My 17 year old boy just died suddenly looking for some answers

[Rayray]

It’s 4 am and my 17 year old cat just died in my arms , I didn’t even have any warning to take him to the vet in time it was over in 5 minutes .
I am taking his body to the vet tomorrow but I’m just torn apart and I’m just looking for any answers . He’s 17 male neutered. He started having seizures December 2022 , he’s been seen to by the vet since then , he has monthly blood tests on the 20th of every month , he has hyperthyroidism, he’s on meds for that and keppra for the seizures , his last bloods on the 20th January came out fine that his kidney and liver were fine and his thyroid levels were back to normal. He was a little under the weather today off his food and a little snappy with me but other than that nothing . So I let him be and was going to take him for a quick check up in the vet as he’s been like this before . Then suddenly at 4am he made a yowling sound I jumped out of bed and went to him , I thought he was choking on a hairball at first so I was trying to look for a blockage or anything but there didn’t seem to be anything blocking and he hadn’t been coughing or anything during the day . He was making a choking like sound and a lot of drool and laboured breathing he also urinated himself and collapsed I tried to give him cpr but nothing was working , i need to know if anyone has been through this?, this happened in 5 minutes he was gone. They never found the source of the seizures as he would still get them from time to time , the vet said it wasn’t caused by the hyperthyroidism because that came on a year later , they thought it could be a tumour on his brain . I’m sat here in tears and confused and shocked just waiting for the vet to open . Please any help would be appreciated , I’m torturing myself thinking what if it was a hairball stuck in his throat and he was choking and I didn’t do anything right to save him . But he wasn’t coughing at all today he’s had a few hairballs in his life and they are small because I groom him daily . I also checked for obstruction and couldn’t see anything . He doesn’t ever eat random things and this happened in my bedroom which is minimal stuff and nothing he could choke on , he was also sleeping before this happened . I’m just looking for some
Answers , I’m just broken sitting here with everything going through my head .

 

[Silver K]

I'm very sorry for your loss. Your cat died in your arms and not alone and afraid, try and take solace in that if you can. I hope you can get the answers you need from your vet.

 

[carrie640]

Oh my But that ^^^. You were with him. I don't know if any one of us can tell you what happened, but please don't beat yourself up. It is not your fault. It may just have been his time to go. Lucy (my cat) is about 19. I think about all of these things all.of.the.time. It scares me but I know that I'm doing everything I possibly can to help her. She was just dx with oral cancer and I'm on high alert to any move she makes. It's absolute torture so I can completely relate to what you must be feeling. I am so very, very sorry. I think losing a pet might be one of the hardest things to endure. I will pray for you

 

[GenCat]

I'm so sorry but glad you could be with him in his final moments. Honestly at that age with an ongoing health issue it could have been anything. Even with humans sometimes it's a heart attack out of nowhere, even at younger ages. You did everything that you could and most likely it was something totally out of your hands so please don't blame yourself.

 

[silent meowlook]

Hi. I am so sorry about your cat. It sounds like you took excellent care of him.

I am not a vet. This does sound, to me, like he had a cardiac event. Hyperthyroidism can lead to heart disease. Heart disease, most often hypertrophic cardiomyopathy will not show any signs and without an echocardiogram, you would never know it was there. It can cause a cat to arrest and die within minutes.

It wasn’t anything stuck in his throat. There was nothing you could have done to prevent this and you couldn’t have saved his life even if you had everything, knowledge, equipment, a full hospital at your disposal immediately. It happens so fast. It is often the cause when someone returns home and finds their cat deceased.

You did all you could. I am so sorry.

 

[CindyH66]

you gave your fur baby love, attention, medical care and comfort to the end. I am so sorry for your loss. I had a friend who had something very similar happen to her cat. He had JUST been cleared by a vet ; middle of night he howled, she got up to see why, and picked him up as he drew his last breath. she was devastated, but never found the cause . It must have been a cardiac event; maybe a blood clot . Sad reality is , sudden death can happen to any pet (and people) .. I'm sure it is nothing you did. ( cats are very good at coughing up hair balls; doubt that was it) .... may you be comforted knowing you did all could . Hug to you !

 

[Rayray]

Thank you all for your kind messages . The vet said it was most likely it was a brain aneurysm due to having a brain tumour which they thought he had as they tested for everything else but head scan .i opted out of an autopsy because the closest vet hospital that could do it is 6 hours away from where I live and I didnt wait him to be not put to rest for that amount of time . I feel so lucky to have had him for the extra year after the seizures started and did everything I had the power to do to make his life a painless and happy one , I will grieve for my baby boy and forever be grateful that he was part of my life for 17 years .

 

[fionasmom]

I am so sorry for your loss and hope that, with time, the happy memories of the life you had together will come back to comfort you. I completely agree with S silent meowlook This was not a hairball, you did nothing wrong, and it was a cardiac event which was entirely unpredictable. Your vet has offered that it might have been a brain aneurysm and, given that information, it also presents a condition about which nothing could be done and of which you had no ability to prevent.

I have lost two cats to cardiac events at home over the years. It is shocking and sudden without any doubt. Your beautiful little orange boy lived a very long life with you and you had meticulously provided medical care for him, going further than a lot of others would have done.

 

[Rayray]

I am so sorry for your loss and hope that, with time, the happy memories of the life you had together will come back to comfort you. I completely agree with S silent meowlook This was not a hairball, you did nothing wrong, and it was a cardiac event which was entirely unpredictable. Your vet has offered that it might have been a brain aneurysm and, given that information, it also presents a condition about which nothing could be done and of which you had no ability to prevent.

I have lost two cats to cardiac events at home over the years. It is shocking and sudden without any doubt. Your beautiful little orange boy lived a very long life with you and you had meticulously provided medical care for him, going further than a lot of others would have done.

That’s so lovely to say thank you , I would literally give the world just to make my fur babies healthy and happy . It’s completely devastating that this is one thing I couldn’t fix .