This place is so valuable to me at so many different times and for so many different reasons.
I just spent a horrid 3 hours with my family. We had to say goodbye to a 19-year old pet that we were not expecting to lose. We knew Contessa was ill, and we thought that with the help of our excellent vet, she was getting better. When I got home today, I knew that was not the case.
Pets have such value. Among so many, they teach us how to accept unconditional love, and they help us to learn how to cope with loss. 'Tis hard to imagine, but Contessa the cat was already 9 years old when our 10 year-old Sarah was born. Where does time go? Even though she was so ill, Contessa purred in Sarah’s arms, this evening. We all feel rather empty, tonight.
And so, as I was turning off my old Mac, I went to the Pub for a moment. First thread I punched up was Walden’s ‘time.’ The incredible good humor and simple fun made me smile.
I’m sorry for your loss, Byll, and can easily empathize. (We’ve lost 2 elderly cats to cancer in recent years, and the remaining 2 cats and 1 dog are all quite old, so “it ain’t over”, as they say.) I’m very glad our humorous banter could bring a smile to your face today.
Our now-20-year-old cat was diagnosed with hyperthyroidism a year ago. We took her to a vet in Seattle who specializes in treating this illness in cats by using radioactive iodine to destroy the thyroid. Since the treatment, our cat has gained a 10th life. She’s put on weight, has more energy, and actually plays again. It was a very dramatic turn-around.
My wife’s a Vet. She comes home some days after a family has
experienced such a loss, and she is really depressed. It makes it
even worse when she sees people that don’t care for/about their
animals. I don’t think I could ever do that job. I dread the day one
of our pets dies.
There’s supposed to be a book about cats, or about a cat, titled “The Fur Person”. Heard tell about it in, um, 1974, I think it was. I hadn’t read it; don’t know if it’s still in print. I call my cat that, too.
