This is going to start out sounding like a sad post, but it really isn't. We unexpectedly said good-bye to a little brown tabby cat we called Valerie. She was named after the woman who had been feeding her for eight years. [human] Valerie was diagnosed with terminal cancer last year. She had made provisions for her pets - 3 dogs and a cat - but she was really worried about what was going to happen to the little feral who showed up for meals and napped in her yard.
She checked with the neighbors and no one was willing to commit to her. She looked for a barn home, but was unsuccessful. We have friends in common who contacted us and we agreed to take her in as a "sanctuary cat."
[cat] Valerie had a notched ear which let us know she'd been trapped and fixed in the past - that's what the notched ear means. (we traced her microchip and she'd been fixed at HSSV as an adult cat back in 6/2009 so she was at least 12 years old). Since she knew what a trap it took us weeks to trap her. [human] Valerie was really worried, knowing time was short, but we said we'd stay with it until we got the kitty.
October 14, 2019 she finally walked into the trap and we brought her to her new home. [human] Valerie died a few days later, knowing [cat] Valerie would be safe and cared for the rest of her life.
[cat] Valerie started out hiding and hissing. We put her next to two boys - Jack and Anthony - hoping they become friends. It took time, but that did happen. Below is a photo from a few weeks ago of her "hanging with the boys" They loved sleeping on the shelf next to each other, separated only by the wire. We were starting to contemplate letting them live together, although the boys are on a special diet.
Two days ago, Valerie suddenly died. It was completely unexpected - she'd shown no sign of any problems at all. She was fine and then she was gone. (according to our vets, this was most likely a blood clot that took her fast)
We share this story to honor the person who cared for "the little feral" all those years, and cared deeply about what would happen to her when she was gone. And, we share this story to honor the little kitty who was lucky enough to have someone who cared so much for her. She represents so many, many others who never get the chance to be loved on their own terms.
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