To everyone who has reached out about Odin’s passing expressing their sympathy and love for him, it means the world to me. Loss of a loved animal, especially one you’ve raised, is heartbreaking and something no one can prepare you for.
I’m usually the last person to ask for help. It’s in my nature to get things done on my own, and to push through the difficult things. However, this past week has been one of the hardest I’ve ever experienced. Over the weekend my little fluffball of love, my sweet little babe Odin started showing signs that something was incredibly wrong. After rushing to the emergency vet it was discovered that his kidneys were in rapid decline to the point of almost failing. Almost overnight this sweet energetic cat that never left my side was lethargic, not eating, and visibly in pain. A normal vet visit is expensive in itself, but when it came time to decide if we could try to save him I bawled my eyes out at the thought of not being able to afford to save his life as $3000-3500 isn’t something I had to give. I couldn’t afford it but I still did it knowing I had to do anything in the world to make his quality of life better, as he’s done for mine all of these years. Credit cards are the worst but it was my only option to try to help him. Hospitalization, IV fluids, anesthesia and surgery to insert a feeding tube, and all of the medication later- we were hopeful that he would be able to make it through and possibly manage his kidneys for years to come. Unfortunately in the days following, Odin came in and out of being his old self, his vitals were improving, and then rapidly declined overnight. My heart is breaking, but I did everything I possibly could with the help of his vets to save him.
Making the decision to say goodbye will be the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do. I’m thankful he chose me in this life, and nothing will ever compare to the unconditional love that comes from your pets. No matter how old he got, he was always the baby, and I’ll miss him every day 😔💔
Anyone who got to meet Odin knew just how loving and sweet he was. Even the vets at the hospital all made a point to tell me how much they all loved him in his short time there, and stopped in to say their own goodbyes.
He came into this world fighting for his life, but I never imagined he’d leave so soon doing the same. Odin and his littermate/brother Onyx have been the center of my world over the last ten years. They came into my life unexpectedly when a litter of kittens, only days old, were found under a friend’s house sick and close to not surviving. I was nowhere near ready to be a cat mom, but these little guys landed in my life so I did everything in my power to get them healthy and keep them alive. They were so young that I had to learn to tube feed them, help them with kitty functions, and got them healthy again. I planned on having them adopted when the time came, but my heart was so attached to the two bonded brothers- my little tiger and his little panther, Odin and Onyx, I couldn’t imagine my life without them in it.
Over 10 years these boys never spent a day apart. Not a day went by that their cuddles, kisses, and silly antics didn’t make my day. People without pets might never understand the bond created in raising one, but those that do know how special that connection is. They treated me like mom and I gladly assumed the role. Onyx will be missing his brother, and I’ll forever be missing my little love Odin ❤️
