Moggy went in for a tooth abscess last monday...

[haele]

He's 17 and a half, thyroid issues, and over the holidays, he started drooling and developing really bad breath as well a squint on one side of his face.

The vet found three teeth "just floating" and no abscess when she did the dental procedure, but abnormal cells between his gum and jaw. She removed as much as she could and sent me home with antibiotics and pain killers, and sent out the tissue for biopsy, which came back yesterday. The biopsy shows squamous cell carcinoma - and it's gone beyond the threshold for surgery. :(

The vet tech was crying when she called me with the results yesterday(she really took to the old man over the years - he's so calm, friendly but dignified and very good about getting poked). I'm still a bit numb.

The vet left instructions for me to just keep giving him the antibiotics, and she'll prescribe a month's worth of pain killer for him when she checks the incision Monday.
She told me that as soon as he stops eating, it'll be time - and as aggressive as that type cancer is, it won't be much longer.
We'll call the vet who makes housecalls for this, like we did with Moggy's littermate, Willy Bear last year.

What scares me is that this is similar, though not the same cancer, that took Willy Bear. It might have just been time and hereditry, or it might be something environmental.

Haele

[undeterred]

1. I'm so sorry.

There sure are a lot of animals getting cancer these days- both of my dogs before my current one had cancer, although one of them was completely cured.

[stpalmer]

4. How devastating

I'm glad to hear that a vet has a heart about it too.

I'm sorry. Don't keep him lingering in pain. It's hard to know when the right time is, but it's better if he never knows the terrible pain.

I watched my cat die an agonizing death because I wasn't sure if it was "time" yet. By the time I knew, he was in so much agony. I don't even know if he was conscious on the way to the vet. I promised I would never wait that long again.

[Lorien]

6. There's a very good reason for it. Pet food has taken a huge turn for the worse

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=243&topic_id=4388&mesg_id=4388 as companies try to find ways of maximizing profits they've discovered that all kinds of food industry waste can be turned into expensive pet foods. The ones that pay for their greed are our pets! My tuxedo cat Miro developed a very aggressive cancer on his side several years ago. He had been on a friskies and fancy feast diet for most of his life, then changed to a healthy human grade pet food. The vet said that he only had a couple of months to live. I made him as comfortable as possible; he even got acupuncture two times a month, which he loved. I put more raw food in his diet and he ended up living another year and a half! It was a happy year and a half too. The vet was amazed and kept saying that cats NEVER survive for so long with that form of cancer. I explained to her that it was his food and the acupuncture (which mostly relieved the pain) that made a difference. She was one of those vets who pushed corn laden science diet, so naturally most of her cancer patients didn't make it more than a few more months. I know that a change in diet can do great things for humans with cancer too, so I have no doubt that it really helped Miro.

[IndyOp]

2. I am so sorry about Moggy...

It seems likely that at age 17 his cancer was a matter of time and heredity.

Love him as much as you can for as long as you've got him - that is all any of us can do.

:hug:

[livetohike]

3. I'm so sorry about Moggy.....

:hug: for you both and just enjoy the time you have.

[WillYourVoteBCounted]

5. very sorry about your friend

I couldn't understand why my daughter's dog had such bad breath, took a look at her gums
and headed off to the vet. She ended up having 5 molars removed and the remaining cleaned.
She feels much better now.

They can't tell us when things are bothering them.

Your fellow has had a long run.

Again, sorry that this is happening. He's lucky to have you to care for him so kindly.

[Lorien]

7. I'm so sorry that you are going through this again

I've lost three furkids in the past two years-all to illnesses (cancer an FIP) so I know how you are feeling right now. It's so hard. See post #6 for some ideas on how to slow down the process for sweet Moggy. Is he feeling any better after his surgery? Maybe you gave him a little short term relief there.

:hug: to both you and Moggy. :loveya:

[CountAllVotes]

8. my beloved Sheltie died of cancer

I was told to wait until he would no longer eat.

What happened was that he was in such severe pain that he began crying LIKE A HUMAN BEING. The sound of his wails during the night were too much.

