It’s Cat Week here at DB. Tagging some of you guys who missed out on some heartwarming stories about stray cats and how they’ve come to mean so much to us. Check @lordcobol and @coffeprince4eva‘s walls for some awesome, personal stories.
I have a story to share too. We had a stray cat come and push his way into our lives. He’d sit on an old plastic chair in my patio, and lick his paws, miaow when he saw me, and fall asleep. My hubby fed him, together with the rest of the residents on our street. So he was eating good food, my opposite neighbour owned an Indian restaurant, and he would bring back plastic bags of meats every evening for him.
Bro Cat – that’s what we called him – grew fat and lazy as the years passed. He slept on our patio for 7 years, and he was the King of the Realm. There was this crazy time I walked out of my gate and saw Bro Cat, at the helm, and behind him, three puppies from my other neighbour’s house, and a stray dog which liked to sleep on our street, all march in a line, single file, slowly down the street, at a leisurely pace set by the leader, Bro Cat.
Bro Cat grew older and tireder as the years passed, and slept a lot, waking up to miaow at us when we came home, or leave the house. One day, he disappeared. My hubby was frantic with worry. He reappeared 3 days later, and promptly settled back to his old routine. But he was eating a whole lot less – he didn’t seem hungry anymore, but he still miaowed at us, and slept as usual. Last year just before the Chinese New Year, he disappeared – and he never came back. We think he died in a ditch somewhere.
It’s very sad, and my heart hurts as I’m typing this. I don’t think I’ll ever have a pet again, because it hurts so much when it leaves. We had two guinea pigs, Porky and Pigo, who were with us for two years, and they died, too, one after the other. My kids were inconsolable, and I cried for days after. I’m still hurting. Seeing their pics on my phone hurt me a lot, so I deleted all of them. Losing a pet is heartbreaking, and you won’t know how much it hurts until you keep one.
Thank you, I’ve been reading the cat stories. Errand Boys are the best ❤️
Your story is heartbreaking and similar to mine – one day our cat disappeared and was found dead in the park. I’ve had several pets and they all died on me (cat, dog, rescued bird, chicken, sheep), so I decided to never let myself get attached to a pet animal again.
Aww 🙁 Losing a pet is like losing family. I have lost many pets and I cry about them still. I pray that our current cats live a long happy life with us 🙂
Dear yyishere YY,
Thanks for tagging me. I’ve been enjoying the cat and pet stories immensely.
I’m sorry to hear about Porky and Pigo. I have outlived three feline nephews and a number of companion animals, including my 4-H rabbit, Hans, who lived about 7 years. The most recent died just over a month ago, and I’m feeling kind of raw. After nearly 22 years, his absence feels weird.
One of the challenges of being the human of a companion animal is the disparity in lifespans, especially in the case of small rodents. Their lives are so much shorter than ours that it doesn’t seem fair. And it hurts like hell when we have to witness their passing.
I wish I could recall the name of the veterinarian who used to write an animal health column for Prevention magazine in the ’70s and ’80s when it was still published by Rodale. Between about 1979-1983, he wrote a very thoughtful article on bereavement, and the service that our pets and animal companions render as they share their lives with us. They give us a ringside seat on the circle of life and a lesson in impermanence that can help us come to grips with our own mortality and that of our human loved ones — a dress rehearsal, if you will. I don’t know if that is any consolation to you, but it hit me where I live, and I still recall the gist of it.
It’s okay to feel sad at this time. It may be that the depth of our grief is directly proportional to the joy and companionship we experience with the creatures who so intimately share our lives. I just hope that you and your family can recall the good times you shared with your pets. It is an important part of the grieving process, and will help you cultivate gratitude for the blessings they were in your lives. It might even be therapeutic to write down your favorite stories about your pets, and actively reminisce about them and the lessons they taught you. When you feel up to it, recall the good and happy times with the pets with your children — which is what people do at wakes and repasts after funerals for their human friends and relatives. Draw their portraits, too. Consider putting together a family memory book for Porky and Pigo when you all feel up to it.
I hope that you can take a lesson from Kdrama and allow yourself to suspend your disbelief enough to eventually entertain the possibility that you might one day again enjoy the companionship of a pet. It may feel impossible right now, but that doesn’t mean that you will always feel that way. A friend is a gift you give yourself, and that applies to the ones with fur, feathers, and scales, too.
I’ll leave you with a piece of music that comforts me at times like this. Even though it deals with human relationships and how we change over time, its message to cherish the good memories certainly applies to pets, too.
@coffeprince4eva RenOlshi,
ROFLMAO at “serial killer of roaches.”
One of my feline nephews, a pixilated ankle-biter of a Maine Coon Cat named Fergus aka Furball, was the scourge of mousies. But since he didn’t learn how to hunt from his mom, he dispatched them by playing with them to death.
YY Chats with Toast Between Bites
May 30, 2019 at 6:17 AM
New drama headed your way this June
YY Chats with Toast Between Bites
May 30, 2019 at 9:03 AM
@cloggie @katakwasabi @coffeprince4eva @lordcobol @ndlessjoie
@kethysk @leetennant @ally-le @korfan @wishfultoki @pakalanapikake
@growingbeautifully @kiara
It’s Cat Week here at DB. Tagging some of you guys who missed out on some heartwarming stories about stray cats and how they’ve come to mean so much to us. Check @lordcobol and @coffeprince4eva‘s walls for some awesome, personal stories.
