Something very sad...(long)

Oh Kris! What a sad and tragic story. :( It's horrible when we lose a beloved pet. Please don't blame yourself for what happened. Often, these things are completely out of our control. You did everything you could do for Reena, and no one can expect any more than that. You and your BF sound like wonderful people who treat your pets the way they deserve to be treated - like members of the family. :) I'm so very sorry for your loss. ((((hugs))))
 
{{{Kris}}}
I'm so sorry to hear of your loss.

(As for the insulin, I had a diabetic cat--5 years dealing with it--and I always used the insulin to the end. The vet never told me otherwise, and I aways rolled the bottle before use to make sure the insulin was evenly distributed. It never caused any problems with Scooter. It may not have caused the problem in your case, either.).
 
Kris-
I am so sorry.
Please know that this was not anyone's fault. Bless you and your boyfriend.

[font color=red][font size=+2]Judy "Likes2bfit"[/font]
 
Kris,
So sorry for bf and your loss:( {{{{HUGS}}}}} to both of you. Your post brought tears to my eyes.
It brought back memories of this past April when I had to have my Doberman Ruby put to sleep.
It's so hard to let go.
Take comfort in knowing what a wonderful, wonderful life Reena had w/bf and you.
Hang in there
Chrissy
 
Thanks, Amy, for the hugs and for sharing your story. That really helped. Diabetes is a scary disease, and you're absolutely right, sometimes things make sense with it and sometimes they don't.

One thing the vet told us is that diabetes can be different with cats. Apparently cats can stop being diabetic altogether, or they can worsen. Whereas humans, from what she told us -- once you have it, you always have it. You can treat it/control it as best as you can, but it's always there. That was her way of saying basically what you said: it's hard enough with humans, but with animals, it's even more difficult.

So, again, I appreciate your post very much. It helped put things in perspective for me and made me feel a bit better. :)

Kris
 
Hi Melissa,

Thanks so much for you thoughtful post. And I'm so sorry for your loss as well. It is hard caring for a diabetic kitty for all the reasons you mentioned -- the shots, the worrying, but, as you also implied, it's so worth it. So many people in this world, sadly, wouldn't think twice of getting rid of the animal once it's diagnosed with the disease -- for a variety of reasons: the extra expense of it, the commitment, etc. I find that so very sad.

You're one of the good guys, most definitely, and I'm sure Tigger realized just how lucky a kitty he was to have you as his very own human. :)

Thanks again, Melissa, for sharing your experience and to everyone else who's taken the time to post. I appreciate each and every one of them.

Kris
 
Wow, Laura! What a harrowing story! You were a hero! I understand how scary that must have been -- I was the one driving to the hospital Saturday night/Sunday morning and I drove through all the red lights. Didn't care. Figured if a police officer pulled me over, I had one of the best reasons ever to be defying all traffic laws. And, who knows? Maybe he would have offered to escort us. (Though traffic wasn't much of an issue at that time of night).

I'm so sorry to hear about the loss of one of your sweet kitties. My heart goes out to you and your husband. (By the way, that's so wonderful your husband wrote a song about her -- clearly a much, much loved kitty).

I was thinking about what you said not so long ago -- about how, when we first bring an animal into our lives, it's with the knowledge that, more likely than not, we're going to have to say good-bye to them. So, during the short time we do have with them, we make the most of it and show them, without any doubt whatsoever, how much they're loved and appreciated.

I know Reena knew how loved she was. I know your kitty knew how loved she was too. They can't help but know. And that helps with the loss.

Again, I really appreciate you taking the time to share your story and to let me know I'm not alone in going through this. You're clearly a very sweet and wonderful human being.

Thanks again, Laura.

Kris
 
Hi Kathryn,

Thanks for the kind post.

Regarding the insulin -- I wasn't aware of this myself until this last weekend (Jeff was, but not me). Maybe it's only advised here and there. Not sure. I was aware to always roll the bottle very gently a few times before giving the shot, but during the times I'd given her her shot, I'd always used the bottle to the end as well.

There may well have been another cause or several different causes working together which led to this happening. Sadly, if there were, they were all little things that had come up here and there in the past and never caused a problem with her...but maybe this time there were too many little things all at once....

Thanks again for your insight. And kudos to you for taking care of a diabetic kitty for so long. Sounds like Scooter was one lucky cat. :)

Kris
 
I just want to thank everyone once again who's taken the time to read my post and an extra thanks for everyone who's responded as well. Every one of you has had something helpful or comforting to say and has made me feel a bit better about the whole thing.

And for each of you who has gone through something similar, my heart goes out to you.

You are all such wonderful, thoughtful individuals.

Thanks again,

Kris
 
The rolling thing is if you're using cloudy insulin... which I imagine you do. Slower release. Fast-acting will be clear, so the cloudy part is part of what slows the release. You can use it all the way to the end so long as you're careful of air bubbles and so long as the distribution of the cloudy portion is "even".
 
>The rolling thing is if you're using cloudy insulin... which
>I imagine you do. Slower release. Fast-acting will be clear,
>so the cloudy part is part of what slows the release. You can
>use it all the way to the end so long as you're careful of air
>bubbles and so long as the distribution of the cloudy portion
>is "even".

Hi Amy,

You just said pretty much what her regular vet said when she found out about it. She said the insulin Reena was on was the slow release kind (very cloudy). (Which hopefully means she wasn't in that state as long as we thought -- though still too long).

Anyway, thanks for helping to clarify that.

Kris
 
Kris,

I'm so sorry for your's and Jeff's loss. Having lost Sunshine last month and Picante in December I can imagine what you are feeling. All the what if's that go through your head. Try just to keep her memories with you instead of dealing on the what if's. Hugs to you.

Jean
 

Our Newsletter

Get awesome content delivered straight to your inbox.

Top