RIP to your sweet kitty love. Thank you for this invitation to share our animal loves. Someone I used to work with called her feline her cat husband.
My kitty babies, Ginger and Max. Ginger is a spicy tortoiseshell neuro-spicy girl. She has selective hearing. She is fiercely boundaries and protective of us. When I'm not okay, she instinctively feels it and comes to hold space.
Max is a sweet British Bombay black cat with green eyes who is the best of cats. The first time we brought him home, he had found the food, water, litter box and tamed Ginger within 15 minutes. He has a deep tenderness to him, and whenever a male contractor comes into the house, he hides in the closet. Bless.
Today is the anniversary of the marriage that officially ended last year. My two sweet kitties are with me, and are such a gift.
Fluffy, a fine orange and white domestic long hair. Was a present my dad picked out from the local shelter. I was starting middle school, and just moved to California from 3 years of living with my grandparents in Beijing.
Fluffy was really more a family cat than “my” cat. He was always at home waiting, hearing about the bad days at school, the first friend I made, my first crush, graduation, college, and many more. He was also there when my dad fell sick, and he was there on the night he passed away.
If Fluffy had to choose, my dad was probably his favorite person. So when Fluffy crossed the rainbow bridge after an adventurous 16 years with us, I was sad but also a bit relieved. That both Fluffy and my dad would see each other again. 🌈
From the moment we met (he was 5 weeks old; I was 22) I was his, and he was mine. He was almost always a very good cat. When he was ten years old, he got very sick. It turned out to be cancer. There was only one thing to do, which was help him over the Rainbow Bridge. I still miss him sometimes.
Missing my dog Lieke every day, since her passing on July 27, 2017. She was my first dog, she came to me almost as a gift from heaven: a mistreated dog of 6 years old , rescued from a hunter in Spain, like so many Galgo Espanols, she was mistreated badly. they are being left alone in the countryside , or hung in trees , killed on gruesome other ways. So to give her a 'second' life is a gift in itself. save at least the life of one dog. The trust I gave her , was returned by her. That a being so mistreated could really trust a human being again was almost unbelievable to me. Our bond became so real and unforgettable, the bond between us so strong . She learned me how to love ,to trust and to take care for another being. To overcome the selffishness . She learned me to center at one place, not to flee from everything and to hunt for a new experience, but to feel comfortable at home cause everything of Worth and Truth was right there where I was, where she was, the wonderful togetherness of Us. Even we didn't have a place to call a home of our own, we created a place in an old anti-squat farmhouse, actually we lived in a lot of places, even in a van on a campsite for a year or so. Always very close to nature, in the six years we shared our life together. We walked in the forest almost every single day, close to the rythm of the seasons as we didn't even have proper heating in the house we were living the first year. But despite of all the material inconvenience, I felt that strong connection with everything, nature, life, her, us and last but least the connection with myself. I was wondering : "Did I save her life or did she save mine?" In the end it didn't matter. Giving is the other way of receiving when the gift is selfless. Without the intention to get something in return. Maybe that's the underlying teaching she gave to me. A comfortable home or not, the feeling of belonging somewhere was so strong with us being together. Never ever experienced such a strong bond with another being on earth before and maybe I will never experience an equally strong & special bond with another being again. I will never forget her, never forget Us. She is in my bones and in every heartbeat she resonates, since my hand touched her heart when it ceased to beat at the very day I had to let her go. So beautifully sad. She will always be with me. Her ashes are on the fields where we wandered together in the last year we spent our life, in the gardens and the forest that approached our house. It almost felt like a paradise there , it truly was a paradise to us. The place is now truly gifted with the beautiful power of her soul. After her passing away I felt like a wandering soul myself for a while cause I had to leave that place a year after her passing. She is Forever and Ever in my heart and bones.
Miss my bff dog Flynn. She was fourteen when she died September 7, 2024. We hung out together a lot, many walks, car rides, shopping, sitting at cafes together, chilling at home, always a good time.
Where to begin. Romeo came into our life many years ago (25) he lived with the family across the road. He kept following me home and sneaking up the stairs behind me and wouldn’t go home such a loving kitty. I went and spoke to the neighbours and was told his name was Romeo and he’d left home because her son had a new kitten so l was welcome to look after him. She said he was a special cat, the best she’d had. We found out he used to visit other people in our street and always when they needed some love or solace. He spent a lot of time for a while with a neighbour who was slowly dying. Giving him some much loved happiness and company. When he died Romeo sat on the wall opposite his house and waited till the funeral cortège went on its way.
