On Loss….

In 2001 we adopted a kitty named Pontus from the Gastineau Humane Society here in Juneau. His real name nobody knows. He was brought into the Humane Society and deposited in a cage, as his former owners decided they no longer wanted him.

Shortly after his arrival at our home he developed symptoms of his illness. After many trips to the vet, it was determined that Pontus had a tendency to develop bladder stones and had stored up quite a few in his bladder, a very dangerous situation.

Our vet recommended surgery to clean out his bladder and also that he be placed on a special diet to, hopefully, prevent him from developing more stones in the future.

After the surgery Pontus got well and over time fully and completely adopted us into his life. You see, when he first arrived at our home, he really didn’t want much to do with anybody. He would go into the bedroom and sleep by himself and when it was time for the humans to go to bed, he would exit the room. No laps for this cat. No pets either. He just wasn’t interested. Probably because he had never had laps or pets in his previous life. Oh, he had some experience with a broom, which was evident each time he ran and hid when the broom came out.

Over time he began to trust his human companions. He became a lap cat. In fact my husband could hardly sit down in his chair without Pontus jumping up to hang out. He loved his pets, and would sit in the kitchen meowing  until somebody bent down to scratch him on the chin. He even began to tolerate the broom, although he watched it the whole time it was out.

Last week he started to have problems again and I was scared and in tears. I knew something was seriously wrong when he went to the cat box numerous times without leaving anything behind. He laid on the floor and was obviously in a lot of pain. It turns out that the stones had reappeared and were bigger than before. They had blocked his urinary passage and it would have taken more to fix him than he could have possibly tolerated at his age.

So, sadly we had to say good bye.

It’s quieter around here. And a lot less messy. But I miss the meows….. I miss the mess….. I miss Pontus.