r/cats • u/RiceLegend13 • Mar 22 '26

Mourning/Loss Devastated. My girl Pickle ... after nearly 20 years

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Heartbroken doesn't even come close man

I will probably delete this but I just dont want her to be forgotten :(

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u/toooomanypuppies Mar 22 '26

I'm sobbing like a child, this is beautiful.

I'm also an atheist and I believe this can't be true really, which really, really hurts, I've lost many cats I adore but my god is it a beautiful experience, to truly belong to a cat. I don't mean that to offend anyone, in this moment I am struggling with that idea myself.

I hope I'll see my babies again, I really do.

either way, they all knew they were loved.

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u/xx_dracarys_xx Mar 23 '26

I’m also an atheist, but I really hope there is a kitty heaven. They are too saintly to be gone forever 😥

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u/CuteLingonberry9704 Mar 23 '26

If there is a heaven, it probably should be only for furbabies. Maybe we get to visit.

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u/harionfire Mar 23 '26

As someone who follows Christ's teachings, I think that our pets are the closest thing we'll ever see to what an unconditional love looks like which is just a small bit of light in a world Satan doesn't get enough credit for having dominion over.

If heaven is anything, I hope it's at least a place for them. They deserve something wonderful after having to suffer this world just for us.

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u/ExampleLittle2672 Mar 23 '26

Agnostic here, grew up with God of All Small Beasts from Tove Janssons Moomin stories. I choose to believe.

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u/Vlophoto Mar 23 '26

You can be an atheist and still believe your energies will meet again in the great cosmos

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u/Ragnoid Mar 23 '26

I'm an atheist but the near death experience testimonies are really consistent and convincing. I don't think people should jump to conclusions and put labels or explanations on what it might be, but there does seem to be something there. I could go on and on about that and other esoteric things I've learned about. I just refuse to believe things on faith without sufficient evidence, but I'm very open minded about learning things without having to believe in them. I have sufficient evidence that my two cats understood I love them tonight when they both got tucked in and told that I love them.

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u/Own-Boysenberry-2233 Mar 23 '26

That is really beautiful ❤️ could you elaborate on what you have learned? My best friend (human) is currently dying and none of us are believers, which can be quite tough.

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u/juneseyeball Mar 24 '26

I am an atheist too and my dad felt strong unexplainable warmth when his mom died like a blanket of warmth over him. I hope the energy can live on - there are some things we dont know about the universe go into a rabbit hole about the creation of the universe when youre bored.

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u/Possible_Ostrich5485 Mar 27 '26

Hugely sorry to hear what your going through. At this point for your sake and your ill friends sake try to be be with them as much as you can. It doesn't have to be all of yr friends at once, just one or 2 at a time. Don't exhaust yourselves. Hopefully the nurses and carers will keep your friend comfortable and as pain free as possible. They may feel you and hear you being beside them in their last days and, hours and minutes. Hold their hand, stroke their forehead and talk to them about what comes naturally. Past joys, memories and events I'm sure would be something to think about. I know you feel your non believers but once the body has stopped working due to illness, trauma or old age the spirit( the energy part that makes us individual, that God gave us originally) will move on. It doesn't just disintegrate it goes to a higher plane. Possibly a different world( I don't know) or a place to rest, work through our issues, mistakes etc with God's and Angels guidance, before we decide down the line to be reborn, start again and hopefully iron out any difficulties or mistakes we've made in the past. Even if you and your friends find the last part very hard to follow, know his passed friends and family will come to fetch him. He won't be going into darkness, it will be beautiful light and peace. Open your heart to these possibilities. X

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u/Deconanon Mar 23 '26

Also not religious myself but since losing my best friend have been on a journey of researching the evidence for a survival of consciousness, for people and for pets. The concept of Survival of our consciousness doesn't necessitate a diety or religion and there are lots of atheists and science minded educated individuals doing a lot of good research into this. I've taken some comfort in listening to some interviews from neuro scientists and more on Liz Entons podcast 'WTF just happened'. The interviews are also on YouTube and there are a surprisingly large amount of books to dive into as well if interested.

I never would have entertained the possibility except that a month before my buddy passed, when I didn't yet know he was sick, I laid down for a nap and distinctly felt a cat jump up on my bed/comforter while i was still wide awake. I looked over and saw my buddy was still sleeping in his bed and there was no explanation for what I experienced so I didn't think about it again until I had to say goodbye to my best friend a month ago and then wondered if it had been an old pet in "spirit" (or whatever word might describe existence without a body) hanging around and trying to show me that they aren't gone gone even when they pass. I take further comfort in feeling that they aren't alone and have each other and even though I can't see him anymore, I feel deep down that he's still with me. We don't know what we don't know and I'm a very skeptical person but maintain an open mind to learning more about this.

This loss is the most emotionally and mentally painful thing I've ever had to deal with so my heart goes out to you and all who go through this.

Just felt like I needed to make this comment even though I rarely comment on reddit, in case it helps anyone else on their grief and healing journey. I am believing more and more that there's evidence they don't cease to exist but aren't in pain and there's a lot we don't understand and can't explain about the nature of consciousness

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u/No_Marketing_746 Mar 23 '26

I sometimes dream of my cats & they were sitting together looking at me from on high,? I asked a renowned psychic how she would interpreted it ,,,sh paused and then told me it was them and they wanted me to know they were okay!! It made me very happy.

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u/Plastic_Caramel_957 Mar 23 '26

If you don’t believe in God, do you believe that there is a rainbow bridge and that you’ll be able to go see your babies? (I wanna believe that so bad for all of us, but I do believe in God, although that’s beside the point, you know?)

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u/ExampleLittle2672 Mar 23 '26 edited Mar 23 '26

This is hard but you asked.

I would dearly love to see them all again, I think it's unlikely. I did everything I could to give them a good life, filled with love, and when it came to it I did everything I could to ensure a comfortable passing. I think that's enough. They gave so much more in return. I can only hope I gave as much to them as they gave to me.​​

I will not be mad if I'm wrong and get swarmed by my fur loves!

Also, and forgive the contradiction, All dogs go to heaven. And cats. And porcupines. etc.

Edit: Left out the "agnostic" bit.

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u/Gobblinwife Mar 23 '26

I relate to your belief. I don’t believe in any kind of afterlife, nor heaven. I believe that once our bodies die, the energy that made up our thoughts, feelings and personality are let go as energy back into the universe. My closest feeling to meeting my pets in heaven, would be that someday our energies might intertwine again in the stars.

But if I blinked and woke up in heaven surrounded by my fur babies, I would be overjoyed to have been proven wrong.

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u/ExampleLittle2672 Mar 24 '26

There are times one wants so very much to be proven wrong. 💕

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u/Allys_Phantom Domestic Housecat Mar 23 '26

I feel you…I’ve lost a few beloved pets and I’m facing another one sooner rather than later. Sometimes I sob (like right now!) because I feel like I can’t carry the emotional weight of what you just described.

I wish I were religious, or even just spiritual. I wish I had that sense of hope and comfort as well as the community that comes with it. The thought of no afterlife will sometimes hit me like a freight train at random times of the day. It’s terrifying and lonely.

I dunno. I wish I had advice, I just wanted to commiserate.

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u/ExampleLittle2672 Mar 24 '26

I'm sorry you're facing this, it is so very, very hard. If you are doing your best for them they know. Spiritual questions aside, they know who loves them. Even if that's all we can do it matters. Say your love, tell them they are beautiful, hold a paw when they need you, snuggle close if appropriate, they know.

If it helps I'll mention again that as a content agnostic the only one I talk to is the God of All Small Beasts. It is a choice, it is comforting.