Hi Paws
It sounds to me like you did what was best under the circumstances. It really would not have been good for either of you to prolong his suffering. I'm glad the vet could come & Help Woofa, first by easing his suffering & helping him to an easier death than he would otherwise have had.
& you were with him. That time you had at the end is so precious but, may I say, not more precious than all the good times you had with him.
I'm going to think of what a comfort he was to you when you were feeling low & unable to get yourself up & out of bed, but he'd come & be with you, even nudge you because he needed you.
Without really understanding, I think Mekitty did that for me, too, because no matter how much I might have preferred to stay in bed, to not summon up enough energy to get up & get her food or clean her litter tray, I had to. After I was up I would begin to feel better. Having her seem to appreciate my care for her was a big part of that improvement in my mood. There were many days that without her needing me, I could have stayed in bed all day, doing nothing, until i would need & absolutely have to get up to do something for myself, like get my own food or go to the toilet. It was as basic as that.
Even when your sister seems not to understand much, it seems she does understand how much Woofa's presence helped your mental health. I get that. too.
We go out of our way to care for them.
I know, I learned I can look beyond my own feelings & desires to look after & care for another, when I had Mekitty. So, I also was learning I can care for myself, just as if I was someone else (like Mekitty) in my care.
When we don't have caring for them to motivate us to get up & get doing something, we have to go out of our way to care for ourselves.
For now, it's too much to think about all of Woofa's things. Let them be, if you want, if you feel seeing them around feels like Woofa is in a sense, there.
Some things you can wash, maybe keep in special places.
For me, I found it difficult seeing Mekitty's things everywhere I looked, so I have a special place for some of the small things I kept. Other larger things, I thought, I'd like to think some other cat will enjoy.
I like your idea to have Woofa's & Big Ted's ashes beneath a new shrub. It' a lovely thing to do.
Hugzies
mmMekitty
