Ave Atque Vale

Posted on by Sarah A. Hoyt

Goodbye Havelock Vetinary Hoyt, aka Fuzzy Pooka, aka Squeaks, aka Fuzz Butt, Last of the cats the boys grew up with, Last of Colorado cats.

Look, I know, I’m not stupid. I know he was weedling on himself — pretty much all the time — and he couldn’t see or smell very well, He still called for his buddy, Greebo, his closest cat-friend, gone six years now. And just this week, he seemed to be expending all his effort into making his back legs work.

But I still hoped he’d go quietly, in his sleep, in one of the places he loved, like the extensively battered too small little bed.

It wasn’t to be. He was now in pain all the time, and we couldn’t let it go on. For humans it might have the advantage of expiating sins, but cats can’t sin. They have no moral judgement. And for our pets, the only rule they know is “keep my human happy.”

He did that. He was a good cat. The best cat possible. And we’re going to miss him every day of the rest of our lives.

Havey, when we brought him home from the mini-golf course. Well, after 3 baths, one of them professional. We got him from a mini golf course. People were hitting him with sticks for playing with balls. My younger son plopped down on the floor, called “kitten, kitten, kitten” and Havelock ran into his arms. he’s been ours ever since. When we got him he looked yellow. We think he was living from the dumpster of the Vietnamese restaurant next door. He was covered in CAKED grease. After three baths, he was white but still greasy. From this point on, the boys and I rubbed corn starch on him and brushed him out till he was clean and magnificent. One of the most beautiful cats ever.

He was the cat that people who didn’t even like cats loved. One minute they were reluctant and the next they were petting him and threatening to “num num num” his fuzzy ears.

And he loved people. All people. All the time. This cat never met a stranger. Being hit with golf clubs didn’t sour him on humans. I doubt anything could.

He wasn’t our brightest cat (that’s Indy.) It took him ten years to learn to go down stairs. Before that he’d throw himself down head first, go ass over teakettle, then squeak (until he got ill, his voice sounded like an 8 week old kitten) indignantly at us for keeping such a feature in our house, that forced him to hurt himself.

He never understood my body was also me, so he had to be as close as possible to my head, preferably ON my face. And when I got up to go to the bathroom in the night, he’d shadow the feet closely to make sure they didn’t run away with me. (Yes, this resulted in many clunks as I accidentally kicked his little, hollow head.)

In the house before this one, where we had one of those balcony things, overlooking the living room, he tried to jump twenty feet from the railing to Dan’s lap down a floor and a bit. I plucked him out of the air, I still don’t know how. This scared him so much he fortunately never did it again.

He used to bring me his mechanical toys when they were broken and make the “fix it, mom” sound. One day he brought me a beetle. I had to explain. He was disappointed in my lack of ability to raise the beetle from the dead.

He answered to his name. Wherever he was hiding in the house, however badly he was feeling, he’d come when I called “Havey! Havey Bavvy!”

He mostly delighted in being petted. He’d do anything for pets.

He went with younger son and I on either side, petting him. I hope Greebo was on the other side, waiting for him. Look, I’m not even sure if there’s an other side for cats, but I hope there is, and that Greebo was there, waiting for him. They were the best of friends, Greebo’s intelligence and protective instincts looking after Havey’s boundless affection and love. And I hope little Helena, his foster daughter the little time we got to have her with us, is there too, to let him cuddle and groom her.

In that time, where there’s no time, it will be only a little while till Dan and I are along. If we deserve it. If we’re good enough to meet again the gallant and innocent little souls that went before us.

103 thoughts on “Ave Atque Vale”

  1. Condolences from me and mine to you and yours, especially Sister A to her siblings. I was glad I got to meet and pet the silly floof the times that I did.

    Liked by 2 people

      1. I am so, so sorry, Sarah. It is never easy to let them go, even when it is time. That’s the bargain that we make with them when they come into our lives. He knew you loved him. He knew you loved him enough to let him go when it was time.

        And he, and Greebo, and Helene, and the many others will be waiting for you and Dan when it is your time. God bless you.

