Meow - We'd love to share this portion of Catster with you, but first you'll need to login.
If you don't have a Catster account yet, you can register in about 60 seconds. Registering allows you to use all our free features while allowing us to create a safer, more meaningful environment for the community as a whole.
Registering is fast, free and lets you create your cat page(s), find adoptable cats, save your favorites, connect to your Feline Friends and more.
Dwells:
indoors
Arrival Story: I was married at the time, and we were buying our first home. I knew the first thing I would buy was a cat! I grew up with a seal point Siamese who died when I was 15. My mother refused to get another cat because she was devasted when he died. For years, I was unable to have a cat for various reasons. About three or four months before our settlement, my husband, who traveled a lot for work, came home with a homemade poster of a cat needing a home. On it was a picture of Zachary. He asked me 'do you want him'? Well, of course I did, but we couldn't take a cat till we had the house, plus Zachary lived in Connecticut; we lived in southeast Pennsylvania. Luckily, Zachary's owner kept him for us. She was engaged to a guy with two large dogs and was rehoming Zachary. The first weekend after settlement, we drove to CT to get him. It was a long ride home! I felt awful taking him from his home. He cried in the car, but would take turns either sitting with me or my husband. When we got home, he ran right under one of the beds. I would look underneath, call him, and he would come out. Then, he would go back under. When it was time for bed though that first night, he didn't hesitate - he hopped right in there with us!
Bio: In April 2004, I was away for four days. When I came home, Zachary was waiting for me on the kitchen table per usual. I looked at him and cried out to my mom "What happened to Zachary?" She didn't know what I meant. The left side of his face was swollen. I called the vet hoping it was a tooth issue, but I knew we wouldn't be that lucky. It was a tumor. Squamous cell carcinoma. A very aggressive oral cancer. There was nothing they could do as it was in his mouth. I was sick. I made an appointment with a specialist just so that I could be 100% sure that there wasn't some new miracle. I had to give him fluids because he couldn't drink water. When eating became difficult, it was time. I couldn't see having him struggle to eat, or force feed him, or have him starve. Zachary crossed over the Rainbow Bridge on May 25, 2004. Catster Local Spots I've Marked: The Cat Companion The Groups I'm In: "Cobblestone Square", ♥ Angel Circle of Love for Simba ♥, Olde Furts, Rainbow Bridge Kitties, The Rainbow Bridge
The Last Forum I Posted In: Angels Amongst Us
From Mom: Five years ago today, I helped Zachary to the Bridge. For some reason, yesterday was particularly upsetting, as I dwelled on that awful day and the weeks leading to it. I don't want to continue to dwell on it, so I have asked Zachary to, instead, write about the day he came home ....
It was a hot summer day at the end of July, and I was home with my humans and those two awful, huge dogs. It was early still, and my new mommy and daddy came over. I had met them once before but didn't think anything of it. I was relaxing in the big dog bed. All of a sudden, I was scooped up and put in a carrier and taken into a strange car. My mommy said goodbye to me, and we were off. What was going on?! They told me I was going to a new home without any dogs to terrorize me. I thought, 'why can't the dogs leave along with that fiance guy who brought them'. It wasn't fair! Why me?!
New mommy had let me out of the carrier at the urging of old mommy. I meowed. I meowed some more. I went to the back seat. I went to the front seat. They tried to console me. The highway was bumpy. Bump, meow, bump, meow, bump, meow. It was a big, older car with bench seats, so I sat next to new mommy. Then I sat next to new daddy. Then I moved really fast and got in the foot well under new daddy's feet. We pulled over. I was extricated from the foot well. Oh, the ride went on forever. Four hours from CT to PA, and I meowed the whole way. Finally, I gave up and retreated to my carrier. It was hardly worth it; we were at our destination twenty minutes later.
They took me out of the car in the carrier, opened the front door and set me down inside. They opened the carrier. I tore out of it and up the stairs running under the bed in the first room I came to. What was going on? New smells. No dogs. New mommy came up stairs and looked under the bed at me. She called my name and patted the floor. I crawled out and let her pet me. I was scared. She left me alone, and I went back under the bed. We did this all day long, having these little visits. At one point, I switched rooms. Finally, it came time for them to go to bed. I heard her say she hoped I'd be okay overnight. As soon as they got in bed, I came out and hopped in with them. They quickly found out that I was no dummy!
From Mommy again: I have lit a virtual candle for Zachary here: http://www.gratefulness.org/candles/message.cfm?l=eng&cid=84 67961
My Account
