I’m sorry for the loss of your cat. Cats with illnesses like kidney disease can live a long time with the disease, but can then go downhill very fast. I wouldn’t blame the sitters or yourself. Sometimes it is just time. I understand that you would have wanted to be there, but the only way to insure that happens is to never leave. I’d suggest trying to debrief with the sitters, but as others have said, they likely weren’t at fault.
4 Likes
Hi @EASTBAYCA
Sorry for your loss. Never easy to make the hard decision to put a beloved pet down.
As someone that has cared for over 100 cats and volunteered for a cat charity I agree with what has already been said in that older cats can mask illness until unfortunately they become very ill. I saw it with one of my first family cats many decades ago who had a few issues as a 16 year old cat but suddenly developed severe dementia within a week and would get lost crossing a room she’d crossed hundreds of times. My brother lost one of his senior cats at 17 who had a few age related issues, that suddenly overnight had a stroke and was found shaking and going round in circles. The vet advised that it was best to put her down.
So maybe in a week or so when things aren’t so raw reach out to your sitter but unfortunately like humans as we age things can go downhill fast.
4 Likes
What a beautiful companion Boots has been for you @EASTBAYCA and it’s so very hard when they are no longer with us. I know the feelings you are going through as I had a similar experience with my 18 year old cat, Smudge. She had both kidney and thyroid heath issues for several years but had been keeping in fairly good health to the point where I went on a 2 week holiday to a remote location with little to no communication which my sitters knew. It was only on returning late at night to the airport that I received a voice message from them saying they had had to take Smudge to the vet that day as she had gone down rapidly. The vet would be waiting for my call. I was so upset as she had been my loving companion since she was 6 weeks old. The vet was wonderful and said Smudge was comfortable and would be there for me the next morning. I was so shocked to see how she had deteriorated so fast within a day as a friend had fed her then, after I had agreed my sitters could spend overnight with their son in Melbourne. Her systems had just shut down and it was time. I was so very fortunate to be able to spend time with her and hold her as she was put to sleep but so utterly heartbroken.
The sitters were so upset too as this was only their second sit. I felt for them and made sure my review reflected how thankful I was that they had cared for her with love and had followed my instructions with taking her to the vet. I had already shown them where the vet was located and my instructions re end of life were on record at my vet’s and my account would be charged.
Cherish the memories of Boots and your other two beautiful cats, @EASTBAYCA and appreciate your sitters for looking after her so you could enjoy your holiday like I did.
5 Likes
I’ve had cats myself, this happened with one of them and I was home with her. Her condition literally changed overnight, when the go downhill it can be really fast. She went from normal to dead in 36 hours. Nothing anyone did or could have done differently.
7 Likes
Thank you all for your kind, compassionate and sincere thoughts and experiences. It’s been helpful to hear from some of you who have experienced the same type of decline. It hasn’t helped that this week we had a disastrous election, (OK now you know my politics) and I’ve had a nasty cold… Grief, sadness and depression starts to cover it. I received from you all what I was seeking which was perspective and compassion. I did speak with the Housesitter and she confirmed that. Yes Boots was going downhill but was eating and hanging out with her and being just her lovely self. She is heartbroken as well. For all of you, many thanks again.
18 Likes
You have my deepest sympathies on the loss of your beautiful Boots (and on the election results). Almost exactly 3 years ago I had to euthanize my 17 year old cat who had CKD and thyroid problems for years beforehand. Avi was on sub-Q fluids and daily meds and I chose to let her go before she got even worse. A few days ago I had to make the same decision for a 3-month-old foster kitten with FIP 
.
Some of these diseases can take down a cat incredibly quickly. Perhaps the sitter did not realize the weight loss if it happened incrementally. Conversely, I don’t realize how much weight a foster kitten has gained until somebody that hasn’t seen them for a week or two comments on how big they have got.
Pic of one of my current fosters to, maybe, cheer you a little
13 Likes
Looks adorable and cuddly.
2 Likes
I do love those kitty colors—tortie? Calico? Just lovely. Thanks for the pics and kind words. 
