I’ve mentioned in previous posts the fact that we have six cats. Excessive, yes. Do we rationalize why we have so many, yes.

About ten years ago I bought a pair of adult Himalayan/Siamese cats, a mated male and female. Unknown to me at the time, the female was already pregnant, and about three months later our family was ‘blessed’ with the arrival of six beautiful, healthy little Himalayan/Siamese kittens, four males and two females. Although I was sure I would be able to sell them, when it came time I was only able to part with two of them, and this amidst flowing tears, worry about their well-being, and guilt at ‘abandoning’ them. Until this episode I had harbored thoughts of breeding and selling the kittens to make a little extra money. Clearly, I was not then (and still am not) cut out to be a breeder. Fortunately, I recognized it THEN and very soon afterward had both the adult male and female ‘neutered’. We kept the remaining four kittens (three males and one female) and home was never the same.

With their tiny claws these little urchins were able to climb our fireplace, and many times reached the ceiling before I was able to catch and haul them down. Luckily we had shutters on many of the windows, so the absence of fabric removed the possibility of climbing any curtains! Anyone who has had a kitten or raised a litter of kittens is familiar with their antics. These four played with each other like nobody’s business. They really were a delight, and enriched our lives. It was also heartwarming to watch the mama cat care for them when they were very tiny. She was vigilant in their feeding and cleaning, and kept track of their whereabouts for weeks.

Having a family of cats all related to one another was an eye-opener for us. Although the kittens liked us, they preferred each other’s company so much more then, and still do to this day. They sleep together and groom each other. They fuss and fight over things just like real siblings and parents, but when presented with ‘dangers’ from the ‘outside’ they form a solid unit of hissing and growling scariness that would intimidate almost anyone and everything. Without claws their attack would be limited to much vigorous batting of soft paws, but look out for those sharp teeth, which I’m sure they would use if forced. (I’ve never had the pleasure of experiencing those, glad to say).

We lost one of the male kittens when he was close to two years old from a condition called ‘blocked Tom’. Basically, this means he was unable to pass urine and it became toxic. Our only warning to this building problem came one day when he lay down in front of his water dish for several hours. We were painting the kitchen walls at the time, and when we came to a stopping point assessed his condition and thought he might need to go to the vet, as this behavior was not normal. Mind you, he never meowed or gave us any indication of any kind of problem, other than just lying down in front of his dish. Several hours later he was gone. The vet was unable to save him, even though desperate measures were taken. I can feel my tears and sadness to this day. He was, after all, my favorite of the four kittens, the one who followed me everywhere and sought attention from us. He is buried in our back yard in a shady spot under a tree. I miss him.

So it is with great sadness that once again we are facing a terminal illness with one of our cats. This time kidney failure has attacked the little female, Baby Girl. Yes, we are original in our names, aren’t we? Baby Girl has always been slight in build, never weighing more than four or five pounds, while her brothers tip the scale at about nine pounds. So we were used to her being frail in comparison to them. However, during the past two weeks we noticed she was not interacting with us or the other cats as normal. And her body seemed to be getting even more fragile and bony. After several days of pondering and wondering if it was imagination or fact, I finally took her to the veterinarian.

After an examination and much blood work he determined that she is suffering from kidney failure. The prognosis is bad, even if we were to spend upwards of $1000 on treatments that may or may not give her more time. One thing we know the treatments would deliver is more pain and suffering, with no guarantee that she would feel better, ever. For us, this is not acceptable, so we are not going down that path with her. The vet even recommended that we have her euthanized within the week. We aren’t doing that, either. Instead, we are keeping her as comfortable as we can and spending more time with her. Right now she isn’t demonstrating pain, but we are aware that cats and other animals instinctively mask their pain, so we are trying to be observant and careful with her. We have been told the signs to watch for as the disease progresses, and when we see these we will then take her to see the vet one last time. Until then we are just loving her and remembering how much laughter, fun, and pleasure having her has brought to our lives. Oh, we are going to miss her. I can already feel it.