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We had to say goodbye this morning to our long-lived cat, Shirley



Shirley and her littermate, Laverne, both turned 20 years old last month, and are (were) the two oldest cats in our vet's practice.

Last week, she started missing the litter box when she urinated; the next day, the urine was more blood than urine. After a quick trip to the vet, he basically said the ultrasound on her bladder looked like a "giant snowball," and she either had the world's worst UTI, or serious bladder cancer. After a few days of antibiotic therapy, the condition wasn't improving (in fact, she started having mobility issues last night), so we decided it was time for her to go. But she did get to spend her last afternoon doing what she liked best, sitting on her perch with the window open, enjoying the outdoors and watching the birds and squirrels, evil or otherwise.

It's hard to see a pet go, especially one that's spanned two wives and two centuries (nay, two millennia!), but it was the right thing to do. She will be missed, and I hope she'll find old Beauregard on the other side, and awaits her sister's arrival.

I am so so sorry. What a beauty. 20 yrs! She will be schooling the bridge vets on goings on.

Sorry for your loss. It’s tough, but sounds like you made the right decision.

I totally emphasize. I have a cat, Snidely, that is close to 20, and has also been with me through many good times and bad. I dread the day I will have to say goodbye to him. He owns a good deal of my heart.

flockofseagulls104 wrote:I totally emphasize. I have a cat, Snidely, that is close to 20, and has also been with me through many good times and bad. I dread the day I will have to say goodbye to him. He owns a good deal of my heart.

Thanks so much.

BTW, I never knew there were gradations to pet ages. I have seen senior dog and cat food for years. But Beauregard, at age 14, was considered elderly; the cats are/were considered geriatric. Sound like Snidely is in that category as well.

There are many friends of ours across the bridge there for her to hang out with.

Honor your sadness, but know you did the right thing. It will take a while to feel better, and for me, each kitty I've said goodbye to, years later, still has a song I can't hear anymore. Just change the channel or hit the FF button!

Hillary's was Josh Groban's "To Where You Are" which is complete cheese that still makes me think she is in the next room and I just can't see her.

Dub's was that ridiculous "A Thousand Years" by Christina Perri, that still has me watering up right now just thinking about loving someone for a thousand years. He has been gone for seven years, and I love his successor just as much, but there's something about it being the first cat you say goodbye to right there in your own room.

I am sorry for the loss of your fur baby.

Spiff, I am so very sorry. I still miss Snowball, the deaf cat I got when I was six. She taught me more about unconditional love than the humans in my childhood world. Although it may be a bit of an exaggeration, I credit her with saving my life when the electric blanket on my bed caught fire during the middle of the night. (I haven't slept under an electric blanket, a heated throw, or anything with an electrical plug since.) I also still miss the cats I acquired gradually during adulthood, including Oreo, who was raised by the whippet as her own puppy; sweet Roo; Blackie and Binkie; and the three Siamese girls --Fat Cat, Little Cat, and Sammy Cat, who lived to see the age of 29 under the guardianship of greyhound Rusty in his own giant bed. I hope your Laverne will challenge Sammy for longevity.

Cats are special. Dogs are special, too, but cats are special indeed.

I’m sorry for your loss. —Bob

Ahh hugs from the Saucy house. Tuxedo cats are very special, and Shirley was a very pretty girl. She was blessed to have you and you her.

I know this sadness all too well. And I know that I will feel it again, since my ladies are turning 17 and 14 this summer. It's part of the deal when we are the beneficiary of wonderful furry friendship.

20 years is a good run. It's even better when it's filled with the love and pampering Shirley obviously got from her humans....20 years is not nearly enough from our perspective, but considering the sad, hard lives so many animals get, I'm guessing that Shirley would take this deal every time.

So sorry for you both.

Like Saucy, I love tuxedo kittycats. I still miss Bigfoot and Yetigirl, and I'm glad your beautiful Shirley found her way in peace that you created.