Sugar is Missing Smokey
Six years ago, on October 12, 2012, I brought two gray tabby cats home and we named the male cat Smokey and the female cat Sugar. When I picked two cats from a friend, I didn’t know if they were male or female, I just wanted two cats to play around the house, always inside the house. Letting them go outdoors was too risky. When I brought both of them to the vet, that’s when I found out they were male and female and immediately had both of them spayed and neutered. I enjoy the presence of a cat near me but we didn’t want a house full of cats, and they were enjoyable... such fun to watch when they played together.
They grew up healthy. Laughter filled the house more often after we got the cats. They can do crazy things without even trying. Flipping over at a moments notice, jumping high on top of cabinets and not being able to come down, and that mirror… there was always another cat in that mirror. Our favorite thing was to watch them chase the red light. Anything that moved they chased, but they never caught that red light.
I’m one of those people who believe that just because sometimes cats act clumsy, all cats are intelligent and have a spiritual side to them that you can feel and see, more than humans have when you look into their eyes. I speak to my cats same as I would to any small child. They are my fur babies. Smokey always meowed back to me. I don’t know what he said, but sometimes I swore I could hear the word… mama. So, for six years we had the pleasure of watching and loving two cats in our home.
Fast forward to Thanksgiving, 2018.
After our family and friends were stuffed eating turkey, ham and other items on our table, it was tiime for the football games. When I was done in the kitchen, and the games were over, late that night I noticed that Smokey’s eyes were drooping. As I said, I talked to him and he meowed back. “You have a little stomach ache from eating too much cat food?” I asked jokingly.
The meow that came from him was a sound I had never heard before. A cracking meow that sounded like he was in pain. He slept in his cat bed next to my desk, so I pet him and said he’d be okay. He cracked that meow sound again. I kept writing because both cats were never sick.
The next morning, he had spit up near his cat littler box and was sluggish. I knew he wasn’t well. I call the vet and all vet offices were closed the day after Thanksgiving. So, I wait and I watch him. He kept hiding in places I had never seen him in before. He even went lay down over his cat littler! This is when Sugar looked concerned. She looked at me as if to say, “look at this”.
After 9:00 pm, I called every vet in our surrounding towns and no one was on call but one. That animal hospital was as rude as can be and I hung up on him. I stayed up all night watching my sick cat get sicker every minute. I began to cry and Sugar was lying at my feet. Eventually, I fell asleep in the recliner thinking of the cost of any type of surgery for whatever he had and it was making me sick. We couldn’t afford a vet bill of 1,500 dollars to maybe 3,000 dollars. I had a cat years ago who had a surgery and he was never the same again.
This Saturday morning, today…11/24, I called the vet I always bring Smokey to and they told my husband and me to bring him to another town because the office I brought my cats to was closed. We put him in his pet carry cage and left. On the way, we talk about euthanasia. I cry more. I never had to do that with any animal I owned.
When we entered that office, the vet comes in and listens to everything we said. He told us that he had a urinary blockage and the reason he was hiding was because he was dying. That broke my heart. His kidneys were failing. He could do surgery on Smokey and he explained what was involved and the costs and maybe he would be okay and maybe not... but he was dying. The vet was very caring and thoughtful in his words, but the words, ‘he’s dying’ kept ringing in my ears. We could bring him home or do the humane thing by putting him down. Everything happened so fast. So, we told him we had talked about it and we left him at the vet, said our goodbyes, and took the pet cage home with no cat in the cage. We had him cremated.
Sugar knows he’s not home and she misses him. She’s still sleeping where Smokey was when we put him in his cage. It breaks my heart, but Smokey brought us six years of joy. I’m still wondering if I did the right thing. My husband said yes, we did the right thing. Smokey was suffering and dying.
A sad day for anyone when they lose a fur baby. We miss Smokey.
Regis
when possible we bring the elderly, but not in pain little fur being home to live out the days with friends, family and home
when pain and misery is the vet diagnosis he and I both weep until the last goodbye is said.
I am sorry for your loss, urinary infection is one of the worst for our little fur kids,
never stop writing
m
I'm sure Sugar, and you are missing Smokey as you post this little story, just like I did years ago when my Pomeranian died, with Jazz's Death. It's a sad time for all. Maybe you'll get another kitten to keep Sugar young as she becomes the mother cat around the house.
BTW. MS Word spellchecker keeps deceiving writers with one of my pet peeves. Cats is plural for more than one cat. The only use for the apostrophe-s is for possession like, "Cat's meow" or as a contraction--usually is "Cat's (cat has) got your tongue?"
Ron
We had the private service to come in to put Pride to sleep. They've brought him a nice basket, and lined it with beautiful blue blanket. Also took his paw print, and shaved some of his furs to keep it in a heart-shaped trinket box for us for keepsake. We had to pay for the cremation services and his urn, and cost us over $800.00, but it was worth it. I petted Pride and talked to him as he was leaving us. It took him longer to go because his stomach was filled with fluid.
Considering Smokey is no longer suffering and he is in a better place now with God and will be your guardian angel from now on.
Take good care of Sugar, for she may be feeling bad for losing her friend.
Sandie