I have a story to share too. We had a stray cat come and push his way into our lives. He’d sit on an old plastic chair in my patio, and lick his paws, miaow when he saw me, and fall asleep. My hubby fed him, together with the rest of the residents on our street. So he was eating good food, my opposite neighbour owned an Indian restaurant, and he would bring back plastic bags of meats every evening for him.
Bro Cat – that’s what we called him – grew fat and lazy as the years passed. He slept on our patio for 7 years, and he was the King of the Realm. There was this crazy time I walked out of my gate and saw Bro Cat, at the helm, and behind him, three puppies from my other neighbour’s house, and a stray dog which liked to sleep on our street, all march in a line, single file, slowly down the street, at a leisurely pace set by the leader, Bro Cat.
Bro Cat grew older and tireder as the years passed, and slept a lot, waking up to miaow at us when we came home, or leave the house. One day, he disappeared. My hubby was frantic with worry. He reappeared 3 days later, and promptly settled back to his old routine. But he was eating a whole lot less – he didn’t seem hungry anymore, but he still miaowed at us, and slept as usual. Last year just before the Chinese New Year, he disappeared – and he never came back. We think he died in a ditch somewhere.
It’s very sad, and my heart hurts as I’m typing this. I don’t think I’ll ever have a pet again, because it hurts so much when it leaves. We had two guinea pigs, Porky and Pigo, who were with us for two years, and they died, too, one after the other. My kids were inconsolable, and I cried for days after. I’m still hurting. Seeing their pics on my phone hurt me a lot, so I deleted all of them. Losing a pet is heartbreaking, and you won’t know how much it hurts until you keep one.
WishfulToki
May 30, 2019 at 9:42 AM
Thank you, I’ve been reading the cat stories. Errand Boys are the best ❤️
Your story is heartbreaking and similar to mine – one day our cat disappeared and was found dead in the park. I’ve had several pets and they all died on me (cat, dog, rescued bird, chicken, sheep), so I decided to never let myself get attached to a pet animal again.
KSKalways
May 30, 2019 at 10:33 AM
Once, I dreamed of losing my Fat Missy the Cat. I woke up feeling soooo sad…
*sending Beanie hugs your way*
RenOIshi
May 30, 2019 at 2:12 PM
Aww 🙁 Losing a pet is like losing family. I have lost many pets and I cry about them still. I pray that our current cats live a long happy life with us 🙂
PakalanaPikake
May 31, 2019 at 6:45 AM
Dear yyishere YY,
Thanks for tagging me. I’ve been enjoying the cat and pet stories immensely.
I’m sorry to hear about Porky and Pigo. I have outlived three feline nephews and a number of companion animals, including my 4-H rabbit, Hans, who lived about 7 years. The most recent died just over a month ago, and I’m feeling kind of raw. After nearly 22 years, his absence feels weird.
One of the challenges of being the human of a companion animal is the disparity in lifespans, especially in the case of small rodents. Their lives are so much shorter than ours that it doesn’t seem fair. And it hurts like hell when we have to witness their passing.
I wish I could recall the name of the veterinarian who used to write an animal health column for Prevention magazine in the ’70s and ’80s when it was still published by Rodale. Between about 1979-1983, he wrote a very thoughtful article on bereavement, and the service that our pets and animal companions render as they share their lives with us. They give us a ringside seat on the circle of life and a lesson in impermanence that can help us come to grips with our own mortality and that of our human loved ones — a dress rehearsal, if you will. I don’t know if that is any consolation to you, but it hit me where I live, and I still recall the gist of it.
It’s okay to feel sad at this time. It may be that the depth of our grief is directly proportional to the joy and companionship we experience with the creatures who so intimately share our lives. I just hope that you and your family can recall the good times you shared with your pets. It is an important part of the grieving process, and will help you cultivate gratitude for the blessings they were in your lives. It might even be therapeutic to write down your favorite stories about your pets, and actively reminisce about them and the lessons they taught you. When you feel up to it, recall the good and happy times with the pets with your children — which is what people do at wakes and repasts after funerals for their human friends and relatives. Draw their portraits, too. Consider putting together a family memory book for Porky and Pigo when you all feel up to it.
I hope that you can take a lesson from Kdrama and allow yourself to suspend your disbelief enough to eventually entertain the possibility that you might one day again enjoy the companionship of a pet. It may feel impossible right now, but that doesn’t mean that you will always feel that way. A friend is a gift you give yourself, and that applies to the ones with fur, feathers, and scales, too.
I’ll leave you with a piece of music that comforts me at times like this. Even though it deals with human relationships and how we change over time, its message to cherish the good memories certainly applies to pets, too.
Take care of yourself, YY. 😉
Beamer Brothers: “Only Good Times”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yvEDmPq4vTQ
RenOIshi
May 30, 2019 at 2:13 PM
Yes!! This one looks like my bat cat!!! Hahaha! He is serial killer of roaches.
PakalanaPikake
May 31, 2019 at 7:09 AM
@coffeprince4eva RenOlshi,
ROFLMAO at “serial killer of roaches.”
One of my feline nephews, a pixilated ankle-biter of a Maine Coon Cat named Fergus aka Furball, was the scourge of mousies. But since he didn’t learn how to hunt from his mom, he dispatched them by playing with them to death.
RenOIshi
May 31, 2019 at 7:18 AM
He sounds like a catch 😃