Ave Caesar MCMXC - MMV

I had to get my cat put down this morning. 15yrs old, black NZ shorthair. He had been off his food for a couple of days, then yesterday afternoon, he sudennly could not walk straight. Being a very active animal, I thought he may have just hurt himself hunting, as he had done in the past. Later in the evening, I found a very rotten discharge (or so I thought) on the underside of his neck. I called the vet and discussed the problem with him. We came to the conclusion that he had probably been fighting again and it was all due to an abcess and to bring him in this morning for a check over, possibly a course of antibiotics. Took him in, on initial examination, we decided that we would do a series of blood tests for possible kidney or liver failure and book him in later in the week for some dental work.
However, I was still a little concerned about his difficulty walking as a friend of mine has had a cat with pulled tail syndrome in the past, so I put him on the floor for the vet to watch him walking. That called for an immediate re-examination, leaving us with the conclusion that he was suffering from ataxia ( a loss of sense or control of his limb placement), probably due to brain damage, most likely brought on by a stroke sometime in the last few days and rapidly degenerating.
We spent some time discussing the various options, keeping in mind the probable protracted period of discomfort and pain compared to Caesers' projected future quality of life, especially given his advanced age. I took the decision to have him put down right there and then, while he could still recognise me and still purr.
I have brought him home to bury.