Our cat

[Emx93]

This is the story of our cat onslow, sorry its a long one- several posts!
I've wanted to be a cat mummy since i was a little girl and I couldn't have asked for a better cat to be a family with. I always knew I wanted to rescue but finding a rescue that would rehome to a family with 3 children 5 and under wasn't easy. We visited several including the rescue we adopted him from several times until we found a cat we matched with. It was quite an unlikely match as he was actually listed as not suitable for children but when we asked about him they said it was just that he'd never met any, they didn't have much information on him, he was handed to the rescue as a stray in January after someone found him in a cement mixer at the bottom of their garden when their dogs were barking so they put him in a cardboard box and took him to a rescue unannounced apparently! They named him onslow because he arrived in a box, he was very timid and shy and never left his hidey bed, we went in to meet him and he was just lovely, it was love at first sight, they girls were amazing with him and the rescue said they were impressed at how good they were and took an application form. The next day we received a phone call to say our application had been approved and we were invited back for a second meeting, he stuck his head out for a fuss from us all but never left his bed. We were told he needed to be vaccinated and vet checked a second time and then we could set an adoption date but please visit whenever. We visited again and they said they'd set the adoption for the day after his vaccinations and if anything was wrong they'd let us know and we would need to take him back there in 3 weeks for his second vaccines but any other care could be done at our vets. We were told the health check was fine and not to worry if he didn't eat for a couple of days as he was quite timid.

 

[Emx93]

On the 14th February 2019 (valentines day) we brought him to his forever home! Once home he was a different cat, he settled instantly, followed us all round like a shadow from the moment he walked through the door and jumped on our knees for cuddles within minutes (including the children who he was very fond of) but one thing was bothering us, 48hours in and he hadn't touched food, we called the vet and took him in for a dental check. The vets said he had a bad mouth infection, the 4 teeth he had left were completely rotten and he would need a dental to remove them. They also said they weren't sure how he'd been aged at 4-5 as he was actually around 15! After an antibiotic and steroid injection his appetite improved and his dental was booked for when we'd had him home 20 days, we had to inform the rescue he couldn't be vaccinated while on steroids but we would take him to be vaccinated as soon as he was well enough. The rescue said they'd had a temporary vet in and wouldn't be using them again, they were very supportive. His first week home with us he gained 200g and even more the week after! He had flakey skin from malnutrition when we adopted him (not that we knew that until we saw our vet!)

The morning of his post op check he began vomiting which we mentioned and he was checked over and given more antibiotics and steroid injections as he also had a gunky ear! This helped for a short time but less than 2 weeks later we were back at the vets as he was vomiting again, ripping chunks of skin out and had a gunky ear again, his mouth was also sore again despite having no teeth left to cause it, they suspected he was autoimmune which blood tests confirmed.

 

[Emx93]

He was started on steroid tablets but this time he didn't improve, his poo turned black and he continued to vomit a lot, all of this and he was still the most loving and special boy, never leaving our sides including sitting guard next to the girls as each of them developed chicken pox, his steroid dose was lowered incase it was a reaction and then stopped when he vomited blood. He got worse vomiting much more and more often it was streaked with blood, I sat up with him all night waiting for the vets to open, he'd had an x Ray as they had suspected lymphoma but the x Ray was clear which is why we started the autoimmune treatment. He Was vomiting a lot and not eating and hiding, we took him straight down when they opened where they assessed him and asked if we could take him to their out of hours as he needed more specialist tests and hospitalisation for iv fluids, of course we did. He threw up as we left him all over the handover nurse, we told him how much we all loved him and begged him to get better. He was taken for another x Ray followed by an endoscopy which revealed bleeding, thickening and what they suspected to be cancer so they had taken biopsies. They fitted a feeding tube, gave iv fluids and pumped him with lots of anti sickness meds. The next morning at 6am I received a phone call to say he was worse, they'd fed him through the feeding tube the night before, hed regurgitated then aspirated and had developed aspiration pneumonia, we asked to visit him, him being alone in hospital when he'd sat so lovingly by our sides when we were sick just didn't seem right, they made arrangements for us to see him. He was struggling to breathe and pretty lifeless when we visited he didn't even raise his head. We were advised to euthanize as he wasn't getting better, we asked them to continue treatment and wait for biopsy results but they said there was a strong chance he wouldn't make the night, we said to call us right away if any change any time of night and we would make the 40minute journey to be with him and Sam called work to say he couldn't come in so we could be there sooner if needed. They said if no improvement overnight they strongly suggested we euthanize. The next morning we received a call to say there'd still been no improvement, not wanting him to die in hospital just 2.5months after leaving the rescue we asked to bring him home first to spend some time with him then we would take him to our usual vets. When we got him in the car he lifted his head, when we got him home he walked upstairs to the litter tray, instead of calling and asking for euthanasia we asked for a second opinion, he was starting to fight! They said he would need supportive syringe feeds especially water which was hard as he couldn't breathe and anything in his mouth just made it worse and the feeding tube he wasn't tolerating but we could take him daily for antibiotic injections and to reassess while we waited for the biopsy results. Overnight his breathing got very bad, his mouth was wide open, tongue was out and we couldn't get anything into him, I sat with him all night begging him to fight, not expecting him to make it till morning, he coughed some white fluid up which seemed to help a little but he was getting air under his skin. At the appointment the next day he was transferred back to hospital for more fluids, his feeding tube removing and to find out why he had air under his skin (turned out to be the feeding tube that had caused it) thankfully we were able to pick him up that night and take him for more daily injections while we wait for the results. We were able to switch to antibiotic tablets as he started to eat small amounts by mouth. The day after we switched we received a phone call from the hospital that no one wants to receive, onslow who against the odds was recovering from the aspiration pneumonia had lymphoma.

