Departed Friends
Percy & Possum
Percy and Possum, two beautiful gentle tabby cats, came into our
care after they had been locked out of their home on the death of
their owner. Percy was a large elderly cat, very dignified, and
Possum a dainty younger lookalike. They were obviously devoted to
each other. Their health check showed that dental work was
necessary. While Possum was under anaesthetic, a large aggressive
malignant tumour showed on the back of her tongue – in a week or two
her pain would be acute – letting her go peacefully was the only
kind thing to do. I could only be thankful that she had come into
care before suffering too much, but it was very sad and upsetting.
Percy came home but without Possum he became quite introverted and
depressed. Fortunately Rosemary saw his ad in the paper and came to
see him. His age did not deter her and off he went to a wonderful
home – he soon had his favourite chair and they became great
companions. He loved the tree and shrub filled garden and spent
many happy hours asleep under a bush. He particularly loved lemon
sole and at the first bite would purr like an engine! A few weeks
ago he was diagnosed with a brain tumour and as his condition
deteriorated without hope of improvement, Rosemary made the
difficult decision to let him go with dignity. She was with him to
the end. She misses him greatly but is content that his last years
were happy and comfortable. He was her friend.
MBO'C
Florence
Florence was born to a stray mother cat, Little Meep, in Co. Meath
in April 1980. There were five females and one male in the litter.
They were all lovely kittens and they blossomed with the devoted
attention of their mother. But sometimes one kitten is just very
special and it is impossible to let her go to a new home. For me,
Florence was that kitten.
Florence and her mother did not always get along very well. Meep
appeared to think that the other kittens had departed to their new
homes so why was this one still hanging around. She did her best to
chase Florence off - maybe she knew that, fully grown, Florence
would be a formidable cat. As a teenager, Florence behaved like
one. She stayed out all night, talked back to her mother, smacked
her granny, went rat-hunting. Eventually she calmed down and she and
Meep began to develop a modus vivendi. When we moved to Dublin and
lost Meep, Florence was devastated. By this time, Florence was
large, very determined and very vocal. She chased any visiting cats
out of the garden but was amazingly tolerant of the succession of
foster cats who came to stay temporarily while awaiting new homes.
Her philosophy was, if you ignore them completely, they will
eventually disappear. She remained dignified even when boisterous
kittens ran under her legs. She never minded sharing her food with
visitors even though she was an enthusiastic eater. She was the only
cat I ever knew who was willing to eat cheaper tins of cat food once
in a while.
She had her share of health problems. She tore the cruciate ligament
in her leg (she did this while attempting to attack a neighbour's
cat through their bedroom window!) and had to have surgery to put in
a plastic ligament. She suffered from recurrent cystitis and
eventually lost all her teeth - but she managed to eat well with her
gums. Three years ago, her younger companions, Mumtaz and Susie,
died within 24 hours, the former of cancer and the latter of kidney
failure. Florence then refused to eat. We took her to the vet,
nothing in particular was found, she was put on a drip during the
day and came home each evening. This went on for five days. It
seemed likely that Florence was about to die too - but, suddenly,
she began to eat again and regained her good form. I am quite sure
that her hunger-strike was grief at losing her friends.
In the last few years, Florence began to look her age. She got
thinner and forgot to groom herself. She lost her hearing. But she
retained an interest in everything that went on, played with her
catnip mouse, liked to go for little outings by car and was
particularly pleased to see any dogs. She continued to eat until the
day she died. One day, however, that spark in her was gone and she
just seemed tired out. We knew it was time to let her go and we said
our goodbyes to this dearest, most faithful friend of over 19 years.
MN
Nero
Nero the Hero, as many of you who possess his Cats' Aid t-shirt will
know, was simply the most wonderful cat in the world (well, I am the
editor and I can say what I like!).
He came to live with us when he was about 8 years old having been in
Cats' Aid care for the second time in his life through no fault of
his own and it was proving difficult to find a home for such a
relatively 'elderly' cat. When we went to Serpentine Avenue to
collect Nero and meet him for the first time we like to think that
it was love at first sight for all of us. He had some health
problems at first which were related to old injuries but once these
were sorted out he settled down to a happy and healthy life apart
from some joint stiffness.
Nero had a personality all his own and sometimes it was hard to
remember that he was really a cat. He seemed very wise and
intelligent and had some very human habits. He liked his food to be
warm with plenty of gravy and would give us the most withering look
if it wasn't just so. He would crawl over rabid dogs for white fish
but wouldn't touch salmon or tuna. He liked to sleep in the bed with
his head on the pillow and the covers up around his shoulders. When
we lived in a house with no central heating he slept on top of the
television and we got used to watching programmes with a long black
tail dividing the screen in half. Since we were frozen ourselves we
hadn't the heart to move him.
