - it was the first super cold snowy morning so I assumed she's 16 and a chihuahua, shes cold and grumpy as she is every winter morning) She continued to be more quiet than usual this morning and instead of being under my feet and walking with me every step, she was in bed watching me get ready for work. 2 hours later I leave for work but drop her off at my Grandmas to keep an eye out and to call me if anything pops up even slightly. I get a text 2 hours later telling me she's not adjusting and something is off. I call my mom and we book her for a vet appt within the hour. I continue getting updates until everything goes silent and I immediately knew. My mom says she will pick me up from work, that text confirmed my feeling.

She was fine on Tuesday at 11:00pm and by 6:30pm on Wednesday I was told there was nothing that could be done and she wouldn't make it through the night most likely (she did and I had one last night with her). She couldn't walk, she wouldn't eat, she was shaking uncontrollably and was so very quiet. I've never heard her be quiet for a whole day and not once from Wednesday-Thursday morning did I hear her bark or whine or anything. Completely silent. By Thursday at 10am I had to go through the hardest decision I've ever had to make.

I had 0 time to process how sick she was and it went from seeing her happy and healthy to a completely different dog. She had a mass on her liver that was inoperable and her liver count wasn't able to be read by the machine due to it being so high...Her blood couldn't be tested due to how thick it was.

She was absolutely everything to me and everything I go to do, I wait for the sounds of her paws to come running. My whole routine has to be changed. The mornings and nights are the hardest and being home is the worst. I've worked overtime the past 4 days because I can't fathom being home without her.

I truly don't understand what happened. I feel guilty but at the same time know she didn't deserve to be at home alone while I was at work due to pain, or passing somewhere alone and random.

I've never cried so much and everything is so quiet. The house is eerily silent, morning walks and nights walks are no longer happening, weekend adventures and extra time together is not happening. I haven't been able to eat since Tuesday and I feel sick to my stomach. Everything stopped with her. I've stayed up until 4 am from Thursday-Sunday and most likely again tonight. I wake up at 7 am and go about my day. Work is an extreme struggle, I'm a GM and I feel like I cannot efficiently work and direct a team because I can't even take care of myself. My staff all got me gifts, flowers and everything more as a pick me up/sorry for your loss and I'm so lucky to have them and my family and friends, truly the amount of support I have received is overwhelming in the best way. But I can't help but feel lonely without her.

Everyday I'm googling several things about her health condition and whatever else to almost make myself feel at fault or confirm I could've done more? I can't stop wondering if I could've done something different or If I missed a symptom or sign..

I'm not sure what I'm looking for whether its advice, tips, venting or what but I feel like a burden to my friends and family because I can't talk or think about anything else.

Olá, perdi o meu cachorro há pouco tempo (2 meses) e tava a pensar em fazer uma tatuagem mas tenho 21 anos e não sei se ao longo da minha vida irei ter mais e consequentemente perde-los também, é melhor não fazer ou fazer e mais tarde fazer de todos os outros animais que tiver? Foi o primeiro cachorro que amei de verdade mas sei que sou nova e apesar de doer muito agora e o amar muito, posso vir a amar outros e não quero ter a pele toda desenhada, não sei o que fazer.

I am putting my dog down tomorrow and i can’t help but feel so so guilty for everytime i’ve ever yelled at her or complained about her. I’ve had my baby since i was 10 years old now 21. She has been such an amazing girl and she never really did anything bad. there’s been times where i’m up every hour of the night to let her outside and her whining is so so loud that i’d sometimes snap and yell at her to stop when it’d be extremely early in the morning. any other time of day i’d never yell at her i know it’s not her fault but i’d just be so exhausted sometimes. i’d always feel guilty right away and give her love and she’s never looked afraid or backed away when this has happened but now that it’s almost time for her to go it’s all hitting me again. i know it sounds silly but i literally sat down with her tonight in my lap telling her i loved her and asking for her forgiveness. do you think she can forgive me? i don’t know how to get over this. sorry if this doesn’t make much sense im just feeling a lot of things right now

I’m seeking some insight and perspective regarding the loss of my pet two months ago, as well as an experience with a specific PET EMERGENCY Treatment vet at Dowling. Am I being irrational in how I’m feeling?