 

[Emx93]

He was started on a strong dose of steroids alongside sulcalfrate to stop the bleeding, we were told it was palliative and they couldn't say how long he would have could be days or weeks and at the best months. Against all odds for 3 beautiful weeks he was like a new cat, you couldn't tell he was sick apart from the odd vomit, he ate wonderfully, he was a bundle of energy and he played with toys for the first time ever! We vowed that we would give him the best life for however long we were blessed to have him. He hated oral medication and often Spat or drooled out the sulcalfrate, it distressed him so much and I felt so mean to put him through it but this guy deserved every chance. He began to vomit excessively again so was started on anti sickness medication (we were up to medicating 4 times a day now) topped up by a trip for anti sickness injections when things got bad, these top up trips became frequent, he vomited blood more and more, stopped eating again and began to hunch over whenever he tried to eat. We swapped steroid tablets for injections and added tramadol twice a day. He did well for 3 days, he gave us hope that he could come back from this again, on his last 'good day' he climbed on my knee and laid alongside nugget and fluffy calmly, he went to Sam for a cuddle (that was quite rare as normally he chose me or the girls) he went and laid next to each of the girls as they slept and then instead of returning to his favourite spot next to me he went and laid in a drawer. The next morning he began to vomit every 10 minutes (he'd vomited a lot before but never quite like this) I'd hoped it was just he'd actually eaten the day before so there was more to come out but called the vet and asked for a callback to see if I could give him anything else to help. There was a quality of life discussion as he was now on the maximum of everything and wasn't responding, it didn't quite make sense as the day before was the best day he'd had in weeks! We asked for another injection to give him time to respond.

 

[Emx93]

The injection stopped his vomiting for 48hours but it didn't bring him back, his appetite dropped and dropped over the weekend and he became reclusive no longer our shadow or sleeping next to us. I started syringe feeding, this made him cough and gag, I willed for a miracle but that sunday night as I gave him his pain relief he drooled then proceeded to vomit jet black (we'd had red dark brown and pink before but never black, black meant he was bleeding a lot internally) he then just laid down and didn't move. I called Sam home from work and we laid him on a blanket on the sofa, he looked peaceful but we didn't expect him to last long, we decided we would sit with him all night telling him how much we loved him and how much he meant to us. We told him it was OK and we wouldn't ask him to fight anymore if he didn't want to, we'd let him go tomorrow just please give us one last night together. At 1am his breathing became very shallow and we woke the girls to say goodbye, we dragged a mattress into the living room and spent the night as a family for the last time. When the vets opened we called and asked for an asap euthanasia, he couldn't get anything in without vomiting and I didn't want him to starve. Its the hardest decision I've ever had to make, I loved him as a child and looking back we probably should've done it sooner but he deserved every chance at life with everything he went through. We stayed with him until the end and for a little bit afterwards. I felt immense guilt, I've never lost anyone before and nothing could've prepared me for it. He passed away 3 days before lexies 6th Birthday and how I got through it to this day ill never know. He lived for 2 days short of 2 months after the biopsy. He filled our lives with joy and taught us to appreciate every day even the hard ones because you just never know how short life can be. I do not want another cat, they would never be him, i couldn't have loved another the way I loved him, everything he went through just made us all love him more. I want to concentrate on my piggies for a while as they've all had some rough times lately too. So many people said ohh I bet you wish you'd just got a kitten youdve had many happy years then. No. No I do not wish I'd chose another or gone out and got a kitten. Onslow was the best, I would have chosen him over and over again even if i had have known he was 15 and had lymphoma, we chose him for him and not his age or health status.

 

[Emx93]

Onslow, the most special and loving cat we ever did meet, even if luck wasn't on our side, we only held you in our arms for a short time but we hold you in our hearts forever always remember how much we love you and please wait for us at the bridge little man we love you forever onslow our time together was never enough but I'll treasure every memory and every sleepless night I spent holding you


Adopted- 14/02/19

Crossed the rainbow bridge- 01/07/19


This cat made me soft, I'm not usually so soppy but there's something about these little fur babies that brings out the goopy in me

 

[GuineaPigLover7891]

I’m so sorry for your lost! I know you did all you could. Onslow will be forever in your heart.

 

[sport_billy]

It is so obvious how so loved Onslow was. He was so loved and cherished and that is all we can do for our pets in life. I am so deeply sorry for your loss. Massive hugs to you

Sleep well beautiful boy

RIP Onslow
x x

 

[Emx93]

Thankyou, we loved him very much indeed it actually feels better to have wrote the whole thing out xx

 

[Alisa3114]

My heart broke for Onslow and your family reading that. He was lucky to have found you and had so much love shown him in his last months. Big hugs to all your family.

 

[Flutterby]

I’m so sorry for your loss x

 

[Merab]

So sorry for your loss.
Onslow was such a well loved cat he will leave a big hole in your heart.
Be gentle with yourself as you grieve

 

[funnehmare]

I'm so sorry for your loss, sleep tight Onslow x

 

[Emx93]

Thankyou everyone, I appreciate the support, its been a few weeks but itss still hard especially with children who also miss him a lot and a one year old who hugs his box of ashes and blows kisses to the sky, but it's really helped just to write his story somewhere I only wish we could've done more, I think I'll always feel guilt xx