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Freqflyer...I bet it was your Father,sending you and the female cat a sign alright.Why else would you both notice it,and by your Father's bookcase? She loved you both so much...
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FF Katie is at peace. Life was becoming a burden and now she is with your parents and looking down at you appreciating everything you did out of love to prolong her life. She can never be replaced but will never be forgotten. RIP Katie
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I think the upside down banana cream pie must be the saddest thing I've ever heard: like Auden's "...for nothing now can come to any good." No wonder you've never forgotten it, BB.
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FF, I'm so sorry to hear about your loss! Losing pets is hard, to me, because they demand so little and enrich us in so many ways.

As to cumulative grief.....

My dad's parents died within a year of one another. I don't recall my dad showing any emotion during those difficult times, but....

One evening, a few weeks after Nana passed away, my dad brought home a banana cream pie. He was very excited about it and after dinner, took the box carefully out of the fridge, only to discover that he had placed the box in the fridge upside down. He burst into tears.

I was terrified and asked my mom " why is daddy crying about a pie?". She shushed me and said, " he's not crying about the pie; he's crying because Nana is dead". A good first lesson in psychology.
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Wow, FF, I'm moved to... not quite tears... but misty. lol I'm so glad you had such a great cat. I love how you described her - electrical engineer meets prison warden. And the story about your dad's bookcase... I've always been more dog person than cat but having a cat is much more feasible for me. I've been wanting to adopt for some time. You've convinced me that I need to do it as long as my new place (I'm still looking at places right now) allows for cats. Cat's middle name will be Katie.

Thanks for sharing about your awesome cats, FF. (((((hugs)))))
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Who takes care of the cats in heaven? Maybe they help take care of us, just like on earth?

Gershun, Can your cats dial out, have some soup delivered?
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FF so, so sorry for your loss. The loss of a pet is a unique type of loss. They are everything to us and they love us unconditionally. So I totally understand what you meant. You will see her again FF................

I like to picture my lost pets sitting with Mom in heaven.

Take care FF! :(
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FF
Sorry for your loss; perhaps it is the cumulative loss that is taking a toll now
Take it easy today
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Thank you all for your kind words. My fur babies were like children to me. This morning the emotions ran again when I noticed her collar was on my dresser.

I think my feeling of such loss with the cat compared to that of my parents, was that the cat gave me no problems at all. None of this we can manage on our own which my parents use to say... or calls saying they were going to start driving again... you know the drill. The stress was mild with the cat compared to my parents.

"Katie" lived in my bedroom after her lst stroke last year, thus it was her "assisted living" studio. She only went downstairs if I carried her to give her a change of scenery. And she slept with me  every night as she insisted on being close to me as I was her "caregiver". In the past she was quite independent, petting on her terms, not a lap cat, would roam the house with a high level of authority.

While Katie was in the ER, I noticed at home a certain unusual odor over by where I have my late Dad's bookcase filled with some of his books and knick knacks. My sig other and our male cat couldn't smell it, but the other female cat did,... she even stood up to look into the bookcase. And would eye the bookcase every time she went by. This went on and off for two days. I know this sounds weird, I was wondering if my late Dad [who passed in Sept] was trying to tell me that it's ok, he will take care of Katie when and if she joins him.
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It's not odd, that you felt losing poor Katie more acutely.

I meant to say something insightful about why it's not odd. But I can't find the words. It just isn't, that's all. Hugs x
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So very sorry for your loss, FF.

There must be a meadow somewhere.....over the rainbow bridge somewhere....where our pets will wait happily for us.

You will miss Katie, but you never let her down.
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Freqflyer,
I'm so sorry for your loss of dear old Katie.You did everything you could have to help her at the end,and you gave her 17 great years of your Love.I know you will miss her so much and I pray that you meet her again someday.Many {{{Hugs}}}, Lu
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Awww, sorry you lost your fur baby FF :(
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Sadly we had to say good-bye to our old gal, Katie, this afternoon. The Vets did everything they could, Katie had taken a turn for the worse. Oh how we will miss her, as do other pet owners who really cherish their pets.

I believe in her former life she was an electrical engineer plus a prison warden. She could figure things out. She would take her toys from the toy box and arrange them in geometrical figures. And she would take no gruff from the other two cats, especially the male cat... if looks could kill she could stare down him with the pupils of her eyes getting bigger and bigger. She was a helicopter "parent" to the other female cat. She had 17 good years with us, came as an abandoned cat.

