Friday, October 07, 2005

Sometimes, being The Mommy just sucks...

Yesterday, we had to put Twinks' cat, Tanner to sleep.

As hard as it was, there was no other decision to be made. I'll spare you the gory details, but suffice it to say that even with surgery, there was no way the poor little guy could have survived for much longer. It was evident, even to a non-professional like me. He had not appeared to be in any pain at all - even the vet was surprised at how calm he was, and how despite his advanced condition, he was still his usual sweet little self.

He slipped away easily, and with no fuss; I held him, wrapped in one of The Wrench's old shirts. The vet, and even the techs who worked there, stayed with us; we talked, laughed, and cried together. I tried to make sure that he knew we loved him, and that he wasn't alone.

And then I had to go home, and tell my sweet little girl. I had to try and find the words to explain to her *why*. I had to help her remember that Tanner had a good life with us; certainly better than his original destiny. I had to hold her while she sobbed, and cried, and wished for one more chance to hug her sweet little grey cat and tell him goodbye.

Sometimes, being The Mommy just sucks.

4 comments:

teneal ann said...

Thimbelle, when did this happen? o.o;; I'm so sorry for Tanner... but I didn't know he was sick.

My condolences to the Twinks- I was about her age when my first dog was put to sleep, and it was a similar occasion. I helped my granddad bury her in the back-yard.

alpharat said...

So sorry to hear. That's something I worry about a lot lately, with a 12-year-old cat and a dog who is 8 (and he gave us a scare a few months ago when he decided to run in to the side of a moving car). My condolences to the Twinks as well.

Kat said...

My sincerest apologies about Tanner. Poor Twinkie! But let her know he went without pain, and sometimes that's all you can ask for when the time comes.

And being the Mommy doesn't get any easier even with the kids are adults. We had to put down the family's 17-year-old cat this year, and the entire family gathered in the vet's office to say goodbye. Even though I'm 27, my parents were still there with me, crying and supporting us. But that's the beauty of family!

Chuck said...

Hey Thimbelle, losing a pet is never easy. When my parent's dog passed away a couple years ago, it hit me VERY hard, in part because it was kind of unexpected. I still miss him quite a bit...next step will be to get a dog of my own, but I haven't done that yet.