        Rest in Peace, Havelock Vetinary Hoyt.

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  8. Faith is the condition of firm belief without proof. I have faith that there is an afterlife for those animals that were close to humans, and that if we’re acceptable in our behavior, we will be allowed to join them, no matter what mouth sounds we make to identify Deity. I am sorry for your loss, and may you be acceptable to rejoin them when the time comes, my friend.

    Liked by 4 people

  10. I’m so sorry, ma’am.

    “In sorrow we must go, but not in despair. Behold! We are not bound for ever to the circles of the world, and beyond them is more than memory.”

    Requiescat in pace, Havelock Vetinari Hoyt.

    Liked by 1 person

  11. Always hard to say goodbye to our little furry sidekicks. There’s always that one which is much harder to let go of than the others – for us, it was Patchie, found as a kitten on a street in Athens and who lived until my daughter finished USMC basic training, and then Sammy, a white Siamese goofball who fell utterly in love with her, even though he had been raised by some neighbors after being found as an abandoned kitten in the back reaches of the airport. Nope – he fell head over heels in love with the Daughter Unit, and moved across the street to be with her without a backwards look.

    I shall find it very hard to let go of Prince Fluff the Magnificent (Indy’s brother) when that time comes. Hopefully – at least a decade and a half from now.

    Liked by 2 people

    2. For our son that cat was Silver. Mom cat had her babies under the babysitter’s house. As the kittens emerged they were claimed by the kids. We’d just adopted two male semi-feral kittens. Which gave us three already. Dad initially said “no”. I told kid to have dad hold her when dad dropped son off. Got a call that day to “take a cat kennel when you pick up that night.” We had a 4th cat. Silver lived to be 22 years old.

      The two we regret were the feral kittens at the golf coarse. We’d just brought in two, giving us three after we lost Thump (age 5, his death hurt badly). Hubby should have brought them home. We do have the male one now after three years. We would have ended up with 6 cats. We do not know how to say no.

      Sixth cat, actually our 5th, is a cat rescued by the in-laws from the Freeway (of said name). But they could not keep her because their other rescue cat took deadly exception to her. Since they live in a 5th wheel, he won.

      Weird (not really, because cats) clowder set up. We have three cats who are buddies. Two outliers. Our older 13 year old cat at least will be in the same room as the 3 buddies. The loner, from the golf coarse, stays upstairs, the other 4 stay downstairs. When they meet, there is hissing, growling, and puffy tails. No fur flying at least. Then naturally the cat referee, otherwise known as the dog gets involved. Hilarity ensues.

      What is weird about the above arrangement is this is the first time in 47+ years that we’ve had this division. All the other times the cats got along. No matter what their ages or when they came into the household. Not the first time we’ve had 5 cats. First time they all did not get along.

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  16. Requiescat in pace

    Que Deus o/a tenha

    I’m glad I got the chance to meet him before it was time. He was a beautiful cat, and definitely didn’t care that he’d never met me before, demanding all the pets.

    Liked by 1 person

  17. I’m just so sorry. This is one reason I don’t have pets/animal companions. Allergies are another. But mostly, I just know from the outset that losing them is baked in and I can’t stand it. With that in mind, I salute braver people than I for risking the heartbreak that attends life with the wee critters.

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    1. It is easier, for degrees of easier, to lose them when you know it is time. That it is for their benefit you are letting go.

      It is devastating when you have to say good bye when they are a lot younger than it should happen. We’ve had this happen twice. Once with a 3 year old cat. Another he was 5. The second one was so tiny when I found him (three -ish weeks old). I have two set up pictures of him in the same spot, one the day I found him, the other three years later. One I could hold him in one hand. The other much bigger. Secondary poisoning is what killed him. Or why the current five are not allowed outside to roam. The other got cancer.

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  19. I hope Greebo was on the other side, waiting for him. Look, I’m not even sure if there’s an other side for cats, but I hope there is, and that Greebo was there, waiting for him. 