Two months ago, I lost my rescued stray cat to pyometra. I took her to an emergency vet because most of the local clinics and VCA offices were booked out for two to three weeks. My cat became suddenly ill and deteriorated rapidly within just a few days, so the ER was my only option. The vet techs were very kind, but the main doctor seemed detached and unwilling to perform necessary tests for my cat. She insisted that she wouldn’t provide a diagnosis unless I agreed to pay for treatment upfront. I explained that I was on a tight budget, but she immediately declined to offer any financial assistance. She essentially told me euthanasia might be my only option, giving me an estimate of $3,000–$4,000 for treatment. She refused to provide a second opinion or even run basic diagnostics without the full payment, stating it was pointless unless I committed to the entire cost.

In the end, I opted for the basic medications she offered, including IV antibiotics and anti-nausea meds, and left. I didn’t want to name the doctor because it feels irrelevant now and I wouldn’t want to blast her, but I can't help feeling frustrated.

A few days later, my cat's condition worsened, and she lost even more weight. So, I returned to the ER, this time seeing a different doctor. She gave me an estimate of $500 for lab work and an ultrasound, and after the tests, she confirmed that my cat had severe pyometra. The doctor explained that surgery could offer a 50/50 chance of survival, but also made it clear that my cat was suffering. After thinking it over, I decided to hire a mobile vet to euthanize her peacefully in her favorite room. I wish I could’ve just spent the last few days with her just accepting that it’s the end and not forcing her to take any meds and preparing her for a peaceful ending (which I know in my heart I did provide.)

I can’t shake the anger I feel toward the first vet. She refused to even consider an ultrasound, even though it could have been an option. If she had offered that, I might have been able to make better decisions, avoiding unnecessary suffering from medications and the IV. Instead, she insisted on an all-or-nothing approach. I’m wondering if I’m being irrational, or if this is a normal reaction to the situation?

I never really made an official post here when we lost our cat last year, but I did mention the story a bit through comments. I guess I just never got around to it between family, work, and dealing with the grief. I also just chose to work through things by trying to help others here as best as I could. It's not a long story and not one that I necessarily care to type out every detail to, as I'd rather focus on his story, not the end of his story. Long story short, he stopped eating a little before last Thanksgiving , and just never started eating again. The vet said it was lymphoma in his stomach/GI tract causing him discomfort that made him associate eating with pain, and he just wouldn't eat anymore. The experts aren't kidding when they say cats will learn to avoid things that they associate bad things with, like avoiding the litter box if there's pain involved. We ended up putting him to sleep December 2nd of last year, two days before my wife's birthday.

Today has been pretty rough. It's the one year anniversary of when we had to put down our 12-year-old boy, Louis. It sucks to realize that he's been gone for an entire year. Even worse is seeing the posts I made in vet and pet help subs trying to figure out what we should do in the days leading up to having him put to sleep.

The funny thing is, I was never really a cat person before him. I preferred dogs and never really planned on having a cat. I'd had pet cats before, but that was as a kid living in a rural area, where they were mostly outdoor cats. I met my current wife in 2014, and she had already had him for about two years at that point. I didn't like him at first, and he didn't seem to like me, biting at my feet or head while I slept. Over time, though, he became my best friend. Every day when I came home from work for lunch, he'd spend my lunch break begging for my food and watching YouTube videos that I'd cast to the TV (His favorite was MrBallen). Every day off, he'd hang out with me until my wife got home. God forbid I had to go do yard work, he'd throw a big tantrum and be so happy when I came back inside. He honestly converted me into a full-blown cat person. I've never learned so much about the type of pet I had until I had him and wanted to learn more to do better for him and better understand him.

