My Cat Has Cancer

[Dratj 0]

Hey Sandwedge, Sorry to hear that. I'd probably tell the truth but say it in a kiddie way. Talk about cat heaven and how nice it is. Maybe offer to get her a new cat if you want. Regards,Alex

[sandwedge 30]

You named your cat Spitzie?I honestly can't believe this, but I had a cat with the same exact name (well, his name was Spitz, but everyone commoned it down to Spitzie). Never heard of another animal with that name before now.Ok, I feel like a total fag now for even bringing this up or commenting, but I couldn't believe the coincidence.

My cat's name was actually Spitz also (Spitzie just seemed to come naturally). She was named after the Olympic swimmer Mark Spitz. Here's why;I worked at a sumer camp for several years. One day in 1991, a kitten showed up on the other bank of the river at camp. She whined and whined, but nobody went to get her. She eventually jumped in and swam to the camp side of the river. I adopted her and named her Spitz.They had to put her down a little while ago. She had a cancerous lesion attached to her spleen. Now I get to tell my daughter when she comes to visit on Friday (which just happens to be her 3rd birthday). Fun Times.

[sandwedge 30]

Hey Sandwedge, Sorry to hear that. I'd probably tell the truth but say it in a kiddie way. Talk about cat heaven and how nice it is. Maybe offer to get her a new cat if you want. Regards,Alex

Thanks Alex. On a side note, are you going to the wsop this year? You are the first (and I guess only) fcp'er that I've randomly run into at a poker table.

[Dratj 0]

Thanks Alex. On a side note, are you going to the wsop this year? You are the first (and I guess only) fcp'er that I've randomly run into at a poker table.

I don't think I'll be coming this year. I just recently got a house and I have a one year old girl now, so my priorities dictate that I stay home. Poker will have to wait.

[Janfor99 0]

Tell her that the cat got very sick. Emphasize that the cat got very sick and was very old and that sometimes these things happen. Make sure to tell her that when the cat passed away, it was not at all painful for it. Be careful about the "going to sleep and not waking up thing" though because it might make her fearful of going to bed. Good luck. This is tough stuff.

I had a similar problem with my 3 year old daughter. I unexpectedly had my daughter with me when we had to put my cat (Kaos) down. At the time, because it was so unexpected, we told her Kaos was staying with the vet and was still sleeping, figuring we would tell her the truth a bit later. Kaos had been living with my Dad and every phone call after that, the FIRST thing she'd do is ask about the cat. Every time we were going to my Dad's, "will I see Kaos?" was what she'd ask. Finally, we had to tell her. We used the "he got very VERY sick" method (nikki is right there). She cried a bit and got mad but somehow understood the whole thing more than I thought she would. She's named her stuffed kitty Kaos and still talks about him, kids don't forget as quick as you'd think they would, but she handled it fine. I think she already knew.Go with some soft honesty and good luck Sandwedge

[HangukMiguk 8]

This actually happened to me when I was a kid. We took my cat to the vet to have her spayed. We get a call from the vet's assistant later telling me that the vet wants to keep her overnight for observation (which I later learn is not normal for a procedure such as this). The next morning, the assistant calls the house again, won't speak to me and asks for my mother. My mom comes in and tells me that she had died, that the reason they kept her overnight was that they find ovarian tumors, which turned out to be malignant, and they couldn't operate on them.I was pretty damn heartbroken. This was my closest companion at this age, so I really took it hard, especially when we went in to claim the body. The assistant then mentions that she has a litter of kittens of the same breed if I wanted to pick them up after they were weaned in two weeks. I put my foot down at first, not wanting another cat, because I felt nothing could replace the one I lost.In the end, I picked up two of them, realizing it was retarded not to move on. 12 years later, they're still alive, and the light of my life. Unfortunately, among other bullshit my mom is putting me through, I am basically in a battle with her to regain possession of them, but hopefully that will all get straightened out.Anyway, I would prepare for the worst, hope for the best, and just tell the honest to God's truth. It's just one thing that people have to learn about in life, and learning early will make a difference.