    As one who’s said goodbye to 10 feline fur-monsters, I firmly believe he’s up there waiting for you and Dan. I remember the old Twilight Zone episode where some good old boy and his faithful hunting dog have died and are on the road to the afterlife. They come across a fork in the road that says heaven to the right, but a man-like being tells the man he can’t enter heaven with his dog. He refuses to leave his dog and takes the other path–the one that actually leads to heaven.

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    1. Then flew Dinah from under the Chair,

      Into his arms she flew—

      And licked his face from chin to hair

      And Peter passed them through!

      Liked by 3 people

  20. My deepest sympathies. Not only is it so hard to say good-bye to the furry kids, it’s so damn hard to say good-bye to the ones who’ve been there through thick and thin, including multiple moves, everything. Hugs to you all.

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  21. I’m so sorry for your loss. I know that you thought this was going to happen a few years ago, and I’m glad you got that extra time with him.

    Liked by 1 person

  23. I’m so sorry for your loss. I know that you thought this was going to happen a few years ago, and I’m glad you got that extra time with him.

    Liked by 1 person

  27. God created everything spiritually first, then physically. So why not cats?

    Havey is having a rough-and-tumble reunion with Greebo, and when you’re ready he’ll be there.

    Liked by 1 person

  28. Beats me if cats (dogs, other apes, etc.) have souls. I THINK I have a soul, but that could just be early programming. I will say that at least animals are more honest than us two-legs are, in general.

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  33. The price of all love is loss. Our wee ones of course have souls. There is no question of that. They are different from ours, but so what? We are all Himself’s creatures. If we do as we should, try as we might, and follow the Rules that guide us, well, I believe that we will find each other again in the Light.

    But that is for another tomorrow yet.

    Our people-loving orange not-claimed cat has catterized the basement of my folks’ house. He comes out to shadow them as they work the garden, when they go out to eat, or to their appointments and all. He demands pets as his due if they pass nearby his shady napping spot. He keeps the area clean of verminous scofflaws and occasionally nibbles mint plants, but that latter is no trouble. The bloody things, the mint plants, have ambition enough to challenge even the crabgrass on the South lawn.

    As humans, we humanize our fuzzballs and doubtless they see us as just slightly broken and slow bigger cats. But that’s alright. Animals help keep us sane. Well, less crazy. Sort of. Mostly. Most of the time. Regardless. Anyway.

    May you and yours be blessed. Rough though the day may be, and harrowing the night, the dawn shall arrive. And ’till that day comes when all our burdens may be set down the final time, we’ve our tasks and our loved ones to share what comes with. Be well. Snuggle the fuzzies extra good, too. Worry naught about this little corner of the world. The Huns shall abide. Take that nap. Fill the food bowl. Clean out the litter box. And remember: every joy is not made less by its passing. We are incredibly fortunate. That was one fine cat that found you, Miss Sarah.

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  35. Tears in my eyes. (If they start rolling down my face, I’ll just tell everyone here at work that I’ve been contemplating the pulchritude of the executive summary Copilot just helped me craft for the report we’re delivering to the new VP.)

    I first heard of Havey as the original resident and deposed king of Cat Tentistan, the world’s smallest and most fiercely independent country, and that’s how I’ve thought of His Royal Fuzziness ever since. (That’s the blog post that converted me from a mildly curious visitor of AtH to a consistent reader, back in…what…2015?)

    And I guarantee you that he’s waiting for his humans. At least, he’d better be, if this universe knows what’s good…all I really know is that when I die, if there isn’t one big, goofy dog in particular waiting for me at the head of the pack wherever I end up, I ain’t staying there.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Heck tonight is the first of three nights I am suppose to kick out the animals, out of our bedroom. Including the dog who shadows me day and night. Shower with the antibacterial sponge, after using regular soap and washing hair. Clean sheets (easy enough). No sharing bed with any pets. Um …

      Hubby says it will happen. We will see how he holds up. He said he will sleep on the couch if needed. Which will appease said dog for a bit. But I am the one she shadows. I am the one she wakes up if I quit breathing (never mind I have a device to prevent that).