After his passing, things have been odd, but also in somewhat of a good way if that makes sense. We never did a lot of extended traveling when Louis was alive. We didn't trust many people to waych him and don't believe in the whole "cats are independent and fine alone" myth. After he was gone, we took a flight for the first time ever (I always had a massive fear of flying) to go visit Colorado. My wife was born there and has never been back since she left as a baby. She's always wanted to go, so we finally went after taking some time to work through losing Louis. It was amazing, but also bittersweet. I'm glad to have faced my fear, taken my wife on the trip she wanted, and seen such a gorgeous place, but I hate the reason why we were finally able to do it, because of Louis passing. We also adopted a new kitten from a local shelter a few weeks after coming home from Colorado. Partly because the house was so depressing and empty without Louis, and partly because we felt we just clicked with the kitten. It wasn't really planned, we went to the shelter a few times just to see other cats while working through our grief and give them some much needed affection.

Part of me likes to think that God took Louis from us for a reason. It allowed us to go on the trip we've always wanted, but most importantly in a way, our new cat, Tripp, was born within days of us returning from our trip to Colorado. He was found at a local dump with a twin brother (We wanted both to keep them together, but somebody claimed the brother while we were discussing adopting Tripp). Maybe we were meant to find Tripp and give him the same shelter and love thay we gave Louis. With him being born after Louis died and so close to our trip, maybe God or the universe or something reincarnated Louis as Tripp. Tripp has so many of the same behaviors and mannerisms as Louis that we both lean towards that possibility. I don't know, but I like to think that some of this may be true.

For most of this year, I've found myself working on reviving abandoned cat subs. Nothing special, just feels like a fun way to honor Louis, stay involved in the cat community, and let others have more opportunities to share their fur babies like we used to love doing with Louis.

Sorry for the long, rambling post. It just felt like the right thing to talk everything out for Louis today. If anybody wants to see him, I put up some of our favorite pictures of him from kitten to his last day, here.

I recently had to make the heartbreaking decision to put one of my sweet girls to sleep due to kidney failure. She was only 8 years old and shared a very close bond with her sister, who is still with me. They were littermates, and I raised them both since birth—they did absolutely everything together.

Since her sister’s passing, my other dog’s personality has completely changed. She doesn’t want to play with her toys anymore and only seems to perk up when we go to the dog park or hiking. She’s also lost her appetite, and I’ve had to start using appetite stimulants just to get her to eat.

It’s been so hard to see her grieving, and I feel at a loss for how to help her. I’ve tried engaging her with activities she used to love, but nothing seems to lift her spirits. I’m really worried about her well-being and want to do everything I can to support her through this.

Has anyone else gone through a similar experience with a grieving dog? What worked for you? Any advice or insight would mean so much.

I lost my Maltese/Shih Tzu mix Alisha a little over a year ago now and cried like mad when I got the call she passed and I still cry now and again about it but recently been having a rougher time with it. I’m 24 now and my parents got my doggo for me agent I was about 13. I can remember the first Christmas we had her and all the funny and cute puppy stuff she did and her little furball-self being blown around by the wind like a tumble weed. I didn’t have the best childhood growing up and when I got my dog I took a lot of that anger out on my dog and scaring her which yes is horrible and I should know cause when I moved out of my parents house I hated myself for it every day and kept feeling so much remorse for what I’ve done. When I went to visit my parents and my dog in 2022 I made sure to say I’m sorry and extra love on my dog. And the last time I saw my dog she came up to me and wagged her tail and seemed really happy to see me again. A month and a half later she passed and I can’t help but wonder if it was her way of saying goodbye. Especially after learning that dogs understand up to 95% of what we say to them. So….. how do you grieve it???

My wife and I haven’t been home much in the past week as we were dogsitting for a friend. Wife’s family dog got sick randomly a few days ago. But before my father in law said anything, I already knew. When we stopped by the house a few nights ago our beloved old man was laying at the bottom of the stairs, which he would usually only do if there’s been really loud noises (fireworks). I don’t know how, but I looked at him laying there and just thought “he’s sick and he’s going to die soon.”

Today I came home and found him at the bottom of the stairs, crying, poop all over his butt. His legs were curled up to his body and he barely moved when I touched him. Got him up and washed his butt off and put a diaper on him. I don’t know how long he will last for but unfortunately nobody in the family is financially able to take him to the vet, and he’s 14 years old so it might just be his time. He’s been losing his vision over the past few months, and sometimes won’t come up the stairs to use the bathroom. I knew it was coming and had a feeling for a while but it’s still hard. I lost my childhood dog in 2020 and seeing him getting sick is reminding me of back then.

