Goodbye my Girl

Aleah, Shia, the kittens, and I are pretty busy tending to Momma. There are lots of tears we need to lick and hugs we need to give, so we are taking some time off from posting to grieve for Donovan. We wanted to share two more pictures though. First we want to sincerely thank our vet and all his staff for their compassion and caring. They sent these flowers:

The rug is in the kitchen nook and it was one of Donovan's favorite places to lay and soak up the sun. She also thought it served as a mighty fine scratching surface. The house and our hearts are so empty without her.

We also wanted to share this picture. Momma hated giving Donovan insulin shots so she would hold her in the sun and they would comfort each other.

Goodbye sweet Donovan. We love you.

Momma's Princess

For the first time, Momma is posting this entry.

This is my princess:

When she first came to the house, she looked so bad. Her fur was a mess, she was starving, and lots of other descriptions I don't want to dwell on... the only thing that mattered was I fell in love with her. After a while I couldn't stand her being outside anymore, so I tricked her into a carrier with a plate of tuna and whisked her off to the vet. My heart ached to see that she was on her own, most likely abandoned, and I wanted to devote my life to filling the rest of her life with love. This sweet girl was so grateful for love. The moment she saw you or you came into her presence, her little purr machine was going like crazy and she would flutter her tail in excitement. She enjoyed the simple things in life: food available at all times, clean water, and a soft place to sleep. Here you can see two of her favorite things, her blanket and her mouse toy:

Despite finally getting good nutrition and care, she still struggled with ear infections, diabetes, and kidney problems. However, she never complained. She was content to be in a loving home. This magnificent creature taught me that even when life is bad and you've been hurt, rejected, and on your own, there is still peace and love. She taught me to be grateful no matter what. She taught me to love deeper. Every day I told her how beautiful she is, how loved she is, and that she is like a princess to me. I have a feeling no one ever told her those things and every cat deserves to know love and to know they are a wondrous creation.

Today I had to make the ultimate decision of love. I had to agree to put my lovely, sweet Donovan down. That horrific disease cancer has quickly and aggressively developed in Donovan's mouth. She had a large mass under her tongue and our vet, as well as a specialist surgeon, informed me it is not operable and it is fatal. I could not stand to have my sweet girl suffer any more. She has been through so much and her prognosis was a week or two at best. In no way would I allow her to literally become starving or dying of thirst. She has had eating problems for two weeks already and I knew how difficult it was for her to want to eat and simply not be able to. Today just before 10:00 AM EST I handed my Donovan back to her Creator. I stayed with her through the procedure and covered her with all my love and tears. First she was sedated and she and I had a few moments alone before she was unconscious. I told her over and over how loved she was, how honored I was to be in her life, and that I would see her again. She was purring. Then the vet and nurse came in to administer the final shot. I held her head and watched as she took her last breath and entered heaven. I gently kissed her one final time and repeated that I loved her.

Everyone assures me it was the best thing to do for you, but I miss you so much my sweet, sweet girl. I'm lost without you and there's a place in my heart that will always be yours. You are healed now with no pain and I know my brother Jim will take great care of you until we meet again. I adapted this line from Hamlet and would whisper it to you every night but now it means so much more: Good night my sweet princess, and flights of angels sing thee to thy rest. 



(Last picture taken of Donovan)

I love you and miss you so much.
09-08-2011



Bag o' Kitten

What could captivate Pumpkin and Tigger's attention to this degree?

A bag of Milo of course:



Wordless Wednesday

Abbi meets Amazon

Momma left the computer at this amazing site where you can purchase just about anything your kitty heart desires. I did some serious browsing but as the unselfish cat that I am, I restrained myself to only buying Momma two new shirts:

In case you can't quite see the wording on the shirt above, here's what it says:

Kitten 'n Chinchilla

Milo is still quite a bit smaller than his brother and sister. His siblings have been able to jump onto the air hockey table for a couple of weeks now, but Milo finally has been able to duplicate their feat. He was quite excited to formally introduce himself to the other critter sharing his space. Peaches, the chinchilla, is surprisingly calm around the kittens:

Even as Milo asserts his little bitty kitty dominance and scales her cage, Peaches remains unfazed:

Well done Milo, bask in the glow baby boy:



Aleah & the Lamp

It was the start of a new day and Momma is at her desk working. As the best cat in the world, I am beside her keeping her company. That's when we heard a crashing noise. Momma looks up at me but I can say unequivocally, it wasn't me! She next checks on Shia, but she's sprawled out on the patio keeping an eye on the birds. As she peeks in on Donovan, all she sees is a very content sleeping kitty. That leaves Aleah. Momma's kitty senses are heightened when she finds Aleah hiding sheepishly under the chair:

A quick glance around the room and Momma notices the lamp that normally sits atop the nightstand is no longer there. Instead she finds this on the floor (notice the cat toy in the same location):

The dreaded vacuum cleaner had to be summoned which resulted in Aleah finding additional refuge under the bed. This is what Momma gets for bringing uncivilized felines into this house.