I had to euthanize my 20 y/o cat Billie a few years ago and it was really, really rough. She had stomach cancer too.

She was the only pet I ever had and she was a great friend. I still miss her.

 

Sorry to hear... One of my cats died last year from fatty liver disease while I was on vacation in Hawaii. She was only 5 years old and that was disturbing as hell 'cause I didn't get to see her again either.

 

I have now found out that the "night" people at vet places may be slightly pushy when it comes to getting operations and stuff done. Hindsight is always 20/20. We were pretty much pushed into thinking she would not live through the night. My co-worker told me of a similar night story....but they waited and the day guy had a different opinion.

Wish now I had waited.?? Nothing I can do now, but hope I didn't get suckered.

 

Sorry to hear about the loss. Hopefully you guys decide to adopt again though..

 

You can always get a necropspy done to determine the cause of death. It'll cost more, and of course won't change the outcome, but it might be worth it for some extra peace of mind.

That having been said, in the absence of any other reason to be suspicious, I'd trust the vet. They usually know what they're doing, particularly when it comes to common household pets like cats. Also, if you noticed serious enough symptoms to take her to the vet in the first place, then she was almost certainly very ill. Cats don't generally show outward symptoms until they're pretty damn sick.

 

She certainly went from a normal cat to dead in about 2-3 days. I am going to have to assume they did what they could. I miss her.

 

Scot, I'm sorry. I sure don't envy you telling the kids either.

 

So sorry! I had to have my 15-1/2-year-old put to sleep a little over a year ago. She was in renal failure and after a year of rollercoaster ride with the disease(and about $3000.00), we finally couldn't get her feeling better. They let me be with her when it was done and it was very peaceful...she was purring (that was really hard, but it was so much easier that I could see how peaceful it was). I helped deliver that one in a guest bedroom closet. We still have her mother (17-1/2 now) - feisty, obnoxious and deaf (she screams at us now rather than softly meowing). It's such a hard thing to have to do, especially when you don't feel you've been able to say your goodbyes, but I can't imagine not having them around.