I am just desperately hoping that he is able to pass in his sleep peacefully over the next few days.

We put down our beloved rescue Chihuahua on Friday. He was 15 years old and we had him since he was about 11 months old. He was diagnosed with CHF a little over 2 years ago. He took 3 different medications everyday and it seemed to really help. The last few weeks I could tell he wasn’t feeling well. He slept all the time and didn’t even want to go to work with me (he always did). He went 3 days without eating and was vomiting a liquid. He had an ammonia smell from his breath. Since we started the medication he woke up 3-5 times every night to pee, and had a tough time getting comfortable. He had also had a couple of seizures. The thing that is killing me is he was having a pretty good day the day we went to put him down. I didn’t want him to die a painful death from CHF. I’m asking for anyone’s experience with CHF & the end of life with their pet. Did I do the right thing? Ugh, so very painful. I miss him dearly.

My husband and I made the call a couple of weeks ago to put our dog to sleep. He was anywhere between 13-15 years old (he was a shelter puppy and we got him when he was about 2 years old). I can’t help but think I did the wrong thing. He was incredibly anxious since the moment we met him. He was only somewhat calm when he was with my husband, me, and our 2 other girl dogs. We tried medication, but it never really helped him. Regardless, all this anxiety gave this babe lots of energy. We fenced in our backyard for him and our husky. The two of them ran in that back yard so much. We had trails in our backyard that we affectionately dubbed as the race track. This last year however, there was a serious decline. All of a sudden he just stopped running around out there. He would play inside occasionally with our Husky and lab but he turned into a couch potato. He couldn’t keep his food down. He was starting to lose his bladder and he could hardly get up and down the stairs in our mud room to go outside. I have had a lot of loss this year. I lost my brother in January and my favorite aunt in August. I don’t feel like I have totally grieved him (or started to) since I’m so numb to death lately.

He had energy at times. I just can’t help but think I did the wrong thing. He was my baby. And I’m incredibly lost in my thoughts.

Just saw my 12 year old cat for the last time, 2nd pet in the last 12 months which has really taken a toll on me, but I think what has hurt me the most about him is that he was in a way the last semblance of my childhood left. I’m curious if anyone else understands this or can empathise. To me he represented a big part of my childhood, and after the years more and more has been lost; school, friends, experiences. And with him finally gone it feels like I’ve lost all of it and I have no more connection to that part of my life.

Long read, just venting here because I have nowhere else to say this.

My girlfriends dog that she adopted when he was 2 passed away a few days ago at the age of 8. I can't but feel partially guilty for the reason of his death. He was a teacup yorkie that has been living in our shared apartment for 2 years. I started dating my girlfriend 3 years ago but this dog felt like my son. He was the cutest dog ever. He couldn't bark because he was abused before she took him in so he would just make grumpy noises and it would sound like he's talking to you. He would always come to me when he wanted something and my gf joked that he always liked guys more then he liked girls.

He was diagnosed with a collapsed trachea and a heart murmur a year ago. He was on meds to control his cough/sneezing that would happen occasionally but not very often. Two weeks ago, his cough became uncontrollable, as he was coughing throughout the whole night. We rushed him to an emergency vet where they put him on oxygen and we were tasked to give him even more meds to control his cough, heart murmur, and bronchitis. In the week before his passing, my gf took off work to stay with him and and sleep next to him in the living room. He would still have uncontrollable coughing episodes every 6-8 hours and we would wake up in the middle of the night to administer oxygen and give him his cough meds. We took turns feeding him and giving him his medication. I would feed him, give him his cough medicine which he hated, and she would give him his steroids, anti biotics, and heart medicine. This went on for a week and a half.

