# Cancer - choosing not to fight



## Emilieu (9 June 2016)

The worst news today. My darling cat Jazz has cancer. There is no option to cure, just to prolong through chemo etc. I believe so strongly in quality over quantity of life and always said I wouldn't put an animal through chemo. But now is my test - am i strong enough not to fight this? I feel like i am giving up on him
Wwyd?


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## View (9 June 2016)

It depends on his quality of life and what the chemo will involve - so that needs a conversation with your vet.

However, in what way is securing freedom from pain, needles and ensuring a dignified painless end giving up in him?  That to me is a caring owner.

Be kind to yourself.


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## _GG_ (9 June 2016)

Emilieu said:



			The worst news today. My darling cat Jazz has cancer. There is no option to cure, just to prolong through chemo etc. I believe so strongly in quality over quantity of life and always said I wouldn't put an animal through chemo. But now is my test - am i strong enough not to fight this? I feel like i am giving up on him
Wwyd?
		
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I would trust your own heart and head. I am so sorry that you are in this situation and of course, each case will be different, but I would be thinking the same as you. 

It is a very wonderful thing to want to keep our animals going and treat them as best we can to prolong their lives, but ultimately, they don't know any different from the present that they are living in, so there would have to be a really good future around the corner for me to want to put any animal through tough treatments. 

Again, I am so sorry for you and wish you the best of time with Jazz while he's with you and hopefully, that will be some time yet. 

Above all, you are not giving up on him...you are putting his welfare above your own feelings, which is the best anyone can do for their animals. xx


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## Booboos (9 June 2016)

I am so sorry.

What does your vet recommend? Chemo in animals does not have many of the unpleasant side effects it has in humans and it may be that she can get a longer life without the corresponding suffering of chemo.


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## Emilieu (9 June 2016)

Booboos said:



			I am so sorry.

What does your vet recommend? Chemo in animals does not have many of the unpleasant side effects it has in humans and it may be that she can get a longer life without the corresponding suffering of chemo.
		
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 The vet says that you just don't know how they will respond to it. That they don't lose their hair but it can make them very sick and obviously he would need to go to the vet school etc for treatment. I don't want to give him sad experiences. My friend's dog had chemo and even though people kept telling me it doesn't affect animals the same way as humans her wee dog looked just like my step dad by the end - sad, thin and so so tired  

Thank you all for replying. Just trying to get things straight in my head.


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## Alec Swan (9 June 2016)

I'm wondering if perhaps you could look at this from another direction and that you could view yourself as a loving owner who,  quite simply,  isn't prepared to run the risk of causing yet more suffering,  simply for your own ends.  You are fully entitled to take pride in your caring and honourable approach to your responsibilities;  Jazz is YOUR responsibility and from here,  I'd say that you deserve the plaudits of everyone.

It isn't easy,  but hold your head up because from here,  I admire you.

Alec.


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## AdorableAlice (9 June 2016)

Booboos said:



			I am so sorry.

What does your vet recommend? Chemo in animals does not have many of the unpleasant side effects it has in humans and it may be that she can get a longer life without the corresponding suffering of chemo.
		
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How do you quantify that ?, just because they do not go bald does not mean they do not feel utterly crap.


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## Fidgety (9 June 2016)

Alec Swan said:



			I'm wondering if perhaps you could look at this from another direction and that you could view yourself as a loving owner who,  quite simply,  isn't prepared to run the risk of causing yet more suffering,  simply for your own ends.  You are fully entitled to take pride in your caring and honourable approach to your responsibilities;  Jazz is YOUR responsibility and from here,  I'd say that you deserve the plaudits of everyone.

It isn't easy,  but hold your head up because from here,  I admire you.

Alec.
		
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Alec, sometimes your posts bring a tear to my eye.


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## alibali (9 June 2016)

Sorry to hear about your cat, its a horrible thing.

For what its worth my opinion would be exactly the same as yours. Just because we CAN treat a condition doesn't mean we OUGHT to. Particularly when that treatment may come with some very unpleasant side effects and you cant explain to your cat that their feeling terrible is helping to prolong their life.

In short quality over quantity of life for me every time.


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## Fiona (9 June 2016)

alibali said:



 Sorry to hear about your cat, its a horrible thing.

For what its worth my opinion would be exactly the same as yours. Just because we CAN treat a condition doesn't mean we OUGHT to. Particularly when that treatment may come with some very unpleasant side effects and you cant explain to your cat that their feeling terrible is helping to prolong their life.

