I'm so sorry for your loss.  As with humans, different cats grieve
differently, but I would expect them to probably ease up in a couple
of weeks ...

I wouldn't necessarily expect a new dog to alleviate their loss.  They
may not have at all the same feelings for a new dog as for Molly.

Purrs for the kitties to feel better soon. I think you just have to wait it
out and do what you are doing?

Purrs for you and the girls, I will light a candle for Molly. :-(

{{{{Rosie}}}}, I am so sorry for your loss.

I can't tell you how long it will continue, since I think it depends
on how close they were to Molly, and when they will realize she is not
coming back.  For now, just keep their routine the same as much as
possible, and maybe just sit down and tell them about Molly.

Way back when at a point where I had only two cats (hard to
believe!!!), one of them, Tiki, died, at 19 years old of CRF.  Cosmo,
the remaining cat, was clearly bereft, which was strange, since Tiki
hated all other cats she ever lived with, but Cosmo adored Tiki.
Cosmo moped around all day and would barely come out to eat.  By the
third day, I simply said "We are going to get another cat NOW."  And
we adopted Internet, which promptly brought Cosmo out of his grief,
and helped ours as well.

Ginger-lyn

Home Pages:
 http://www.moonsummer.com
 http://www.angelfire.com/folk/glsummer (homepage & cats)
 http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~summer/index.htm (genealogy)
 http://www.movieanimals.bravehost.com/ (The Violence Against
                        Animals in Movies Website)

Our pets have usually grieved for a couple of weeks when there is a loss.
And it usually changes the dynamic of those left behind.

Jo

Our deep condolences for your loss. It sounds like Molly was a
grand girl. Purrs for the surviving girls.

So sorry for youor loss, Rosie.

I'm very sorry for your loss. I had to have my Frank PTS in December at
age 18, and I think Miranda still grieves him. Sometimes she just walks
around calling and calling and nothing I do can calm her down. They were
together for less than a year, so I'm surprised at this, but she seems
to have bonded strongly with him in that short time. Sorry I can't help
you, but we're ending lots of purrs for your cats to calm down.

I'm not a bit surprised...

My mother had a dog, a miniature poodle named Bozer, who when I brought my
Fritzie home (over twenty years ago, I am SO FREAKIN' OLD!!!) was in his
own autumn years and was built kind of cylindrical, like an overstuffed
kielbasa. Bozer was an overall friendly dog to all but the mail carrier and
my father, loyal as a soldier to my mother, friendly toward me, and he
liked cats. He was proof that cats and dogs are not natural enemies. My
mother told me of an old wives' tale from Eastern Europe that, if you want
a dog and cat to get along, especially if one of them's a kitten, put Kitty
on the dog's back. I knew I'd better do it or Frances wouldn't give me
peace. And damned if it didn't work--Fritzie and Bozer took to each other
like you wouldn't believe! They ate together, slept together, and had this
cowboy game where little Fritzie would run behind Bozer, hop on his back
and ride him.

Poor Bozer died of liver failure after three days of horrific suffering. I
was 19, no job, no cash, no car, living out in the sticks. The bastard
referred to as my father would *not* take that dog to the vet and do the
right thing. Because he and Frances didn't get along, he wanted her to hear
the dog scream. Is it okay if I call this man a bag of sh.t here, or is
this a family-friendly group? Twenty years later, my husband and I both
have to deal with the nightmare of those three days. Even Fritzie, who was
very bold, hid with his fur fluffed out like the Pink Panther coming out of
a clothes dryer. Ugliest sound I ever heard, that poor dog screaming. When
he died, Fritzie spent weeks looking for him, poking in all the places they
used to sleep together, sitting by the dinner dish, looking lost. He never
slept again in any of the spots where he slept with Bozer.

In his last four years with us, Fritzie developed an odd sense of a dog in
his last days. He always knew, and would go and rub up on the sick dog in
the waiting room at the vet office. Even on the day we put my first dear
cat to sleep, he heard that horrid sound of a pain-stricken, screaming dog,
and tried to run to him, even on his weakened legs.

Blessed be,
Baha

Your family, including the cats, is behaving normally. Let the little ones
have their grief, they need time just as much as the two-legs do. Thinking
of our long-gone Bozer brought back so much...I'm so sorry about Molly; and
so glad that you did the right thing by her and gave her the peace she
needed. Lots of rumbling purrs coming to you, for a gentle walk to the
other side for dear Molly, and healing for you and some very confused
little friends of hers.

Blessed be,
Baha

Lots of purrs and hugs,
Polonca and Soncek