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- Jun 17, 2017
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Yesterday, at 6pm, we had to let our 8 week old baby boy go.
Legs, a brown tabby born from a feral momma, in a litter of four, started life off already given the short straw. He was born with Swimmer's Syndrome. His back legs were under-developed, and he couldn't use them.
My SO and I took it upon ourselves to find out as much as we could and talk to whoever we could regarding his condition, which is how I found myself at this wonderful website.
Through our three week long journey, I came to this site everyday with updates and questions -- and was promptly responded to with advice and reassurance.
Without you guys, we wouldn't have been able to do this.
Within the first week of physiotherapy we saw progress. We were feeling him kick back, everyday stronger than the one before. After we moved, he was able to kick his legs around and twitch them, which is something we hadn't been seeing before. He was getting there.
Then, life handed him another short straw -- this one fatal. I believe our move put too much stress on him, lowered his already weak immune system, and allowed the FIP virus inside of him to takeover. Within a day of our move, his insides began filling with fluid. He had the wet version of FIP.
We took him to the vet, yesterday, naive and hearts hopeful that it was just a bout of bad constipation due to his condition and constantly having his abdomen on the ground. When they told us his abdomen felt abnormal, and wanted an x-ray, we began to worry. We had to come back in a few hours so they could x-ray him. The moment we walked out of the vets office we broke down. We knew it was bad news, we knew it was probably the end of the line.
What we didn't know was that when he was being taken away for an x-ray that it was going to be the last time we saw him.
We came back, waited thirty minutes, the vets office had closed. They called us in the back room, and showed us syringes filled with fluid they took from his abdomen. He had FIP, there was nothing we could do. Since it is contagious, it wouldn't be a good idea if we took him home. So we made the toughest call of our lives. We let him go.
Due to being put under anesthesia for the x-ray, they wouldn't let us see him. We didn't get to say goodbye. We didn't get to hold him, let him know we loved him as the light faded from his eyes. His last moments were of fear and pain, in a cold room alone. He didn't know why he was there, what these people were doing, why we had let him be taken away. He died alone. I will forever regret and hate myself for this.
We almost weren't even able to get his ashes back. We spent over 3 grand on this move, and had to clear out our savings accounts just to pay for this vet visit. We spent $500 just to kill our baby. I set up a YouCaring, and within two hours we had raised over $200. I woke up this morning, and it was $320. Because of these amazing people who donated, we are able to afford receiving his ashes vs a communal cremation, and get the little paw print as a memorial. We can now put his ashes into glass, and forever have something of our lost love. We can now spread his ashes, at a beautiful area in Titusville, letting our baby walk among our beautiful earth where he couldn't before. We can now say goodbye.
RIP my little bean.
I loved you with every fiber of my being, and I will never forget you.
Our journey together was short -- but I don't regret a single thing. I would do it all over again.
Rest easy.
Legs, a brown tabby born from a feral momma, in a litter of four, started life off already given the short straw. He was born with Swimmer's Syndrome. His back legs were under-developed, and he couldn't use them.
My SO and I took it upon ourselves to find out as much as we could and talk to whoever we could regarding his condition, which is how I found myself at this wonderful website.
Through our three week long journey, I came to this site everyday with updates and questions -- and was promptly responded to with advice and reassurance.
Without you guys, we wouldn't have been able to do this.
Within the first week of physiotherapy we saw progress. We were feeling him kick back, everyday stronger than the one before. After we moved, he was able to kick his legs around and twitch them, which is something we hadn't been seeing before. He was getting there.
Then, life handed him another short straw -- this one fatal. I believe our move put too much stress on him, lowered his already weak immune system, and allowed the FIP virus inside of him to takeover. Within a day of our move, his insides began filling with fluid. He had the wet version of FIP.
We took him to the vet, yesterday, naive and hearts hopeful that it was just a bout of bad constipation due to his condition and constantly having his abdomen on the ground. When they told us his abdomen felt abnormal, and wanted an x-ray, we began to worry. We had to come back in a few hours so they could x-ray him. The moment we walked out of the vets office we broke down. We knew it was bad news, we knew it was probably the end of the line.
What we didn't know was that when he was being taken away for an x-ray that it was going to be the last time we saw him.
We came back, waited thirty minutes, the vets office had closed. They called us in the back room, and showed us syringes filled with fluid they took from his abdomen. He had FIP, there was nothing we could do. Since it is contagious, it wouldn't be a good idea if we took him home. So we made the toughest call of our lives. We let him go.
Due to being put under anesthesia for the x-ray, they wouldn't let us see him. We didn't get to say goodbye. We didn't get to hold him, let him know we loved him as the light faded from his eyes. His last moments were of fear and pain, in a cold room alone. He didn't know why he was there, what these people were doing, why we had let him be taken away. He died alone. I will forever regret and hate myself for this.
We almost weren't even able to get his ashes back. We spent over 3 grand on this move, and had to clear out our savings accounts just to pay for this vet visit. We spent $500 just to kill our baby. I set up a YouCaring, and within two hours we had raised over $200. I woke up this morning, and it was $320. Because of these amazing people who donated, we are able to afford receiving his ashes vs a communal cremation, and get the little paw print as a memorial. We can now put his ashes into glass, and forever have something of our lost love. We can now spread his ashes, at a beautiful area in Titusville, letting our baby walk among our beautiful earth where he couldn't before. We can now say goodbye.
RIP my little bean.
I loved you with every fiber of my being, and I will never forget you.
Our journey together was short -- but I don't regret a single thing. I would do it all over again.
Rest easy.