In short quality over quantity of life for me every time.
		
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I agree...

Hugs OP x

Fiona


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## Merlin1979 (9 June 2016)

I feel for you, I really do. My dog was diagnosed with lymphoma and was due to start chemo the next day. She died really early in the morning and for that, I am thankful. I think she had been through enough though it was a very short illness but that is looking at it from the other side. 
I'm sure you will do what is best x


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## splashgirl45 (9 June 2016)

sorry for your bad news. I have had 2 friends whose dogs had cancer ,one of them was only 7 and she opted to have chemotherapy as the vet said it could give another year.  she only had 4 months and some of that time she wasn't well because of the treatment.  the other friends dog was 10 and they also tried after being told similar time frame and he only had 5 months .  this friend has another dog of the same breed and has said if she gets cancer there is no way she would put her through the treatment....I would not put mine through the treatment after these experiences as quality not quantity of life is  most important.  for what  it is worth I think you are right...good luck


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## Peregrine Falcon (9 June 2016)

So sorry for your sad news.  Personally I would choose not to treat either.  I wouldn't put my cat through it just so I could have a few more months, the cat wouldn't understand.  You know your own cat and how it would respond but I think it kinder not to proceed.  ((HUGS))


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## Emilieu (10 June 2016)

I just want to thank you all for your kind words. OH was struggling to see things from my point of view and was keen for more tests to establish options and a potential timeline. However, I asked him to read what had been said on here. He had a wee tear, said you were all lovely and that he understood and agreed. Jazz has to come first. I will discuss palliative care with the vet today - he is still happy in himself and so will receive all the love and care we can give him for as long as I feel he still has that quality of life. We are getting married in December and have organised for the photographer to come to the house in the morning so that the cats could be in our pictures. If he makes it that long I will be a very happy mum - but I won't ask him to suffer to make that happen. 
I'm so sad but feel at peace with the choice.


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## Tyssandi (10 June 2016)

Emilieu said:



			The worst news today. My darling cat Jazz has cancer. There is no option to cure, just to prolong through chemo etc. I believe so strongly in quality over quantity of life and always said I wouldn't put an animal through chemo. But now is my test - am i strong enough not to fight this? I feel like i am giving up on him
Wwyd?
		
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My cat died last year as he had intestinal cancer which the vets did not pick up on early enough.  He lost more and more weight, till he was  thin and I asked the vets to check and they found not only one tumour but another one further long and they could not remove and the tumours were too far apart and it would mean removing to much of the intestine.  They gave us tablets of chemo which we had a job getting in him as he was always a bugg3r  for pills.  In the end he died 3 days later as he stopped eating and drinking.  


 In your shoes it would depend on the cancer stage and how the cat is and if he was a fighter, would determine which way I would go.


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## Mrs B (10 June 2016)

I'm sorry you're facing this, Emilieu but it sounds like you and your OH are now thinking the same way. 

I just wanted to add this: I'm a cat person. If it was a toss-up between horses or cats, *closes horse's ears* dare I say, the cats would win. I don't have kids, so you might reasonably say they are my substitutes and in a way they are. I work from home and they're with me 24/7. I absolutely worship the ground they stroll over but ... I know full well they are my responsibility and are only with me for a short time. And that time has to be of the best quality and when it's not, and the bad is going to outweigh the good, it's my job to step up to the plate and call 'time'.

Both of our last 2 darling girls developed cancer: one on her ear-tip (ear removed with no problem) but then reappeared a few months later, aggressively, on her gum  ... and one in the joint of her jaw. Both were in their teens. Both could, theoretically, have been treated with radio or chemo therapy after surgery. It took a heart-beat to know that the treatment would have been purely so we could have them with us for longer. The stress, the needles, the confinement, the possible extension of life were for our benefit, not theirs. They had no concept of tomorrow, nor of not existing, nor of leaving us behind. They just lived in the 'now'. 

We could see their quality of life ebbing away rapidly and we knew that more pain and discomfort were ahead, so we had them put to sleep at home.

I am another advocate of the 'just because we can, doesn't mean we should' school of thinking.