We retired and Romeo just never left or wandered any more now we were mostly at home. He knew instinctively if you weren’t well or unhappy and used to lie over us both on the sofa. He slowly became tired and mainly slept, just really old age the vet told us. Eventually he was ill liver and kidney problems so we had to put him to sleep. The vet came to our home and he died peacefully in our arms. He still seems to be here, when l come home l expect him to be lying on our bed and he has visited me at night, cuddling up to my head and purring. He was 22 when he died and we will never forget him. RIP Romeo 🙏
My wife had broken her leg the previous September while training with her horse Shy. After many weeks in a hospital bed we set up in our dining room, she eventually graduated to making her way upstairs to the master bedroom. As she became more mobile, and the weather began to turn warmer, one day she made her way out to the deck and sat there with the feral cats we cared for along with a recent litter of kittens.
One of the new babies was smaller than the others and was not feeling well. He was sniffing and the other cats were not accepting of him. As my wife sat on the deck, this ginger kitty walked to her and climbed on to her lap. She heard in her head “You are my mommy”. She placed him back onto the deck and said ‘oh no, you’re mistaken’. He climbed back onto her lap.
So we took the little one to the vet to make sure he would regain his strength. The vet asked that he be separated from the other cats and medicated for a sinus infection. We brought him in and set him up in the dining room now - apparently a place of healing. And put out the notice that he would be available for adoption as soon as he recovered. Rudy had already found his forever home.
One year later another cat from the group joined our household. Ted was like his brother and constant companion. Those boys had a beautiful bond and were inseparable.
On the evening of Rudy’s 11th birthday, Ted didn’t want to eat dinner. Within 4 days he was gone… We were all grief stricken and Rudy never got over the loss of his brother.
A few months later, I was looking at Rudy from across the room and in one moment he communicated to me the next year of his life. He acknowledged that Ted’s illness was so sudden that all of us took it very hard. He wanted to make sure I knew that his time was coming - not now, but within the year - so that the shock would be less. He described that his health would gradually fail, and that it would be a process. All of this occurred in a moment’s exchange of eye contact.
Eventually his health did begin to change. At first his vet identified it as diabetes. We followed the protocols only to learn it was more than that. And then that one heartbreaking morning drive to the vet’s office to say goodbye. He had made sure to prepare us but you are never prepared for the loss of love.
He visited me, and then my wife, this year in dreams the night before our birthdays. He was, and always will be, our Golden Kitty. He taught me again that there is more to life than the surface simplicity. That animals absolutely are teachers of wisdom and are embodied souls sharing this amazing journey with us. And that there is far more to life than we could hope to learn in one lifetime.
I've had many kitties in my time, and their lives may one day fill a book. But my one dog named Max was the best of good boys; he left this world on December 16, 2013. He was a big black dog with a white star on his chest and lazy, half-mast ears; he was part lab, part border collie or German shepherd, we were never sure. He tip-toed into our lives, smelling like skunk and needing someone to look after him...a needy type, apparently, he had lost his way. When we tracked down his former owners, they no longer wanted him; they said he was an "escape artist." Well, he never ran away from us; we paid attention to him, and we didn't forget about him.
He was with me every day, my dog-shaped shadow; I walked him, talked to him, worked in the garden with him nearby, and photographed the wonders that I found on our acre of the world during our walks. In the winter, he was a snow bunny, and I would go snowshoeing with him. If I fell down, he’d run back to help me get up! There was one winter night when we were having our before-bedtime walk; it was one of those cold, crystal clear nights. The moon was full and lit up the yard. It was magical! That night, we found a wee chickadee sleeping on a low branch in one of our Norway spruce trees. We saw it there three nights in a row; it was so sweet, and Max would look for it for a few nights after the weather had changed, so I knew that the wee bird had changed location for one with better shelter from the elements.
Max was there while I wrote my novels in their early drafts, his steady and quiet presence always there, waiting, watching my every move, always patient...he learned that the sound of my thumb drive connecting with my laptop meant that we would be going for a walk soon, so he'd jump up, ears perked and tail wagging, ready to go outside!
