Nineteen years ago, I got a little kitten. She was tiny and malnourished, but she had a strong will to live. I named her "Cagney". She was tiny--only 4 weeks old and was a true "ugly duckling". Apparently, her mother had been hit by a car and she was the only survivor in her litter. She had huge patches of fur missing and her little eyes were protruding. She was covered in fleas so I had to wash her (Lassie flea soap for dogs was all I had in my house!) about 3 times before the water stopped turning orange. As I held her in a towel to dry her, I had to keep tapping her head because I was afraid she had died. She was just resting and mewed loudly when she woke up. I didn't have any cats at the time, so the only thing I had in my house that she might be able to eat was some bologna. She tried eating--It did NOT go well. On her third feeding, she was finally able to hold it down. I took her to the vet who told me that if she had gone another 24 hours without being found, she probably wouldn't have made it.
One of my neighbors had just gotten a kitten--about a month or two older than mine, and her dog did not like the little baby so she would bring her kitten to my house every day, to play with my kitten, while we were at work. Finally, she asked if I would keep the kitten because it was getting too stressful for her to keep the dog away from her. Her name was originally "Blackie" (I thought HOW ORIGINAL) and changed it. I'm sure you can guess what my favorite tv show was at that time--she became "Lacey". Her name suited her--she was a delicate little cat with spring-loaded legs--her weight never got over 7 lbs her entire life and she could jump amazing heights. She loved cheese, popcorn (she would "kill" each kernel before she ate it) and ice cream. Oh, she also had to have crushed ice in her water bowl. Every time someone got ice out of our freezer, she would squawk until they gave her some.
Cagney grew up to become a beautiful tortoise shell. Lacey was a petite little black cat with one white whisker. They were my constant companions for the majority of my adult life. They went through moves and break-ups, and they never left my side. No matter what happened, they were there with me. They never stopped loving me and in return, I pampered and loved them.
Christmas of 05, Cagneys kidneys started shutting down. Our vet--the BEST cat vet in the world--came over to our house and taught me to give her fluids intraveniously. Cagney saw the year 2006 arrive and she left us a few days later. I was devastated. She was the baby I had nursed to health, who loved me unconditionally. And she was gone.
Lacey missed her sister. For weeks after Cagneys death, Lacey would curl up on Cagneys spot on the sofa. Finally, she moved back to her favorite perch on the back of the sofa, right behind my head. She had our other pets for company: Davey--our 3 year-old dog, Sammy--our 9 year-old cat, then this past Christmas, Skye--a 2 year-old cat joined our family. Lacey oversaw everything. When a guest would come into our home, she would inspect them and give her approval. In 19 years, I never saw her dislike anyone. She would even let my 2-year old nephew hug her. And he wasn't gentle about it, mind you!
A week or so ago, Lacey started declining badly. She would hide (very unusual for her), and I had to search the house last night to find her. This morning, I sat with her and told her how much I loved her and how much she meant to me. Janet took her to the vet because I had to work early today. Around 8:45, they called me to let me know it was time for Lacey to leave us. Our vet said she appeared to have a tumor or growth in her stomach and that there wasn't much she could do. So at 9 this morning, Lacey left us.
Nothing I could say in this post could even begin to describe how much love and loyalty those little babies gave me. I miss them more than you could imagine.
Right now, I hope she is playing with her sister, Cagney, and that she is no longer in pain. And I hope she knows how much I love her.