I'm so sorry petslave.

Rest in Peace sweet Angel Tony.

What a terrible tragedy. I hope that you will be able to find peace and comfort in the fact that Tony did not suffer a long, lingering illness, but passed to the Rainbow Bridge to meet his beloved Mia and all of our other angels. I'm so, so sorry for your loss.

Godspeed, Angel Tony

cm5

OMG, Petslave, it was just like yesterday that Mia had gone and you and Tony were trying to find your new roles without her and now this. Oh, how sad. It is fortunate that he didn't have a long, drawn out illness, but to go so unexpectedly...

I know you cherished every day with him and much more so since Mia left. Just take comfort in that they're together again, playing in the sunshine. I do hope that the household dynamics can take these recent losses. Pets are so sensitive. You will all be in my prayers tonight.

{{{{Hugs}}}}

Thank you so much for all your kind thoughts and words everyone.  They mean so much to me.  I agree that if it was Tony's time to go, it was much better this way than losing him to months of illness.  But it is very hard to not have known, and had time to say goodbye.

With losing two cats to bloodclots in 1.5 months, I was worried my homemade food was lacking in some nutrient.  I added extra taurine after Mia died, afraid the brand I was using wasn't to full potency.  The vet said there was really no lack or excess of any nutrient that would cause bloodclots, other than taurine for the heart of course.  Still I'm concerned it might have been something preventable.  I'm so worried for the remaining 3 cats.

Tessa has been running around meowing a lot, so I think she's looking for him.  She's also following me around and demanding attention much more than normal.  And Rudi seems kind of lost without him too.  They played and slept together a lot. 

Ned, what a lovely Tony heart.  Thank you for making the little memorial for him. 

Petslave, the lack of taurine does not in and of itself cause or cure blood clots. This is not something you could have helped or caused at all, ever. Taurine keeps the heart in shape by affecting its elasticity. This is why those that lack taurine wind up with dilated cardiomyopathy. A cat's requirement for taurine is not that high on a daily basis and any commercial cat food is formulated with the minimum required but usually much more. If Tony had dilated cardiomyopathy, a blood clot would not likely have been the first sign of this illness. He would have had a tough time playing, would have been breathless when challenged and would have had a fast breath rate, he might have coughed frequently, may have had a noticeable murmur. I guess I'm saying there would likely have been signs. I also have to say that strokes aren't always caused by blood clots. Sometimes, it's a hemorrhage, and in that case, it would have been something like an aneurysm, which no one would have known about.

The only real means of detecting heart defects is with ultrasound and if you are concerned, then, by all means, take them in but please don't think that there was something that you did or didn't do that caused this. There's no harm in giving extra taurine for general support, but there's nothing out there that shows it cures anything other than dilated c. in cats.

I really hope the other two can find comfort in each other and the rest of the family. All you can do is spoil them and give them extra love until they, too, have grieved. I'm so so sorry.

ETA: I re-read your post and realized that you make their food at home. Still, you added taurine and probably more that their minimum requirement. There is also no other nutrient that can cause blood clots. Not even cholesterol works the same way in cats' hearts. Please don't blame yourself.

So sorry Petslave that your Tony has gone so suddenly. So sad

Today was a little better day - the sun was out and I tried to think of the good times with Tony instead of his final day.  When I think of him, I can feel his weight in my arms, his soft fur and the way he hugged my neck and rubbed my face with his.  I hope I never lose that feeling.  It feels like he's letting me know he's still here for me.

I feel so bad for Tessa.  She was almost frantic today, running back and forth between bedroom, laundry room and living room meowing for him.  She did that several times, about 20 minutes each time.  I tried holding her, but when I put her down, she would start up again.  He picked on her a lot, but they were together since birth so it must be really strange for him to be gone. 

Rudi is more stoic and withdrawn.  I put him in the garden today, alone, without his buddy that he used to run around with out there.  He just sat and stared into space for a long time.  Breaks my heart to see them grieving too.