I'd get up to check on him and he'd be laying on the rug with the huge tumor showing and crying as if to say, "help me, help me!".

I did not wait until he would no longer eat.

I had him put down at the local vet and he is buried in my back yard.

:cry:

I am so sorry to hear you are going through this and I think this advice to wait until the dog is so sick he will no longer eat is beyond torture!

Do what you know is the right thing to do when the time has come. You will know.

:hug:

CountAllVotes

[emilyg]

9. I am so sorry.

[haele]

10. Thanks everyone -

He's still fairly active and alert, but without half his teeth on one side, he's pretty much stuck to very soft and saucy food - which he's demanding to be fed every 4 to 6 hours. (The vet says the frequency of eating is his thyroid getting re-stabilized) His incisions have healed nicely, so we're just going to keep an eye on his activity and his "squint" to monitor how fast the cancer is progressing.

The vet thinks he's got about another month at most before it spreads so much the pain will not be manageable. We've got an appointment set up with the geriatric/hospice vet to start coming out and monitoring him on a weekly basis so he can remain at home until the end.

Haele

[BrklynLiberal]

11. I hope that you are able to spend some very loving time together.

no doubt that you will make him as comfortable as possible,show him endless TLC, and release him from his pain when the time comes.
No matter how long our sweet pets live, it is never long enough.. :((

[AZBlue]

12. I'm so sorry!

:hug:

[haele]

13. He's taking a rapid turn for the worse -

Now he either just wants to lay in the sun on the back porch when I'm not at home, lay on the bed where I sleep or hang out next to me, just "meatloafing". The cancer has spread so rapidly, his left eye is almost totally closed down, pupil's almost closed to a dot, and it's gummy under the lids; I'm not even sure he can focus with that eye. And he's started wheezing horribly.
Luckily, the painkiller's a liquid you put on the gumline with a syringe, so it's not too invasive to give him.
He's not wanting to eat very much - chewing's too difficult for him without teeth on that side, so baby food is about the only thing he can handle right now. He won't even come running for his favorite whipped creme in a can...
Last week, he was still begging for bits of chicken and fish when I was making dinner, and making his occasional leap, snatch, and run raids if I turned my back during preparation. Now, he just sits on a paper bag in the corner of the kitchen and watches me.

:cry:

Even Princess and Pixel are being nice to him for a change.

The hardest part after calling the mobile vet to make the housecall is the wait and watching him deteriorate. I would feel less guilty if he just didn't wake up one of these mornings - it's like I've taken an active role in his passing by making the decisions.

Friday is going to be a very bad day - he's always been "the baby".

Haele

[hamsterjill]

14. So very sorry

I'm so sorry.

Thank you for taking such good care of him, for loving him, and for being strong enough to make the decision to help him cross. It's never easy. It is compassion at its most difficult, but yet its grandest and most selfless act.

I wish you and your fur-baby peace.

[Coyote_Bandit]

15. .

:hug:

[virgdem]

17. I'm so sorry that you are going through this..

and I understand what you are going through. In October, I had to put down my cat, Sylvester, who was suffering from Intestinal Bowel Disease. He was basically wasting away to nothing. He had a voracious appetite but was not absorbing his food. It was very difficult to see his health deteriorating and I made the decision to put him to sleep before his discomfort advanced to the point that he was suffering and not enjoying a good quality of life. I made the decision on Monday to put him to sleep on Friday, and that was one of the worst weeks of my life. When you know that your fur baby will not be around past the end of the week, it's tough to deal with. I was able to spend that last week with him at home and I would not have traded that week for anything. Spend whatever time you have left with him and let him know how much you love him.

[glinda]

29. I feel absolutely horrible for you and your loved one.

Talk to him, tell him you love him.

[tencats]

16. Oh my gosh, that sounds terrible.

This is something about a cats end life that I hadn't known about before reading this. I'm so sorry that he has had to endure this in the end.

[BattyDem]

18. I have no words.

:cry: :hug:

[Kookaburra]

19. Sending you and Moggy light and love

Strength to you, haele. And may Moggy have a peaceful passing.