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## Amymay (14 June 2016)

My cat had cancer, and so I said goodnight xx


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## Antw23uk (15 June 2016)

Putting either my two cats or dog through chemo wouldn't be on my agenda and I would be saying goodbye. Best of luck x


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## Emilieu (15 June 2016)

We started palliative care five days ago. The medication (steroids) means there is no going back, as they reduce the effectiveness of the chemo. But realistically I was never going there and so it made no odds. He is in good spirits at the moment and enjoying being spoiled. We are taking it one day at a time but I am watching for loss of appetite, signs of depression (hiding etc) and declining energy. These will tell me when he is getting ready for me to say goodbye. In the meantime it is what he wants when he wants it. 
Thank you all for your reassurance.


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## Pinkvboots (15 June 2016)

so sorry about your cat it's very hard but if it were me I would not put an animal through chemo my Dad had chemo for over a year and it was the hardest thing to see him suffer like he did, it used to take him a week to get over it then he would need another lot just as he was recovering, and it didn't even save him I think if he were here now he would have not had it and just enjoyed the time he had left.


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## Pinkvboots (15 June 2016)

Emilieu said:



			We started palliative care five days ago. The medication (steroids) means there is no going back, as they reduce the effectiveness of the chemo. But realistically I was never going there and so it made no odds. He is in good spirits at the moment and enjoying being spoiled. We are taking it one day at a time but I am watching for loss of appetite, signs of depression (hiding etc) and declining energy. These will tell me when he is getting ready for me to say goodbye. In the meantime it is what he wants when he wants it. 
Thank you all for your reassurance.
		
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just seen this I think your doing the right thing x


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## Emilieu (15 June 2016)

Pinkvboots said:



			just seen this I think your doing the right thing x
		
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Thank you Pinkyboots. I think i knew deep down all along, it was just finding the courage to go with my gut. 
He's currently tucking into a mackrel fillet and purring. One more day, one more happy memory &#10084;&#65039;


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## splashgirl45 (15 June 2016)

glad to hear he is doing ok and being spoilt rotten....HUGS!!!!!  one day at a time is the way to go...good luck


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## Pinkvboots (15 June 2016)

Emilieu said:



			Thank you Pinkyboots. I think i knew deep down all along, it was just finding the courage to go with my gut. 
He's currently tucking into a mackrel fillet and purring. One more day, one more happy memory &#10084;&#65039;
		
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bless him his lucky to have you as an owner your putting him first and that's all we can do for them while there here, at least you have this time to spoil him and spend some lovely time with him


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## hackneylass2 (16 June 2016)

I feel for you enormously xxx

'Thank you Pinkyboots. I think i knew deep down all along, it was just finding the courage to go with my gut.
He's currently tucking into a mackrel fillet and purring. One more day, one more happy memory &#10084;&#65039;'

That's exactly the right way to look at it, spoil your catty and enjoy your time together xxxxxx


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## Emilieu (16 June 2016)

Five years ago today i got Jazz back after he had gotten into a van and travelled to the other side of town. He was lost for five weeks and people kept telling me to give up, to get a kitten. I knew i would get him back and i will never forget how happy i was to be proven right - genuinely one of the happiest days of my life. I have had five more years of his companionship and keep reminding myself everyday how lucky i am. I know he will go safely at home with me  
He's happy tonight. Had his dinner and then kept me company while i did some work on the laptop.


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## MagicMelon (17 June 2016)

I think I'd have made the same decision as you OP, extremely hard one though. You're clearly making it lovely for him however long he has left. Cancer is such a horrid horrid thing x


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## Zero00000 (17 June 2016)

I have had a dog, a cat and a rabbit with cancer, all I have chosen not to treat and to either pts or keep comfortable until time, it's heartbreaking, but I wouldn't want to watch my animal deteriorate in front of me, due to me bein selfish


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## Hexx (17 June 2016)

When my dog, Bella, was diagnosed with cancer, I decided not to treat.  She was 13 and I felt it was too old for either surgery or chemo, even though she was a very fit and active dog.  I asked the vet how I would know when to pts - she said, I would just know.  Boo was well for 8 months following diagnosis, but on boxing day 2014 she became ill and I took her to the emergency vets.  She wasn't holding her oxygen levels and the vet wanted to keep her in overnight as she was worried.  I picked her up early the next day and it was clear that it was time, so my vet came and pts at home.  I never regretted the decision - she went to sleep peacefully having cuddles with Mummy.

I think you have to take it day by day and treat each additional day as a bonus - just love him with all your heart for the rest of his life - sending hugs.


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