Radtrisha

You found a great group of people here. We have all been through it, and know what youre going through, and know how difficult it is. It feels great just to tell your story, to a supportive group who understands your situation. Im sure everyone here would love to know about Jenna and Misty, and see some pictures of them

Mary I am sure the family is incredibly thankful they got to meet you and Bentley! My husband and I called goldens "angel dogs", because they are. We have neices who go to Sandy Hook elementary, they brought in a golden puppy "therapy dog in training" who just brightened their day! I am not sure when we will pick up the ashes, but I saw my three neices today, and the oldest (9) asked "what are you going to do with kitty?" I told her we have her placed in a pretty box with lots of pictures "Can I hug the box? I never got to give her hugs when she was alive... And she can't scratch me now" (kitty didn't like kids) I just laughed and said yes. Although I did cry about it on the way home. On our visit to the shelter yesterday we did meet a great kitty we really did like, completely different from kitty, but incredibly gentle and lovable. She is being nursed back from being frozen to the ground, so she has a way to go before she can be homed. The rescue group is going to keep an eye on her progression, and we are going to visit again in a few weeks. It gives us something to look forward to.

My husband and I went to visit some shelters today just to get some interaction, and amazingly it helped us feel a lot better. We were hanging out and playing with all kinds of kitties, and it was so much fun. We are still very sad as it is about a week, but this was great medicine for us. I may start doing some volunteering as well. We probably won't be ready to take another animal in for a while, but it is still a great distraction... As was Zumba with my friends. I love my girl, and I know she loved us back tenfold. I'm trying to keep that thought in my head as a positive. It's still so hard to come home to an empty house, but I am very happy with how far I've come along in the past week. We will be picking up her ashes soon. I will most likely turn into a crying mess again as we create her memorial, but at least I have found some coping tools in the meantime. Thank you all again for your kindness.

Here is one of our favorite funny cat videos: <iframe width="420" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/dSpIcGSqP0A" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

This is hysterical. And something my grandmother would have adored. I shared with some family as well!

Good morning... So we are a few days into this, and I am definitely experiencing waves of sadness. However, I lost it yesterday when it was garbage day, and my husband asked if he could throw away her litter box. I asked if we could keep it one more week. We also leave her water fountain running to counteract the silence. There is also a large tupperware container I covered with a blanket I placed at the foot of our bed to help her get up and down when she was sick, that I dont have the heart to move. I still cant bring myself to remove the items, yet it pains me to even acknowledge theyre there. It's so conflicting... Do you guys have any advice for what to do with their items after they have passed on?

I am so sorry itaa. I am reading this getting flashbacks of my situation, and know you are not alone. We lost our girl on Sunday, and I was not home when it happened. We had a very similar bond to you and your boy, and that's a very big deal. I had grown up with tons of animals, and none have ever stolen my heart like her. I am three days later, and I still dont have the energy to throw away her litter box. We leave her pet fountain running because I dont think we can handle the silence it will leave once it's gone. One of the best things I have done so far that I didnt think would help would be to look at pictures and videos of the happier times. My husband and I laugh about it and talk to her in the house like she's there with us. We are not used to not having an animal in the house... when we started dating we had a cockatiel named Rosie who always cheered us up when we got home, then we got Kitty who always greeted us when we got home (having the two of them at the same time was wonderful). We lost Rosie a few years ago. While we are done grieving over her, we still talk about how funny and awesome she was, and we know it will be the same with Kitty. Maybe this might help a little too.

Well, on another note, knowing what happened, a friend forwarded me a kitty in need that needs a home. Looking at the situation I know we would be perfect for her sake. I am not ready though. Is it healthy to even be considering these types of options at this point? There will never be a replacement for our girl, and we are fully aware of that... but if there is an animal I know we could help, is it selfish to not want to have anything to do with it right now? So confused...

Thank you everyone for the kindness and words of encouragement. We already starting going through the (hundreds) of pictures and videos we have of her on our phones, in the process realized we are in fact crazy cat people... Humor seems to be the best medicine for us at this point (and a few shots of tequila). Mary: her actual name is Kitty. Being a stray we took in, we called her lots of things to see if any took, but she always acknowledged "kitty", so that's what it is. I attached a couple pictures because she really was beautiful. I also downloaded one of the courses on pet loss, and should get the first lesson tomorrow. Trying to be as proactive as possible, because this is one of the worst experiences with sadness I have ever had... Thank you everyone.

We lost our beautiful girl yesterday. I can barely function I am so sad. She showed up in our driveway almost 5 years ago to this day. My husband was allergic to cats so she lived on our porch, then he magically discovered his cat allergies had disappeared. We fattened her up but brought her to the vet because she had horrible breath, well that lead to taking all her teeth out. She had many happy and plump years with us. The bond between her and I was the strongest I have ever had with an animal. She followed me around the house, comes when called, and was constantly glued to my lap. I would take her outside to eat grass and drink out of the birdbath... she never went far and always came back to me every few minutes to brush against me. If the garage door opened but I didn't come in, she would pace around all the doors trying to figure out where I was just so she could greet me. She was my little shadow, and my little friend. This was one of the hardest paragraphs I've ever had to write because I kept wanting to write it in present tense, when in fact, she is not here. When we got towards the end she just stopped eating. We had tons of tests done, Xrays, and still the vets were stumped. As soon as the snow started melting, my husband and I dug out an area so she could eat grass one last time. Eventually she could barely hold her self up and we knew it was almost time. I had to leave to sing in my band 4 hours away from home, and was a basket case all the way up. When we got home we found her passed on, in the same place I usually sit with her, looking at the door. She never sleeps there unless she is on my lap, and she chose this as her place to pass on. My husband says maybe that is her way of saying "thank you"... I feel guilty I wasn't home when it happened, but at the same time, maybe being away gave her the privacy and peace to move on (which I heard is what many animals instincts are). At least I keep telling myself that to feel better. Now comes the long journey. My husband and I have been crying every 20 minutes, and I am just so angry we had to get her so late in her life because we love her so much, she was our child. I know I need help, so I figured the first step would be to come here and share my story full to people who would understand. Thanks for listening...