He taught me the joy of sitting or laying in the grass watching the world go by; he was a peaceful soul. He was a dog of few words but the greatest heart. I can count on one hand how many times I heard him bark. One of those times was when the utility company was doing work on the power lines outside our house, and one of the men put a traffic cone in the road. Max was very concerned about the traffic cone when a car came; he said, “Woof.” (Just once.) I assured him that the traffic cone was safe, but he still watched it very intently, with such concern.
There was one day, he and a baby fawn were touching noses on the edge of our property. The fawn became scared and ran away. Max watched it go, he was so excited, he had to come to tell me all about it! He loved baby bunnies; he would never hurt one; he would find the nest and show me where they were hidden. One day while I was weeding in the garden, he came to me in his quiet tip-toe way, happily wagging his tail; when I saw the little bunny butt and hind legs dangling from his mouth, I was briefly mortified, “What did you find?” I asked and held out my hands to receive the gift he had brought me, and he carefully put this perfect, unharmed baby bunny in my hands. He was so excited that he wanted to show me where the nest was, and at the same time, I heard the shrieking of a baby bunny and saw that one of our cats was carrying one away. I couldn’t catch the cat; that bunny was doomed. Max showed me the nest; it was empty; the fluffy mama fur and dried grasses were scattered everywhere, but I found two more bunnies nearby, creeping around in the grass, their eyes partly opened. I knew I couldn’t put them back in the nest because the kitty would most likely return to finish them off. I gathered them up and put them in a box, fed them kitten formula with a bottle, and brought them greens to nibble on. They grew very fast, and Max was so happy to watch over them. We only had them for a few days and released them out in the field, well away from our kitty's territory.
When it came to saying goodbye to Max, he had a nice walk that last morning; there was fresh snow (his favorite), and then, while he took a nap, I snapped a few photos of him sleeping; he was such a good dog; the best of good boys. He had been slipping away from me slowly for quite some time; when his time came, it was very sudden. I had watched the aging process do its thing to my old friend who had been with me since he shyly tip-toed into my yard one spring day, smelling like a skunk and needing someone to look after him. I miss him so much, even now. I haven’t looked for another dog, but I do hope one will find their way to us—much in the way Max found us— one who is lost and needs someone to look after them.
Toodles was my best friend for 19 years. she was so chatty and never far from my side. tood was the kind of cat who could befriend people who said they didnt like cats. we did everything together and it breaks my heart that i wasnt there when she passed. she wore a tuxedo and drank my cups of tea when i wasnt looking and her croaky little meow would answer any time she was called. i loved her beyond words and i send her kisses in heaven all the time xxxx love you toody
Oh, what a beautiful post. The invitation to remember our pets is so appreciated! If we live awhile, we can have at least a few. I’ve had five dogs, all beloved, and one cat, Ely. Ely lived to be 21. I took Ely in because someone placed a note on the apartment building door saying they’d brought a kitten in, but the other five cats weren’t going to adjust. I called the number and went to get him — just down the block. I didn’t have a carrier and never had a cat before. So I carried him home and put him in the bathroom while I ran out for food and litter and got a cardboard box to put the litter in.
He apparently was part Russian Blue with that blue-grey fur and white paws and little muzzle. He had green eyes. He was very slender but his tail was longer than he was which was a little odd! But he was a sweetie and seemed smart, the way cats are smart. Taking everything in. A total individual who accepted me and made lots of eye contact.
Well, he grew into his tail and ended up being so big that he could stand on his hind legs, put his paws on the dining table, and look around to see what was going on! He loved dogs but disliked other cats. As he got older, his face changed and from the side he began to have the most wonderful profile, full of gravitas! Ely was wise.
His favorite thing was a department store shirt box, with tissue paper. I figured this out one Christmas when someone gave me a gift and I had the box out and Ely made it his. He squeezed into it in a certain way — and chewed a little section out as a chin rest! After that, I had to go to Macy’s or Bloomingdale’s and beg the gift wrap lady for a shirt box with tissue after he’d busted the sides out of the old one. And he always crafted a chin rest.
When my aunt and father were old and unwell and came to live with me, Ely made them his responsibility, sitting with them no matter what they were doing. He’d sit on the edge of the tub while my aunt bathed and sat on his own chair at the table. He was always just there, just there looking on, watching everyone and everything. He also had a wild side, just directed at me, and would come flying across the room and attach himself to my upper arm or my leg. Oh!!!! And he loved!!! being carried around in a shopping bag. He’d jump in at night while I was cooking and I’d put my arm through the handles while I got dinner ready so I could carry him around the kitchen. He did lay right on top of a roasted turkey that was cooling in the kitchen before I could bring it to the table. What a guy. Oh, and I put a little bell up near the bathroom sink so he could ring it if he wanted a drink. He figured it out immediately. You should also know that I named him Ely after one of the angels in Milton’s Paradise Lost. There’s a whole hierarchy of angels in it with fabulous names and Ely was one of the smaller ones.