      Oh and the bedroom door latch does not quite latch solidly. Pepper, the dog, will not push it open. But Tj or Freeway definitely will. None of the current cats actually sleep with us (with our son, they take turns, but not with us). What they will do is wake one of us up and demand attention. Tj is particularly persistent with this with me. I get patted on the face and scalp, and he sticks his nose in my ear, until I give in. Amber lies on my face. Bits meows loudly. Freeway paws at either the covers, so she can go under, curl up for a second or two, come out, bop the dog, and leave. Buddy, the newest arrival, is 100% upstairs or sunroom. He will not come near me (we do not know why).

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  37. Condolences to you and your family on the loss of Havey. Be comforted by his having a far better life having been rescued from the mini-golf than he would have had otherwise.

    Liked by 1 person

  40. My condolences. I lost my 17-year-old kitty last year, and still miss her. May your grief ride lightly upon you.

    Apparently, the smoke from my cigarette has gotten in my eyes.

    Liked by 1 person

  42. A lovely, poignant tribute to a dear friend. No doubt Havey is touched that you would share your love and loss with so many.

    The downside of being a foreign liaison officer for Uncle Sam is so many foreign postings. Over the years, many four-legged friends have shared our lives and our homes, and all too often we were forced to leave them in new loving homes rather than subject them to the draconian animal import laws of my next destination. Only twice have I endured your loss, once with my dearest feline passing in my arms and more painfully a vivacious Jack Russell struck down too early by disease slipping into oblivion on a cold steel table as I scratched his ears and assured him that he was the best of boys. Losing such companions is a pain only new furry friends can assuage.

    In that land without time, Havey occasionally pauses his frolicking to look at the door for your arrival. Until that joyful reunion, he awaits.

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  43. Oh, Sarah, I’m so sorry. Cyber-hugs from us in Virginia for sure! It ain’t easy; we all know that, but I’m pretty sure there’s an Other Side for our friends like Havey.

    With All the Sympathy I can Muster,

    MOD

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  46. Sorry for the loss of your kitty, he was very lucky that you found him and that Saigon Springs didn’t have him on the menu.

    Eric.

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  50. Reading this post brought to mind the many cats who have lived with us over the years. All of them gone now, some from mishaps, some from old age, a very few who just disappeared and we never learned their fates. Our last cat was 17 when she passed quietly at home in 2009. For reasons we have not been able to have a cat companion since.

    I miss cats. Your posts and pictures remind me of all the joys, and occasional sorrows, of living with them. Thank you for sharing them, even the ones that hurt. And please accept my condolences for your loss.

    Liked by 1 person

  51. Darn

    That brought a tear to my eye. 

    First and foremost my condolences.  You mentioned he was one of the last your kids grew up with some amazing the memories and  the passage of time they represent.  

    I lost my best friend earlier this year.   He was 18… at that point where you take things a month at a time.  When the end came it came suddenly and I had to make that end of life decision.  

    I found him 17 years earlier, he had been abandoned and was living in the alley behind our house in Phoenix.  He was a beautiful cat, pure white and odd eyed.  He was also starving and though we weren’t in the market for a cat we figured we would feed him and then find a home for him.

    I remember the day we became friends.  It was a few weeks after we started feeding him and he stop running when we came out.  I was cleaning the pool and he had started to inch closer until finally I was able to give him a pet.  You know how little kids are when they first make friends with somebody? They can’t stop talking?  That was him.  

     I had cats growing up but I have to admit I am a dog person but this little guy…. We were in it together for life’s big adventure.

    So that one night when I knew the end was there I called the vet, the one I had taken him to 14 years and everybody there adored him.  We talked about it and they could not get him in and suggested an urgent care.  I couldn’t do that I wanted it to be with people who knew him.

    He died that night in his sleep.  He had touched so many people and one of them  said he did that to spare me for what was to come. It sounds crazy but all who knew him believed it was the case. 

    We of course never knew exactly how old he was. When we adopted him the vet said he was about  two and  the kids of course needed to know his birthday so they could celebrate it so we picked the day we adopted him.  It was that day his birthday  17 years later when he passed away. 

    My life has changed a lot over the past 17 years but he was always part of it.  It wasn’t just me who thought he was the greatest cat… I wish you all could have met him.

