Back in the spring of 2005 I found a sweet little fluffy black kitten in the neighbor's backyard the day after my brother brought in his sister. I brought him in, we cared for both of them, and they grew up to be amazing cats.
When he was about a year old, my brother's girlfriend's pet rat bit his nose and ever since then he had a chronic nose infection, but that never stopped him from being the best cat ever. He loved to cuddle, was always so laid back, even as a kitten he didn't play much but would rather cuddle and fall asleep on my lap. He gave the best headbutts, gave hugs when asked, would jump on my shoulders and rub all over me when I got back from work, would follow me around the backyard and if he lost sight of me would call out for me. He answered to his name, always used the litter box even if it was dirty, and was just the sweetest cat you'd ever met.
After our one cat, Snickers, died we adopted Sammie, who had recovered from a URI. Well she must've been a carrier after that because that's when he got really bad with his nose infection and the first time we thought we were going to lose him. He wouldn't eat and lost quite a bit of weight and wouldn't move. Took him to the vet and they gave him a couple shots and he got better, but never quite gained his weight back.
After that, he had to keep going to the vet for and antibiotic shot every couple of months to help his nose, but it stopped working after a while and gave him diarrhea that he never really got over. His nose would flare up, and I'd take him in the bathroom while I showered so his nose would get clearer. We wiped his nose multiple times a day, and as much as he hated it, he'd still be right there to cuddle and eat and play. He had a bad flea allergy and would start hiding when they started biting, but once we got flea meds on him he'd be fine again. Last one was a month ago, and since he was doing bad again we only gave him half a dose, and gave him one of Rei's B12 shots. He bounced back and was doing great, gaining weight, being active, eating, cuddling, being his normal old stubborn self.
Thursday he was happy and loving and eating, using the litter box, acting fine. Friday (9/6/13) I got home from work and after an hour asked if anybody had seen him. It wasn't even like I hadn't seen him in a long time or that he was acting strange that I wanted to make sure he was ok. I just must have had a feeling that something wasn't right. I checked under my mom's recliner and there he was. He had gone under there, fell asleep (with his eyes open of course which he did ALL the time and was such a deep sleeper you could pick up his head and let go and he wouldn't wake up) and cold and stiff. I couldn't believe it. My baby boy, who was fine the day before, was dead.
He had been through so much during his life, but he was only 8 and too young for this. All the times we thought we were going to lose him, and it was when he was seeming so good and gaining weight back that he went. For a cat who was sick almost his whole life, he was always acting so happy and loving. We all miss him terribly, but at least he's not suffering or being miserable anymore. We're also glad that he decided to go, because we were worried we'd have to get him put to sleep and if we had, we'd always wonder if it was the right time or not.
He will always be missed, and nobody will ever be able to replace him. We are keeping the male kitten from Sandy's litter though, who looks exactly like him and has that laid back personality like he did who his sister loves. It won't be the same, but he does help keep our minds distracted. And as my mom's one friend said, the kittens must be here for a reason.
RIP baby boy
When he was about a year old, my brother's girlfriend's pet rat bit his nose and ever since then he had a chronic nose infection, but that never stopped him from being the best cat ever. He loved to cuddle, was always so laid back, even as a kitten he didn't play much but would rather cuddle and fall asleep on my lap. He gave the best headbutts, gave hugs when asked, would jump on my shoulders and rub all over me when I got back from work, would follow me around the backyard and if he lost sight of me would call out for me. He answered to his name, always used the litter box even if it was dirty, and was just the sweetest cat you'd ever met.
After our one cat, Snickers, died we adopted Sammie, who had recovered from a URI. Well she must've been a carrier after that because that's when he got really bad with his nose infection and the first time we thought we were going to lose him. He wouldn't eat and lost quite a bit of weight and wouldn't move. Took him to the vet and they gave him a couple shots and he got better, but never quite gained his weight back.
After that, he had to keep going to the vet for and antibiotic shot every couple of months to help his nose, but it stopped working after a while and gave him diarrhea that he never really got over. His nose would flare up, and I'd take him in the bathroom while I showered so his nose would get clearer. We wiped his nose multiple times a day, and as much as he hated it, he'd still be right there to cuddle and eat and play. He had a bad flea allergy and would start hiding when they started biting, but once we got flea meds on him he'd be fine again. Last one was a month ago, and since he was doing bad again we only gave him half a dose, and gave him one of Rei's B12 shots. He bounced back and was doing great, gaining weight, being active, eating, cuddling, being his normal old stubborn self.
Thursday he was happy and loving and eating, using the litter box, acting fine. Friday (9/6/13) I got home from work and after an hour asked if anybody had seen him. It wasn't even like I hadn't seen him in a long time or that he was acting strange that I wanted to make sure he was ok. I just must have had a feeling that something wasn't right. I checked under my mom's recliner and there he was. He had gone under there, fell asleep (with his eyes open of course which he did ALL the time and was such a deep sleeper you could pick up his head and let go and he wouldn't wake up) and cold and stiff. I couldn't believe it. My baby boy, who was fine the day before, was dead.
He had been through so much during his life, but he was only 8 and too young for this. All the times we thought we were going to lose him, and it was when he was seeming so good and gaining weight back that he went. For a cat who was sick almost his whole life, he was always acting so happy and loving. We all miss him terribly, but at least he's not suffering or being miserable anymore. We're also glad that he decided to go, because we were worried we'd have to get him put to sleep and if we had, we'd always wonder if it was the right time or not.
He will always be missed, and nobody will ever be able to replace him. We are keeping the male kitten from Sandy's litter though, who looks exactly like him and has that laid back personality like he did who his sister loves. It won't be the same, but he does help keep our minds distracted. And as my mom's one friend said, the kittens must be here for a reason.
RIP baby boy