On wednesday, the day before thanksgiving, he was having another coughing episode a few hours before I had to leave for work. I told my girlfriend to deal with it and I tried to go to sleep as we didn't have any sleep in the week prior. She stayed up , giving him his cough medicine, gave him oxygen, and tried to turn on the shower and let him breath the steamed air which is what was recommended by our vet. Nothing worked. I had to leave for work and my gf assured me she would handle everything. We both had to leave for work that day as she did not have any WFH days left and we left him alone in the apartment. I had an extremely busy day at work and we were promised to leave early for Thanksgiving. We have a home camera to monitor him in and I would usually check up on his coughing but that day, I didn't even bother to check because I assumed he was fine and I wanted to finish work on time. I was asked by my boss if i needed to go home but for some reason, I told them I could stay longer. I ended up leaving at 5:30 PM because i prioritized finishing my work over taking care of our dog.

My gf went home earlier and found him heavy panting. I'm assuming its because he was coughing all day. She tried to take him out on a walk but he couldn't. When I came home an hour later, they were outside waiting and she said he was getting better and that he was breathing. For some reason, instead of taking him to the vet to administer oxygen, I dedided to take him with us to run some errands and return clothes. Her dad did this with him a few days ago when we were both at work and it helped him and I thought thats what we should do for some reason. We kept him in a dog stroller for almost 2 hours while we were shopping. I noticed that he was hard panting through is mouth and he looked at me in my eyes with the saddest face i've ever seen, basically begging for help. I took him outside to breathe some air but it didn't help. After my gf was done returning things, we drove home and our dog collapsed in his seat. He could not physically stand any longer. He was still breathing my gf told me to give him his medication to calm down. Everything in my body told me not to as it didn't make sense but I gave it to him anyways. Immediately after I gave him a small dose, he stopped breathing and collapsed. I can't help but keep the image of him passing away in my mind as it replays in my head over and over again. I don't think I can ever live with myself knowing that we could have done everything differently and he still might be here.

TLDR: Girlfriend's dog of 6 years passed because of negligence. Feel extremely guilty that we could have taken better care of him. Guilt is eating me away.

My family brought our sweet sweet doggo to the vet yesterday to be put down as his heart was failing and he lost 90% of movement over the past weekend. Couldn’t even lift his neck to eat/drink and was occasionally whining/yelping due to some kind of pain in his limbs. I watched the entire procedure on FaceTime because I moved abroad in late May this year. Although the guilt isn’t severe, I can’t stop myself from sobbing every time I think about how I left him this year and how I wish I had spent more time with him. I was looking back at photos and realized that in the midst of preparation for my big move, I barely took any pictures/videos of him in 2024 and I’m hating myself over it. We were all so caught up in my move that we forgot to pay extra attention to him this year. I guess that’s my biggest regret for now… I spent half of my life with him and although I know that his passing is the best for him and he’s had a full life, my heart tightens every time I think of him no longer being around, even if I’m thousands of kilometers away from him. I’m no longer able to ask my family to show him to me when we video call, and his snores won’t be a background sound each time I’m on the phone with my mom.

How do you deal with regrets about moving away from your family pet and not being there in their final moments?

I lost my Micah kitty on Friday after spending 18 hours by her side in an emergency vet. I got her when she was only a couple months old as a lonely 13 year old boy in 2011. At the time I didn’t even know what to think about my new friend. The years went by and I loved her more and more, and she in turn loved me like I didn’t know an animal ever could. Growing up, I was always an outcast, had trouble making friends, and even all my “best” friends called someone else their best friend. But not Micah. I was always her first pick. I was always her best friend and her person.

The end came on quickly. Over the past month I had had her at the vet 5 times. First because she wasn’t wanting to eat though we could get her to eat a bit here and there. Then her arthritis played up so bad and she was in so much pain so I took her back and got the injection that always helped with that. Then she stopped eating all together. I will forever regret that I didn’t take it as seriously as I could have as soon as it was an issue. I took her back to the vet again and they told me she had pancreatitis and extremely elevates liver enzymes, but that with medication and 24/7 care, she could make a recovery. I cried because I knew right then what it probably meant.

We cared for her the best we could, with multiple alarms set throughout the night to get up and feed or administer medication. Then, after thanksgiving dinner, she took a turn for the worse and started to become unresponsive. My fiancee said we needed to get her to an emergency vet to give her the best chance, and so we made the 2 hour drive at 3 am to the nearest 24/7 hospital for her. By the time she was trembling and terrified, and her eyes were unresponsive and not blinking.