    Mike

    Chicago Boyz

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    1. Havey was almost completely incontinent and had stopped letting us hydrate him. (He was terminal with kidney disease for the last three years of his life, and we hydrated him subcutaneously twice a week.)
      We took him to the vet two days ago hoping for a new pain killer, but she said he was in pain she couldn’t stop, and his legs were going.
      I still hate to have to intervene. But he went with the vet he knew the last five years, in a room where he used to get exams (and watch the dogs next door play.) He wasn’t in fear. I just wish it didn’t hurt so badly.

      Liked by 1 person

  52. Pingback: Instapundit » Blog Archive » THE LAST WEEK OR SO HAS BEEN INSANE. AND TODAY WAS JUST BAD:  Ave Atque Vale.

  56. I’m so sorry for your loss. Some people don’t understand, losing a pet is like losing a beloved family member.

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  57. I was just offered a kitten. I would very much like to have a cat. But we’re about to hit the road again and my beloved doesn’t want to deal with a kitten in the fifth wheel. Aside from the litter issue, is it fair to the cat to spend drive time in a carrier and be confined to the fifth wheel the rest of the time?

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Yes.

      Cats especially as kittens can learn to use a harness an a leash.

      A portable catio.

      Might be a problem, or rather expensive, these days, if you are repeatably crossing the US border into Canada and back.

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    2. I think Dep729 hass a good idea. The modern cast harnesses look very easy to use and do not seem to cause the issues that a collar can cause. Trained with a lead from a young age to the harness the cat could ride in the body of the truck with you and make pit stops when you stop with a box available in the trailer for overnight.

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      2. As long as beloved is opposed I’m not willing to argue. The other issues are the aroma of even rigorously cleaned litter in a small space and the fact some of the places we work have no pet policies.

        Liked by 1 person

          1. Does the Crystal Litter Clot? If so, I’m in. I know there is a version that changes color for different diagnosis. Would not be able to determine which cat, but would give us a heads up something is wrong with one or more.

            What brand?

            I went to the light clay version. Clots just as well as regular clay. Multi-cat for three automatic boxes. Still have to scrape the sides and bottoms to prevent sticking. Would not leave unattended for a week. But had to do this with the old boxes. (Four cats use two. One cat uses the other.)

            If there is any smell then a cat is protesting another infringing on territory. I’ve made it easy to clean (substitute with clean towels, wash the others).

            I’d add a 4th box, for the four cats downstairs, but we do not have any place to reasonably put it.

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      3. Wish I could take all the credit for my idea. But my in-laws did this. First set when they traveled for steel-head fishing. Second set as they camp hosted. Second set did not bother with harness and leash (long story). I’ve seen a lot of people posting Reels with their hiking cats, using harnesses.

        We use harnesses and lines when we first introduce new cats/kittens to the backyard “adventure”. Allows us to teach them boundaries to prevent escapes (never outside alone, but they still are faster than we are and we have to run them down, at least initially).

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        1. Heh. Sounds like my “adventures” with our current fuzzybutt. First cat I’ve harness and leashed for walking. Took a couple of times to get the harness fitted properly since she managed to slip it before I got it just so. And then spent 30 minutes each time chasing and calling her through the woods, brush, and brambles (OUCH!) around the house before she wore out and plopped on the grass long enough for me to pick her up and bring her back inside.

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    3. we have a two floor carrier. if we ever buy an RV (it’s a possibility) we’ll make a cat palace out of it, with beds, litter and food,a nd the three idiots (now all crammed in a tiny cat bed. I gues sthey feel off too) can ride in that.

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      1. Just checked out a used 5th wheel here. Bedroom, bath, bunk beds (made for either children or midgets, but could be used for extra storage) and kitchen/dining/living area. Pretty basic (mid-sized TV, no electric fireplace and the “mattress,” on the bed was a big chunk of not terribly thick foam rubber) but usable. They wanted $25K.

        Suggests to me RV prices may be coming down a bit, at least for used models. Of course, it’s good to know things like why is a 2-year-old 35 ft fifth wheel at the used car lot.

