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realsorienI am writing most of this on the morning of Wednesday, December 12, 2018. The reason I’m writing it now, is because I don’t know that I’ll be able to write coherently after Thursday. What this is for, is to let all of you know what’s going on. Some of you, Dave and Lou in particular, already know. Lady will be going to the vet for the final time at 11 AM on Thursday the 13th.
I’m not handling this as well as I’d hoped. I’m not as shattered as I was when Luna passed, but that was a different situation and a different time. I was, to some extent, prepared for Lady to pass, as she was 8 years old when I got her. I thought I’d be able to handle it better than I am.
She will be cremated, and her remains returned to me, as were Luna’s. I’ve had her for ten wonderful years, and I am going to miss her terribly. I still have Spaz, thank God, but they are each their own kind of miracle.
Mom and Dad will be helping me- they’ll pick us up, drive us to the vet, and take me home after; I won’t be in any condition to drive, if the last few days are any indication. More than once I’ve broken down; it’s the worst whenever I try to talk about it, or think about it in too much detail. I don’t know what state I’ll be in over the next few days, but please bear with me.
--<>--
On May 24th of 2008, we (Me, Dave, Mike, Anna and Lou) went to the Golden Valley Humane Society. The plan was to look at cats; I’d lost Luna that March. Perhaps it was too soon, because it was still very raw. Mike and Dave had offered to cover the expenses for me. When we got there, a lump formed in my throat and never left the entire time we were there. I nearly broke down several times as well. I’d gotten Luna there, way back in 1992.
We went in and started looking. There were a lot of animals there, and I knew I wanted to get two; cats do better when not alone, or so I’ve been told. I saw a little black kitten, all by himself in a tank-like enclosure; I wasn’t planning on getting a male cat, as they tend to have more health problems than females and also tend to not live as long. However, he locked eyes with me and ‘meewed’ at me, and it was all over. That was Spaz, originally named Raz. He was ten weeks old then, and just getting over kennel cough.
So, as I’d found one, the search for the second began. I decided that the communal rooms were the best bet, as that was where the socialized cats were placed. There were a lot, as well as a lot of people looking for pets of their own. However, I noticed something. There was one cat that hid. She’d be revealed, then immediately dig herself back beneath the blankets they had in the room. I asked about her, and was told she’d been there for some time, and that she’d been surrendered by a couple; the cat had been their daughter’s, and they couldn’t be bothered to take care of the cat while she was off at college. That was Lady, then named Mittens. She was eight years old, and close to the deadline for adoption; GVHS wasn’t ‘no kill’ back then.
So, I chose her. It took a long time for her to adjust, but eventually she settled in. She handled two moves after that, when I sold my house, and when I moved from my New Brighton apartment to Dave’s place in Columbia Heights. She’s been a blessing on my life, and I dearly hope I’ve been such to her.
Now, however, she’s eighteen and a half years old. She has high blood pressure, stage 2 kidney failure and hyperthyroidism. She stopped eating on the weekend, and I know, and I believe she knows, it’s the end. So, when I took Spaz in to the vet for his post-op checkup (he had some teeth pulled), I made the decision. Her future if I try to prolong her life is going to be more and more drugs, probably daily saline injections and similar discomfort, and it won’t ever get better. It’s time. I don’t want it to be, I don’t want to lose her, but I can’t keep doing this to her, either.
All I can hope is that she’ll forgive me.
Lady Heinsohn
Born sometime in 2000, Died December 13, 2018 at 11:15 AM.
I’m not handling this as well as I’d hoped. I’m not as shattered as I was when Luna passed, but that was a different situation and a different time. I was, to some extent, prepared for Lady to pass, as she was 8 years old when I got her. I thought I’d be able to handle it better than I am.
She will be cremated, and her remains returned to me, as were Luna’s. I’ve had her for ten wonderful years, and I am going to miss her terribly. I still have Spaz, thank God, but they are each their own kind of miracle.
Mom and Dad will be helping me- they’ll pick us up, drive us to the vet, and take me home after; I won’t be in any condition to drive, if the last few days are any indication. More than once I’ve broken down; it’s the worst whenever I try to talk about it, or think about it in too much detail. I don’t know what state I’ll be in over the next few days, but please bear with me.
--<>--
On May 24th of 2008, we (Me, Dave, Mike, Anna and Lou) went to the Golden Valley Humane Society. The plan was to look at cats; I’d lost Luna that March. Perhaps it was too soon, because it was still very raw. Mike and Dave had offered to cover the expenses for me. When we got there, a lump formed in my throat and never left the entire time we were there. I nearly broke down several times as well. I’d gotten Luna there, way back in 1992.
We went in and started looking. There were a lot of animals there, and I knew I wanted to get two; cats do better when not alone, or so I’ve been told. I saw a little black kitten, all by himself in a tank-like enclosure; I wasn’t planning on getting a male cat, as they tend to have more health problems than females and also tend to not live as long. However, he locked eyes with me and ‘meewed’ at me, and it was all over. That was Spaz, originally named Raz. He was ten weeks old then, and just getting over kennel cough.
So, as I’d found one, the search for the second began. I decided that the communal rooms were the best bet, as that was where the socialized cats were placed. There were a lot, as well as a lot of people looking for pets of their own. However, I noticed something. There was one cat that hid. She’d be revealed, then immediately dig herself back beneath the blankets they had in the room. I asked about her, and was told she’d been there for some time, and that she’d been surrendered by a couple; the cat had been their daughter’s, and they couldn’t be bothered to take care of the cat while she was off at college. That was Lady, then named Mittens. She was eight years old, and close to the deadline for adoption; GVHS wasn’t ‘no kill’ back then.
So, I chose her. It took a long time for her to adjust, but eventually she settled in. She handled two moves after that, when I sold my house, and when I moved from my New Brighton apartment to Dave’s place in Columbia Heights. She’s been a blessing on my life, and I dearly hope I’ve been such to her.
Now, however, she’s eighteen and a half years old. She has high blood pressure, stage 2 kidney failure and hyperthyroidism. She stopped eating on the weekend, and I know, and I believe she knows, it’s the end. So, when I took Spaz in to the vet for his post-op checkup (he had some teeth pulled), I made the decision. Her future if I try to prolong her life is going to be more and more drugs, probably daily saline injections and similar discomfort, and it won’t ever get better. It’s time. I don’t want it to be, I don’t want to lose her, but I can’t keep doing this to her, either.
All I can hope is that she’ll forgive me.
Lady Heinsohn
Born sometime in 2000, Died December 13, 2018 at 11:15 AM.