[CBass1724 1]

Or you can buy the same exact cat, but spraypaint the tail if you need to!

[speedz99 145]

12 years later, they're still alive, and the light of my life.

:speedz misses his cat face:

[ajs510 122]

My cat's name was actually Spitz also (Spitzie just seemed to come naturally). She was named after the Olympic swimmer Mark Spitz. Here's why;I worked at a sumer camp for several years. One day in 1991, a kitten showed up on the other bank of the river at camp. She whined and whined, but nobody went to get her. She eventually jumped in and swam to the camp side of the river. I adopted her and named her Spitz.They had to put her down a little while ago. She had a cancerous lesion attached to her spleen. Now I get to tell my daughter when she comes to visit on Friday (which just happens to be her 3rd birthday). Fun Times.

Sad, my parents had to put our cat down last year, basically the same deal, a big tumor in his side. We got the name Spitz from the fact that when he was a kitten, everytime the dog would come anywhere near him he would hiss and spit at him. Dances With Wolves was a popular movie when we got him (he was an old cat when he died), so I came up with the name Spits On Dog just as a joke, and my mother loved it. So Spitz it was. Sorry for your loss, it's tough stuff. All my animals are pretty young right now (our oldest dog is 4) so hopefully I won't have to be going through that again anytime soon. I had to have my dog put down a couple of years ago, one of the absolute worst days of my life.

[the knob 0]

Anyway, my real problem is how it will affect my 3 year old daughter. I'm divorced, and only see my daughter every other weekend. My daughter loves the cat. When we talk on the phone, the first thing she asks is to talk to "Spitzie". I feel comfortable in talking with my daughter about the death, but I'm not sure if she should see the dead cat and/or help with a burial. I definitely don't want her to come to visit and the cat just be gone.Any suggestions?

We had to put our last cat down due to her cancer coming back and spreading after a previous lump had been removed. Our five year-old knew that she was very sick before and had gotten better over time, but was getting sick again. We had him say bye to her "in case the vet can't make her better" the morning I took her in. The vet did not recommend showing the dead cat to our son just to show him "look, she's dead!"

[sandwedge 30]

Thought I'd share with everyone how things went in telling my daughter about the cat...I picked my daughter up on Friday (her 3rd birthday). We had a long (9 hour) drive to Grondmommie and PawPaw's house, so I waited until Saturday to break the news. On Saturay, I sat my daughter down and basically just told her the truth, that Spitzie was very old and had died. I explained that dying meant that Spitzie doesn't breathe, eat, meow, or move around any more. I also told her that when an animal dies, we usually bury it in the ground and asked her if she wanted to watch that. She said yes, so we had a nice little funeral where we wrapped the cat in one of my t-shirts, petted her one last time, gave her her favorite toy, and buried her.My daughter never showed a lot of emotion. She did ask several times, "Why'd Spitzie do that?", to which I always replied, "Well, she didn't really want to die, but when animals get old, that's what happens". I also added, "Spitzie loved you very, very much". Sophie (my daughter), also said several times, "Spitzie will be ok", to which I replied "yes, she's ok, but she's dead now".Sophie wanted to "see" Spitzie several times over the weekend, so we would just walk to the grave and hang out for a while. I realize that a 3 year old will show grief in different ways, but I think it hasn't been too upsetting for her.My big concern was for tonight, when we arrived back at my apartment. This, obviously, is where Spitzie lived and where Sophie associated her with. When we walked in the door, I was expecting just about anything, and was bracing myself for Sophie to start calling for Spitzie. As we walked in, Sophie matter-of-factly stated, "Spitzie's not here anymore. She died", and then proceeded to ask to play video games. A little later, we looked at some pictures of Spitzie and another cat I once had, and basically had a good time.Side note: Then we watched videos on you-tube of people falling off trampolines, which Sophie found hysterical.Finally, as we were getting ready for bed, the subject of Spitzie was brought up again. I asked Sophie if she missed her, to which she replied, "yes". Then I asked if she was sad, and the answer was "no". Trust me, if Sophie were sad, she'd let me know.I really feel that this all went about as well as it could and I think it may pay dividends down the road when another pet or family member passes away.Thanks to all of you with well wishes and words of advice. Thanks also to those with joke replies, as I always appreciate the humor.Lock 'er up!

