With all of the GOOD news yesterday I also had to suffer some bad news.
My beloved Frank is up to his shenanigans, again.
God, I love this cat but he has caused us so much turmoil over the years. He's such a heart breaker. We've had him on anti-depressants for almost 3 years now to try to stop him from urinating on our carpets. It's worked for the most part but he still slips up and currently urinates on our bath mat on a regular basis.
He's aggressive. Very aggressive. It's caused us to segregate him from our elderly cat so that he does not hurt her. At times I'm afraid of him.
He's not all bad. He's 70% Angel and 30% Devil. The vet LOVES him. They seem to only see his "Angel" side.
Things have recently gotten worse.
Frank has taken to pooping around the condo. I'm embarrassed to even admit this! We come home/wake up to presents on the stairs, in the kitchen in the hallway, etc. etc. I can't put up with this. I can't live in a home where cat poop is everywhere and we can't control it. He also seems to be in an amount of pain because we've caught him "in the act", he GROANS. Pregnancy dangers aside, this is just DISGUSTING.
I took Frank to the vet yesterday to discuss the issues we've been having.
The vet we had was a total idiot. He said there wasn't much he could do about him not using his kitty litter. He suggested I put a kitty litter box in the areas where he is having his accidents. I told him that was impossible. That we already have 2 kitty litter boxes and we cannot have them all over the condo. He's not picking a single spot. He's doing it randomly. The doctor then stuck a thermometer up his ass and Frank lost his shit (figuratively). It was bad. They put a muzzle on him and took him in the back area to draw blood and do a physical exam.
The sounds I heard were horrific. When the door swung open I saw at least 4 people hovered over him trying to calm him down. Along with the yelps/groans/screams I heard someone say "the muzzle, the muzzle, get it, get it". It was like they were dealing with Hannibal Lecter. I didn't know what to do so I just stood in the exam room and waited until I couldn't bear it any longer. I went out and spoke to the assistants at the front and said I had to board him. I refused to bring him home after all that had happened.
They agreed and I left him there.
The thing is...I don't think I'm going back to get him. Ever.
I feel like a monster. I think the vet finally saw the 30% devil and/or Frank is terribly sick. I'm at the end of my rope with him. I can't do this anymore. D and I have had this discussion over the years but the thought of taking an animal to put them down has just horrified us. Especially when the issues we have dealt with have been psychological, not physical. Now that Frank is there it seems like this might be our time to deal with the issue. Finally. We also suspect there is something wrong such as renal failure but we don't even want to wait to find out.
Our condo was so peaceful last night. We weren't worrying about where he was or what he was doing. It felt good. I felt good that my beloved pet was not there.
We have to figure out what we're going to do. All I know is that he is not coming home. I don't want to give him up. I want him to be put down. I don't think it is fair to anyone to pass along this problem. Frank had a good home with us for 8 years. I don't want him to spend the rest of his life in a shelter. He's clearly un-adoptable. I just hope that our vet agrees. Every time I bring this up with the vet they do not respect my wishes. In some ways I feel completely helpless and hopeless. I feel that I have the right as a pet owner who has done 200% for an animal to make this final decision.
I'll be calling them today.
Oh, that is so hard. I think you are right that it may be Frank's time to go. You can't have an unpredictable animal in your house while you're pregnant and especially not when you have a baby there. It's sad, it sucks, but I think you're making the right call.
ReplyDeleteI wish my MiL, whose cat attacks her on occasion (sent her to the ER once), could make the same decision. And I have 3 cats that I love dearly, so this is not a decision I would ever make lightly. I'm sorry you're having to deal with it.
It's sooo hard. I've already hung up on the vet once this morning. I just can't do it. Instead I'm going to board him another night and drop off a letter explaining what our plan is.
ReplyDeleteFrank viciously attacked me once and he attacked my mother as well. To this day she fears him. I will never forget how powerful and out of control he was as he "bear hugged" my leg with his claws. We've learned how to avoid him when his tail puffs up - even jumping on furniture and getting a pillow to bat him away when he gets out of control. D just commented to me on a the phone that we are 2 adults + cat (Clair) who are terrified of him. )=
Oh, horrible for you to have to make a decision like this. It is never an easy decision to put an animal down, but I think you are making the right decision. You have done all you can do to provide a safe, loving environment for him. I am currently dealing with S's cat Bella who does not understand that she cannot pee and poop where she wants. She is restricted to a single, non-carpeted room when we cannot be watching her in the living room. Despite the fact that she has a self cleaning litter box, she still pees on the floor next to it occasionally. Other than that, she is a sweet cat and craves attention constantly. My relationship with cat is one of mutual annoyance. She sees me as the one causing her to be "locked up".
ReplyDeleteOh, and because of these issues with her, my cats have been at my Mother's house for a year. I refuse to bring them over while there is a peeing cat in the house. It will only cause them to develop bad habits. Also, they are both outside cats, Bella is not. The older one would probably be fine transitioning to inside (she doesn't really venture out much) but the younger one is a total Psycho when not allowed outside (she became an outside cat after I discovered she was pooing in my basement). Obviously being is a house with another cat who has bad habits would only serve to make her think that behavior is OK.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like there is nothing you can do. I've had to make the decision 3 times with pets of my own and one of them was on a young cat (3 years old) who seemed fine other than pooping everywhere. He had an issue with his bowels that nothing could fix and he was in pain when he pooped, hence the pooping everywhere.
ReplyDeleteYou gave him a great home for 8 years but sometimes there is nothing you can do for a pet, especially when it is psychological. We once had to put a dog to sleep who was fine but totally nuts. It always hurts to put down a "healthy" animal.
Good luck and don't feel like you are a bad person. You helped him when no one else would've.