Sunday, August 20, 2017

Doubly unfair...

On the heels of losing Beatrice, this is extra heartbreaking...


On Friday, I took Millicent the vet because she had suddenly lost a lot of weight. On top of that, the other day, I felt a disturbing lump on the side of her abdomen.


I had a bad feeling as soon as I felt that, but I tried to tell myself it could be hyperthyroidism (like Mootie has) or maybe her dewormer hadn't been effective, or...

but no. Millicent has a huge, aggressive tumour in her abdomen that will take her life, probably in a matter of weeks but you never know.


You can see the mass sticking up from her side (top) in the photo. It came out of nowhere and now fills most of her abdominal cavity. Her x-ray was appalling. As soon as I saw Dr. Dave's face as he palpated the lump, I knew we were f*cked.

So far, she is not experiencing any pain, and she is eating quite well (feeding the tumour, losing her healthy weight.) The most likely progression will be for the tumour to begin to block her digestive tract, so we will be watching her closely for vomiting or any other signs of a blockage, at which point we will have to have her euthanized. For now, she is taking prednisone twice a day, in the hopes that it will stimulate her appetite (which right now is good) and also possibly shrink the tumour a bit. I will take any time it gives us, but it is unlikely to be much. At the same time, she's tolerating the prednisone well and seems her usual self, apart from suddenly being bone-thin.

Millicent is only 3 years old and perhaps the sweetest cat I own. She gets along with all of our other cats and is just so special to us. Here is the bio I wrote about her for our farm website:


This sweetheart of a cat sticks her tongue out and drools when you pet her. Millicent was abandoned at a nearby farm when her elderly owner was sent to a nursing home. Sometime after that, another neighbour noticed a starving cat at the empty property and began feeding her. Over the next three months, this woman (a senior citizen herself) fattened Millicent up nicely, but she couldn't offer her a home, so she asked a mutual friend of ours if Gordon and I would take Millicent as a barn cat. She kindly offered to pay for her spay surgery as well. So now Millicent moved in.

She is very shy but she is also very affectionate, and loves to be cuddled. She has been slowly coming out of her shell, but when humans have left you to starve, it takes a while to trust them again. We couldn't be happier having Millicent with us. She was born sometime in 2015 and that mark on her forehead is a patch of grey, not dirt. We adopted Millicent on September 9, 2016.

I am angry and sad. I wanted Millicent to have a long life with us, just as I wanted foster kitty Beatrice to have a couple of beautiful years in her new home with our friends  Sharron and David. I know this is just how life works, but it sucks. I have some other lovely things to post about (we have eight foster kittens here right now!) and I will, but today I am just hurting for our sweet cat. All we can do now is give her as much love as possible for whatever time she has left to us. And then she will go join Beatrice, and our old fluffy orange guy Julius, and all the other beloved pets on the other side.


Just a beautiful little kitty soul.

20 comments:

  1. Oh Natalie, I am crying as I type this. I am so sorry. Sweet, sweet Millicent. Oh damn! Sending you hugs.
    Robin

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  2. She came to you for a reason - the universe knew her time would be short, but that you would make the very best of it for her and you.

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  3. I am so sorry, and so glad Wanderingcatstudio knew how to express my thought.

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  4. I am so sorry Natalie. There are no other words, this news is truly heart-breaking.

    Eileen

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  5. I'm so sad to hear this...and right after Beatrice.

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  6. 'Aching, aching, a.c.h.i.n.g. for sweet little Millicent and for you & Gordon, Natalie.

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  7. She looks so sweet. I am sorry she is not well.

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  8. That is so sad. I will be praying you have more time with her.

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  9. We are so very sorry. You're right..it isn't fair. Purrs.....

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  10. Ooohh, Natalie I'm so sorry. First Beatrice and now this terrible news about Millicent. Hopefully you will have a lot more time with her than you and the vet think. Sending gentle headbumps, lots of hugs and prayers to you, Gordon and all the critters up north.

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  11. So very sorry to hear this sad news. Sending lots of hugs.

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  12. I was so sorry to read this. I can offer all the platitudes (how lucky she is to have you, etc.) but the bottom line is it sucks. I'm sending you and Millicent lots of love.

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  13. Nooooooo! Sweet girl, just love her as much as you can. It's not fair at all. Sending purrs and hugs! I'm just so sad!

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  14. I'm so sorry to hear this heartbreaking news. Cancer sucks.

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  15. My heart is just breaking for you. I am soooo deeply sorry (((hugs))))) and love catchatwithcarenandcody

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  16. My heart aches for you.
    I don't know why this happens to a beloved.
    I don't know how we get thru it.
    I just know it hurts.
    I know you will continue to offer all your heart to her and all.
    Does not make it SUCK less.
    Sigh.
    Hugs.
    *F Cancer

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  17. So sad when a young kitty gets something like this. It sounds like exactly what Nutty had. Same symptoms.
    Love her as much as you can. Life sucks sometimes. Poor, sweet girl. She knows she's loved. That's the most important thing at this point, I think. You've done so well with her. Makes me sad.

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  18. So sad when they are this young and so unfair! Mine drive me crazy at times, but I love them and would be heartbroken when they leave us. I'm just a crazy cat lady!

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  19. Terrible news. Horrible, bleeping unfair news. And we stand here and cry and ask "why".

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  20. You guys are doing a super job of running kitty hospice and looking after these beautiful girls. How lucky they are to have you to fill their lives with love.

    Julie and poppyq
    Xxx

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Thank you for all your comments, which I love to read!