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- Nov 17, 2005
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I am well aware this is a decision only I can make, and do hope this won't turn into a nasty thread.
I have a 16 year old kitty. She's lived outdoors her entire life, was (finally!) spayed when she was 12 years old. She has no desire to live indoors, I've tried to bring her in a few times. She's done well, but has developed clouding over one eye (thus rending her blind in that eye), and from what the vet can tell has lost *some* of her vision in her other eye. Hearing seems to be OK for an older kitty. Her teeth are rotten & need to come out. Her coat looks cuddy, but the fact that she's licking her coat with that nasty mouth isn't helping. She's lost some weight (but that can be tied in the trouble eating due to bad teeth). She's nowhere near as active as she used to be.
Purr-sonality - she's nasty, always ripping into the other cats. She's gotten worse in the past month or so. She loves to be petted, & still faithfully follows me about the yard.
I am faced with 2 options right now & am seeking opinions of several vets.
I can either euthanize or risk a dental. I would do bloodwork prior to a dental, and I did speak with someone at my vet's office about risks. I mean, she may perk right back up after a dental, she may die during surgery, or she may slowly go downhill post dental. Her last surgery, 4 years ago, was to repair a hernia & she barely made it. However, that vet isn't as good as the vet I currently use.
I cannot stand the thought of euthanizing her - I really can't. I mean, there isn't really a concrete reason to euthanize her.
I must also deal with the fact - is it fair to put her through another MN winter? She refuses to stay in the heated shop, I do now have a 6' x 12' enclosure attached to an un-heated shed....but will she be warm enough? Will she survive?
She is the dilute calico in front.
Last fall
Thoughts? Ideas? Anything to discuss with my vet?
I'm just questioning whether or not it's fair to put her under anesthesia & the pain of a full dental extraction, only to have her dead within 6 months. There's no way to know if that's the way it will work - but is it "the right thing to do" to spring for the dental?
On one hand, she's lived a very long life, but on the other hand, I can't cut it short simply because "she's old".
I have a 16 year old kitty. She's lived outdoors her entire life, was (finally!) spayed when she was 12 years old. She has no desire to live indoors, I've tried to bring her in a few times. She's done well, but has developed clouding over one eye (thus rending her blind in that eye), and from what the vet can tell has lost *some* of her vision in her other eye. Hearing seems to be OK for an older kitty. Her teeth are rotten & need to come out. Her coat looks cuddy, but the fact that she's licking her coat with that nasty mouth isn't helping. She's lost some weight (but that can be tied in the trouble eating due to bad teeth). She's nowhere near as active as she used to be.
Purr-sonality - she's nasty, always ripping into the other cats. She's gotten worse in the past month or so. She loves to be petted, & still faithfully follows me about the yard.
I am faced with 2 options right now & am seeking opinions of several vets.
I can either euthanize or risk a dental. I would do bloodwork prior to a dental, and I did speak with someone at my vet's office about risks. I mean, she may perk right back up after a dental, she may die during surgery, or she may slowly go downhill post dental. Her last surgery, 4 years ago, was to repair a hernia & she barely made it. However, that vet isn't as good as the vet I currently use.
I cannot stand the thought of euthanizing her - I really can't. I mean, there isn't really a concrete reason to euthanize her.
I must also deal with the fact - is it fair to put her through another MN winter? She refuses to stay in the heated shop, I do now have a 6' x 12' enclosure attached to an un-heated shed....but will she be warm enough? Will she survive?
She is the dilute calico in front.
Last fall
Thoughts? Ideas? Anything to discuss with my vet?
I'm just questioning whether or not it's fair to put her under anesthesia & the pain of a full dental extraction, only to have her dead within 6 months. There's no way to know if that's the way it will work - but is it "the right thing to do" to spring for the dental?
On one hand, she's lived a very long life, but on the other hand, I can't cut it short simply because "she's old".