Family pet ??? WWYD? any vets advice....

[KristineIN]

Ok, we have an almost 13 year old strictly indoors his whole life cat. About 6 weeks ago he was getting pretty sick & developed a limp, took him to the vet, he had pneumonia, vet gave him a shot, told us to give him canned cat food from now on and said his kidneys may be starting to go. Two weeks later, he'd lost a little more weight, vet said, lets give him 1 more shot & see what happens, he's constipated, give him fat (butter, bacon grease etc) there's a tumor in his shoulder that's why he's limping...come back in two weeks, if he hasn't gained weight, well... ya know. :(
Ok, we we take him back on Monday, he has been eating better & gained weight, but the tumor is starting to get pretty big. I can kind of cup his shoulder in my hand and that's just two weeks worth of growth, at this rate, in another month, he'll have the size of a tennis ball on his shoulder. So dh & I have discussed having him put down but I guess we could also ask the vet about surgery, but it could become expensive. I know the children want another kitten when Rajah goes, I trust Rajah completely though and have a hard time with the thought of trusting another cat. We had two other cats at one point and after I got pregnant with each child, a cat would start doing something (peeing and pooping) Now we are in a different house, but when we moved in here, the owners before had cats and it reeked of urine, so I'm just scared.

Anyway, if you were in this spot, what would you do, pay for a surgery and see if it helps, or have him put down and start over? One thing we do have going for us, is the kids are older and so if we get a kitten, the kitten will get used to them, vs, having a kitten and then having kids that the cat has to get used to.

Any advice?
Thanks,
Kristine

[GreenKitty]

Three options that I can think of, Have the surgery. Give it to your local Animal Shelter and they will decide what to do with her. Take it to have the Animal Shelter they will put it down for you, there would only be a very minimal cost for that. If your vet is too expensive to put it down for you. It can be a hard decision to make. I've been there.

[ncmomo3]

I feel for you!! It is awful when a pet is so sick and it is going to cost so much.
We have made the decision on 2 occasions to put a very sick pet down at the vets. because they were very old, very ill and the expense was going to run into the thousands.
I don't think you should feel badly about having the vet put a terminally ill animal down, although I know how difficult it is to do. If expenses are an issue right now. Maybe you could also wait on getting a new animal-- due to the cost of vaccines and initial visits to the vet. -- and also maybe just for an emotiol break after having to deal with this difficult situation.
I am sorry about your pet.

[Cheryl in NM]

It's hard when a beloved pet becomes sick. Both of my cats are 16 years old now and are in chronic renal failure. It took $300 to get the first one diagnosed and because of that I know what's going on with the second one now. I've had these cats since they were 6 weeks old. They are an integral part of my family; used to sleep in my son's crib with him. They have outlived 2 family dogs. I realize that they have had long, full and happy lives. I do not want them to suffer, but I can't go into the poor house no matter how much I love them. I have decided that when they get really sick and/or their quality of life drops significantly I will take them to the vet to be put to sleep. I had to look at my motivations, upon diagnosis, to keep them alive at all costs. I realized that that was for me more than for them. They have comforted me and loved me their whole lives. It is now my turn to love them enough to let them go when the time comes. As for your beloved Rajah, only you can decide what's best for him. A tumor can be painful, especially when it gets big. You are not a bad kitty mommie if you put him out of his misery. You also don't have to replace him immediately or at all. Maybe you could get smaller pets for your kids to enjoy, you know, aquarium sized pets. I wish you luck with you decision and hope my story helps you.

[Ria]

You need to know if the tumor is malignant before you decide on a course of action. Does the doctor know? If it's malignant, there's really not much your vet can do...although he could remove the tumor, it has probably already metastisized. If it's not malignant, however, you'd need to decide if kitty could survive the surgery (doubtful given the kidney issues) - you really need to discuss your options with the vet. Unfortunately, it sounds like it might be more humane to have him put down. I am sorry you are going through this.

Ria

[Elisabeth in IL]

Right after I had my first baby, I had to have my cat put down. The vet thought she had cancer of the kidneys and it would have cost $600 just to find out. We couldn't keep her because she was peeing all over our bed every day. I felt so bad because I felt like I was replacing her for a baby. It was the best thing for her though. I'm sorry you are having to make such a difficult decision. :(

[Soph the vet]

Sorry, I didn't see this post until just now. It is easy enough to tap the mass on the shoulder and see if it is an abscess or something more serious and malignant like fibrosarcoma (which is very common in older cats). It sounds like you are realistic about the long term outcome of your cat's condition. I would not put a 13 yr. old kitty through any mass removal that involves deeper structures like bone or muscle, however, if it is just an abscess your vet should have been able to tell that readily and lanced it. If you decide to euthanize you may be doing a very merciful thing for your pet.

[KristineIN]

Thank you everyone for the advice.
Blessings,
Kristine