Loss is not easy for anyone to deal with, especially when it arrives unexpectedly.

After two weeks of dealing with the pain, Redditor u/BellaCiao042016 shared an honest and open story of how her senior cat wandered off to die alone.

“It wasn’t out of the ordinary for her to wander off for days at a time in my rural area but after 4 days I started to worry,” BellaCiao042016 posted. “I searched all around for her but I think it’s safe to say she’s gone. I had that cat for roughly 20 years so I can’t complain. It was a good run. Anyway, I guess I’ll see you on the other side when my own time inevitably comes. I just wish I could’ve buried you.”

Other redditors let BellaCiao042016 know that they are not alone, that this sort of thing is not uncommon when it comes to older cats facing the end of their life.

“I heard that the cats that really care about the owners tend to do that,” wrote u/CERCEful. “It was something related to not wanting you to have to deal with a carcass and endangering your place, so they chose to die away from your home, I keeping you safe at the same time. Which is real sad but I hope your cat comes back to you if it didn’t really die. But best wishes though. Sending good vibes.”

“Good cats come back in their spirit to protect and guide you,” wrote u/Travel_Dreams99 Just watch for him, he’ll be back, maybe to help you fall asleep.

It turns out, many have similar stories to share.

“My aunt’s very old cat did that,” posted u/Straight_Ace. “She was a very old cat and kept trying to get out of the house. When she finally escaped and was missing for a few days they went down to the woods part of their property and found her dead on the path to go down to the swimming hole they have.

“She was curled up peacefully like she just fell asleep and never woke up.”

157 points·8 hours ago·edited 8 hours ago
“My childhood cat did that,” shared u/jehlomould. “I had a water bed growing up and she slept with me every night, she loved the warmth. One morning I woke up and she was by the door to the spare room, which we always kept closed. I picked her up and put her back on my bed and covered her with a blanket, she was very weak and just gave me a sad look.

“I told my mom and she said that animals will do that sometimes when they are dying,” the redditor continued. “So we made up a comfy bed filled with her favorite little stuffed tiger, mom called the school and told them I wasn’t coming in and when we went to get her she was by the door again. We put the bed on the heat duct and I put her on the bed and said my goodbye. Checked on her about an hour or so later and she was curled up for the long nap. Buried her in the woods that afternoon.

“Hope see you again some day Sheena and the weirdo Sam,” jehlomould added. “Along with the best pups Bruiser, Zoey, Bonzai, CJ and Pal.”

“My cat was suffering from cancer and anemia this year as complications from feline leukemia from when she was a stray,” wrote
u/arwynn1. “I noticed her symptoms getting bad, and the night before the vet she snuck into a crack in the wall, found a garbage bag in a corner of an attic I never use, and snuck her way into the bag. I took her out and got one more happy month out of her via blood transfusion, but she did end up passing. She was my best friend. :(”

My cat did that, but i didnt know that it was because she cared about me that much,” commented ComradeBramlin1

Whatever the reason BellaCiao042016’s wandered off, it’s clear that the cat loved her human, and a human loved their cat. And plenty more, too. Within 20 hours of being shared, the post had garnered 385 comments and 10,400 upvotes.