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        1. You would be surprised how often that happens that is not related to something wrong with the RV. Reasons:

          1. Actually is a “new”, never sold 2-year-old model.
          2. Purchased. Went on one or two trips, either upgraded or sold back.
          3. Purchased. One or the other partner either died or went into care.
          4. 2020 and on, saw a lot of novices suddenly RV-ing, because they were forced to if they wanted to go anywhere. All were hilarious (hey, we were all beginners at one time). Some were not cut out for that adventure. Suspect a lot went home and sold that brand new RV back to the dealer.
          5. ????

          Definitely if serious, have it checked out by an independent RV inspector.

          We gave up RV-ing because my husband fell while we were traveling. He’d also fallen at home, and later on a different trips after we sold. But Fall 2020 when he fell we got really, really, I mean, really, lucky. So lucky that after he was cleaned (blood thinner, plavix) up and bandage (by emergency RN’s on vacation, no less), as we were getting into the truck I told him that if had killed himself I’d have resurrected so I could kill him myself. (He fell at the top of a cliff. Anywhere else along that stretch, he’d gone over the edge, to rocks and a very fast cold river, in Yellowstone.) OTOH I’d only have to figure out how to get the trailer hooked up and drive the setup home, once. (I knew how to hook it up. Just never done it myself. Never driven it.) Our trailer was 13 seasons, and the truck 11 seasons, old. Yes, we got good prices relative to what we paid originally selling in 2020.

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  59. Condolences to You, Dan and the boys. This is the part of cat cohabitation that is the absolute pits. I’ve had to do this personally 4 times for cats and it never gets easier. Also this will be particularly hard on Indy. The cats know and love their friends (especially the elders that seem to end up like Momma/Auntie cats even when they’re male) so make sure Indy gets plenty of love (though no additional tools; he is far to much of a threat as he is).

    From the pictures, Havelock was quite a lovely animal with a sort of medium coat and a vaguely foreign body, Quite handsome. Was he a talker? I wouldn’t be surprised if there wasn’t a bit of Siamese ancestry in him. The Siamese got popular from Disney’s Lady and the Tramp and That Darn Cat, and were everywhere when I was a kid. Cats were rarely neutered or spayed in the ’60s and early ’70s so those genes are in our base mutt cat gene pool.

    Our family had Spike, whom we got as a kitten from a veterinary hospital. Like Havey at the end we were giving Spike subcutaneous fluids 2-3 times a week, as well as specialized food and other medication to ease arthritis. Also at the end he got senile and would walk around calling for his brother, who had passed nearly 8 years before. Spike lived a solid 19 years, almost like being a centenarian as a human. His passing was particularly hard on my elder daughter. She was just graduating from High School and he had literally been present all of her life. Spike had raised her from a baby and would guard at her night until he had to be exiled to the cellar where he had several boxes he could find without having to navigate a house of which he no longer remembered the layout.

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    1. I picked up a kitten from the parking lot of a grocery store while we lived in Asbury Park. I named her “Vergil,” discovered she was a she, and renamed her, “Mercedes,” which became Sadie over the years. At the time, I was pregnant so our son grew up with her. We brought her with us when we moved south. She made it to 17 without major health issues, but one night she climbed into my lap (not her usual thing). The next morning, she stood in the kitchen, looking around as though she’d never seen the place before. She went outside that morning and never came back. Several months later son found where she’d gone into the yard, found a shady spot, curled up and died.

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      1. We took in a couple of rescue kittens through a co-worker. One was caught quickly. The other took a lot of weeks. We’d had them a few months when we noticed we did not have a male and a female. Two males. Oh well. At the time male neuter VS spay was less expensive. Amazing what shows when good meals are provided.

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    2. We had the option to try subcutaneous fluids for Thump. His kidneys were not diseased, he had no kidney function at all. The secondary poisoning killed his kidneys. He would have had to had the fluids every single day the rest of his life.

      Kidney transplants might have also worked. Nearest location is in northern California, somewhere. In addition anti rejection drugs daily, and monthly follow up at transport location.

