I sent her to Rainbow Bridge a week ago and today I received her ashes in mail. Words cannot express the pain of losing two of my most faithful companions within weeks of one another. My family feels incomplete, my house empty.

For those of you who know anything about Mouse you know she may have been a little kitty (at her heaviest she was only 7 lbs), but she had a BIG attitude… and it is that attitude that I will miss most.

Rest in Peace Missy.

Mouse
Spring 1992-June 10, 2010

In January, Scooter was diagnosed with Chronic Renal Failure (CRF) and Feline Hyperthyroidism. Both CRF and Hyperthyroidism are terminal (normally) age-related illnesses. Scooter would have been 15 years old this coming August.

Caring for Scooter during this stage of his life was probably one of the most difficult things I have ever had to do. Unlike Mouse, Scooter did not respond well to the hyperthyroid medication and we had a very difficult time stabilizing his CRF.

CRF is a horrible, wasting disease. When he wouldn’t eat even the most delectable things I offered, I watched my once 15 pound cat wither away to 5.3 pounds and I knew that I could not let him suffer any longer.

As I drove him to his final veterinary appointment this morning, I repeated these things to him:

You will not be sick anymore.
Soon you will see Harley again.

And I repeated these things to myself:

He won’t be sick anymore.
It’s right and it’s the humane thing to do.

And it was.

Rest in Peace My Love.

Scooter
August 1995-May 21, 2010

When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to Rainbow Bridge. There are meadows and hills for all of our special friends so they can run and play together. There is plenty of food and water and sunshine, and our friends are warm and comfortable. All the animals who had been ill and old are restored to health and vigor; those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again, just as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by.

The animals are happy and content, except for one small thing: they miss someone very special to them; who had to be left behind. They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly stops and looks into the distance. The bright eyes are intent; the eager body quivers. Suddenly he begins to break away from the group, flying over the green grass, his legs carrying him faster and faster. YOU have been spotted, and when you and your special friend finally meet, you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again. The happy kisses rain upon your face; your hands again caress the beloved head, and you look once more into the trusting eyes of your pet, so long gone from your life but never absent from your heart.

Author Unknown

I think I will go for the Kodak moment… happy dance tomorrow.

Where am I supposed to sleep?!
Originally uploaded by blondelibrarian

Right from the start Olee was an itty bitty kitty with a big attitude. When she was about three months old, on the day that I was packing up my grandpa’s pick-up truck to head to my first day of college, she came out of the field next to the house dragging her back-end behind her. Upon closer examination I discovered that one of her back legs was torn up and bloody. She had been caught by a mower.

My dad offered to “take care of her,” and for those of you who grew up or live in the country, you know what that means. On the farm animals may be pets but they aren’t necessarily something one gets attached to because unforeseen things can and do happen all the time. I balked at Dad’s offer and instead put moving day on hold for a few hours and called my local veterinarian.

A couple of hours and a consultation later it was decided: Olee’s leg was torn up too badly to save. Unless I wanted to take Dad up on his offer, her leg would have to be amputated.

And so Olee became a terror on three legs. We called her “Hop Along Cassidy” and “Tripod.” She stayed at home while I was away at college and became Mom’s baby. Although we tried to keep her inside, she would not be confined. She moved to town with Mom after her divorce from my dad and loved to climb the trees in her new front yard. Soon after the move, the little three-legged fiend caught a bird in one of the neighbor’s trees and was thereafter considered a menace to the neighborhood. Olee bullied my mom’s other cats into submission and was undoubtedly the three-legged, four-pound queen of the house.

Sadly age began to catch up with Olee and her health started to decline. She had a stroke over the weekend and this afternoon she crossed over The Rainbow Bridge. Rest in peace Olee. You will be missed.

I have been having a problem with Scooter and inappropriate elimination.

I don’t really understand it either. There have been times in the past when he has urinated where he isn’t supposed to, but every time that has happened he was stressed about something.

But this time it is different. Over the past few weeks he has started defecating outside the litterbox for no obvious reason. He isn’t doing it all the time so the first thing I thought was that I was lax in changing said box. However, last week he did it on the same day that I changed the litter so I eliminated that explanation.

He is eating and drinking fine and doesn’t seem sick. His “deposits” are the right color and consistency; he is just leaving them where he isn’t supposed to. I suppose it could be medical, but he has never had urinary problems like a lot of neutered male cats. He is getting older though so I suppose it wouldn’t hurt to take him to the vet.

However, I suspect it is behavioral. I just wish I knew what set him off…