We did test after test, gave fluids, and all of her results came back “good”. But still something was wrong. I kept thinking that I wish they could just tell us she had liver failure or something so that I would know what to do. Unfortunately she got to the point where she couldn’t regulate her body temperature, and her breathing had become so fast that her stomach was full of air.

I cried and cried and cried with her in my arms knowing what I had to do. Now I can’t shake the feeling that I didn’t do enough for her and that I gave up too early, though my fiancee and mom keep telling me I did more for her than most people would ever do for a cat. I loved her so much I would have spent any amount of money, any amount of time or energy to save her.

I made the hardest decision of my life to not try additional treatments, because the best guess they could give me (and I had an amazing vet who was calling other professionals all night to try to find what was wrong) was that she might have HE and that the next thing they could try was a feeding tube. I knew my Micah didn’t want to go through that.

She always loved to steal cheezit crackers from me, and she always loved hearing acoustic folk music, especially the Grateful Dead. I have videos of her laying between my stereo speakers on her back, feet curled up, happily whipping her tail to Uncle John’s Band.

So I had one last bag of cheezits with her, even though she was too sick to want to eat any, and i sand Ripple by Grateful Dead to her. She was so ill she probably didn’t even know where she was, but she reached out to me while I sang with her paw, and her tail started whipping around. And then she was gone.

I have immense regret and feel like by allowing her to be put down that I killed her. I’m not a cryer at all but I have cried more since Thursday than I have in probably 5-10 YEARS. She was truly a special cat and was exactly what that lonely 13 year old boy needed to follow him into manhood.

I’m just so heartbroken. I feel like there’s a micah shaped hole in my heart, and nothing ever can fill that hole perfectly. I’ve taken this week off work because I can barely even get out of bed I’m in so much grief.

I hope I did right by her.

I usually love Christmas time- I'm the type of person who usually starts decorating after Halloween, but I've just been too depressed since my girl passed away 5 months ago. She was only 9, I thought we'd have a few more Christmases together. I've put off decorating till now, and I thought I was ready, but seeing her stocking broke me. I fall apart pretty regularly since she passed, but this hurts so much. She would get so excited to see her stocking hung, and she loved going through it on Christmas day to pull out new toys and treats.

I don't know what to do with it. I can't bear the thought of getting rid of it, and the thought of storing it away just makes me sadder. I have a large shrine (for lack of a better term) with a wall full of her pictures, bandanas, favorite toys, her urn... I hung her stocking there for now, but I don't know. I pray that we get to see our pets in the afterlife, maybe she'd still feel that same holiday excitement seeing her stocking hung? Or maybe I'm just being delusional... For the first time ever for me, the holidays don't feel bright. I'm trying to fake it for my family because it has been an incredibly hard year for all of us (lots of loss and hardships in addition to losing my girl). I'm just so sad.

My best friend in the whole world was diagnosed with stomach cancer over a month ago. Its been aggressive. Too late for chemo or surgery. I can’t help but feel guilty that we didn’t catch it sooner. She is a 7 year old Chow Chow. My first dog. She has been my emotional support dog. She is the reason why I am still here today.

I lost my mom a year ago to cancer. Usually I’d been going to my mom about these things. My mom loved that dog so much. The only good thing about this I guess is that they can be reunited In the afterlife.

It just feels so impossible for me to continue on with life after she’s gone. What I have going on at home is personal but it doesn’t help My depression. I feel alone if she’s not here and she’s the only thing that has made all this torment worth living.
I’m very scared for the future for both of us. I don’t know what to do. Replacing her with another pet just doesn’t seem right to me so soon. I even thought about having a baby but I don’t think me and my partner’s relationship is ready for that. It seems selfish but I’m just trying to make her as comfortable as she can be.

