- Joined
- Mar 16, 2016
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A couple of weeks ago, I had to make that terrible decision, and lost a lovely wee chap, Casper.
Casper and his rather bigger brother, Squizzy arrived as a team some 15 years ago. Casper was tiny: he was the runt of a litter of six ginger tabbies, and his bro, Squizzy who was rather bigger than Casper. Poor little chap, he must have had a real struggle to get any food at all, and we realised he had a slightly deformed chin, and that made it hard for him to eat. I am convinced that had we not had the pair of them at the time we did, Casper would have died a few days later.
Squizzy is very VERY vocal, and likes to make sure we all know where he is. Casper barely made a sound for the longest time, and when one day I heard a rusty, scratchy, Marge Simpson type noise... it took me a little while to realise that this was Casper, making himself known.
He turned out to be quite the smartest little beast I have known, and I have had cats, every one of them lovely, much loved creatures. However Casper, was the smartest. He worked things out, such as how to open cupboards, how to get things from people in a way that appealed to them. ie he seemed to recognise that each one of us responded to different overtures. But the one which worked on everyone was the one with the beseeching gaze, accompanied by a head bow.
This tiniest of cats ran the roost in this house. We have two far bigger cats, and Casper would walk right through the middle of them, ignoring them completely as tho they didn't exist. This took some guts and frankly, some seriously great acting skills! But his best, and most devious act was to sit on a table above them, and bat them on the head as they passed beneath him. Cats don't seem to look upwards to spot the foe, (or perhaps mine are dozy creatures!) and this would cause outrage and confusion. If he could have laughed at them, he would have done!
Casper has always been a bright little spark. Squizzy is a dozy, loving creature, who was totally content to love and cuddle around Casper. Neither of them ever bit or scratched me once. Bless the pair of them. A couple of weeks ago, the little man started with a cough, which became alarmingly wheezy. He was having real trouble drawing breath, and wanted to be in bed under my duvet with me. We went to the vet, and it became apparent that his lungs were filling up, and he just did not have the strength to cough, to breathe. The vet said it was likely that he had tumours on the lung. To sedate him was not an option, we decided as he simply would not survive. The three of us were with him, spent time talking to him, telling him how very much we loved him. I held him, and he went very peacefully, and in a loving atmosphere, with no fear.
I miss him, we all do.
Squizzy misses him
Fly little Casper, fly
I must say that the vet and the staff at St Clair's in Glenrothes, Scotland, were absolutely amazing. They kept us informed all the way, they are happy to be phoned at any time; and they sent us the most beautiful, thoughtful In Sympathy card. There was so much empathy, understanding, it helped us hugely.They are the same with everyone, every pet. So lovely to know that they care so much for the lovely friend you take to them for help.
I don't have many decent photographs of my wee man, so I post the one I posted elsewhere. It epitomises his wee cheekiness, his bright as a button character.
Casper and his rather bigger brother, Squizzy arrived as a team some 15 years ago. Casper was tiny: he was the runt of a litter of six ginger tabbies, and his bro, Squizzy who was rather bigger than Casper. Poor little chap, he must have had a real struggle to get any food at all, and we realised he had a slightly deformed chin, and that made it hard for him to eat. I am convinced that had we not had the pair of them at the time we did, Casper would have died a few days later.
Squizzy is very VERY vocal, and likes to make sure we all know where he is. Casper barely made a sound for the longest time, and when one day I heard a rusty, scratchy, Marge Simpson type noise... it took me a little while to realise that this was Casper, making himself known.
He turned out to be quite the smartest little beast I have known, and I have had cats, every one of them lovely, much loved creatures. However Casper, was the smartest. He worked things out, such as how to open cupboards, how to get things from people in a way that appealed to them. ie he seemed to recognise that each one of us responded to different overtures. But the one which worked on everyone was the one with the beseeching gaze, accompanied by a head bow.
This tiniest of cats ran the roost in this house. We have two far bigger cats, and Casper would walk right through the middle of them, ignoring them completely as tho they didn't exist. This took some guts and frankly, some seriously great acting skills! But his best, and most devious act was to sit on a table above them, and bat them on the head as they passed beneath him. Cats don't seem to look upwards to spot the foe, (or perhaps mine are dozy creatures!) and this would cause outrage and confusion. If he could have laughed at them, he would have done!
Casper has always been a bright little spark. Squizzy is a dozy, loving creature, who was totally content to love and cuddle around Casper. Neither of them ever bit or scratched me once. Bless the pair of them. A couple of weeks ago, the little man started with a cough, which became alarmingly wheezy. He was having real trouble drawing breath, and wanted to be in bed under my duvet with me. We went to the vet, and it became apparent that his lungs were filling up, and he just did not have the strength to cough, to breathe. The vet said it was likely that he had tumours on the lung. To sedate him was not an option, we decided as he simply would not survive. The three of us were with him, spent time talking to him, telling him how very much we loved him. I held him, and he went very peacefully, and in a loving atmosphere, with no fear.
I miss him, we all do.
Squizzy misses him
Fly little Casper, fly
I must say that the vet and the staff at St Clair's in Glenrothes, Scotland, were absolutely amazing. They kept us informed all the way, they are happy to be phoned at any time; and they sent us the most beautiful, thoughtful In Sympathy card. There was so much empathy, understanding, it helped us hugely.They are the same with everyone, every pet. So lovely to know that they care so much for the lovely friend you take to them for help.
I don't have many decent photographs of my wee man, so I post the one I posted elsewhere. It epitomises his wee cheekiness, his bright as a button character.