What is odd is that I cried more for her passing then that of my parents, who passed in their 90's.
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Update on my elder cat at animal ER.... she is in the ICU section. An MRI was done on her brain to see if there were any tumors, none... there is indication of very mild dementia... and yes, she had a stroke. Then there was the issue of her oxygen level, so she is on a ventilator and a blood clot was found in her lung. They are now trying to break up the blood clot and wean her off the ventilator.... this could take days.

The only reason we are going through all this, is that the cat is a tough old bird... she bounced back from other health issues over the years with amazement. And she learned on her own how to walk after her previous stroke, and how to communicate with us her needs.

This animal ER is always packed with pet owners, as they offer all services there. Our cat needed a sonogram on her heart, so there was an animal cardiologist on-site. She needed to see a neurologist, yes there is a group on-site. There is also physical therapy group, and a cancer-care center. It's like going to a people hospital.

The other two elderly cats at home just noticed that "Katie" hasn't been around since Tuesday. The cat in the hospital is the alpha cat, so the two at home are confused.
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Send, yes I am happy,yet very overwhelmed.
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Update on elder cat at the animal ER.... she is staying overnight there, the ER ran a whole battery of tests, thank goodness this cat is cooperative and understands that people are trying to help her.

We will pick her up tomorrow once her blood pressure goes down to a normal limit. The Vet said the cat was sitting up on her own and moving about... oh my gosh, as this morning she couldn't do anything by just lay flat, couldn't pick her head up. Animals can be amazing :)
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Sharyn,
Just cannot wait to hear about your new house-when you get time, of course. Are you so very happy?  Get well soon!
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Tiger and Midget did as well as can be expected for traveling 650 miles. We put tiger in the laundry room for the first 2 hours here to help him reduce his stress. He is adjusting well. Midget is adjusting as well and both tend to follow me around the house all day.

Hubs and I are adjusting too, resting today as I came down with bronchitis.
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FF, hope it is good news. So sorry, our pets are family to us.
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So sorry FF. Keep us updated on kitty.
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Gershun, oh my gosh, yes there is always a trail around the house. There I am running with paper towels and old newspapers trying to get the paper under them, without freaking them out.

Sendhelp, the Vet now gave me a script for liquid thyroid meds which can be mixed at a pharmacy with chicken.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Well, this morning at 5 a.m. we were at the emergency ER with the oldest cat... she had another stroke during the night... poor baby... I honestly thought we would need to put her down but the ER vet sounded very positive. A neurologist will be checking the cat out this afternoon.
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How is your mom's roomie liking her kitty MsMadge?
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ff,
The only thing new is the thyroid meds.
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Lol @ FF. It could be the cheese.............I sometimes let my cats drink the leftover milk at the bottom of my cereal bowl. If I do it too often I wake up to what looks a vomit massacre. Do your cats start vomiting in one spot and work their way around the house like mine do?
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Was at the animal ER yesterday because one of my elderly cats was having tummy issues. X-rays were clear. Vet gave her something to calm her stomach.

Now, for the next two days I can only feed her 4 small meals a day... so that means picking up all the dry food that I leave out. My gosh, the other two cats went nuts about what happen to their all day smorgasbord. There was a lot of pouting, temper tantrums [at 4 a.m.] , and litter kicked out of the littler boxes in spite.

Knock on wood, no clean ups from tummy-issue-cat. I need to narrow down what was bothering her. Too many Temptation treats? The cheese I used so I could get her to take a pill [she now needs thyroid pills]? The soft treats to tried to use to hide the pills? The whip cream she likes? Her morning dab of butter [real butter]? Potatoe chips?
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"Catgiver" is kind of appropriate at our house Send,so I must've had a slip of the tongue.I give the kittens all my patience,my off key silly made up songs,clean litter boxes,clean bedding,tons of toys and a scratching post and 2 other scratchy scratches,a cat playhouse.shelves to climb on,a whole room ,every flavor and texture of food,recesses,Vet care every penny I have at the grocery store and Lots of my Love and they give me ALOT of Love and accept me how I am and joy and a lighter heart,so it goes both ways I think.I give and they give...The Catgiver's thread....for short....yeah,seems right to me.
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Muah ha ha ha.
Luckylu just renamed this the 'Catgiver's Thread' for short.
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We'll see......
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Send,
Better than a live cat on a dead body, though - just say'n
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