2 Likes
I think she is a tortico. Insanely affectionate and totally fearless - a real spitfire!
4 Likes
She’s adorable @Lassie. What’s her name?
When I returned from a 9 days trip, my senior cat with kidney disease did not look well. I thought the end was close. I know my sitter did many things to help my cat while I was gone. After talking with cat owning friends, I learned cats can get depressed when their owner is gone. I think that’s what happened because in a week he looked better. That could be what happened with yours. He may have bounced back a bit upon your return. But like another commenter said, cats can go downhill fast. It could have been his health, his mental health or a combination. There’s nothing your sitters can do now, but if you have questions, you could ask them without judgment, if possible. Or have your sister reach out to them as another suggested.
1 Like
Yes, I think she missed me even though she knew these housesitters prior. I think cats, especially as they age, may not be as emotionally fluid. We had booked this housesit (a series of 3 separate times) months in advance. I did consider shortening the stay or amending it in someway, but I also know that housesitters, These in Particular, plan their lives in advance and I didn’t want to screw up their living situations. I don’t cancel unless absolutely necessary. We have a Housesitter set up in a few months and even though we don’t have any pets for them to care for I’m not going to cancel on them.
6 Likes
Hello @EASTBAYCA , I’m so sorry for your loss, you must be heartbroken, Boots looks adorable, happy and very much loved.
How kind and considerate of you not wanting to cancel the sitters in a few months, I wish there were more people in the world like you 
.
Also our sympathies from the UK on the election results 
.
2 Likes
I share your grief over the results of the “election” and despair over the horrors sure to come.
RIP sweet Boots.
2 Likes
She is Dolly. She was adopted by a family that had a dog called Willie Nelson, and their kids name her Dolly Parton!
Unfortunately, she started having seizures soon after adoption and she was returned to me. She seems OK now, but we are not sure. All 3 siblings had seizures a week apart, in 3 different homes. It is baffling the vets. One kitten definitely had FIP (the one we put to sleep last week) but we think the others have something else. Hopefully somethig that can be cured, and not epilepsy 
6 Likes
It’s tough. We had a sitter from THS during a 2 week trip leaving our 3 cats in their care. One was old and suffering from kidney failure but we took him to the vet a few days before our departure. She said he was doing well enough for the time being but that we’d need to rerun blood tests in a few months and adjust accordingly.
On our return, our sweet old guy was clearly not doing well. We weighed each of the cats and found the healthy ones were down 5% in 2 weeks. The old guy was down 20%. We had to put him down 2 days later.
We don’t know what happened in our absence but we’re left with a sense that none of the cats were well looked after and this pushed the old guy off the cliff. Unfortunately, we’re stuck with the pain of his departure and try to focus on the fact that he would likely only have lived a few months more even if things went swimmingly. We take solace in knowing that he had a great home and was a fantastic companion for much much longer than he was sick.
It still sucks.
3 Likes
As sitters we often find that pets don’t eat quite as much as we are told they do (or 10x as much). They are sentient beings who naturally feel a little unsettled when their owners go away no matter how much love and attention they get from the sitters.
2 Likes
Well as said Dolly is adorable @Lassie.
Sorry your fosters are having issues.
1 Like
I am sure many of us know the vagaries of cat illness. They can seem perfectly fine and then be near death very quickly especially with kidney disease. You obviously trusted the sitter otherwise you would not have used her again. It’s awful for you with this happening when you were so far away. Clearly a dialogue is important but please don’t blame the sitter.
Wow, that is awful to hear all 3 cats had lost so much weight! I’m so sorry to hear of the loss of your old guy. Even though we both knew our time was limited with our kidney patients, it’s super hard under the conditions we’ve both faced.
I’ve had TH for 7 years and my pets have seemed ok to good with sitters, but I think they’ve not been ok as they’ve gotten older. I do hope you circle back to HS to gain more info regarding care. I’m certainly rethinking how I want to proceed. I will be getting more pets sometime but truly have to consider what’s in their best interest too.
Take care!!!