This made me very teary-eyed. It reminded me so much of our last hours with Gus. We had scheduled for him to be put down on a Friday AM (he'd suffered a stroke and over the course of just a few days went from a vibrant middle-aged cat to an invalid with no control over his bladder and unable to walk). The night before his appt. he suddenly had a burst of energy and was up and around more, so we let him out of the bathroom (where we had been letting him live in his final days, since we were afraid that he'd fall down stairs or urinate all over).

Sometime in the wee hours of the morning he passed. When we woke around 7 he was still a bit warm. Before I found him I somehow knew...it's part of that 6th sense connection we have with some of our furbabies.

It sounds like Mils needed to live-it-up in his last hours, too. He must have known that it was time to say goodbye. He had a special meal with you and then felt compelled to be alone and in the wild during his final hours. I am certain that his passing was peaceful and painless for him.

(((TrekJeni)))