Thursday, April 29, 2010
George - gone, but never to be forgotten.
I think we were expecting this day.
But it feels so sad.
Our George Cat has died.
Bless him - he did with it a minimum of fuss.
Yesterday he was his normal self - up on the table beside me at the computer, rolling pens onto the floor.
He ate food in the evening.
And he died during the night.
We have seen him have "funny turns for a while now", which have worried us. But he always recovered quickly.
We thought that they might be mini strokes. Last night it must have been the big one.
We found him on the door mat by the back door.
George has been my constant follower for almost 14 years. He always needed to be near me.
After my times in hospital he was always anxious if I wasn't the first to come down stairs in the morning and rushed to check up on me.
And his twin brother has also been his constant companion.
Harry seems quiet and confused - but how long does a cat's memory operate?
George was a Wiltshire cat. Roger and Sue brought the pair of them to us one June Saturday in 1996.
Roger and Sue were with us for a social event the next day.
It is slightly quirky that the social event was a big party for Uncle Billy's 70th birthday.
And George died just 2 days after we lost Uncle Billy.
Here he is - our tiny little kitten.
The kittens were named after our fathers.
The one I picked up first was named after my Dad, Harry and the one in Bill's arms became George after Bill's father.
We became able to tell them apart - but many couldn't and we did use different coloured flea collars for a long time, just to be sure.
Here is a selection of photos over the years which show typical activities and places for George and Harry.
George has been washing Harry all his life - right up to the end.
Both the cats loved Ashley.
.jpg)
George on the right.
.jpg)
One is George and one is Harry.
.JPG)
George would often sleep for a while on the corner of the garage roof - opposite the kitchen window.
.jpg)
He always preferred to have his water from the bird bath.
Both cats enjoyed looking out of the window - but George was King of the Table.
Cuddling and scrapping - and above all trying to attract our attention to get their food a little early.
"Who's on Mummy's chair then?" Familiar words when we arrived back home.
.jpg)
On the table.
.JPG)
This was the last photo taken of George - sitting at the top of the stairs a couple of weeks ago.
But it feels so sad.
Our George Cat has died.
Bless him - he did with it a minimum of fuss.
Yesterday he was his normal self - up on the table beside me at the computer, rolling pens onto the floor.
He ate food in the evening.
And he died during the night.
We have seen him have "funny turns for a while now", which have worried us. But he always recovered quickly.
We thought that they might be mini strokes. Last night it must have been the big one.
We found him on the door mat by the back door.
George has been my constant follower for almost 14 years. He always needed to be near me.
After my times in hospital he was always anxious if I wasn't the first to come down stairs in the morning and rushed to check up on me.
And his twin brother has also been his constant companion.
Harry seems quiet and confused - but how long does a cat's memory operate?
George was a Wiltshire cat. Roger and Sue brought the pair of them to us one June Saturday in 1996.
Roger and Sue were with us for a social event the next day.
It is slightly quirky that the social event was a big party for Uncle Billy's 70th birthday.
And George died just 2 days after we lost Uncle Billy.
Here he is - our tiny little kitten.
The kittens were named after our fathers.
The one I picked up first was named after my Dad, Harry and the one in Bill's arms became George after Bill's father.
We became able to tell them apart - but many couldn't and we did use different coloured flea collars for a long time, just to be sure.
Here is a selection of photos over the years which show typical activities and places for George and Harry.
George has been washing Harry all his life - right up to the end.
Both the cats loved Ashley.
Maybe because he looked after them when they were less than 6 months old. We were in Slovenia.
.jpg)
George on the right.
.jpg)
One is George and one is Harry.
.JPG)
George would often sleep for a while on the corner of the garage roof - opposite the kitchen window.
.jpg)
He always preferred to have his water from the bird bath.
He ignored the bowl of clean fresh water that we gave him.
He would ask to go out for a drink after eating - he did it yesterday, just as every day.
Both cats enjoyed looking out of the window - but George was King of the Table.
Harry is sitting there now - I lifted him and put him there and he is liking the freedom to look out.
Cuddling and scrapping - and above all trying to attract our attention to get their food a little early.
Harry doesn't seem to want to eat this evening.
"Who's on Mummy's chair then?" Familiar words when we arrived back home.
George would always move over onto the table quite quickly.
.jpg)
On the table.
.JPG)
This was the last photo taken of George - sitting at the top of the stairs a couple of weeks ago.
Both Bill and I have shed a few tears.
We invest much love towards our animals.
We have been blessed to have owned some characters. Hey - does one ever truly own a cat?
During the morning we took him to the vet who has treated him over the years.
I had hankered to take him to the woods and bury him under leaves - but Bill didn't think that was appropriate.
We have looked for ways to feel more whole today.
We enjoyed a cup of tea with Julie this morning.
This afternoon we moved my computer and the dining room table.
This was something I have thought of a few times - including yesterday even.
I now have the computer facing the window and can just lift my head to glance at comings and goings. I don't know what George would have made of it.
I shall now listen to what the 3 party leaders have to say about their views of the financial future.
Unreal sort of day.
Labels: home and daily life
