Question:
Hi.

Recently I have been struggling with deciding if I should put my cat down or not. She has been urinating and pooping all over my house since November of last year. We have taken her repeatdly to the vet and discovered she had a thyroid problem. We put her on medication to regulate it over 6 months ago. The urinating and pooping didn't stop. Back to the vet-we had her blood tested, urine tested and her poop. There's nothing wrong. We had x-rays done and the vet said it looked like she has cancer in her upper intestine which could be causing some of the problem.

I clean urine up at least once a day in several areas of the house. And I am at my wits end. My house smells, things have been destroyed and we have spend thousands trying to find out whats wrong with her.

I have bought automatic litter boxes and replaced her regualr box at least 3 times. I have tried pee pads. Her box is kept clean-I clean it twice a day. When I clean her messes up I disinfect the area and use an enzyme designed to destroy the urine odor.

I feel like I have tried everything. When is it time to let go?

Answer:
Hi jessie, I know this is going to come off sounding cold and harsh but sometimes enough is enough and it is far more humane (IMO) to have your dear pet pts when they are not the pet you remember but resent. Animals have a very high pain tolerance and SHE is telling you something is obviously not right with her. This will be the hardest decision you will have to make but with that said and done you will also feel guilt for having made the 'choice' but know that she will be at peace, mentally and physically. Good luck, keep us posted

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That is the hardest decision to make, I too battled with that descision last year with one of my dogs.
However, in your situation I wouldnt know what to do. You truely have a very hard decision to make. What ever you decide will be the right decision.
Im sorry I dont have better advice for you, just letting you know that I feel for you and I am so sorry that you are having this issue to work out.


Answer:
Thank you Libby. It doesn't sound harsh at all-it's probably what I needed to hear. There are opinions out there that it's "murder" to put a cat down "just because" they are peeing and pooping all over the house and that owners who do that are just lazy and can't be bothered.

I guess a part of me looks at her and feels so guilty when I think about ending her life b/c of just that.

I'll keep you posted on what I decide to do.

I don't feel good about choosing to end her life that's for sure. Neither does my partner. He and I both are fed up with the mess but feel a lot of guilt making that decision.

Answer:
Maybe this will help ; I heard a vet on tv explain when it was time to put down an animal (cat or dog) is when they don't have a quality of life anymore.When an animal is no longer able to "stay clean" in a house,they loose their pride,so their quality of life....I can see you did try to help and it didn't change the condition.Unfortunatly,it happen to one of my cats 2 yr ago,and I did feel very bad but tried to help her,didn't change anything so I did made the decision to have her put down.Very hard decision,hard not to feel guilty,but it something that has to be done I'm very sorry that you have to go tru this.

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Very well said Frenchy, I made the same decision many years ago with our cat, so jessie you are not alone

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Originally Posted by jessie
Thank you Libby. It doesn't sound harsh at all-it's probably what I needed to hear. There are opinions out there that it's "murder" to put a cat down "just because" they are peeing and pooping all over the house and that owners who do that are just lazy and can't be bothered.

There's a difference between your case and the case you described. The lazy owner who can't be bothered is one who has a relatively healthy animal and is having it put to sleep because they are lazy! In your case your kitty is really sick and *that* is why she's doing the peeing and pooping.

If you were of the lazy type owner then you would not have gotten her checked out, spent the hundreds of dollars to figure out what was wrong, or clean the litter twice a day *and* all the other accidents throughout the house. A lazy owner would have given up a long time ago (when she first started having this issue) on the cat.

I personally haven't ever had to make this decision (and the closest thing I got to a decision like this was when our hampster many years ago ended up getting really sick...we put him to sleep but I knew that he was in pain so I was sad but figured it was for the best). I hope to never have to make such a decision or at least not make the decision any time soon. So the only advice I can give is that you aren't a lazy owner.

Megan

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Can the vet say for sure that it is cancer? If one more test could establish that, then maybe your mind would be more settled about what needs to be done.

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I was thinking the same thing. Cancer usually shows up in the blood tests.

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How old is your kitty?

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She's 16 years old.

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Ok... I was just wondering because some people think 6 year olds are old, you know? At 16, being incontinent is a loss of dignity. Maybe it's humanizing them, but I think they know and feel embarrassed and it really does affect their quality of life.:(

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I just put my 17 year old cat to sleep a couple of months ago for very similar reasons. I felt that he was asking me to help him, and I knew his quality of life wasn't going to improve; so the only way I could help was to let him go. It was the hardest thing to do (and I miss him terribly), but I believe it was the right thing.

My heart goes out to you. -kb

Answer:
My heart breaks reading this because I know I too will have to make this decision soon as well.
My cat Billy is 15 years old and has also been diagnosed with intestinal lymphoma, or cancer. He is on medication as his particular cancer is slow moving. But they prepared me for the "end" signs and one of the biggest with intestinal cancer was the inability to keep themselves clean or use their litter box anymore. The motion of squatting becomes too painful for them and they end up trying to hold it until they can't anymore. It is a terrible loss of dignity for the kitty, especially if he/she has always been very neat and tidy when healthy. It was at this point, they advised the quality of life and dignity was gone and the kindest option to consider was putting him to sleep.
I am not at that stage of the cancer yet, but I know it will come eventually and it breaks my heart. I am so very sorry you are having to go through this. I would advise discussing with your vet further, see if they can verify the cancer or not and if incontinence is one of the symtoms. A full blood panel would also give you indications of how her organs are doing and if they're starting to shut down or not...another sign of the end stages with intestinal cancer.
Whatever your decision, please do not feel guilty that you are putting her down just for not using the litter box. As others have mentioned, if she is truly not healthy, then it has absolutely nothing to do with laziness and everything to do with love.
I've been through this before with my dogs, and it is the hardest decision you'll ever have to make. But listen to your heart and listen to your kitty. You'll know the right thing to do.

Steph

Answer:
Hi everyone,

Thank you for your kind words and support. I am taking my cat "Jessie" to the vet today to have her put down.

This is the hardest decision I think I have ever had to make, but I believe in my heart it is the right thing to do.

Again, thank you for your support and kindness.

Hayley

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RIP, little Jessie. Hayley, my heart goes out to you. Yours was not an easy decision, but the right decision rarely ever is easy. You did more than a lot of people would have done. Jessie was lucky to have you.

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I am sorry and yes it is VERY hard to do for you and sweet girl, my 'Jasmine' is waiting to welcome you

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Hayley, I'm sorry that you had to make such a tough decision, but rest assured that your decision was made with love for Jessie and out of concern for her ultimate well-being.

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I'm so sorry.

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I'm really sorry too,but you are doing the right thing for Jessie .

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As hard as it was, you have done the right thing for Jessie. My condolences for your loss.

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