Kitty cat

Nickie

Well-known member
Joined
Dec 31, 2010
Messages
11,197
Reaction score
3,508
Location
Tampa Bay, FL
"Reports of my demise have been greatly exaggerated."
After a decent night, my cat Goofball got up and ate breakfast, then took a long nap on our patio. This afternoon, when she heard me call her name, she trotted into the house, and ate a snack. Yesterday I thought she was a goner, she stayed in bed all day with no food. This is the 3rd time I thought it was over. Do cats really have 9 lives? With her, it's one day at a time.
Goofball on uke case.jpg
 
Give Goofball a rub on the head from me.
 
Trudy, Arthur, and Cathy send their kitty regards and kitty good wishes (no, I did not name a cat after myself - she came to me that way).
 
Probably ate something that didn't agree, my cats used to do that occasionally - glad Goofball's feeling OK. :)

I wish that were the case. Goofball has either gotten into some poison (?), or been in an accident that we didn't witness. She circles around several times getting across a room, and sometimes cannot walk or stand at all. This has been going on for several weeks, and she has been seen by her Vet. She skips food some days, and experiences painful episodes. I've seen her have at least one seizure. At other times, she seems very annoyed, and tips over while grooming herself.
Thanks for all your well wishes. One day at a time with her....
 
I'm so sorry to read that Goofball is having these difficulties, Nickie. What did the vet think? I know how hard it is and how helpless we can feel when our furry friends are not themselves. She is beautiful. How old is she? We have a tortie named Fiamma (and we know all about "tortitude" lol) We have also been through a recent tough ordeal and loss of a wonderful tabby boy, who died way too young from cancer. I hope and pray that your Goofball can make a recovery from whatever it is that's ailing her! Best wishes to all of you!

bratsche
 
Thank you all.
Goofball passed away with help from her vet last Thursday morning. Tammy and I were holding her. She had a bad day and night on Wednesday, and had not eaten, and her meds weren't working all that well.
It was very difficult, as you can imagine. I was worried about her bestie, Mrs Hudson, so a close friend stayed with her while we had to be out of town for 4 days. The trip away was good for me, and Mrs Hudson, who is my other kitty, did fine. I did see a wild red fox on a nature walk while we were gone, and it helped make for a nice trip.
We don't know how old Goofball was, maybe around 12. The vet thinks she had a brain tumor.
I will miss her for a long, long time. I believe our souls are linked and we will meet again.
 
Condolences, Nickie. I lost my Ellie to kidney disease in February. She was 17.

Kitty love is wonderful thing. It is hard to let them go. I pass along something told to me during my grief that was helpful: you are suffering so she doesn't have to.

Prayers for comfort in your loss.
 
Nickie, I am so sorry.
We lost Miss Tilley recently. She was the better part of 18.

20170108_080749.jpg

There is no doubt in my mind that you and Goofball will be reunited.

...Sean
 
Thanks Sean, sorry about Tilly. And thanks uke1950. Jan, I promised Goofball I'd keep my suffering to a minimum, just like I tried to do hers.
 
My condolences, Nickie - I was worried that might have happened when you hadn't been on in a while. I know all too well how hard it is. Hugs to you and Mrs. Hudson. RIP, sweet Goofball, at least all your hardships are over. Maybe you'll find our Benjy among the beloved and departed animals...

We lost our boy a month before he would have been 10, last June, and felt his absence keenly. Even though we have many other cats, Benjy, in addition to being a complete lover boy up to the very end, was the Alpha. We don't get too many of those, but he definitely was, so his absence made the household seem even more silent in comparison. I just looked back in this thread to see when I mentioned him just briefly, and it was Oct. 16, a week ago yesterday. And I never in a million years would have predicted that the very next day after that, things would change so dramatically for us. In a few hours' time last Tuesday, through a providential chain of events, odd coincidences and our 'being in the right place at the right time', a 3 month old tabby kitten named Danny entered our lives and hearts. He was right at home as soon as he got here, and he already exhibits so many similar personality traits as those we loved in Benjy. While I don't believe in reincarnation, it almost seems as though Benjy's spirit visited tiny Danny somewhere around the time of his birth, telling him how to behave and also how to recognize his "real new home" when he found it, even though there would be a couple other stops he'd have to make along the way.

So you never know what might happen, or when. But I do very much believe that each of our animal friends is specifically meant to be with us for a reason. They certainly are a blessing!

bratsche
 
Last edited:
Thank you bratsche.
Mrs Hudson is doing well. I still tiptoe around at night so as not to step on Goofball, and this evening I fixed dinner for 7 cats, not 6. When her ashes are returned to us, we agreed to plant a tree and place them in the hole with the roots.
I have many fond memories of Goofball. She only weighed 5 and a half pounds on her best day. If someone called her a runt, I politely corrected them and said "miniature". She loved to play, and would fetch like a dog. Her favorite thing was to sit on the top of the back of my office chair and dig her claws in while I spun it. She and Mrs Hudson would wrestle, and chase each other all over the house. Goofball even has a scratch on one of my ukes, which I refuse to repair. She loved being held, even upside down, and would look at Tammy upside down. She actually liked having her belly scratched, most cats hate that. She would also sit up and take treats from our hands. She taught Mrs Hudson to do that. If I packed for a trip, she would hop up and sit in the suitcase. If someone patted the bed or couch, up she'd jump. And she always came when her name was called. If we said "Pate!" (patay), she knew that meant canned kitty food was coming. She was only very rarely disobedient.
I'm gonna miss her for a long time. I'm very grateful for her having been with me. And Mrs Hudson now gets an extra rub and treat.
 
Awwww, Benjy was one of seven, as well. He was also the seventh cat in the household at the time when we first got him, although we had other losses and new arrivals during his life. And now, Danny is another seventh. And believe it or not, being held upside down and having their bellies scratched are things that both enjoy(ed) in common! I know it is unusual! What a hoot. Benjy left behind Gracie, a year younger than him, whose life we saved when she was a wee injured baby, and who became our only cat who stood up to his Alpha dominant posturings. The two of them were quite a pair. She hisses at Danny, but she will get over it. I have some videos on YouTube of them, which I haven't looked at since he passed, but my channel is called MandolaViola.

Quite a few years back, we had an alpha female cat named Pud. She lived to be 20, and when she passed (in '06) we buried her next to a tiny avocado tree that someone had given me in a pot and I had just recently transplanted. In the following years, that tree took over the whole area, and gives us these humungous and delicious alligator pears weighing up to 3 pounds, which I share with everyone at my church who wants them for a few months, as well as distribute around my neighborhood. There's one section that hangs into the neighboring yard, so we let the next door neighbors keep everything they want from that part. I've never successfully grown anything else edible, despite all my efforts. But that avocado tree... whoa!

"Goofball even has a scratch on one of my ukes, which I refuse to repair."

I wouldn't either! That is a precious memento. ;) She sounds so special. They are such a big part of our lives, aren't they? And they are so worth it, even with the inevitable grief at their passing.

Take good care of yourself and the other kitties, especially Mrs. Hudson. (gotta love that name!)

bratsche
 
Top Bottom