Ask Lemmy

I think it does if you know they're in a supportive loving home. We had two cats and they didn't get along but were happy enough if they got attention from us and we could separate the two of them if they were pissing each other off.

When our firstborn came along we knew that the cats would have a lesser quality of life as a result. They'd fight and be anxious, and we were snappy and sleep deprived too. I mentioned it to a guy at work and he said he and his new wife were keen to take on a cat. They spoiled that cat and gave her a better life than we could, and he kept us updated on her hobbies, health and that sort of thing. It made it easier for sure.

We moved house and the remaining cat had more space to play so he was happy. Lived til 18.5 years old and was given lots of hugs from our toddler over the years

The only thing that helps is time unfortunately. I had to put down the sweetest little guy a couple years ago to renal issues, and I still catch myself thinking of him from time to time. The pain never goes away fully, it just becomes less sharp over time. Instead of being heart breaking it's just a little sad to think about now.

The best thing is to grieve, and then when you're ready get a new kitten. The joy of having a new kitten to love will help a lot, at the very least you'll have your hands full for a while! Took me about a year or so to be ready, but everyone is different.

We had to re-home our cats because one of our kids was allergic. He was having a daily struggle to breathe, so we finally gave in.

One of the cats wasn't a problem. She was an adult, but she was small and looked like a kitten. Trouble was the other one didn't look like a kitten. He looked like a mountain lion. I was concerned no one would adopt him. No kill shelters wouldn't take him, and I refused to let him live out the last sad days of his life in a cage.

I was talking to a vet, asking her for ideas, and I told her I'd have him put down before I'd let him die in a cage.

She took both cats to their kennel and started trying to get them adopted. When a little girl wanted the smaller cat, she told her parents that they couldn't separate them, so they took them both.

That was about 20 years ago. I still feel terrible about it.

Of course, now the allergic son is loving with his girlfriend and they have three cats.

Time / you wait, like other grieving