Mika

I took Mika to the vet this morning because she was having trouble breathing. More than usual. She's had some breathing issues in the past, but they alway seemed to clear up.

The vet suggested we xray her chest to see what was going on. While trying to get her into position, she freaked out, started gasping and attacked my hands with tremendous ferocity. We decided she needed to be sedated, and the vet expressed worry that, in her current state of breathing difficulty, the sedation might kill her. Fortunately, it didn't.

Upon reviewing the xrays, while I tried to stop my hands from bleeding, we discovered a very large mass in her chest. It was most likely a tumor. The mass was compressing her heart, lungs and trachea. It was then that the conversation went from objective to subjective. It was decision time. I made the tough call to Elizabeth to let her know that we needed to put Mika down. She changed course from heading to work to heading to the vet's office.

We waited for Elizabeth to arrive. We held Mika and said our goodbyes. Moments later, she was gone.

Mika led a very difficult life. She was a rescue cat from an abusive home. She's had one illness after another and a traumatic injury shortly after moving in with us years ago. She always bounced back. She was a fighter, and a very sweet cat in spite of her life's ordeals.

We'll miss her greatly.