Thanks so much for bringing this all back to me, Jesse. My Ely was, my Ely. And now I have Sonia, the Wonder Chihuahua, who weighs just seven pounds, is 11, and also is wise and loves being carried around!
Ironically my cat’s name was Jesse ♥️ She was gifted to us as a kitten on our wedding day. She was an indoor/outdoor cat who loved chasing June bugs, mice and birds of course. Our yard which was quite large was her jungle. She saw us through marriage, two kids, illness and sadly divorce. I took her with me when we sold and moved out of our house. She was a big, gray cat with white paws. It was a very sad day when she died. She was my girl, my beloved feline.
My first love was at age 8, He was a gray cat named 'mokie ( Smokey without the "s"). I was so in love I'd sing Carpenter's songs to him..."why do birds suddenly appear..." ( eg "Close To You"). He'd follow me to school and sit on the windowsill of class until the nuns made me walk him home and lock him in the house. He was my confidant and very best friend. Like, you he helped me through difficult times. These days my "ride or die" kitty is Moose. He was the runt of his litter and to this day, at age 5, he looks like a "teen". He's a hunter, tree climber and walks about 2 miles every day with me by his side. He's savvy about cars and dogs ( coyote's too given his longevity) and never fails to catch the attention of neighborhood crows who hector him from trees and telephone wires as if they're shouting him down for all his misdeeds. He's half wild and has what I call "dayparts" in his personality. He's on the hunt/climbing/prowling from 7am-7pm and snuggly/wanting to sleep after. He's friends with the neighborhood. Has a fan base on our hyper local neighborhood website. I have to say, his presence has enabled so many casual connections /conversationswith neighbors I might have never known. I love him like a son.
Sweet 🙏🎶🤸🏽♀️😘
RIP to your sweet kitty love. Thank you for this invitation to share our animal loves. Someone I used to work with called her feline her cat husband.
My kitty babies, Ginger and Max. Ginger is a spicy tortoiseshell neuro-spicy girl. She has selective hearing. She is fiercely boundaries and protective of us. When I'm not okay, she instinctively feels it and comes to hold space.
Max is a sweet British Bombay black cat with green eyes who is the best of cats. The first time we brought him home, he had found the food, water, litter box and tamed Ginger within 15 minutes. He has a deep tenderness to him, and whenever a male contractor comes into the house, he hides in the closet. Bless.
Today is the anniversary of the marriage that officially ended last year. My two sweet kitties are with me, and are such a gift.
Fluffy, a fine orange and white domestic long hair. Was a present my dad picked out from the local shelter. I was starting middle school, and just moved to California from 3 years of living with my grandparents in Beijing.
Fluffy was really more a family cat than “my” cat. He was always at home waiting, hearing about the bad days at school, the first friend I made, my first crush, graduation, college, and many more. He was also there when my dad fell sick, and he was there on the night he passed away.
If Fluffy had to choose, my dad was probably his favorite person. So when Fluffy crossed the rainbow bridge after an adventurous 16 years with us, I was sad but also a bit relieved. That both Fluffy and my dad would see each other again. 🌈
Mr. Mistoffolees
1991-2001
From the moment we met (he was 5 weeks old; I was 22) I was his, and he was mine. He was almost always a very good cat. When he was ten years old, he got very sick. It turned out to be cancer. There was only one thing to do, which was help him over the Rainbow Bridge. I still miss him sometimes.