[qyayqi 11]

[fighter 4]

Unfortunately, among other bullshit my mom is putting me through, I am basically in a battle with her to regain possession of them, but hopefully that will all get straightened out.

Sounds like something for the 50 family memeber party thread.

Side note: Then we watched videos on you-tube of people falling off trampolines, which Sophie found hysterical.

Best bit of advice in this thread. Physical comedy trumps sadness everytime.

[dreamcaster 0]

"yes, she's ok, but she's dead now".Sorry but I found that funny...very funny...falling off tamps kind of funny.I can picture my future "the cat died" conversation with my kids..."Yes Meeko is dead. You guys squeezed him too hard."

[eYank 0]

Find a new cat that looks exactly like the old one, like on meet the parents

When my cousin was very young he was obsessed with one of those goldfish u get @ like a birthday party or w/e and he was @ school one day and my aunt realised it died and she didnt know wat to do so she went out to the pet store and bought the only type of goldfish they had. Well the new goldfish she bought had little fin thingys (idk wat theyre called) and when he came home from school he looked @ the fish and was like "Look mom (fishes name) grew fins this is so cool." My aunt played along acting surprised and Im not sure if my cousin ever knew the difference

[fighter 4]

"Yes Meeko is dead. You guys squeezed him too hard."

Almost as funny as the sandwich.

When my cousin was very young he was obsessed with one of those goldfish u get @ like a birthday party or w/e and he was @ school one day and my aunt realised it died and she didnt know wat to do so she went out to the pet store and bought the only type of goldfish they had. Well the new goldfish she bought had little fin thingys (idk wat theyre called) and when he came home from school he looked @ the fish and was like "Look mom (fishes name) grew fins this is so cool." My aunt played along acting surprised and Im not sure if my cousin ever knew the difference

Fish are the best animals. I had a pet gold fish in the family for 24 years.......average life span is 6-8years so technically 3-4 fish but they were all named george.

[hblask 1]

If I had a sick cat, I'd fantasize about doing it this way:Wait until one of the kids misbehaves. Then say "just for that, we have to kill the cat!". Pack the kids and the cat in the car, go to the vet, and get the cat euthanized. Then tell the kids "you still have two more pets, you'd better behave yourself." They will behave for a very long time, at least until they are old enough to pay their own therapy bills.Seriously, sorry to hear about your cat. I know they are family members.

[NicksDad1970 0]

My 16 year old cat has a mass in her abdomen. The vet is going to do surgery tommorow, but things don't look very good and they'll probably "put her down". It's sad, but she's lived a pretty good life. I rescued her when she was abandoned as a kitten.Anyway, my real problem is how it will affect my 3 year old daughter. I'm divorced, and only see my daughter every other weekend. My daughter loves the cat. When we talk on the phone, the first thing she asks is to talk to "Spitzie". I feel comfortable in talking with my daughter about the death, but I'm not sure if she should see the dead cat and/or help with a burial. I definitely don't want her to come to visit and the cat just be gone.Any suggestions?

I'm all for honesty but in this case I'd tell her that the catran away.My wife and I had to put the family cat down last year due to cancer and we told the kids the truth. Our kids are 10,8,6, and 15 months. The 10 and 8 year old were a little sad but I think they understood. The 6 year old doesn't give a crap about anything really, kind of odd.

[speedz99 145]

Finally, as we were getting ready for bed, the subject of Spitzie was brought up again. I asked Sophie if she missed her, to which she replied, "yes". Then I asked if she was sad, and the answer was "no". Trust me, if Sophie were sad, she'd let me know.

Heartless bitch.

[fighter 4]

Heartless bitch.

Bit harsh........i laughed though.

[timwakefield 68]

The 6 year old doesn't give a crap about anything really, kind of odd.

Don't you hate it when 6 year olds are cooler than you?