natural cat death

Question
I'm not sure if you are the right person to answer this but I'll give it a try...
On May 5 my 11 yr old Flame Point Siamese died at home without euthanasia. He had apparently been suffering from Feline Leukemia but had only been sick for the past week.
(refusing to eat and lethargic)
Even my vet was surprised at how fast he went.
This is my first experience of having an animal die and I find it devastating!!! One thing that I can't get out of my mind is my cat's behavior at the end. For the last 5 minutes he was struggling to be free from our arms but couldn't walk so we held him. His eyes were open wide and he looked terrified. He yowled very loudly several times and before he took his last breath he screamed. The previous 12 hours were calm with slow deterioration and changes in breathing but I was in no way prepared for this end. So my question is have you ever seen this before? What was happening with him? Other people tell me their cats just faded away although my vet says this can happen. Do you or does any one have experience with this way of passing?
Thank you for your time!

Answer
Rebekah,

I am so sorry for your loss.

It IS devastating to lose a companion of so many years.  One of the problems with having pets is we tend to outlive them.

When cats encounter situations they do not understand, they often have a flight/fight reaction.  I believe this is what you were encountering.  Couple that with the pain your cat must have been in at the end, the reaction is not so surprising.  Some cats die quietly, others fight it tooth and nail.

What you experienced with the rapid degeneration in your cat's health is referred to by our vets as "crash and burn".  In certain diseases, where the immune system is gone and the organs are shutting down, this rapid deterioration is not uncommon. Even though the cat had been fading for quite a long time, cats are very stoical, and it is not uncommon for cats to seem OK and suddenly show outward signs of the disease in their last week or two of life.

I know none of this can make you feel any better on your loss, but I hope it helps explain things.

Sad regards... Norm.