He was terribly affectionate and very gentle even with small
children who found him fascinating. He would suffer being petted and
stroked by them when they were admitted to his presence, all the
while giving us a look that said we would pay dearly for the
inconvenience. He could be a grumpy old sod. Even though both myself
and my husband have had many other cats in our lives from childhood
to the present day there really was something special about Nero
and, when the light is dim, we often think we catch sight of him in
his favourite places - on a shelf in the hotpress, on the windowsill
over the radiator, underneath a fold in the duvet. He died on
February 26th. as a result of a lung tumour, aged about 17, and we
won't see his like again.
JCC
Annie
Annie, You had a hard life, but you were a great little survivor.
Abandoned when heavily pregnant you took refuge in the garden of an
elderly lady who, while she never evicted you, did not allow you
indoors nor did she feed you; and because you were not spayed, over
the years you had many, many kittens. Without adequate nourishment
and care this must have taken a heavy toll on your physical
resources. When the home situation changed, Cats' Aid was asked to
help.
I first saw you sitting in the garden surrounded by about sixteen
cats and kittens - a fairly daunting sight! It took time but
eventually all were spayed or neutered, the kittens were tamed and
homed, the older ones returned. A daily food run was put in place
and for a couple of years all went smoothly. On the 18th. July last
year I noticed that you were off your food and looking poorly, you
had missed a couple of feeding times. By now we had a trusting
relationship and when I returned that night I was able to put you in
the basket and take you for veterinary assessment. The news was not
good, you had acute renal failure and your kidneys were very small
and hard. There was no question of your returning to an outdoor
life, so you then became an indoor apartment cat along with six cats
and two dogs! I thought you might have difficulty settling but you
were amazing. In a few days you were very much at home, the dogs did
not worry you at all and you treated the occasional hissing from
Jessie with the contempt it deserved. I remember when the big bold
Christopher played a little roughly with Mignonne, you walked over
and gave him a good cuff on the ear, an astonished Christopher shot
out with his dignity in tatters!
You found your own favourite places, in the latter weeks you slept
on a corner of the bed next to my left ear - I learned to sleep with
little movement, a body at my head and three others pinning my limbs
firmly. With good veterinary care and rest and the correct diet you
improved so much that I hoped that you would be with us for much
longer that had been thought probable but sadly this was not to be.
Last month you stopped eating, you responded well to being put on a
drip and returned home for three happy weeks, you were so content
and seemed to know that this was really home. And then you stopped
eating again. This time your body was too worn out to respond to
treatment and you became very ill, your suffering made it obvious
that it was time to let you go. I am so happy that you knew we were
with you at this important transition in your life. Annie, you were
loved and valued and you wove a unique and beautiful pattern in the
fabric of my life - as we say in South Africa "tot siens" until we
meet again, as I know we will.
MO'C
Daz
Daz, was a much loved, cosseted cat until the death of her elderly
owner. Unfortunately, no provision had been made for such an
eventuality so, at the age of 12, Daz was evicted from the only home
she had ever known, and left to fend for herself. The trauma she
must have experienced does not bear thinking about. She was
eventually rescued and was in foster care with a member of Cats'
Aid.
Daz found a wonderful new home with a kind lady in Delgany. She
settled in very well but sadly she did not have long to enjoy her
ideal accommodation and garden. Daz died of a kidney tumour only a
few short months later.
Alex
Alex was featured in previous Cats' Aid newsletters, particularly in
relation to his well-developed mothering instincts. He came into my
garden first in January 1994, a wild and pretty white and black
kitten of six months. So pretty and dainty was he that I was sure he
was a female. Caught and taken to the vet for spaying, his side was
shaved for the operation before the vet realised that, in fact, he
was male.
Alex loved other cats, especially his old friend Humphrey, but was
always fairly wary of humans. Humans never did him any harm but
visiting toms always did - if there was a cat fight in the garden,
Alex always got the worst of it and he had numerous trips to the vet
for treatment for cat bites and other injuries. Poor fellow, larger
and more aggressive toms seemed to see the word 'victim' emblazoned
across Alex's forehead. Catching him to take him to boarding when I
was going on holidays was something of a nightmare.
Alex moved to Co. Wexford while I was between houses and settled so
happily there that it was decided to let him stay. I'm so grateful
to Margaret Lynch for allowing him to spend his last 10 months
living very happily in her home and garden. He died suddenly in
October at the age of only six years.
MN
Angel, Ginger & Tom
One of the things that I remember about my childhood was "Angel" she was
our cat. She was a beautiful and very placid little lady. She had
kitten after kitten, one which we kept and named him "Ginger". Angel
was my playmate, my friend and my companion. She loved being petted
and rubbed. Angel died when I was 11 years old. Everyone said she
died of old age. We buried her in the garden. Even now 14 years on
when I pass that spot in the garden I think fondly of her.
Ginger was killed in a car accident after falling or being pushed
off a wall. He too is buried in the garden.
Tom was a tom cat that wandered into our garden (probably after
Angel) and he was a typical tom cat as was Ginger. He loved his food
and loved showing off. After Angel and Ginger died he seemed to go
off wandering again hopefully he found another home who would look
after him.
I have two cats now and sometimes when I look at them all the
wonderful memories come flooding back of Angel, Ginger and Tom.
There were wonderful pets and I hope they are happy wherever they
are.
NS
