The rest of the gang...

Lorina · 01-23-2007, 12:14 PM

Gracie was a kitten I fostered while I worked at the SPCA. They only adopt out altered pets, so unless someone is able to foster underage kittens and puppies, until they're old enough to be spayed or neutered, they would be put to sleep. Gracie was about two weeks and 8 ounces away from being old enough. She was a very lucky girl. Just the day before, I'd picked up a large cage at a flea market for the purpose of fostering (something to keep them safe from my other cats when I wasn't home). Once I named her, it was all over, even if I wouldn't admit it. That two weeks stretched into three, then four, and by then, I was too attached.

Here's a picture of her as a kitten, and a more recent one. Her nickname is Fat White Lump (also a Mike Judge reference).

Gypsy was a feral stray 6-8 month old kitten living under my neighbor's porch. I spent two weeks outside during a very cold January bribing her with food and talking to her trying to win her trust so I could catch her. Once I did, she hid inside the walls of my basement for almost a week. Now, five years later, she's still more skittish than a normal cat, but she's a lovebug. She lays in my arms and purrs and drools on me. She has a two foot long green fur toy snake she carries around everywhere, like Linus and his security blanket. She also sits in the front window and stalks the mailman.

Lorina · 01-23-2007, 12:17 PM

And last, but certainly not least, my beloved, dearly departed 18 year old Sheba, who died of heart failure two months ago today. I had her since I was sixteen years old. First one is her about three years ago, and the second is from this past May.

Tess&Coco · 01-24-2007, 06:16 AM

Lovely puss-cats, Lorina. The first photo of Gracie is adorable! You must miss Sheba a lot. Do the other cats miss her? We used to have two, brother and sister, and the male (Goerge) died a year last October. For months after, Florence would take some pieces of food into the hallway and miaow and miaow loudly, which I took to be her calling her brother to eat. Heartbreaking! The only previous experience I had of that behaviour was with their mother who could clearly count her babies (she had 5 originally) as she would call them to her to feed, and stop mewing when they were all there. One died, and when she called them to feed she would not stop when the four remaining kittens had come. Has anyone else observed this in cats? Or dogs??

Lorina · 01-24-2007, 08:56 AM

Sheba was kind of a bully.

Very bossy. Didn't exacly "play well with others." That's one thing I loved about her, but I'm not sure the other two miss her all that much. Even the day before she died, Sheba jumped up on the bed and smacked Gracie in the head to chase her off. Gracie weighed close to three times as much as Sheba, but the old gal was still the boss.

Gypsy seemed a little mopey for a while after Sheba died. She was always weirdly protective of Sheba, even though they were never buddies. If I had to clip Sheba's nails or give her medication that made her complain, Gypsy would run up and bite my leg. Then again, that could be, "I don't know what you're doing to her, but I'm not going to be next!"

I do miss her a lot, but as I've said elsewhere, grieving for Sheba is a lot easier than the worry and helplessness I felt when she was sick. There were a lot of touch and go moments during the final six weeks when her heart problems were first diagnosed. She'd be stable and doing great, then go downhill and scare the poop out of me until her meds were adjusted, then she'd do great again. All in all, I'd say she had 18 great years and maybe, if you added up all her bad days over her lifetime, the equivalent of two or three bad weeks.

Tess&Coco · 01-24-2007, 09:01 AM

It's so hard when they're ill. I can sympathise with your feelings of helplessness. It's so hard not being able to explain to them that you're trying to help them. Good for you for looking at her life with you so positively. Pets are the best!