My cats mean a lot to me. I have a relationship with each of them. Like humans, the relationship is different from cat to cat because their personalities are not the same.
I invest a lot of time, money and love into these precious felines. They invest a lot of trust. They depend on me for safety and security. They depend on plenty of food and water, clean cat boxes, lots of toys and veterinarian care when needed. They have a right to their most basic needs being met. And one of them is the most difficult.
Throughout my life I've always had at least one cat. When I was a child my Mom would make the decision to put down one of our dogs or cats. She didn't let us go with her - I'm very grateful.
I grieved the losses of my animals who were hit by a car or died a natural death. We buried our animals in our back yard, including my goldfish. It was normal to grieve and say good-bye.
As I grew up I became the Mom of my pets. I rescued outdoor cats who eventually were hit by a car. I learned it's very hard to change an outdoor cat to an indoor cat. I grieved for them as I picked them up off the road near my house.
I had one cat who passed away peacefully on my bed. I was with her until she breathed her last breath. I held her and cried for a long time. She was a rescue and lived to be eighteen and a half years old.
Thus far, I'd never had to take a cat to be put to sleep. Not until six months ago. Patches was losing a lot of weight and beginning to walk awkwardly. She was still eating but I knew she was in pain.
The night before I took her in, I treated her to a taco supreme from Taco Bell. She loved it! I took some pictures and some video. I set out the cat carrier. All of the cats knew something was up.
The next morning I drove to the vet which was about thirty minutes away. I was doing okay until I parked in the parking lot. Then the tears flooded from my eyes.
I went in with Patches, signed the paperwork, sat with her then was led to a very comfortable room to wait for the Vet. He and his assistant came in and explained what was going to happen. The injection would work very quickly and she wouldn't feel anymore pain.
He waited until I was ready. I held Patches on my lap and as she began to pass away, I put my lips on her little head and told her she was going to be okay now.
The assistant told me that she could tell Patches was ready to go because she didn't fight the injection. It was apparent that she was in pain and I'd made the right decision.
As a Christian, I want to believe that everything God creates returns to Him. However, since this is one of those topics that is not clearly defined in the Bible, I live by this truth: I may not know where my animals go when they die but I know that God knows where they are and that's good enough for me.
