Awwww, all warm mushy stuff!
I have two litter sisters. A grey tabby and a black/tan torty. The torty is tightly bonded to me and hates strangers.
The tabby doesn't know what a stranger is and just loves anybody that will pet.
17 years old now. I got them at 6 weeks old while single and going thru a very hard time.
Mommy was a parvo infected, as were her kittens so nobody wanted them. I got these two survivors home safe and gave adequate provisions then next day went to work. I got home after dark and -no kitties. I searched the house top to bottom and was feeling some pain of loss. I sat on the couch in the living room and cracked open a beer and as I sat back, out of the corner of my eye, I spotted two kittens sound asleep in a box of Puffs tissues -with only their heads sticking out of the opening!! It looked like a two-headed kitten!
Unfortunately, I did not have a camera but I did have a webcam, but before I could get everything together they woke up, climbed out of the box and the shot was gone forever.
-I would be a rich man if I had snapped a photo of THAT!
Sorry for the tearjerker that follows.
On day four, I got home from work and there was something terribly wrong. neither kitten wanted to eat or play. I did not have the money to make a trip to the vet. The knowledge of the parvo infection galvanized me into an internet search. I found what later turned out to be a nearly exact diagnosis and potential remedy. I spent my last $40 on a two-part antivirus from a farm supply house. I dosed both with this concoction and the next day had a marked positive response. I got paid the next day and bought another set of dosages. This clobbered the bug and both fully recovered. Sum kinda miracle, I reckon.
Fast forward to 2024.
The tabby has terminal cancer. Diagnosed about 8 months ago. The tumor is in her chin, under her tongue and she has lost two teeth. Vet sez she had about 3 months to live. Not doing too well today.
She cannot eat solid foods so we have been scrambling to creatively feed her nutritional liquids. Even then she has lost about 6lbs since the diagnosis. Tessa is one of the most loving cats I've ever had, so making a decision to end her suffering is frontal to me and, something I have never had to do before.
Except for being skinny and very picky with what food she will eat, we cannot tell she is sick. She displays no symptoms of pain and is never in a bad mood. She eats a couple tablespoons and takes a nap...rinse and repeat daily.
We had her to the vet yesterday. I was ready to let her go. My wife was not, so we are home again for what is likely to be the last weekend together.
Sorry if this is a downer. Such is life.
On the other hand, I have the Shari. She is healthy and has a distinct tortitude. I like it -most of the time.
She ignored and/or ran away from my wife for nearly three years before allowing her to touch her. Oddly, Shari LIKES to be roughed a little. I inadvertently raised her that way. My wife had to literally whop her (gently of course) to get Shari to defrost and accept. Now we are a happy family.
Except for Tessa, life is good.
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