I lost my dog last week, he was a rescue so we didn’t know his age but we had him for 12/13 years and I really loved him and miss him. He was unwell for a while but still had a good quality of life then quickly declined over the past few weeks and we had to have him put to sleep. I’ve always been a cynic about there being an afterlife and preferred the idea that there wasn’t one but find myself wanting to believe that he’s somewhere else, maybe with my childhood pets. I know it’s silly and I’m just grieving but I want to know if anyone else believes there’s something more for pets when they’re gone? Has anyone had any reassurances that there could be something more?

I lost my soul dog of 16 years almost 3 months ago. She was my first "adult-solo responsibility" dog. I'm not doing well. This experience has made me realize, the one thing that helped my depression, was having a dog. I think I need a dog to stay alive..

I've been thinking of getting another. I meant to before my girl died, but life happened. I don't feel any guilt ie "replacing her" because no dog will ever hold a candle to how special she was..but I don't want to pass this pain onto friends and family, and that's why I need a dog. Humans would understand where "I went", a dog wouldn't.

Those of you with more life experience than me, did getting another dog help you in your grief? Were you able to love another dog? I keep looking on rescue and shelter pages, and I don't know if I should get the same breed, same coloring etc. That's all I gravitate toward because I can't imagine my life without a red tri. Do I go the opposite with a small dog? I'm not a small dog person. Will it mess with my head if I get another of her breed? How have you navigated this?

This grief is eating me alive (literally down 15 lbs). I'd love any input from those of you who have experienced this.

I lost my six month old kitten last Tuesday to congestive heart failure, saddle embolism, and FIP. She was a very sick little baby and while she fought hard, and things were looking hopeful with the FIP treatments, her little body couldn’t keep up and I had to let her go, to keep her from the absolute pain she was in because of the embolism, and a lifetime of sickness and pain she would have been in after that, had I kept her around for my own selfish desires.

Today she came home with me in a beautiful carved box, with a clay print of her paw. Such a tiny little paw. She was such a little baby.

I got her all set up on the shelf in the living room, surrounded by her favorite toys and her most favorite snack, the chicken and cheese churu. I laid her on top of the towel i used to wrap her up in to give her the FIP meds. Her cute little cape.

She’s been giving me all kinds of signs today and while I have cried, I have also smiled and laughed at her little tricks. She always had such a playful spirit and it’s showing. I’m glad she’s back in her forever home with me and her older brother

Rest easy, sweet Polly Pocket. 5/29/24 - 11/26/24 🌈 💔

Lost my cat last night due to UO…now I’m stuck with bits of his hair lingering around the home with a void that I fear will never be replaced…Walking in the room I’d catch him in sitting waiting for me to watch the sunrise together. Now just an empty chair with silence…

I'd just like to ask a few things. I'd call the vet but every time I try to call and ask them i start to cry and cant get the questions out. I have a 12 year old staffy that I've had for 11 of those years. He's my soul dog. He's been on hospice for a few months but I think we are at the point it's time to put him down before he gets anymore uncomfortable. I don't know how to describe it really any better than saying you can see it in his face, He's tired and ready. Among other obvious symptoms.

Questions for those whove been in the room. How is the process? In my head I'm visioning/praying it's that i can take him in his favorite pjs and cuddle with him on his blanket on the floor and the shots just make him peacefully fall asleep. Is that what happens or will it be traumatizing watching him struggle to breath and be uncomfortable during the process? I need to know how to mentally prepare. Thinking about doing it this Friday.

Hi guys. I had to put down my baby of 14 years 8 months ago. Since April, I'm still getting hit with waves of grief and depression. At this point, I'm learning to cope and letting myself cry when needed but of course it still hurts, how could it not?

I still don't know if I did the right thing. I remember her struggling to breath mechanically for the night and even more so at the clinic. I worked as fast as I could to get her to the vet but we still had to wait a few hours because it was 2-3 am. She was so weak by the time we go there, she didn't even want cheese. By the time we saw the vet, she immediately took my dog to the back to into the Oxygen tank. I felt like, she barely looked at the charts but based on what she saw, she started talking about what she saw and I started blanking out. Her words started to sound like the adults in Charlie Brown. A few seconds in, and I started bawling. She explained to me that there wasn't much of an option because of her age and said euthanasia was the kindest option given that she's practically drowning right now. Steroids were a false hope as they may not work.

