Well, it turns out that Savannah has most likely had some sort of bone disease or cancer for a while.  Her 5th verterbra was compressed--it was going upwards instead of going in a straight line.  This is very, very unusual for cats.  Also, our vet detected that one and maybe two of her ribs appeared to been broken at some point and now have healed. (No, we have not been beating our cat.)  We have no idea whether there are other broken and healed bones---whether this was a generalized thing, or some sort of cancer focused on her back and ribs.   

Because of these symptoms and the diabetes and the lung disease, even if we could fix her (via spinal surgery with a specialist), she would not likely stay healthy for long. 

What amazes me is that for most animals and, to be honest, most people, any one of these illnesses would have sent them to bed to whine about how awful life is.  However, Savannah has been the most active she's been in years and was by far the dominant animal in this house.  Even the dog knew not to mess with her.  I believe in the power of positive thinking for health in humans.  I hate to sound lame (but I often do!), but I think she's a good example of the power self-esteem for health, too. 

Dave and I were with her at the end.  We held her head in our hands and gave her all the kitty smoochy lovin's she liked (until she got frustrated and whacked me in the face with an IV laden paw).  If you have David Sedaris's book Me Talk Pretty One Day, check out the chapter  "Youth in Asia."  We read it out loud when we came home and laughed and cried and were very glad that someone else is weirder than we are. 

8:41:26 AM