Eulogy for a Friend, Part I

So as most of you have heard by now, we had to put my sweet little cat Autumn to sleep on Sunday. I think I've totally cried my insides out at this point. But every time I think it's stopped, I realize I was wrong.

On Saturday night I noticed she wasn't behaving normally, and she was leaving little drops of bloody urine around the house, so I decided to take her to the vet first thing Sunday morning for what was obviously a bladder infection. What I didn't know, and what the doctor told us was that she was also in renal failure, and her pancreas was inflamed. There were things he could do to try and treat her, but what would fix the one would do things to hurt the other conditions and vice-versa. It was so hard to realize that ultimately she wasn't going to recover from those things, and it would just be more humane to her to put her to rest than to have her suffer through a slow and painful decline of her systems, just so we could spend a little more time with her. It was the hardest, most awful decision I've ever had to make, but she is at peace now. Craig and I were with her as she passed, and I know she knew we loved her.

I probably haven't had more than 6 hours sleep since Saturday night when I realized she was very sick. I'm going to post a memorial blog just as soon as I can get it together long enough to do so. (I've written most of it, I just haven't added the pictures.) Our other cat, Shiva, seems a little more needy than usual too, and you can tell she occasionally looks around like she expects her companion to just come around the corner. But with a little patience, and a little extra love and attention, I think she will adjust okay. (I'm not so sure about me.)

The vet is going to have her ashes returned to us, so when Craig and I move to our new home, we can place her in a comfortable, sunny spot where she can always stay a part of our family. Craig's dad also suggested we put a birdbath near her, and I thought that was a really nice idea.

So please love your own furry family members a little more tonight, in memory of the dear, sweet little friend who had so much unconditional love for everyone, and whom we all loved so much. We will miss her.