Our cat died

We had a 17 year old Ragdoll cat who for a long time had been quite thin but seemingly happy and healthy. He used to spend time with us in the garden in the Spring and Summer and otherwise he had no other signs of issues. He was still able to run and chase things. Last week I gave him some worming cream, and the next day he was drooling excessively and seemed agitated. His eyes looked very odd and he just wanted to go to bed and not be touched. I thought he just needed some time to recover. I checked on him later on and he wouldn't wake up. He was breathing and twitching but unresponsive. Shortly after he passed away. Was this due to the wormer or was it due to other causes? I am very distraught at the moment and wish I had taken him to a vet sooner.

Hello!  I'm sorry to hear about your loss.  It's ok to be upset and normal to look for reasons; it is also normal to look for reasons to blame yourself.  The Ralph Site is an organization that supports people after the loss of a pet and is well worth an Internet search.  Of course, the frustrating thing is that we just don't know the answers to your questions.  First, I wonder what the worming cream is that you gave; whether the contents, dosage and method of administration were appropriate for that animal at that time and I have no way of knowing either way, but your vet can check it for your own piece of mind should you want to know. There are many causes of illness that cause slow weight-loss in the cat with a speedy decline at the end, including kidney disease, liver disease, diabetes, cancer, cardiorespiratory disease..... the wormer may simply have been co-incidental to that (just something different that happened, that you picked up on because it was different), or I suppose it may be possible that the physical fact that a tablet was given may have caused mild stress and tipped the balance with some unanticipated underlying condition.  Seventeen is a very respectable age for a cat but a sudden death is no less shocking or sad because of that; I hope that you can satisfy yourself as to what happened (can a vet perform a PM for you?) and that you have many years worth of memories to enjoy when you are ready to, perhaps now or in the future.

Here is The Ralph Site:  https://www.theralphsite.com//

(With apologies - reading back I said tablet and note that it was a cream, but the same thing may apply.)  

Finally, please take care of yourself at this sad time.  

thank you so much for your message. I will discuss with my vet what happened and see what they say about a PM. Your words have made me feel much better. thank you