Broken Heart

[Rosie]

To you believe that cats can die of a broken heart (must admit I don't). Just read this on another forum:


Notes: I won't give any names, but you should know my story. I was adopted by a guy for a Christmas present for his little girl. I was quite happy...until she went away to college. I was happy for 5 years when she left. Mom and Dad couldn't be bothered with me so they returned me to Elizabeth Lake Animal Rescue. They said I did nothing wrong, I was a good cat. They just didn't want me anymore. I was so upset, I quit eating. Depressed, I became very sick. Surgery to put in a feeding tube was done at the vet, but I was so sad that my family had given up on me, that I gave up on life. We at ELAR just hope one day that they read this and know what they did to destroy the will to live of this wonderful girl. Animals aren't disposable. They have feelings too. She died at least knowing we loved her, even if her heart was broken by the uncaring humans who had originally adopted her. She died less than 2 months after she came to us. No bad habits. Just didn't want her anymore. Well, they got rid of her all right, didn't they. Hope the daughter doesn't learn to solve unwanted problems like her parent did.

[Naomi]

I don't think they do. I do think that they can grieve but they move on, much like us.

[alexgirl73]

I don't know about this, I think it's possible but probably much more likely in dogs (after all, remember Greyfriars Bobby).

[smithdouglaswood]

I don't know either, they all have different personalities etc, so it could be possible!

Angie and the gang

[Mags]

They miss you but whether they grieve.....I'm not sure..:(

[Kim]

When our tortie girl, Mimi died, Tristan, our tabby missed her loads and definitely grieved for her, but he moved on. Not convinced they can die of a broken heart.

[Kazz]

Don't know I just don't know, Cleo desperately missed/misses Oscar but she has moved on as they say but there again her situation/routine and Me are just the same.
Whereas I think if for some reason Cleo or Oscar had been removed from me, the house and either Oscar or Cleo then not sure. Cleo took Oscar's death (although she didn't know he was dead as I don't think animals understand that)
very very hard. But remember Cleo was 23 when Oscar was PTS, a long long time. When they were younger they may have missed me/the routine but they would have been fine I would think.
Karen

[dandysmom]

A terribly sad story; don't know if I believe it, btt it might be possible. I do think that cats can recognize death, however. When Sultan had to be PTS at the vets, I made the mistake of not showing him to Misty before he was buried in the back garden. Misty missed him very much, all she knew was that he went away one day and never came back. So, she, who never walked on her lead much farther than the end of the block walked all over the neighborhood, sniffing the places where he's sprayed; did this for several days and then just gave up. When she died in her sleep, I made a point of showing her to Dandy and Patches so they could see she was gone. Dandy, who was very close to her, did not show any signs of grieving; he knew. Of course, this is just my experience..

[Booktigger]

I actually think they can, but wouldn't really call it a broken heart, more pining. They can stop eating when they are upset, and not eating for more than a few days is risky to their health. I am a volunteer for Cinnamon Trust, so get newsletters, and they use Homeopathic remedies on all animals that come in as their experience is that they can grieve and more for animals than humans, and if a close pal is poorly, they start it before their pal dies, to help them. For sudden deaths, they use them for 3-4 weeks.