18 Year Old Cat Went Missing Last Night

My cat ‘did’ have a wonderful long life. She spent most of her time outside in her younger years. She was a very good hunter and had incredible survival skills.

Instinctively I know she left to die but my rational mind doesn’t quite understand the concept. When I look it up, they all say that they leave because they are vulnerable to predators. Wouldn’t staying in the house make them safer from predictors?

Last night I hardly slept again, knowing my cat was in the most vulnerable state outside with predators. There are all kinds of coyotes, fox, bobcats and possibly the odd wolf that would easily smell her out and attack her.

I’m not sure why my mind has to latch onto the most horrible outcome but it does. Most links say they leave to conserve energy so they can die peacefully.

Quote “Cats are drawing from their evolutionary past in going away to be alone to die, as in the wild there might be larger predators they need to hide way from.”

“In the wild there ‘might’ be larger predators they need to hide away from”

Not being a cat, I don’t understand the above sentence and never will.

In reading this article, many of the people who wrote in mentioned that their cat left on a stormy day/night. Do they choose this moment since it’s the loudest and perhaps safest time for them?

My husband keeps saying that it’s how she wanted to go. She left and came wobbling back to us to say her last goodbyes and spend some quality time with us.

I shall treasure that. All comments thanked the author for writing the article so they could better understand this dying process.

One person criticized us all shaming us with not knowing it was their time to go. We ‘did’ know but this was a long weekend and everything was closed and maybe my husband is right, it’s how she wanted to go.

Why Do Cats Run Away From Home To Die? - Senior Cat Wellness
 

PeppermintPatty said:
She’s not. 😥 If this wasn’t a holiday here in Canada, we would have had her euthanized. It was clearly her time to go and we messed up. ☹️
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So sorry to hear that.

The downside to furbabies is their lives are shorter than ours. i've had some die relatively peacefully at home and had to have some euthanized. i insist on being with them for it. Vets usually are glad for people do that. It never gets easier. But i've always felt they gave so much more joy and love that it was worth it to have to mourn them.
 
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Pepper said:
(((Patty))) (((Patty))) (((Patty)))
First time I saw this, first thing I saw this morning. I am so very sorry.
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thank you Pepper. ♥️
hearlady said:
I'm so sorry @PeppermintPatty ! You gave her a good life. 🌷
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Thank you hearlady. We definitely gave her a great life. She enjoyed her life so much that we weren’t sure when to have her euthanized.
She’d have some rough spots then spring back to life. I feel her spirit with me today so know she’s definitely passed. I shall miss that cat so very much.
 
So sorry, Patty. I just now saw this thread and everything you said touched home with me. My cat who died several years ago was also second to the dog for me, not a snuggler, and died inside her box in the garage after two years of daily insulin shots for his diabetes.Mickey made me, who thought of herself as a "dog person," love him so much. I still miss him.

I think animals, both dogs and cats, sometimes have an instinct to "go away from the pack" when they know death is near. My first dachshund, who was always glued to me, once came near to death with a bad case of pancreatitis and I just caught her in time heading slowly into the corn field where I would never have found her again.

I wouldn't worry about predators, either, they don't really prefer fellow carnivores. I expect she found a snug place somewhere to lie down and go into her final sleep.
 
feywon said:
So sorry to hear that.

The downside to furbabies is their lives are shorter than ours. i've had some die relatively peacefully at home and had to have some euthanized. i insist on being with them for it. Vets usually are glad for people do that.) It never gets easier. But i've always felt they gave so much more joy and love that it was worth it to have to mourn them.
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That definitely IS the downsize to having pets. We outlive them by a long shot and it’s so incredibly painful when they leave us.

This cat didn’t show clear signs of dying until this last long weekend. She was losing weight and not eating as much but she was still going out walking around often, playing, pulling herself up to sit with us when she wanted to snuggle. She was still using her kitty litter.

The night before she died she was well enough to pull herself up to sit on my lap for hours while I ate ice cream and watched TV. A few times I couldn’t tell if she was still breathing. Even that slowed down a lot. She slept soundly that night and the next morning wanted to go out before I even got out of bed. I got up late that morning since I was up for most of the night.

When I got up she started crying louder to go out and just wouldn’t stop. I thought she had dementia but she seemed to have planned all of this exactly how she wanted it.

In my mind her life is similar to the guy who has had a fabulous life, gone out to play golf, come home for a fine meal, watch a movie and die in his sleep.

Even if the vet was open on the long weekend, the 1 1/2 hour drive in the car with her being in her big cat crate would have stressed her out needlessly. Then to bring her in to the vets would have been a nightmare. Like myself, she wasn’t too fond of people. Anytime we had visitors she’d leave until they were gone.

It feels odd to say this but I envy her life.
She had a great life and knew exactly when she was going to end it and pulled it off perfectly without a hitch. When my husband saw her go under the shed the second time he called out to her and she darted under there so fast. She most certainly did NOT want to be brought back into the house. I think she didn’t want me seeing her dying.
It’s a strong gut feeling.

This is the longest I’ve ever had one pet and since my last two jobs I got to work from home, I saw her often. I can’t believe she’s gone but she had a great life right up to the very end and she got to choose her final exit.

I firmly believe the cat knew exactly what she was doing and pulled it off with flying colours.

An extraordinary cat. She will stay in my heart forever. Someday we shall play in the fields together. 💕🐈‍⬛💕
 
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PeppermintPatty said:
It feels odd to say this but I envy her life.
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It does sound like she had a great life, long and healthy with love and food and cat type fun (exploring lurking outdoors etc).

I hate the not knowing the end when pets disappear, my old childhood dog did that, and even though everyone said she went off to hide to die somewhere (she was really old, an outdoor dog, and no predators around), it leaves a bit of worry and question behind.
 
HoneyNut said:
It does sound like she had a great life, long and healthy with love and food and cat type fun (exploring lurking outdoors etc).

I hate the not knowing the end when pets disappear, my old childhood dog did that, and even though everyone said she went off to hide to die somewhere (she was really old, an outdoor dog, and no predators around), it leaves a bit of worry and question behind.
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That happened with one Bloodhound we had when i was very small. He was going senile and growled at one of my sisters when she kind of invaded his cool resting spot under the house. Dad got worried and we all agreed years later he didn't want my sister to feel guilty but also wouldn't risk one of us triggering the dog. He likely walked her way out in the woods and put her down, telling us she likely chased a skunk (only thing she could smell anymore it seemed) and got totally lost.

Sometimes we need to see a lifeless body to be able to 'let go', to accept the loved being (human or animal) is gone from this life. Years ago i started letting my other animals view the body of their deceased companion. It cut on down on their confusion and searching for the missing one.

Also seemed to reduce their anxiety about when i take one of the others to the Vet. Except my granddog Zoe--i swear she has an anxiety disorder. Hates it when we take any of the cats to Vet. Some of the cats hate that she goes outside to potty. Even tho on a lead they'll sit at window watching till we let her in, but when we put her in car to go to Vet they don't seem as concerned as she gets about them. Still when we bring her home they make sure she knows they are happy she's back.
 
We have always had a cat, or cats, while the parrot you see at the left has been with us. My favorite cat was Willy, a male Birman who spent half his life asleep in my lap. When Willy heard the bell ring he would come come running to greet the guest. He died in my lap, something I will never forget.
 

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