      Neither option was fair to him, just to keep him with us.

      All three of us (as we have always tried to do) were with him as he went to sleep, and then the final dose to stop his heart.

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    3. I have to admit to being somewhat concerned about the spay and neuter everything in sight policies most humane societies and pet places have. Granted, it does a good job of lowing the amount of feral cats (and disease vectors, and bird mortality), but I also think it’s causing long term harm for the species by preventing just such genetic mixture. Plus, many of the cats we find with the most sociable traits don’t get the chance to pass those on to any progeny.

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      1. It is surprisingly difficult to get kittens (for free). We have managed even when they do not just drop into our laps.

        I do not like the fact that rescues spay as early as they do. Both dogs and cats.

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  60. <<hugs>> He was indeed a gorgeous and loving cat.

    Losing them always hurts, but their time with us, no matter how short always outweighs the pain, and so, even when we swear we won’t go through it again, we always do.

    We had to do the same a few months back for our Angel (19ish). She wasn’t in pain, but she was losing her balance and her ability to eat and walk, something to do with peripheral nerves shutting down.

    Next Saturday is the second anniversary of having to do the same for part of our void. He would have been 5 today. I will always miss my cuddle bug.

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  61. My 16 year old rescue boy still insists on the ceremony.

    Whenever I come home he must greet me on the table, on the balcony when warm, inside when not. As he has aged, I’ve learned to keep one chair pulled out just a smidge to lend him a step.

    An unsupervised little girl in his first familiy thought it great fun to swing the kitten by his front legs. A large, affectionate cat, he will not be picked up. By anybody. (Trips to the vet have always been a rollicking rodeo involving elaborate trickery.) His love has always been on his terms, generously given.

    In the last week we have evolved. He can still get himself up on the table, but he can’t see where he wants to land anymore. The first time I gently picked him up to set him down he bit me. He has acceded to the necessity and has found a new soft kittenish meow requesting the elevator. (He still learns.)

    Of course, the ceremony involves a song and recitation of his sterling feline qualities. He is old and sick, but hearing once more that he is “such a very, very good boy” motivates him. (That and katydids on the balcony. Now we hunt as a team …)

    I cannot call the house-call vet until that last ember is gone.

    I’m sorry for your loss.

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    1. Bits, until recently, would not let me pick her up or touch her except on her terms. Now she’ll accept assistance over the gate into “her room”. Gate blocks off the dog from one room only cats allowed.

      Bits considers me the one who clips claws and administers flea topical. Yes, I am shamelessly taking advantage every 5 to 6 weeks. She is 13.

      Bits is perfectly able to jump over the 36″ high gate, does so coming out of the room. Going in OTOH she has decided it is “too hard”.

      Bits is also of the age where claw clipping is critical. Why we start them as kittens even though very little, if anything, is actually clipped until they are a lot bigger. It needs to be established as acceptable human grooming of cats before it is needed. Otherwise it takes all three of us and I still get shredded and probably bit.

      You will know what I mean if you ever have to take a cat to the veterinarian for extracting and clipping their own claw out of their own pad, because claw curled into the pad. They have plenty of claw trimming stands and a maze with grit paper to trim file down claws. It is not enough.

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      1. Luckily have avoided ingrown nails, recently become more diligent.

        I’ve tried to be a good companion, but absorbing lessons learned for the next bout. Brushing teeth? Well, I got used to picking up dog poop. Another ceremony. Harness training? A necessity.

        For the nonce, gentle this boy’s trip the best way I know how.

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  62. Condolences on your parting, for it is but a temporary separation.

    As others here have said, in essence: God is no respecter of species.

    All of Creation is part of His Plan.

    https://www.ldsliving.com/animals-and-the-afterlife-do-all-dogs-go-to-heaven/s/80286

    Joseph Smith’s answer was unequivocally “yes”; and horses and sparrows and surely cats, and even mice (perhaps they have to repent first?) and all other living things.

    The jury may still be out on the ultimate destination of mosquitoes.

    Thank you for allowing us to be observers of part of Havey’s journey.

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