Sulky, my dog///
Cats are for everyone, not just ladies nor the childless! 🇺🇸👍🏼✌🏾🙌
Missing my dog Lieke every day, since her passing on July 27, 2017. She was my first dog, she came to me almost as a gift from heaven: a mistreated dog of 6 years old , rescued from a hunter in Spain, like so many Galgo Espanols, she was mistreated badly. they are being left alone in the countryside , or hung in trees , killed on gruesome other ways. So to give her a 'second' life is a gift in itself. save at least the life of one dog. The trust I gave her , was returned by her. That a being so mistreated could really trust a human being again was almost unbelievable to me. Our bond became so real and unforgettable, the bond between us so strong . She learned me how to love ,to trust and to take care for another being. To overcome the selffishness . She learned me to center at one place, not to flee from everything and to hunt for a new experience, but to feel comfortable at home cause everything of Worth and Truth was right there where I was, where she was, the wonderful togetherness of Us. Even we didn't have a place to call a home of our own, we created a place in an old anti-squat farmhouse, actually we lived in a lot of places, even in a van on a campsite for a year or so. Always very close to nature, in the six years we shared our life together. We walked in the forest almost every single day, close to the rythm of the seasons as we didn't even have proper heating in the house we were living the first year. But despite of all the material inconvenience, I felt that strong connection with everything, nature, life, her, us and last but least the connection with myself. I was wondering : "Did I save her life or did she save mine?" In the end it didn't matter. Giving is the other way of receiving when the gift is selfless. Without the intention to get something in return. Maybe that's the underlying teaching she gave to me. A comfortable home or not, the feeling of belonging somewhere was so strong with us being together. Never ever experienced such a strong bond with another being on earth before and maybe I will never experience an equally strong & special bond with another being again. I will never forget her, never forget Us. She is in my bones and in every heartbeat she resonates, since my hand touched her heart when it ceased to beat at the very day I had to let her go. So beautifully sad. She will always be with me. Her ashes are on the fields where we wandered together in the last year we spent our life, in the gardens and the forest that approached our house. It almost felt like a paradise there , it truly was a paradise to us. The place is now truly gifted with the beautiful power of her soul. After her passing away I felt like a wandering soul myself for a while cause I had to leave that place a year after her passing. She is Forever and Ever in my heart and bones.
Miss my bff dog Flynn. She was fourteen when she died September 7, 2024. We hung out together a lot, many walks, car rides, shopping, sitting at cafes together, chilling at home, always a good time.
Where to begin. Romeo came into our life many years ago (25) he lived with the family across the road. He kept following me home and sneaking up the stairs behind me and wouldn’t go home such a loving kitty. I went and spoke to the neighbours and was told his name was Romeo and he’d left home because her son had a new kitten so l was welcome to look after him. She said he was a special cat, the best she’d had. We found out he used to visit other people in our street and always when they needed some love or solace. He spent a lot of time for a while with a neighbour who was slowly dying. Giving him some much loved happiness and company. When he died Romeo sat on the wall opposite his house and waited till the funeral cortège went on its way.
We retired and Romeo just never left or wandered any more now we were mostly at home. He knew instinctively if you weren’t well or unhappy and used to lie over us both on the sofa. He slowly became tired and mainly slept, just really old age the vet told us. Eventually he was ill liver and kidney problems so we had to put him to sleep. The vet came to our home and he died peacefully in our arms. He still seems to be here, when l come home l expect him to be lying on our bed and he has visited me at night, cuddling up to my head and purring. He was 22 when he died and we will never forget him. RIP Romeo 🙏
Rudy
April 2011 - Feb 2024
My wife had broken her leg the previous September while training with her horse Shy. After many weeks in a hospital bed we set up in our dining room, she eventually graduated to making her way upstairs to the master bedroom. As she became more mobile, and the weather began to turn warmer, one day she made her way out to the deck and sat there with the feral cats we cared for along with a recent litter of kittens.
One of the new babies was smaller than the others and was not feeling well. He was sniffing and the other cats were not accepting of him. As my wife sat on the deck, this ginger kitty walked to her and climbed on to her lap. She heard in her head “You are my mommy”. She placed him back onto the deck and said ‘oh no, you’re mistaken’. He climbed back onto her lap.
So we took the little one to the vet to make sure he would regain his strength. The vet asked that he be separated from the other cats and medicated for a sinus infection. We brought him in and set him up in the dining room now - apparently a place of healing. And put out the notice that he would be available for adoption as soon as he recovered. Rudy had already found his forever home.
One year later another cat from the group joined our household. Ted was like his brother and constant companion. Those boys had a beautiful bond and were inseparable.
On the evening of Rudy’s 11th birthday, Ted didn’t want to eat dinner. Within 4 days he was gone… We were all grief stricken and Rudy never got over the loss of his brother.
A few months later, I was looking at Rudy from across the room and in one moment he communicated to me the next year of his life. He acknowledged that Ted’s illness was so sudden that all of us took it very hard. He wanted to make sure I knew that his time was coming - not now, but within the year - so that the shock would be less. He described that his health would gradually fail, and that it would be a process. All of this occurred in a moment’s exchange of eye contact.
