Bert the cat.
As some of you may recall, we rescued an old cat 2 years and 8 months ago. He endured a history of abuse and neglect for several years, following the death of his owner's wife. Her husband left him to fend mostly for himself, more often then not his food and water bowls were empty. He had several broken bones and a back injury, reportedly because of neighborhood kids that considered kicking him a fun activity.
His owners daughter told us he was 23 years old, a flame point siamese. He lived two doors from us, we saw him as we passed by on our daily walks, he always greeted us and loved to be petted and talked to.
My wife started checking on him daily, to ensure he had food and water. One day he walked to our place, yowling, pawing at his jaw and clearly in severe pain. Off to the emergency pet clinic, the poor guy had four rotten teeth and a severe infection in his jaw. Surgery and an extended clinic stay had him better, an $1800 bill and several days later we took him home to our house, we now had a cat.
We told his owner he wouldn't be coming back, he felt at home with us immediately. Our black lab, Ellie, was used to seeing him daily on our walks, so she also made him feel welcome.
Bert had been having some discomfort and sand box issues since Tuesday evening, I stayed up until 0430 this morning with him and it was clear he was in distress, looking quite distant and sort of lost. We took him to the vet early this morning, the diagnosis was kidney failure and at 25 years old there was no hope of any corrective action.
So Bert was put to sleep, my wife was holding him on her lap. He looked entirely peaceful, passing away in probably less than one minute. Even the vet got a bit teary, knowing Bert had a great two years of quality life, after so much neglect before he became ours. He will be cremated, joining all of all of our other pets that are still with us in their urns.
This evening we feel sadness, but relieved that Bert will not be suffering with an unfixable illness. Ellie, our black lab, keeps looking for Bert and has a somewhat panicked look in her eyes, it will be a while before she realizes he just won't be here. It makes us sad that she can't know the reason, I wish she could understand that Bert needed this relief, it was his time. The two of them had been so close, always together.
I write this not intended to be a downer, rather to say if anyone has the desire and opportunity to rescue an animal, it can be among the best experiences one can enjoy. We were so pleased and happy to have Bert, he gave every bit the same love and affection for us, that we wanted to give him. We were so grateful to have him as a member of our family. Aloha, Bert.
Best to all.
Karon, Patrick and Ellie