advice on my cat

Question
My cat is 14.  The vet has just diagnosed him with end-stage renal failure.  He said that his kidneys are working at about 10%.  He has been giving him fluids but it soesn't seem to be making a difference.  In your opinion, should we bring him home to die, in which case how long would it take, or should we have him put to sleep.

Answer
Hi Joni.  I am so sorry you are going through this.  Renal failure is the number one cause of death in elderly cats.  Within the past 4 years, I have lost 3 cats from renal failure.  I can't tell you what to do, but I can tell you what I did.
The first of my cats to pass away from renal failure, was my beloved, demure, loyal companion, Jinxi, a siamese cat.  When I found out, I figured that I would take care of him, nurse him and be with him through the entire thing.  One morning, I woke up at 3am to him screaming in pain.  He died on the way to the ER vet, and I felt so guilty.  He was such a proud and royal being, I felt as though he had left this world with no dignity.  When I found that the second cat had renal disease, I kept him with me at home, until he started to seriously decline.  He stopped eating, was hanging over the water bowl, ect.  I took him in to have him put to sleep, and it was so very peaceful for him. I did the same with the third.  Although it's a very hard and personal decision to make, euthanasia is simply an overload of anesthesia.  The animal literally just goes to sleep.  There is no crying in pain, just relaxation and peaceful passing.  
Like I said, I can't tell you what to do because this is such a personal decision, but I can tell you this; It takes a very long time to die.  It can take days.  It's very heartbreaking to see a pet you love like that.  When they are at that point, it sometimes is a whole lot easier on both us and them to peacefully put them to sleep.
I wish you the best of luck and all the comfort in the world.
Hang in there.  Whatever decision you make will be from your heart with your babies best interest in mind...that will make your decision the right one, whichever decision you make.
I'll be thinking of you , and please keep me posted.
Hilary