it breaks my heart...

Last night we had to tell our oldest that we will be putting down our cat, Chiru.  He is 15 and has led a good life but his health has very slowly deteriorated to the point that we don't want him to be in pain(and he is making a mess everywhere).  A is very attached to the cat, who follows her to bed and snuggles with her until one of us comes up to tuck her in.  He loves her too.  The bond between them is very strong and I'm sad that this is breaking her heart.  Last night was their last night of snuggles and I'm in tears just thinking about what tonight will bring.  I had a cat when I was a child...we called her mama cat.  She lived a very long life but she was an outdoor cat (17 years).  One day she just didn't come home.  To this day my mom hates the thought that she died somewhere without anyone, all alone.  I've had dogs die, fish die, cats die and now I have to watch my oldest deal with it.  It SUCKS! Mr. C doesn't have a cat connection ( In fact he's not a big pet fan).  Little miss A doesn't really know what this means.
The tears are flowing from the oldest people in the house.  I'm sad for A, sad for John and I'm sad for me.  You will be missed Chiru.