GUILT & THE PET OWNER
www.icenimagazine.co.uk
Issue 91 2020
Guilt & The Pet Owner (In Memory Of Sylvester) Here I am again, once more in the terrible situation of having to decide whether or not to euthanise one of my beloved animals. This time, it’s one of my cats. He was born in my porch, his little feral mother having decided that I looked like I’d provide them with a suitable home. She gave birth to two sons, and they moved in and allowed me to look after them. Sylvester is the last one of the three. He’s eleven. He suddenly appeared with a sore on his face. I thought perhaps he’d been in a fight; he’s not called Sylvester for nothing. He’s always been a bit of lad, bringing home gifts, chasing other cats. But when I took him to the vet’s four weeks ago, she said that she felt it was either
an abscess or a bad cancerous growth. These past few weeks, he’s had injections, antibiotics and latterly steroid treatment. He even stayed for a week at the vet’s while they gave him treatment there. Even so, when things don’t seem to be working, the guilt that many animal lovers feel is intense. There are so many concerns about doing the right thing, not prolonging their pain, but at the same time, not giving up on them either. Here are some of my thoughts and feelings today. ● Is it as bad as it looks? I know that there have been times when I was sure that an animal was close to death and then, one injection later, it’s been completely fine. Sometimes animals recover amazingly quickly from situations that look very serious.
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