There was a brief moment where she was alert and aware of me in the oxygen tank, and I'm still holding on to that memory. She was reaching out to me, and I held her but I had to keep the tank closed so I only got her paw. It's that memory of her looking at me in the oxygen tank that makes me wonder if I did the right thing. Should I have ignored the two vets that were telling me she was basically drowning? Should I have tried steroids? Her trachea was said to be 90% collapse but I'm still in denial.

Putting her down was awful, she tried to wiggle while gasping for air, it was so aggressive. She was mechanically breathing before, this was so intense, I thought her heart was going to explode. I wish I could have said no, let's stop, let's put her back in the Oxygen tank, let's try steroids.

I miss her so much. Some days I just want to join her.

I just need to vent and i'm not waiting for sympathy because what i've done is horrible. Also sorry for my bad english.

My cat died and I feel so guilty, i don't feel like i deserve to be alive anymore and i'm thinking about ending it. Bart was 18 and a half and very skinny, he couldn't jump anymore also he was fully blind but was actually functioning. Bart was the sweetest boy ever except for the fact that he was not letting me sleep. I did yell at him once in his life before for not letting me sleep and i was so disgusted about it so i promised myself to never do it again but last August i went through some bad stuff and i was drinking alot, not to excuse my behavior, but i snapped and yelled at him again.

The next morning he was very well hidden and when i founded him i immediately apologized to him but he got a seizure and almost died in my arms. He managed to survive but lost all his mobility so i knew this was the end. I called the vet to come to euthanize him but couldn't get an appointment before the next week. I took care of him like a baby, i fed him with a serynge, took him to his box and slept with him every night.

The vet was supposed to come on Wednesday but on Tuesday night Bart was having them tiny eyes and the next morning i woke up suddenly like never before, it was 7am and he was starting to breathe really slowly. I told him he was the best companion ever, that i never loved anyone like him, that he would always live in my heart, that he would forever miss me, that i would never forget him, i reassured him by cuddling him and kissed him goodbye and it lasted 20 minutes before he stopped to breath.

Bart i love you so much and im so sorry 😢, i feel like a monster, i failed you in the worst possible way and i regret it so much right now. Everyday is a nightmare since your gone and the guilt is eating me alive. I know you forgave me because you gave me kisses in the last days but i can't forgive myself for what i've done to you.

Rest in peace Bart 😭

My dog just passed away at midnight. He was 12 years old. He had chronic heart disease and was diagnosed with stage C mitral regurgitation (MR). Two weeks ago, he started coughing really badly and was struggling to breathe, so we took him to the vet, where he was hospitalized for 7 days. It turned out to be pulmonary edema. He also developed kidney failure from the medication, and while hospitalized, he barely ate due to his severe separation anxiety, losing 2 pounds. He even started acting differently because of the shock and trauma. However, we found another good vet, and miraculously, after that, he bounced back and returned to normal for a week, even though he was super skinny. That last week was the time we got to spend together, and I’ve been praying to God 24/7, so I feel like it was God’s gift to give us that time as a family before saying goodbye. Then the pulmonary edema came back. He was just fine this morning and afternoon, but after he spat blood, we called the vet, and he said all we could do now was stay close to him. At that moment, I knew he was going to die. He was in an oxygen tank at our house. Right before he died, he spat blood in my arms and then passed away in my mom’s arms. That moment is still ingrained in my mind. He was our sweet angel, literally an angel. He was a dog so full of love and happiness, and those 12 years were the best for both us and him. We doted on him and were always together, 24/7. He was our family’s very first dog, and he meant so much to me that I would have given my life for him if I had to. I grew up with him, through elementary school, junior high, high school, and college, I literally spent most of my time with him. I still can’t process any of this and feel like there’s a gigantic hole in my heart. Everything in my house reminds me of him, and the tears won’t stop. I don’t know how to deal with this. All of our family members are devastated and don’t know what to do either. I kissed him, hugged him, and told him, “I love you” and “Thank you for all the precious memories” over and over, but I still don’t know what to do.