Eventually his health did begin to change. At first his vet identified it as diabetes. We followed the protocols only to learn it was more than that. And then that one heartbreaking morning drive to the vet’s office to say goodbye. He had made sure to prepare us but you are never prepared for the loss of love.
He visited me, and then my wife, this year in dreams the night before our birthdays. He was, and always will be, our Golden Kitty. He taught me again that there is more to life than the surface simplicity. That animals absolutely are teachers of wisdom and are embodied souls sharing this amazing journey with us. And that there is far more to life than we could hope to learn in one lifetime.
🐈
I've had many kitties in my time, and their lives may one day fill a book. But my one dog named Max was the best of good boys; he left this world on December 16, 2013. He was a big black dog with a white star on his chest and lazy, half-mast ears; he was part lab, part border collie or German shepherd, we were never sure. He tip-toed into our lives, smelling like skunk and needing someone to look after him...a needy type, apparently, he had lost his way. When we tracked down his former owners, they no longer wanted him; they said he was an "escape artist." Well, he never ran away from us; we paid attention to him, and we didn't forget about him.
He was with me every day, my dog-shaped shadow; I walked him, talked to him, worked in the garden with him nearby, and photographed the wonders that I found on our acre of the world during our walks. In the winter, he was a snow bunny, and I would go snowshoeing with him. If I fell down, he’d run back to help me get up! There was one winter night when we were having our before-bedtime walk; it was one of those cold, crystal clear nights. The moon was full and lit up the yard. It was magical! That night, we found a wee chickadee sleeping on a low branch in one of our Norway spruce trees. We saw it there three nights in a row; it was so sweet, and Max would look for it for a few nights after the weather had changed, so I knew that the wee bird had changed location for one with better shelter from the elements.
Max was there while I wrote my novels in their early drafts, his steady and quiet presence always there, waiting, watching my every move, always patient...he learned that the sound of my thumb drive connecting with my laptop meant that we would be going for a walk soon, so he'd jump up, ears perked and tail wagging, ready to go outside!
He taught me the joy of sitting or laying in the grass watching the world go by; he was a peaceful soul. He was a dog of few words but the greatest heart. I can count on one hand how many times I heard him bark. One of those times was when the utility company was doing work on the power lines outside our house, and one of the men put a traffic cone in the road. Max was very concerned about the traffic cone when a car came; he said, “Woof.” (Just once.) I assured him that the traffic cone was safe, but he still watched it very intently, with such concern.
There was one day, he and a baby fawn were touching noses on the edge of our property. The fawn became scared and ran away. Max watched it go, he was so excited, he had to come to tell me all about it! He loved baby bunnies; he would never hurt one; he would find the nest and show me where they were hidden. One day while I was weeding in the garden, he came to me in his quiet tip-toe way, happily wagging his tail; when I saw the little bunny butt and hind legs dangling from his mouth, I was briefly mortified, “What did you find?” I asked and held out my hands to receive the gift he had brought me, and he carefully put this perfect, unharmed baby bunny in my hands. He was so excited that he wanted to show me where the nest was, and at the same time, I heard the shrieking of a baby bunny and saw that one of our cats was carrying one away. I couldn’t catch the cat; that bunny was doomed. Max showed me the nest; it was empty; the fluffy mama fur and dried grasses were scattered everywhere, but I found two more bunnies nearby, creeping around in the grass, their eyes partly opened. I knew I couldn’t put them back in the nest because the kitty would most likely return to finish them off. I gathered them up and put them in a box, fed them kitten formula with a bottle, and brought them greens to nibble on. They grew very fast, and Max was so happy to watch over them. We only had them for a few days and released them out in the field, well away from our kitty's territory.
When it came to saying goodbye to Max, he had a nice walk that last morning; there was fresh snow (his favorite), and then, while he took a nap, I snapped a few photos of him sleeping; he was such a good dog; the best of good boys. He had been slipping away from me slowly for quite some time; when his time came, it was very sudden. I had watched the aging process do its thing to my old friend who had been with me since he shyly tip-toed into my yard one spring day, smelling like a skunk and needing someone to look after him. I miss him so much, even now. I haven’t looked for another dog, but I do hope one will find their way to us—much in the way Max found us— one who is lost and needs someone to look after them.