I'm so, so sorry you're going through this. (you can't read tears over the computer, but believe me, they are falling for you and your Moggy).

:hug:

[haele]

20. It's over -

He's now with his littermate Willy T Bear, in a world where there's always chicken breasts ready to snatch off the table, open cans of tuna in water, cheeseburgers, and whipped cream. And lots of cheese. Sunny warm days in a garden with lots of birds, lizards, and bushes to hide under, rough-barked trees to climb, and cool nights on comfy pillows with catnip mousies and the occasional laser pointer. And a friendly hand to massage those toes and rub the belly just the way he loves...
(And no fleas to make him want to tear his belly-fur out, monkey spawn to torment him by holding him upside down, or nasty, slobbery dog to steal his cheeseburger!)

He's probably back to his prime weight - 14 lbs, instead of the 6 lbs he wasted away to over the past six months...solid black, green eyes, and ridiculously long tail.

Goodbye Old Man. Goodbye Slipper-kitty. I'm sorry your last week was so miserable, but you were always a good boy and were always so happy to see me, no matter how miserable you were feeling at the time.
You always forgave me for the long working hours, the working travel where I'd either be away from home for days on end, or those few times when I took you and Willy-Bear with me because I would be gone too long to leave you, the different homes throughout the years, bringing home the Suitcase Man as a husband with his daughter to tease you, the trips to the Vet with the nasty needles.

Goodbye Moggy-Baby. I love you and miss you horribly.









Haele

[Grateful for Hope]

21. I am so, so sorry

I am sure you are right that your beautiful boy is now happy, pain-free, and, I suspect, watching over you, his beloved human.

:hug:

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

22. RIP, Moggy!

:hug:

Poem For Cats

And God asked the feline spirit
Are you ready to come home?
Oh, yes, quite so, replied the precious soul
And, as a cat, you know I am most able
To decide anything for myself.

Are you coming then? asked God.
Soon, replied the whiskered angel
But I must come slowly
For my human friends are troubled
For you see, they need me, quite certainly.

But don't they understand? asked God
That you'll never leave them?
That your souls are intertwined. For all eternity?
That nothing is created or destroyed?
It just is....forever and ever and ever.

Eventually they will understand,
Replied the glorious cat
For I will whisper into their hearts
That I am always with them
I just am....forever and ever and ever.

Author Unknown

[BattyDem]

23. I am so sorry, haele

What a lucky guy he was to be cared for by someone who loved him as much as you did! He'll always be with you. :hug:

[roody]

24. I'm shedding a tear for Moggy.

Tears will leave no stain.
Time will ease the pain.
For every life that fades
Something beautiful remains.

from Tina Turner's Wildest Dreams

[Stinky The Clown]

25. He knows you loved him

Animals always know.

:hug:

[mikelgb]

26. Oh I'm so sorry.... I'm in tears, looks too much like Spooky

I was worried about Spook's teeth and breatch etc but the vet said they were alright apparently... but sound awful similar and now the tumor on his head....

[haele]

27. Moggy was elderly with thyroid issues -

He also had a hard little melanoma cyst-like bump that was benign on his forehead right above his eye for over 13 years, it never spread or did any damage.
The vet was telling me that there were several types of cancers that are common in the head area for cats - most fairly benign. But unfortunately, he had developed one of the worse.

As for the bad breath and teeth - check kidney and liver functions. All Black kitties are usually called DSH at shelters and fosterages, but if they're tallish, smooth, shiny "medium" coat, with long tails and siamese type bodies, they're usually a Birmese "Bombay" or Bombay mix - and that breed base tends to have kidney and thyroid problems developing in mid-life.

:hug: for Spooky. I'm hoping it's just a little melanoma and can be easily taken care of.

Haele

[sazemisery]

28. Sincere condolences to you

:hug:

[BrklynLiberal]

30. I am so sorry for your sadness. I know that you did the loving thing for Moggy,

and gave him a most wonderful life.

Now Moggy and Willy-bear can play together again...as when they were kittens.

[XemaSab]

31. I'm so sorry for your loss

:pals:

[AZBlue]

32. I'm so sorry!!!

:hug: