Jennifer Law

how are you jennifer, hope you are ok!! carole x

It is with much sadness that I have to tell you that my beloved cat Boris died last Friday 7th November.

On the 10th October he had a fight with another cat, defending his territory and although he was battered and bruised he seemed fine but we were unaware untill four days later when the left hand side of his face swelled up and we rushed him to the vets, that he had been bitten and he now had an abscess.

The vet treated the wound and he was given antibiotics and pain relief and we took him daily for a week to be treated. During that time we had to rush him to a night time emergency vet because he was panting and having trouble breathing. He was put in an oxyegen tent and treated and we were told he might not pull through as he was in a bad way. But he did and the next morning when we went to collect him as soon as he heard us he called to us. They had taken an x-ray during the night and it showed that he had fluid around his lungs and in his stomach.

He continued his treatment at our vets and he picked up and we all thought he was over the worst although we knew it would take a while for him to be in peak form.

On halloween night when we had a family fancy dress party he was pinching cocktail sausages off the coffee table, something he had never done before but he enjoyed them.

On the 5th November we were woken at 2.30 in the morning by the sound of him panting and he was in distress so we rushed him to the emergency vet where once again they put him in the oxyegen tent and we collected him at 8.30 to take to our own vets who kept him in until 6 that evening and once again he had picked up and we were told he was doing fine. During that time our vet did a blood test ( he had not wanted to put him through the stress of it before hand as he had been so ill).

That night again he was bad and again we took him to the vets where they kept him in. They phoned me late morning to tell me the blood test results were back and they were not good. All his organs were failing due to the sceptisimia, and his heart and kidneys were in a very bad way. He had been given diaretics all through his illness and although they were helping his heart they were damaging his kidneys.

We knew then that we had to make that awful decision, which was the right one for him.

We arranged for our vet to come to our house between 4 and 5 the next day.

I spent the night on the settee with him and he was dying. I prayed he would go in his sleep but he did´nt and the next morning when he was drinking like a fish because both his kidneys were failing and he looked so awful we phoned out vet and said he could not wait until later that day, he was suffering and we did not want that.

We took him to our vet at 10.30am when no one else was there and Boris was put to sleep.
Our vet and the nurses showed such compassion to both Boris and us, but it was so hard saying goodbye to my baby.

He was such a character and I am sure in time I will be able to share some of the wonderful things he did, the joy of his being enriched our lives so very, very much.

My husband and I are both heart broken, the house is so empty, he had such a big presence and was loved by all who knew him.

The guilt I feel in not knowing he had been bitten is so intense, although we were told that a cat bite is only the size of a cats tooth and it closes up within hours, the damage is then already done and the germs then cause the abscess.

I would just like to give all cat owners one bit of advice. If your cat is a fighter, like Boris ,and they have a bad fight go to the vets straight away and get antibiotics into them. I know you cannot take them to the vets everytime thay fight but I wish I had straight away on this occassion as he would still be here with us.

I know Boris was an old boy, most probably older that we thought, but we will never know because he was a rescued cat.

We got him on the 7th November 1999 and he died on the 7th november 2008.

Rest in peace my beloved BossieXXXXXXXXXX

Hi there,

Thank you so much for your message about your cat. Thomas seems ok generally at the moment and i am hoping that it's a good sign that he will be around for quite a while yet but when you get news like that and you don't quite understand it you think the worst :o(
Your story has definately made me feel much better and more confident. I am off to see the vet today as I wasn't happy with the info I was given on diagnosis, which was virtually nothing really so will get more info on his bloods and see just what stage we have caught this.

Thanks again
Hayley x

Hi Jennifer, Daisy is at the vets right now having the op to take her teeth out. What you said about Boris has really helped...thanks. I'm hoping I will get good news later today and she will get her life back like Boris has. The vet has said she may need to stay in overnight. She may also need to have some teeth out today and the others in a months time depending how she copes during the op. Did Boris have all teeth out in one op?

Hi Jennifer,
Hope that you are well. Happy Easter!!

Hey thanks for your comment i love the picture of your cat under the umbarella its soo cutexx luv star n meg

Hi Jennifer,
Thanks for your message. Really glad that Boris is enjoying life again and he is eating well. That is great news, hope you have lots more fun together. xx

Hi Jennifer - Welcome to PetStreet. I hope you find the site entertaining and useful. Please feel free to upload photos of you and Boris.