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- Jun 15, 2016
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We have been taking care of a now 13-year old male cat that is actually our son's cat. His name is Garfield and is so adorable and likes to walk along with two cats early last year, who were kittens at the time. They're confined to the house and we talk them for one-hour walks each day in our back yard. For the past several months, we've been noticing Garfield losing weight, and at first I didn't think anything of it. My husband didn't want to spend any money on him because of him being our son's cat. Our son can't afford vet care any more than we can. We have put a lot of money into three of our cats in the past two years, two of which we couldn't save. Now Garfield must have some illness and from reading online I'm suspecting diabetes. He has a healthy appetite. As a matter of fact, sometimes when he eats I think he's going to keep eating and eating. He really chows down at times. He's been laying down at the water bowl and drinks and drinks like he can't get enough. He's an inside/outside cat and prior to this illness he had loved spending most of his time, day or night, outside. Now though, he's been staying in on our back porch at night lying on his screen bed that I just made him.
The reason we are taking care of Garfield is because our son's landlord doesn't allow renters to have pets. I know our son will say that he doesn't have the money to take him to the vet, and we're still paying on the vet bills from our sick cats (one had cancer, one had something called pyothorax (I had never heard of it before that), and one had what the vet clinic had said was a bowel obstruction (turned out it wasn't that when we took him to the emergency clinic). So thousands of dollars later after having three sick cats and us being in lots of credit card debt, hubby isn't going to jump at the chance to take Garfield to the vet. I don't have money (can't work because of a problem but don't collect disability), so I'm not really sure what to do.
When I noticed Garfield continuing to lose weight, I mentioned it to my husband and wasn't receptive to the idea of taking him to the vet, so I was pretty much resigned to the fact that we were just going to let him eventually die, which isn't easy for me to do because I'm attached to the kitty. I'm really torn. I don't want to see him suffer. I don't know if we should just put him to sleep or what the heck I should do. I feel like crying most of the time lately because of this.
Can I just go into the vet clinic and tell them what I think it is so they don't have to test for everything under the sun and run up the bill? How expensive would the bill be? If he does have diabetes, can I assume that I'd then have to give him insulin shots for the rest of his life? The thought doesn't appeal to me, but if I can save him, I'd be willing to do that. Or maybe I'd take him to the vet, start treating him and somehow end up killing him myself from some mistake or whatever, like if he'd end up going into a diabetic coma (if that's possible like with people). Is the insulin expensive? How do you give it to a cat? How often do you think I'd have to be running Garfield to the vet after that? I love him to pieces, but I also have to keep peace in the family. If I'd put it on the Care Credit Card that we had applied for when our one cat supposedly had the bowel obstruction, my husband would have a cow. I really don't want to get into a fight over this, but I'd like to know how in the heck I can just ignore this and pretend it will go away. I can't! It's been nagging at me more and more with each passing day. I'm not sure if my son would want to get into more credit card debt either, just like we don't want to. We had to file bankruptcy one time years ago, and I don't want to be in that position again. This is our "golden years". Maybe to some people it is, but not for us in the way that it's meant.
I probably sound like a bad person and maybe you wonder why we have any cats if we can't afford vet bills. Well, I've had depression for years and having a cat makes me feel better. Of course, when they pass on, I am pretty devastated, so then I end up getting a cat several months after that happens. Over the years we've lost 6 cats and it's always very difficult going through that. You know they're sick and you keep hoping they can pull through and they don't. That's another reason why hubby doesn't want to spend money on Garfield, because our track record isn't so good with having sick cats being treated by the vet and actually end up living. Every time but one time they died. They were 8, 6, 4, almost 15, and 11 (the ones that died). So at age 13, Garfield is up there is age and I don't know if he'd live much longer anyway, but still there's that nagging feeling that what if I could save him....ugh, my stomach is twisted in knots over this. Please help me with advice. I feel like a basket case, honestly.
The reason we are taking care of Garfield is because our son's landlord doesn't allow renters to have pets. I know our son will say that he doesn't have the money to take him to the vet, and we're still paying on the vet bills from our sick cats (one had cancer, one had something called pyothorax (I had never heard of it before that), and one had what the vet clinic had said was a bowel obstruction (turned out it wasn't that when we took him to the emergency clinic). So thousands of dollars later after having three sick cats and us being in lots of credit card debt, hubby isn't going to jump at the chance to take Garfield to the vet. I don't have money (can't work because of a problem but don't collect disability), so I'm not really sure what to do.
When I noticed Garfield continuing to lose weight, I mentioned it to my husband and wasn't receptive to the idea of taking him to the vet, so I was pretty much resigned to the fact that we were just going to let him eventually die, which isn't easy for me to do because I'm attached to the kitty. I'm really torn. I don't want to see him suffer. I don't know if we should just put him to sleep or what the heck I should do. I feel like crying most of the time lately because of this.
Can I just go into the vet clinic and tell them what I think it is so they don't have to test for everything under the sun and run up the bill? How expensive would the bill be? If he does have diabetes, can I assume that I'd then have to give him insulin shots for the rest of his life? The thought doesn't appeal to me, but if I can save him, I'd be willing to do that. Or maybe I'd take him to the vet, start treating him and somehow end up killing him myself from some mistake or whatever, like if he'd end up going into a diabetic coma (if that's possible like with people). Is the insulin expensive? How do you give it to a cat? How often do you think I'd have to be running Garfield to the vet after that? I love him to pieces, but I also have to keep peace in the family. If I'd put it on the Care Credit Card that we had applied for when our one cat supposedly had the bowel obstruction, my husband would have a cow. I really don't want to get into a fight over this, but I'd like to know how in the heck I can just ignore this and pretend it will go away. I can't! It's been nagging at me more and more with each passing day. I'm not sure if my son would want to get into more credit card debt either, just like we don't want to. We had to file bankruptcy one time years ago, and I don't want to be in that position again. This is our "golden years". Maybe to some people it is, but not for us in the way that it's meant.
I probably sound like a bad person and maybe you wonder why we have any cats if we can't afford vet bills. Well, I've had depression for years and having a cat makes me feel better. Of course, when they pass on, I am pretty devastated, so then I end up getting a cat several months after that happens. Over the years we've lost 6 cats and it's always very difficult going through that. You know they're sick and you keep hoping they can pull through and they don't. That's another reason why hubby doesn't want to spend money on Garfield, because our track record isn't so good with having sick cats being treated by the vet and actually end up living. Every time but one time they died. They were 8, 6, 4, almost 15, and 11 (the ones that died). So at age 13, Garfield is up there is age and I don't know if he'd live much longer anyway, but still there's that nagging feeling that what if I could save him....ugh, my stomach is twisted in knots over this. Please help me with advice. I feel like a basket case, honestly.