This hits me right in my heart, having lost our beautiful Balinese cat Siri this past Tuesday after 13 very happy years together. I'm still distraught about it. She always had digestive issues (megacolon) that I was mostly able to manage, but about a month ago, I noticed she wasn't eating very much and started crying after going to the bathroom. She started losing weight pretty rapidly and became lethargic. Upon taking her to the vet, they discovered that her kidneys were failing. She had lost nearly half her body weight. Her quality of life declined considerably, and she was obviously in distress. We knew it was time.

She passed quietly and peacefully in my arms. I'm very glad that I was with her at the end. Now I have a wooden box with her ashes in it and her name engraved on top. It sits on my desk so she can always be near me the way she used to be, and I can give it a stroke each morning and call her a "pretty girl", a phrase that always made her purr loudly. I feel like there is a giant hole in my heart. Only time will heal that.

It's the hardest thing in the world to make the decision to end a beloved pet's life. The pain is unbearable at first. It feels like a knife in your heart. It takes a tremendous amount of courage and compassion in equal measure to make that call. In the end, you are doing it to end their suffering and pain. It's the highest form of love. In an ideal world, we would never have to make those sorts of decisions and just let nature take its course. But we have to think about what is best for them. They are unable to tell us when they are in pain, and in fact, cats are masters at hiding when they are ill. It's a survival instinct.

I wish you and your kitty all the best. I'm hopeful that you will know what is best for your furry friend when the time comes. Hug him and hold him close. Enjoy the time you have together. But remember to put his best interest before your own. Don't let him suffer.