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I had to have one of my cats put down last Tuesday.
I've had four cats since 2008. A stray had kittens in the yard and I just couldn't leave them to the elements so I took them in after the mother disappeared. They all hid in the house's basement for a while until they got accustomed to the house... It took a while, but they settled in and it became home.
(the mother did come back a few months later, with another littler... she was almost feral, but I was able to catch her and them and get them to the SPCA)
I live with my mother (she's a senior and someone needs to take care of her, she's in her 90's now). Dad died in 2008.
Of the four, Charles was the last one to really warm up to us. The others always get close and nuzzle, sit next to you until you scratch their ears, or just jump and lie down on you, but Charles was the hold-out. After a few years, he figured out he could lay on my legs on the couch and get warmth, so every day when I got home from work, he'd wait for me to sit on the couch and jump up by my feet.
Charles was always the first one in the kitchen when it was time to eat, though, front and centre. He'd get his food, then he'd inspect everyone else's in case they were getting something else he liked. Big eater, never got fat.
Last year Charles had to go to the vet for a urinary blockage, and he wasn't the same after that. He had the special food to help keep his pipes working, but after a while he started hiding in the basement. He wouldn't come upstairs unless it was time to eat, then when he was done he went back downstairs.
About a month ago Charles had a seizure. After that it was like he would drift in and out of awareness. Sometimes he'd be the same, sometimes it was like he shut down. I'd place food in front of his nose and he wouldn't see it. When he moved, it looked like he was in pain. When I tried to pet him, he'd meow lowly, like it hurt.
Last Monday he stopped eating. I decided he had suffered enough. I was able to get him to the vet and he went to sleep for the last time.
The others are kind of aware that Charles isn't around. They look for him when it's breakfast, and they lay in the places he laid when they can't find him.
I find myself looking for where he's sleeping when I walk into the basement, I can almost imagine seeing his eyes staring back.
Charles 2008 - 2023
(side note: the other cats are Oscar, Mambo, and Skittles. We are ALSO taking care of my sister's cats, Peanut and Buddy, because she went to school for six months four years ago...)
I've had four cats since 2008. A stray had kittens in the yard and I just couldn't leave them to the elements so I took them in after the mother disappeared. They all hid in the house's basement for a while until they got accustomed to the house... It took a while, but they settled in and it became home.
(the mother did come back a few months later, with another littler... she was almost feral, but I was able to catch her and them and get them to the SPCA)
I live with my mother (she's a senior and someone needs to take care of her, she's in her 90's now). Dad died in 2008.
Of the four, Charles was the last one to really warm up to us. The others always get close and nuzzle, sit next to you until you scratch their ears, or just jump and lie down on you, but Charles was the hold-out. After a few years, he figured out he could lay on my legs on the couch and get warmth, so every day when I got home from work, he'd wait for me to sit on the couch and jump up by my feet.
Charles was always the first one in the kitchen when it was time to eat, though, front and centre. He'd get his food, then he'd inspect everyone else's in case they were getting something else he liked. Big eater, never got fat.
Last year Charles had to go to the vet for a urinary blockage, and he wasn't the same after that. He had the special food to help keep his pipes working, but after a while he started hiding in the basement. He wouldn't come upstairs unless it was time to eat, then when he was done he went back downstairs.
About a month ago Charles had a seizure. After that it was like he would drift in and out of awareness. Sometimes he'd be the same, sometimes it was like he shut down. I'd place food in front of his nose and he wouldn't see it. When he moved, it looked like he was in pain. When I tried to pet him, he'd meow lowly, like it hurt.
Last Monday he stopped eating. I decided he had suffered enough. I was able to get him to the vet and he went to sleep for the last time.
The others are kind of aware that Charles isn't around. They look for him when it's breakfast, and they lay in the places he laid when they can't find him.
I find myself looking for where he's sleeping when I walk into the basement, I can almost imagine seeing his eyes staring back.
Charles 2008 - 2023
(side note: the other cats are Oscar, Mambo, and Skittles. We are ALSO taking care of my sister's cats, Peanut and Buddy, because she went to school for six months four years ago...)
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