AlteredState, if I may... I read and re-read _Sky's response to you and maybe I'm wrong, but I truly don't think she meant what she said in a judgemental way.
Could you give her a chance to re-phrase what she meant?
But in the meantime...
I feel THE SAME WAY about thinning seedlings and flushing dead fish and squishing bugs and when a plant dies! Ha - I'm glad you brought this up - it's actually been a 'secret guilt feeling' of mine for years! Let me see -- other weird/frivolous guilty actions...
- cutting my hair, for some strange reason
- eating things that are fried, even if I feel NO guilt for eating the same amount of calories comprised of sugar and empty calories
- letting water run in the shower or sink while I'm waiting for it to get hot
I can't believe I'm admitting this stuff! Ha!
(and Domino - I'm very, very sorry about your cat. I had to put my cat of 17 years down a few years ago and I know how heartbreaking and, yes, guilt-inducing it is. I'd like to say that if we feel guilt about doing so, then it means that we probably were doing the right thing for them, as weird as that logic sounds

)