Toodles was my best friend for 19 years. she was so chatty and never far from my side. tood was the kind of cat who could befriend people who said they didnt like cats. we did everything together and it breaks my heart that i wasnt there when she passed. she wore a tuxedo and drank my cups of tea when i wasnt looking and her croaky little meow would answer any time she was called. i loved her beyond words and i send her kisses in heaven all the time xxxx love you toody
Oh, what a beautiful post. The invitation to remember our pets is so appreciated! If we live awhile, we can have at least a few. I’ve had five dogs, all beloved, and one cat, Ely. Ely lived to be 21. I took Ely in because someone placed a note on the apartment building door saying they’d brought a kitten in, but the other five cats weren’t going to adjust. I called the number and went to get him — just down the block. I didn’t have a carrier and never had a cat before. So I carried him home and put him in the bathroom while I ran out for food and litter and got a cardboard box to put the litter in.
He apparently was part Russian Blue with that blue-grey fur and white paws and little muzzle. He had green eyes. He was very slender but his tail was longer than he was which was a little odd! But he was a sweetie and seemed smart, the way cats are smart. Taking everything in. A total individual who accepted me and made lots of eye contact.
Well, he grew into his tail and ended up being so big that he could stand on his hind legs, put his paws on the dining table, and look around to see what was going on! He loved dogs but disliked other cats. As he got older, his face changed and from the side he began to have the most wonderful profile, full of gravitas! Ely was wise.
His favorite thing was a department store shirt box, with tissue paper. I figured this out one Christmas when someone gave me a gift and I had the box out and Ely made it his. He squeezed into it in a certain way — and chewed a little section out as a chin rest! After that, I had to go to Macy’s or Bloomingdale’s and beg the gift wrap lady for a shirt box with tissue after he’d busted the sides out of the old one. And he always crafted a chin rest.
When my aunt and father were old and unwell and came to live with me, Ely made them his responsibility, sitting with them no matter what they were doing. He’d sit on the edge of the tub while my aunt bathed and sat on his own chair at the table. He was always just there, just there looking on, watching everyone and everything. He also had a wild side, just directed at me, and would come flying across the room and attach himself to my upper arm or my leg. Oh!!!! And he loved!!! being carried around in a shopping bag. He’d jump in at night while I was cooking and I’d put my arm through the handles while I got dinner ready so I could carry him around the kitchen. He did lay right on top of a roasted turkey that was cooling in the kitchen before I could bring it to the table. What a guy. Oh, and I put a little bell up near the bathroom sink so he could ring it if he wanted a drink. He figured it out immediately. You should also know that I named him Ely after one of the angels in Milton’s Paradise Lost. There’s a whole hierarchy of angels in it with fabulous names and Ely was one of the smaller ones.
Thanks so much for bringing this all back to me, Jesse. My Ely was, my Ely. And now I have Sonia, the Wonder Chihuahua, who weighs just seven pounds, is 11, and also is wise and loves being carried around!
Very photogenic cat. Thanks.
Ironically my cat’s name was Jesse ♥️ She was gifted to us as a kitten on our wedding day. She was an indoor/outdoor cat who loved chasing June bugs, mice and birds of course. Our yard which was quite large was her jungle. She saw us through marriage, two kids, illness and sadly divorce. I took her with me when we sold and moved out of our house. She was a big, gray cat with white paws. It was a very sad day when she died. She was my girl, my beloved feline.
My first love was at age 8, He was a gray cat named 'mokie ( Smokey without the "s"). I was so in love I'd sing Carpenter's songs to him..."why do birds suddenly appear..." ( eg "Close To You"). He'd follow me to school and sit on the windowsill of class until the nuns made me walk him home and lock him in the house. He was my confidant and very best friend. Like, you he helped me through difficult times. These days my "ride or die" kitty is Moose. He was the runt of his litter and to this day, at age 5, he looks like a "teen". He's a hunter, tree climber and walks about 2 miles every day with me by his side. He's savvy about cars and dogs ( coyote's too given his longevity) and never fails to catch the attention of neighborhood crows who hector him from trees and telephone wires as if they're shouting him down for all his misdeeds. He's half wild and has what I call "dayparts" in his personality. He's on the hunt/climbing/prowling from 7am-7pm and snuggly/wanting to sleep after. He's friends with the neighborhood. Has a fan base on our hyper local neighborhood website. I have to say, his presence has enabled so many casual connections /conversationswith neighbors I might have never known. I love him like a son.