Another Hard Goodbye...

Saying goodbye to a pet is one of the hardest tasks that we have to do in life. I've had to do it many times and it never gets easier. But one of the biggest responsibilities of being a pet owner is having to make the decision when the time comes. For our beloved Mitzie, that time came this past weekend.

Almost exactly 13 years ago, we brought this adorable fuzzball into our lives. She was all candy cane tail and squeaky meow, and a bundle of trouble...T-R-U-B-B-L-E kind of trouble. When she came home, we had another cat, Doggie. Mitzie loved to terrorize the Doggie with her kitten instincts. She loved the Doggie, but Doggie didn't particularly care for her. Doggie passed about a year later and that's when Mitzie become our little snuggle bug. 

Mitzie grew into a regal cat lady, but never lost her kitten ways. She would often climb into places where she couldn't get down, meowing until I came to rescue her with the ladder (though that never stopped her from going back to the same spot). She was fond of water experiments, tipping bowls, knocking glasses off tables, etc. She also dabbled in fire experiments, frequently trying to shove things in our old furnace. She had no manners whatsoever and would jump on the dinner table and eat off our plates. She once stole a chicken bone off my plate and growled at me when I tried to take it away. But she was also incredibly sweet and cleaned our hands with the scratchiest tongue ever, and always made sure my beard was spotless. 

Earlier this summer, we learned that she had a tumor in her belly and were completely heartbroken. We always jokingly told her "we're going to get you the help that you need" whenever she did anything crazy, but now it was real. We weren't going to put her through chemo, not at her age and not when it involved an hour long car ride (car rides literally scared the poop out of Mitzie). So we put her on a regiment of medicines, both natural and pharmaceutical. We tried Rife treatment. And we gave her plenty of love. Being the miracle cat that she was, we got three more months of Mitzie being Mitzie.

About two weeks ago, we noticed Mitzie was getting weaker. The steroids began losing their effect and she stopped eating. We increased the dose and gave her some other medicines, and for another week, she was back to normal. Then last week, we could tell she was getting tired. Her appetite had vanished. She slept more than normal. She even stopped hissing at our white cat, whom she's always hated. But she never stopped being affectionate. She never stopped curling up in my arms at night like a teddy bear. But she simply stopped being herself and it was time. We couldn't bear it if we had to watch Mitzie suffer.

A little over a year ago, we lost our Mr. Mowgli. I'm not sure Mitzie ever really got over his absence. They were constant companions.  I like to think they are together again now. Though I miss them both terribly, at least that thought gives me some comfort. 

Sleep Tight, Sweet Mitzie